energy

Green Guru Gone Wrong: William McDonough. Cradle-to-Cradle“‘I want to be the Bill Gates of sustainability,’ [I want] to make a royalty off of every green standard and every green product out there.” Proprietary, litigious, self-promoting... in a biting profile Fast Company punctures the mythology around William McDonough and his various projects. While the arrogance of architects comes as no surprise, there’s a lot to unpack here about where for-profit “social ventures” can set back the very causes they ostensibly support.
>  25 November 2008 | LINK | Filed in , ,
Sea Change. Architecture 2030 has published a series of satellite photos illustrating the impact of global warming on 108 coastal cities. The images dramatize a sea level rise of both 3 meters and 5 meters.
Tampa Flood
>  20 September 2008 | LINK | Filed in , , ,
Fossil Fools. This April 1st saw a host of organized pranks, hoaxes and actions on climate change, oil and coal in the U.S., UK, Australia and New Zealand. April Fool’s Day is a hard context to punch through, but could this be the start of a May Day-like tradition? A more direct-action Earth Day?
>  8 April 2008 | LINK | Filed in
The Other Congestion. “Buildings in the [New York City’s] commercial sector, alone, which includes offices and retail space, kick out 25 percent of all emissions (transportation, by contrast, accounts for 23 percent)....

Two months before Bloomberg and his Office of Long Term Planning and Sustainability rolled out PlaNYC 2030, London’s Mayor Ken Livingstone released his own 148-page report called the Climate Change Action Plan. The two documents are strikingly similar in approach and have been applauded by environmental and business leaders alike. Yet there is at least one conspicuous – and significant – difference between the London and New York reports. The London plan devotes a full section to commercial and institutional buildings – analyzing in minute detail their energy use, recommending ways to improve efficiency and outlining various regulatory measures intended to force the commercial sector’s hand. New York City’s report, however, has no such section.”

>  15 October 2007 | LINK | Filed in , ,
Guiding Principles of Sustainable Design. A nice little publication from the National Park Service, circa 1994.
>  26 February 2007 | LINK | Filed in , , ,
New York City Local Law 86. Passed in October 2005, New York City Local Law 86 became effective on January 1, 2007. It requires all new construction using $2 million or more of city funds to meet sustainability standards that are at least as strict as LEED silver. An unhappy consequence is that it just got even more expensive for affordable housing developers. (Though some are finding ways of greening without going LEED.)
>  18 February 2007 | LINK | Filed in ,
CitySol. This past Sunday was the third in a series of free outdoor parties promoting environmentalism in NYC. The summer festivals along Manhattan’s East River waterfront combine “renewable energy-powered live music..., interactive exhibits showcasing key innovations, practices and policies for New York’s sustainable future, and a green lifestyle marketplace.” This Sunday, Per Scholas was also out collecting electronics for recycling or refurbishing and redistribution to low-income families. Reader Colin sends a link to pics of Sunday’s festivities on the NYC IMC. The next event takes place on September 24.
>  17 August 2006 | LINK | Filed in , , , ,

All City, 2

Back in town and still catching up, but here’s an quick update on a recent blog item:

On Monday, June 5, 2006, the US Conference of Mayors adopted the ‘2030 Challenge,’ a resolution committing to a timeline for reducing greenhouse gas emissions by all new and renovated city buildings to the point that all new city buildings are carbon-neutral by 2030.

On May 31, 2006, the City of Santa Fe became the first city in the US to formally adopt the ‘2030 Challenge’.

The 78,000 member American Institute of Architects formally adopted the ‘2030 Challenge’ in January 2006.

>  14 July 2006 | LINK | Filed in , ,

All City

Skyline

The American Institute of Architects National Government Advocacy Team and Architecture 2030 are urging the US Conference of Mayors to adopt Resolution 50 which sets a goal of carbon-neutral city buildings by 2030 — that is, new city buildings will use no fossil-fuel or greenhouse gas emitting energy sources to operate.

The orgs are asking people to call their mayors this week before the meeting in early June. Background information, talking points, sample letters, and contact info up http://www.architecture2030.org/news/index.php

The text of the resolution reads like a nice little manifesto. Click below for the full text.

And how rare and wonderful to see a professional association engaging with progressive public policy!

Continue reading "All City" »

>  20 May 2006 | LINK | Filed in ,
>  20 May 2006 | LINK | Filed in , ,



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