Today the EPA released its second annual ranking of U.S. metropolitan areas with the largest number of buildings receiving the Energy Star label in 2009. California cities took two of the top three slots, but that's no surprise as these cities are at the forefront of green building.
At the beginning of every year, there's a tradition for the industry to talk about trends. We've done it in the past, but this year we reviewed trends published by Jerry Yudelson and the Earth Advantage Institute. Now, EcoHome Magazine has published it's own list of seven green trends that will impact homeowners and green building professionals. Here they are:
The Living Building Challenge, run by the Cascadia Green Building Council, is growing in popularity these days. Referred to as one of the most advanced green building rating systems in the world, it's growing, I believe, in part because of its rigor. The Challenge is performance based, which means a project has to perform as modeled for one full year prior to receiving certification. Currently, four projects (see below) are racing to be the first to obtain Living Building Challenge certification.
Sean Penrith, executive director of the Earth Advantage Institute, a non-profit based in Portland that certifies green buildings, recently published a list of ten green building trends to watch in 2010. It's quite the interesting list, I think you'll agree. While you're thinking about these trends, don't forget to read up on Jerry Yudelson's Top 10 Green Building Trends of 2010, as well. The following is a synopsis of the trends discussed by the Earth Advantage Institute:
Jerry Yudelson, a prominent leader in the green building world, recently published his annual top ten list of green building trends. As founder of green building consultancy Yudelson Associates, Yudelson is an author of 11 green building books and past chair of the Greenbuild (2004-2009). He’s a big deal. In mostly his words below, check out what’s in store for green buildings in 2010:
It's always hard to imagine what will become popular and what won't. This year, the juggernaut by far was the Clayton Homes i-House. In prior years, Digg and StumbleUpon determined the most popular articles. In 2009, these sites didn't have much of an impact on what we're doing. (Maybe we need more controversy, argumentation, or lists or something?) Readers seem to be flocking to Facebook and Twitter … in any event, take a look on the most popular of last year.
