Sustainability
Off the Grid with Tesla’s Powerwall
Every year, BuildingGreen names the ten best green building products “transforming the design and construction industry” and helping to solve environmental problems. One product we are particularly excited about is Tesla’s Powerwall and Powerpack Onsite Energy Storage. As we work towards designing more energy efficient multi-family housing, the use of alternative fuel sources (such as solar panels) becomes more effective….
USGBCMA Green Building Tour: 450 Kendall
Claes Andreasen and I will be co-leading a tour of 450 Kendall Street along with representatives for owner BioMed Realty and AHA engineers. 450 Kendall Street was awarded LEED Gold certification earlier this year, making it the sixth building within BioMed Realty’s Kendall Square development to become LEED certified. To register for the tour, which will take place on March 24th from…
Planning for Net Zero in Cambridge
Recently the USGBC MA’s Advocacy Committee hosted guest speaker Susanne Rasmussen, Director of Transportation and Environmental Planning for the City of Cambridge. Cambridge is leading the way for a net zero future in Massachusetts, and their policy can provide ideas for other municipalities to create successful plans for their communities. Susanne spoke about Cambridge’s Net Zero Plan, the process for developing it,…
Modernizing Historic Buildings
There are a lot of interesting, historic buildings in Boston, and increasingly less space available for new development. As a result, developments like Congress Square are enhancing the best parts of historic buildings, and thoughtfully adding to them to create needed additional space, combining the best of both worlds. An added benefit of building up, opposed to demolishing, is that…
Tesla Drives to the Future
Last year, Elon Musk of Tesla announced that they were expanding beyond cars, and launched Tesla Energy. He said, “Our goal is to fundamentally change the way the world uses energy.” While it seems hard to imagine how a small car company can change the way the entire world uses energy, I recently attended a presentation by Tesla’s Chris Walti,…
Shop for a Greener World
After my second year of co-chairing the only sustainability conference in the world to focus on retail store development, I can proudly say that ICSC RetailGreen is changing the equation of development. Just to scratch the surface, the changes in ‘normal’ construction since the conference began eight years ago are tremendous: LED lighting is ubiquitous even in the sacred space…
Cambridge Net Zero Breakfast
Join me as the USGBC MA’s Advocacy Committee welcomes Susanne Rasmussen, Director of Transportation and Environmental Planning for the City of Cambridge. Susanne will be speaking about Cambridge’s Net Zero Plan. Cambridge is leading the way for a net zero future in Massachusetts, and their policy can provide ideas for other municipalities to create successful plans for their communities. Listen as we discuss…
Visiting the Net-Zero Energy Test Facility
In Gaithersburg, Maryland the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has built a Net-Zero Energy Residential Test Facility (NZERTF), which I was able to visit while participating in Greenbuild DC. It’s home to a four-member robot “virtual family” and a lab to keep track of the energy data that their household produces. The house is used to demonstrate that…
Greenbuild 2015
Greenbuild 2015 in Washington DC was as busy as ever this year. From a conversation with James Cameron to educational sessions to checking out new products on the expo floor and school building tours, I was able to make great connections with all that is happening in the world of green building. As the COP21 climate talks begin today in…
Great Marsh Resiliency Planning
The North Shore’s Great Marsh Coalition kicked-off its Living Shoreline Project by hosting the first in a six part workshop series at the Salisbury Public Library last Friday. Through an interactive community workshop, the Coalition and several partnering organizations built upon the Great Marsh Symposium which took place earlier in the month. As a guest speaker, I worked with residents…