Tag: leed

February 5, 2019

Monthly Forum: Affordable Housing Overview, The Path to Better Affordable Housing

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The City, State, and Federal governments have provided subsidies for affordable housing for decades, but this housing is not built by them, it is built by developers. Many years ago, the belief was to build the housing as quickly as possible, which caused much affordable housing to be of modest yet horribly inefficient quality. Today, such housing meets or exceeds most sustainability standards, and tonight’s developers were among the leaders in this change over the years, and remain there to this day. Listen to the process and progress in this field, and decide if you might want to join this field by listening to these accomplished leaders.

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Our speakers will include:

Les Bluestone has been involved in real estate development and construction industries for over 35 years working in New YOrk CIty and surrounding areas. Co-founder of Blue Sea Development Company and Blue Sea Construction Co., his firms developed and built New York State’s first affordable Energy Star Homes and New York State’s first three affordable LEED Platinum multifamily buildings. A former Board Chair of Habitat for Humanity NYC, Les is a founding board member of the Center for Active Design, sits on the boards of the New York State Association for Affordable Housing, the NYC Workforce Investment Board, and was appointed by the Governor to the NYSERDA Green Jobs Green New York Advisory Council.

Luke Falk is Vice President of Technology for Related Companies. His group drives technological innovation (including capabilities around energy management, marketing, adtech, IoT, and integrated experiences) at Hudson Yards, the largest private real estate development in the history of the US. Previously he was the Assistant Vice President for Sustainability in Related’s New York Development Group. In that role he developed distributed and renewable energy generation projects, and improved the energy performance and resilience of new and existing developments. He led the sustainability design of over a dozen LEED silver, gold and platinum buildings representing over $5B in capital investment including the tallest passive house in the world for Cornell Tech in New York City.

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November 28, 2017

September Forum Recap: Spotlight on Hudson Yards

by Jennifer Urrutia    

Photo source: ny.curbed.com

Residents of the New York City “concrete jungle” are no strangers to construction and development. And while development is booming in New York City, there has never been a project quite like Hudson Yards, the largest private development in the history of the United States.  Hudson Yards is located in Midtown West and will consist of 18 million square feet of office, residential and retail space, three parks, and 14 acres of gardens and plazas.  It will be populated by 40,000 workers and residents, and up to 65,000 visitors per day.  The vast scale of the project, coupled with building a platform to span active train tracks, posed new levels of complexity for Related Companies, the real estate firm responsible for the project.   The GreenHomeNYC Forum, “Spotlight on Hudson Yards”, was co-hosted with AEE-NY and ASHRAE New York at the New York Institute of Technology, and drew a crowd in excess of 80 attendees. Three senior executives from Related Companies took the stage to discuss Hudson Yards’ operational sustainability initiatives, energy performance tracking, and building commissioning and asset management.   (more…)

February 3, 2017

All the News From the Green Catwalk

by Thomas Storck   GreenHomeNYC launched another year of monthly forums with the annual Green Catwalk, featuring seven speakers who discussed the latest “green” news.  From Saudi Arabia to New York City, challenges remain.  But, in New York, in particular, much is being done to overcome them. The speakers offered insight into what needs to happen in order achieve our climate goals, the progress we’ve made already, and the programs and opportunities that are in the works right now.   Development in the Desert While New York City has its own sustainability goals and initiatives, we can’t forget that the climate crisis is a global one. Duncan Prahl of IBACOS, began by taking the audience to the opposite end of the earth, to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In 2015, Riyadh became home to the first LEED-Platinum building in the Middle East. Designed to achieve a net-zero energy balance, it holds 28 kW of rooftop solar PV and has enough batteries to last 24 hours. After two years of serving as a high-level consultant on the project, Prahl shared his thoughts on the challenges of building to such standards in the desert: “I would never recommend doing that again… to anyone.”   (more…)

December 29, 2016

How Green is Your Hotel: Sustainability in the Hotel Industry

by Tamanna Mohapatra   We’ve just been through another holiday season with tourists filling sidewalks, restaurants and New York City hotels. According to NYC & Company, the official destination marketing organization for the city, over 58 million visitors came to Manhattan in 2015 alone, and another 59.7 million were projected for last year. Clearly, tourism is alive and well in the city – and the one thing all tourists need is a place to stay. Although Airbnb and similar types of housing have become popular in NYC, hotels still provide the bulk of accommodations for visitors. But with increasing competition from Airbnb, along with consumer awareness and general CSR efforts, hotels are taking a serious look at their operations with an eye towards implementing green initiatives.     What Exactly is a Green Hotel? Sustainability can mean many things for a hotel. For some, it can be physical, as in being housed in the latest LEED certified building. For others, it can mean working on the nitty gritty details of establishing programs to reuse and recycle soaps and shampoos, or it can mean looking at the big picture by partnering with city government to reduce their carbon footprint.   In Manhattan, 19 major hotels have pledged to reduce their individual carbon footprint by taking part in the NYC Carbon Challenge, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions 80% by 2050. It’s estimated that participation will reduce citywide GHG emissions by 32,000 metric tons and save approximately $25 million in energy costs. (more…)

