Abundance Blog
News and ideas from Paladino's team of industry leaders.
What role does Commissioning play in Net Zero Energy for new and existing buildings?
By Darren Bruce
This post highlights the important role that building commissioning must play in any Net Zero Energy strategy. A Net Zero Energy project is a building or group of buildings with significantly reduced energy loads, such that 100% or more of…
USGBC’s Zero Waste Initiative, TRUE. An interview with Susie Westrup
The most important thing to understand about any certification is that it is a back-check on sustainability efforts. So we encourage our clients to understand their certification options in order to choose the certification that best supports their organization’s broader…
Why Net Zero Water?
Why Net Zero? Throughout the world, and certainly, in the United States, communities are facing significant water-related challenges. The United Nations projects that global water demand will outstrip the supply by 40 percent by 2030. Shocking news reports about cities like Chennai,…
What the Washington, DC Omnibus Act Means to the Real Estate Industry
In 2017, Washington, DC became the first LEED Platinum city in the world. Next, DC may be the first Net Zero City in the world, thanks to the passing of the Clean Energy DC Omnibus Act of 2018. The Clean…
Net Zero Energy is here. Are you ready to certify?
Developers are seeing increasing pressure from regulators to pursue net zero energy and carbon in their new construction. There are also incentives for operators of existing buildings to pursue a net zero energy goal. A third-party certification serves as a…
Real estate trends for 2019 and beyond
The ways that architects, developers, and operators design projects, attract tenants, manage costs, and measure success are each flexing as cities change and generations make big shifts in living habits. We’ve observed several trends in the commercial real estate industry,…
Are you ready for DC's new net zero energy goals?
In September 2018, Mayor Bowser announced that the City of DC is targeting new and ambitious energy goals as part of Sustainable DC 2.0 during the Global Climate Action Summit 2018. Sustainable DC 2.0 is a five-year update to the…
Does getting to zero have lasting value?
By Tom Paladino
As renewable energy technologies get better and cheaper, the concept of achieving net zero energy – and lasting value – is getting noticed by building owners and developers. Our clients want to know how a building can produce its own…
You Can Stop Spending More on Sustainability
By Dina Belon
Let’s get one thing out of the way: you can spend more on sustainability. That is a truism. But what if I told you that sustainability measures can be achieved without spending a dime? If your obstacle to sustainability is…
Yogi Berra’s Wisdom Applied to Net Zero Sustainability Costs
By Tom Paladino
Returning Joy to Sustainable Building The late great Yogi Berra said, “If you don’t know where you are going, you might wind up someplace else.” I believe where we are today in green building is not where we thought we…