Sustainability—You've Got to Live the Life!

While it was thrilling to hear Rick Fedrizzi, President of the USGBC, announce at Greenbuild 2006 that the Council has set a goal to certify a massive 100,000 buildings by 2010, it left me wondering what that implies for us all.

With 2000 LEED certified buildings to date and 30,000 LEED Accredited Professionals that means, in simple terms, there are about 28,000 LEED APs who haven’t been able to do good yet. I wonder, what are they working on, or maybe, what are they working towards?  

A lot of the push around green buildings has been about the building itself: the artifact, the object. If green buildings are so terrific, with 30,000 LEED APs out there, why aren’t we producing them faster? 

I wonder if there is too much focus on the artifact. The LEED scorecard works like a golf card -  everyone is being pushed towards the win. It’s not about changing the process as much as it is about getting the prize. But does the prize have real value if the artifact is only marginally better?

I have a hypothesis that the key to greater acceleration is to actually focus on what makes the thing, not the thing. For starters, that would be those 28,000 LEED APs that are missing in action. 

What might allow them to create green buildings the way they hoped they would; to meet the climate challenge that threatens our way of life? If creating building artifacts with plaques on them is not enough, then what is?

Some of our current clients are beginning to answer that question. For instance, one of the largest REITs in America, considers green building a competitive differentiator. For them, it’s not about the object, or the LEED plaque, it’s about their ability to establish a leadership position by attracting the best tenants. The focus on position has led them to hire designers that can support a valid business proposition that places tenant experience at the center.

And others are looking at the end user experience from a green perspective. For example, if hotel rooms are easy to visit, affording an eco-centric lifestyle while on the road, connecting the adventure-seeking business traveler with the Internet, their exercise or spiritual routine, or even providing a moment of meditation, quiet or an experience with nature, the brand is going to attract guests willing to pay for that.