Green Urbanism
Green Urbanism
Good Housekeeping Green House Dazzles
THEDAILYGREEN.COM. NOV 13, 2008. By Brian Clark Howard
After months of planning, hammering and painting, the Good Housekeeping magazine Green House debuted as the first LEED-certified green private residence in all of New York City. The inspiring, pioneering remodel was undertaken with the expert assistance of Global Green (of Brad Pitt's New Orleans fame) and Connecticut's Steven Winter Associates.
Nestled in among other beautiful brownstones on a quiet, tree-lined street in eastern Harlem, the single-family home had been completely gutted. The property's owners, a pair of Israelis living in New York, had come to the project knowing they wanted a full green remodel. Yet no one involved with the extensive project knew quite how it would turn out.
Los Angeles Launches Green Building Program
The Los Angeles green building program went into effect for commercial projects over 50,000 sf November 1. The standards require projects at that threshold to meet the intent of the United States Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system, at the "Certified" level. The City also offers priority processing to projects on the path to achieving a LEED Silver rating.
Global Green conducted a workshop at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power for interested stakeholders on compliance features of the program. Global Green will continue to provide guidance to the City as the program moves into implementation.
GREEN TO THE PEOPLE: Low-income housing and sustainable architecture
KCET Online. OCT 2008. By Christopher Hawthorne
For this edition of Web Stories, we decided to turn the spotlight away from glitzy green design and look instead at the intersection of sustainable architecture and affordable housing. That intersection, it turns out, is busier than you might realize, and in the next five to ten years is poised to grow even busier. We developed material in four categories -- Community, Energy, Materials & Reuse, and Urbanism -- to help explore the ways in which architects, planners, public housing advocates and others are bringing authentic and effective green design to the masses.
Global Green Cuts the (Green) Ribbon on Eco-Friendly School
TREEHUGGER, OCT 27, 2008. By Marissa Moss
Global Green, Hollywood's favorite environmental non-profit, is showing they have the substance to back the style: last week, they launched their pilot program to create five green schools serving low income children in the Los Angeles area. Along with Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), Global Green unveiled two of the finished projects with a ribbon cutting ceremony. Of course, the ribbon was green. Pics of the school after the jump.
On October 17th the ribbon was cut for Animo Ralphe Bunche and Animo Justice schools in Los Angeles. These schools are in lower-income areas of LA, allowing the students to experience not only a better work environment more conducive to learning, but to be exposed to the possibilities that a greener, more sustainable approach to construction and building hold.
Global Green provided, in conjunction with the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), a $75,000 grant to cover some of the increased costs of making the school green.
LISC, Global Green Move Forward With 'Green' Charter Schools in L.A.
LOS ANGELES, Oct 16, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) has joined forces with Global Green USA on a pilot program to create five "green" charter schools that serve low-income children in the Los Angeles area. Two projects are now complete, with children attending classes, and three others will be considered for the pilot in the coming months.
The LISC + Global Green partnership is intended to not only provide green funding and technical assistance to these new schools, but to also help develop best practices that can be implemented in other green school development efforts across the country. To date, LISC has invested more than $400 million to support green development in disinvested areas.
"Green schools are yet another way LISC is transforming distressed low-income communities into Sustainable Communities...good places to live, work, do business and raise families," commented Michael Rubinger, LISC president and CEO. "Schools are critical community assets, and our partnership with Global Green USA will help these facilities deliver better health, better academic performance and better school operations for their students and the broader community."
Smarter Building: Lean and Green
Allianz Knowledge Partnersite. October 5, 2008.
Architect and urban planner Walker Wells talks about why building green is more than just following a checklist.
Are green buildings still affordable only to the rich?
It's true that green is more expensive, but it adds value, and generally things of greater value have a higher price tag, because it reflects the long-term value that you're going to derive from that initial investment. You will spend more money to get a more efficient air conditioner or better windows. However, that initial investment can be too big of a hurdle for many people, which is why we have historically seen the majority of green buildings built by people who are affluent.
Why is green going mainstream now?
It has really changed in the last three or four years, where a number of these strategies have become pretty affordable and commonplace. There used to be a 25-percent premium to get an efficient, EnergyStar refrigerator. Now there's so little of a premium that some government agencies don't think there's a need for rebates.
Compact fluorescents are still more expensive than conventional lightbulbs, but not as much as they used to be. There used to be one manufacturer of low-VOC (volatile organic compound) paint; now there's four or five.
Green Affordably
CHICAGO TRIBUNE. Sept 21, 2008. By Chuck Greene.
