Greener Buildings

California Winery Becomes First in State to Earn LEED-Gold Certification

GreenerBuildings Staff — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 21:29:00 -0700

With solar power, radiant floors and other eco-friendly building elements, Hall Wines' St. Helena winery has been certified at the LEED-Gold level, one of a growing number of vineyards and wineries that are greening their operations.

AT&T to Switch to 2.6M LEDs in Signage, Save Millions

GreenBiz Staff — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 08:05:00 -0700

By swapping out the lighting on signs in 6,500 of its stores to an LED lighting system from GE, AT&T will save nearly 6 million kilowatt hours of electricity a year.

GE Spotlights Smart Grid Projects for Utilities, Industry and 'Net Zero Energy' Homes

Leslie Guevarra — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 08:35:00 -0700

General Electric says it's uniquely positioned to handle smart grid opportunities and challenges. On Tuesday, the company took the wraps off a series of developments to showcase smart grid -- and GE's -- capabilities. The projects include work with utilities and businesses in Maui, Canada and New Zealand and networked appliances and technology for "net zero energy" homes.

Don't Leave Stimulus Money on the Table

Leanne Tobias — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 03:45:00 -0700

The deadline for local officials to apply for federal funding for energy efficiency and conservation projects is August 10, 2009; here's a quick primer on what's eligible and how to apply.

A New Twist on AAA Ratings: Eco Icons for Green Lodgings

Matthew Wheeland — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 03:00:00 -0700

As both a response to and a driver for the greening of the hospitality industry, the travel group's 2010 TourBooks will point out which lodging options for its 51 million members are certified green.

New Calculator Lays Out Job-Creation Benefits of Stimulus Projects

GreenBiz Staff — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 16:18:00 -0700

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy today released a spreadsheet calculator that will estimate the number of jobs likely to be created by state or municipal energy efficiency projects.

Eco-Friendly Wall Coatings Reflect Well on Green Building Project

GreenerBuildings Staff — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 13:24:00 -0700

Eco-friendly exterior wall coatings that incorporate heat reflective technology helped a Florida office building earn a LEED-Gold green rating and won the project recognition from an industry magazine.

California's Solar Cities

GreenBiz Staff — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 12:55:00 -0700

This report from the nonprofit Environment California charts the growth of solar power installations in California, and ranks that state's top cities for solar development.

Walmart Foundation Helps Fund Green Job Training for Women

GreenBiz Staff — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 08:09:00 -0700

Citing a need for increasing the number of women eligible for jobs in a growing green economy, the Walmart Foundation is partnering with the Business and Professional Women's Foundation to provide green job training for women.

The Power of Positive Feedback Loops

Rob Watson — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 12:34:00 -0700

Understanding the interplay between positive and negative feedback loops is crucial to our ability to create a social and economic New Normal as we confront the New Normal in nature.

How is the USGBC Like Google?

Shari Shapiro — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 11:13:00 -0700

The USGBC recently announced that it is incorporating energy and water usage reporting requirements as a precondition for achieving LEED V3, and Google said it will debut a cloud-based operating system in the next 18 months. Both entities rolled out good ideas perhaps before their time.

Chipotle Earns the First LEED-Platinum Certification Awarded to a Restaurant

GreenerBuildings Staff — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 17:02:00 -0700

A Chipotle Mexican Grill in Illinois with its own wind turbine and a 2,500-gallon underground water cistern to harvest rainwater was certified by the U.S. Green Building Council at the organization's highest rating.

Cisco Debuts the 'Mediator' to Connect and Control Smart Buildings

GreenerBuildings Staff — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 05:25:00 -0700

Networking giant Cisco has rolled out its Building Mediator -- the firm's bid to connect and control smart buildings and their automation systems in order to better manage energy.

DOD Enlists GE for $2M Project to Make Military Base a Smart Microgrid Model

Leslie Guevarra — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 23:14:00 -0700

General Electric, the world's largest industrial company, will work with the Department of Defense in a $2 million project to transform the Twentynine Palms facility, the world's largest Marine Corps base, into a model smart microgrid system.

Climate Corps: The Benefits of Monitoring Your Building’s Performance

Lindsay McCombs — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 11:34:00 -0700

With falling asset values and limited access to capital, many in the real estate industry are spending their time on the next best thing to doing deals: going green. Not only do energy and water efficient buildings have relatively low operating costs, asset managers report these buildings also have high occupancy rates, quick space absorption and proud tenants.