Owners of existing homes also can improve the energy efficiency of their homes, Miller said, with projects such as window replacements, new appliances and insulation, as well as landscaping to take advantage of sun and shade.
It's worth noting that reduced utility costs increase the amount people can afford for rent or mortgage, said Walker Wells, director of the resource efficiency and sustainable communities program for Global Green USA.
For example, a typical green apartment will have electricity and gas costs of at 15 percent less than a standard project, a significant savings for a group that he says typically spends more for utilities than for health care, education and higher-quality food.
"When money is spent on items that create value to the family, there's a net societal benefit."
Green Building Resource Center
SANTA MONICA MIRROR. Sept 19, 2008. By Lynne Bronstein
In the midst of Main Street’s “green area,” near the communal garden and several yoga centers, is the Green Building Resource Center (GBRC). Open since April 2004, the Center is a partnership between the City of Santa Monica and Global Green USA, an organization that helps people with the design and construction of green buildings.
GBRC offers free design advice for building projects, information about environmentally friendly building materials, publications and technical information for design and construction, references to local design and construction professionals, samples of building materials, and monthly workshops about green building topics.
Walker Wells blogs on building green
Walker Wells, AICP LEED AP, is Director of the Green Urbanism Program at Global Green and the editor and co-author of Blueprint for Green Affordable Housing. He is blogging about green building for the new two months on the Island Press website.
Vista Dunes housing complex is affordable and 'green'
THE DESERT SUN. Aug 31, 2008. By Maricar Mendoza
Vista Dunes,off Miles Avenue near Adams Street, received the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Homes Platinum certification for green building standards in August.
Vista Dunes is the first project in the Coachella Valley to receive the certification, which also made it the nation's largest multi-family affordable housing project to achieve the Platinum level of certification, said Ted Bardacke senior program associate with Global Green USA, an environmental nonprofit organization that helped in the certification process.
The certification program, known as LEED, is run by the U.S. Green Building Council.
The more than 300 low-income renters are expected to benefit from energy- and water-saving features from the platinum-certified project.
It’s Getting Easier to be Green
COMMUNITY INVESTMENTS. Aug 2008. By Naomi Cytron
Cultivating the intersections between community development and environmental sustainability
The construction and operation of the buildings where we live and conduct business consume over 60 percent of the electricity used in the U.S. and account for one-third of total greenhouse gas emissions. Inefficient heating and cooling systems, lighting, and appliances contribute to the carbon footprint of the built environment; an old or poorly maintained refrigerator, for instance, can emit over 1,500 pounds of CO2 annually—the equivalent of about 75 gallons of gasoline. Building construction, renovations and operations also consume vast amounts of raw materials and generate heaps of waste; while some building materials are recycled, millions of tons of wood, concrete, drywall, and asphalt shingles end up in landfills. Conventional building practices may also have negative impacts on our health; materials and finishes are thought to contribute to poor indoor air quality and resulting respiratory illnesses such as asthma. The negative impacts of conventional building practices on human and environmental health require that we rethink where and how to design, construct, operate, and maintain both residential and commercial buildings in more sustainable ways.
...While green affordable projects have started to spring up in larger cities around the country, the green revolution has not yet reached all corners. “In more sophisticated markets, the momentum will carry green building forward and it will become the standard,” said Rose Cade, Senior Program Director at Enterprise Community Partners. “But in smaller markets, nonprofit developers are often inexperienced and have limited capacity to integrate green practices. It’s a real challenge to figure out how to deliver the right resources, training, and funding to these places.” Access to environmental consultants, or even to green materials, might be limited, and additional work is needed in determining how to expand the capacity for green building in rural areas and smaller cities.
City of West Hollywood green building program wins award
The California Chapter of the American Planning Association (APA) has awarded the City of West Hollywood a 2008 "Outstanding Innovation in Green Community Planning" Award for the West Hollywood Green Building Program to be presented at an awards luncheon at the State APA Conference on Tuesday, September 23, 2008 at the Renaissance Hotel in Hollywood. As an APA-State winner, the City has also qualified for submission to the National APA Awards Program.
The American Planning Association is a nonprofit public interest and research organization representing 43,000 practicing planners, officials, and citizens involved with urban and rural planning issues. Sixty-five percent of APA's members work for state and local government agencies.
The West Hollywood Green Building Program was written by Global Green USA. Newsweek wrote an article about the program late last year.
Pioneers in the Green School Revolution
GREEN TECHNOLOGY MAGAZINE. FEB 14, 2008. By Racquel Palmese.
When a school district in California wants to build a green school or implement a green school program, they will often call Global Green USA, an organization, headquartered in Los Angeles, that is uniquely involved in the spiraling green schools movement.
Global Green describes itself as an organization that “establishes collaborative partnerships with local governments, affordable housing organizations and other public and private entities to facilitate the development, adoption and implementation of sustainable policies, programs and practices.” It traces its roots to 1993, when Mikhail Gorbachev, the former leader of the Soviet Union, and a man credited with helping to end the Cold War, created Green Cross International (GCI), an environmental organization. Global Green was established that same year, as the US affiliate of GCI.
Ted Bardacke, Senior Program Associate with Global Green USA, spoke with Green Technology Magazine about the organization’s work with California’s green schools.
Building a new home while dreaming in green
SACRAMENTO BEE. January 14, 2008. By Ngoc Nguyen
Annica Hagadorn is carefully building what will become more than just a rural dream home, nestled among pine trees near Grass Valley.
Instead of granite countertops or hardwood floors, she's installing more Earth-friendly cork flooring. She'll have solar panels on the roof to generate all of the electricity she'll need – which won't be too much, she hopes, given the energy-efficient appliances and a thick layer of insulation around her water heater.
Even the house, with its southern exposure, is positioned to make the most of nature's lighting and heating.
Like Hagadorn, more and more homeowners and buyers are interested in Earth-friendly dwellings as new materials and designs and big potential savings on energy make "green" homes more attractive to average buyers.
Small City, Big Impact: How West Hollywood is casting itself as a green leader
NEWSWEEK. Oct 18, 2007. By Andrew Murr.
Being green means different things in different parts of the country. In St. Louis, Seattle and other places, eco-friendly construction standards apply only to city-owned or city-funded buildings. In Boston and a few other cities, green construction codes also apply to major commercial or residential developments.
So which American city thinks it can lay claim to the most comprehensive green building standards? Look west to tiny city of West Hollywood, Calif., a 1.9-square-mile patch of Los Angeles with 37,000 people, making it the city with the highest population density west of the Mississippi. Starting October 1, every private and public development must meet the city's ambitious new green building requirements. The policy includes new construction, rehabs and additions. The only exemptions: duplexes and single-family homes. Requiring so many of the city's real estate projects to meet green building standards puts West Hollywood in the forefront of the move to thrust eco-friendly design closer to the mainstream of architecture and planning.
Energy-efficient affordable housing
THE SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE. June 2, 2007.
In Solara, Poway has built an environmentally pioneering low-income apartment complex that basically powers itself.
Those involved with developing Solara say they wanted to achieve the important balance of providing solidly built low-cost housing to help their tenants, while at the same time making that housing ecologically friendly.
While Community Housing owns and manages 25 affordable-housing complexes countywide where they strive to save energy costs, Wilson said achieving climate neutrality was beyond its expertise. It hired as consultants Global Green USA, a Santa Monica-based nonprofit that combats global warming and nuclear proliferation.
Global Green spokesman Ted Bardacke said the organization helped find ways to make Poway's complex financially feasible, while still using the best materials and technologies available. It helped Community Housing solve problems such as where to find alternative air conditioners that don't run on ozone-depleting Freon, yet don't cost so much that they escalate the cost-efficiency of an affordable-housing project.
After the success with Solara, Bardacke said he's seeing its design become the new wave in public housing projects. His organization has been tapped to assist with several similar fully green projects in California and nationally.
Go Vertical, Young Green
LA WEEKLY. April 28, 2008. By Judith Lewis
With each passing hour in the United States, 365 acres of open space — wilderness, countryside, farmland and native habitat — disappear under the foundations of brand-new houses. ...Unlike so many other ecological nightmares these days, however, this one has a solution: apartment life. Where once the nature-lover’s imperative was to carve out a space in the wilderness and get off the grid, many now realize that polluting the air on long commutes and paving over open space so you can live on it is fast becoming unhip: The Natural Resources Defense Council and the Sierra Club now hand out pamphlets and fliers on "smart-growth" and "transit-oriented" housing; New York City is heralded as a haven of greenness.
And density is the new Rocky Mountain high. "At a certain density you have many more opportunities for the kind of shared infrastructure that saves resources," says Ted Bardacke of Global Green USA, an affiliate of Mikhail Gorbachev’s Green Cross International, with offices in D.C. and Santa Monica. "Whether it’s heating or cooling or composting or [wastewater] recycling, as you get closer together and start linking apartments up it gets cheaper to do everything." Because apartments share walls, they also share heat in the winter and insulation from the heat in the summer. And unless you’re on the top floor, you don’t have a roof. In terms of maintaining a comfortable indoor temperature efficiently, he says, "that’s a major difference."