June 4, 2016

April Forum Recap: Indoor Air Quality

by Jaime Alvarez How do the buildings we inhabit affect our well being? Should we be concerned with the health impacts of the construction materials that go into them? While we are well aware of the hazards of outdoor air pollution and understand its sources, we may understand less about indoor air quality (IAQ). The April Forum provided important insights into what to look out for and what’s being done to address it.   Three experienced professionals including a building consultant, a public advocate, and a medical doctor gathered at the office of Steven Winter Associates to inform us of indoor air quality concerns, tools for measurement, and proven results from green buildings. (more…)

May 29, 2016

The Importance of Healthier Building Materials

  by Kimberly Stempien   green cityUntil recently, little attention was given to toxic chemicals that lurk in construction products. Few building manufacturers disclose a full list of what is in their products because US law does not require it. But as scientific studies continue to link these chemicals to such health issues as cancer, reproductive issues, fetal toxins, autism, and asthma, the issue is gaining much needed attention.   Construction is an important sector to analyze when thinking about trying to reduce environmental toxins. The reason is simple; people are exposed daily, and over many years, to the chemicals that went into the materials that were used to build their own homes. That’s why it’s becoming much more prevalent for builders, architects, and designers to consider an approach that mitigates potential effects on human health and the environment, and they are increasingly turning to certifications and declarations, such as Health Product Declaration, LEED, Cradle to Cradle, and Green Seal, which employ a risk-based approach to consider use of and exposure to harmful chemicals. (more…)

April 6, 2016

April Forum: Indoor Air Quality

image Most of us spend nearly the entire day in buildings: working, sleeping, eating, and of course breathing. However, when thinking about air quality and pollution we tend to first consider the outdoors and keep the indoors as our safe refuge from smog, allergens, particulates and other contaminants. Since we spend so much time inside, most of our exposure to environmental pollutants actually happens inside our homes, workplaces, and everywhere else we stop in between.   Poor indoor air quality resulting from the presence of chemicals, mold, pests, particulates, combustion gases and lack of ventilation may at times only produce bothersome yet less severe disturbances such as headaches, fatigue, irritation and allergies. But in more vulnerable populations such as children with asthma the long term effect may be recurring visits to the emergency room due to continued exposure to asthma triggers.   In a city with so much old deteriorating building stock, and sometimes questionably constructed new buildings, what can we do as individuals to become aware of these contaminants, demand better, and reduce their ill effects? Join us at the April Forum where a medical doctor, a building consultant, and a public advocate share their wisdom about how better buildings, materials, and daily habits can help us improve the air we breathe.   Date: Tuesday, April 19, 2016 Time: 6:30-8:00pm Place: Steven Winter Associates 307 7th Ave, New York, NY 10001 Suite #1901   Click here to get your ticket!   (more…)

March 28, 2016

How WELL Does Your Building Feel? An Introduction to the WELL Building Standard™

By Pamela Berns Imagine waking totally refreshed from a good night’s sleep to a morning light that invigorates you enough to skip your daily caffeine jolt, walking the kids to a school where the air and light quality actually enhance their learning and health, and then heading to a workplace that inspires creativity and collaboration, and helps keeps you fit while you work at your desk. Picture your family living, learning, working in, and traveling to indoor spaces that encourage good nutrition and regular hydration with pure, clean water. Sound impossible?
Phipps Center for Sustainable Landscapes

Phipps Center for Sustainable Landscapes

  As the WELL Building Standard™ (WELL) continues to spread around the world, and the impacts of well building practices on human health continue to be validated, this lifestyle is becoming reality. And given that human beings spend 90 percent of their time indoors, it’s a most welcome advancement. (more…)

January 26, 2016

{Green Careers} January 2016 Recap: Professional Certifications & Exams

by Kimberly Stempien

  2015-01-12_GHNYC Green CareersYou’ve targeted a career in the green building industry – now what do you need to know about professional certifications to further your career?   The Green Careers Group started off 2016 with an informative discussion on industry accreditations.  Students, practicing engineers, and other sustainability professionals gathered at DORMA Design Center to hear three sustainability and energy efficiency experts discuss the importance of different professional credentials, their use in the industry, and informational resources.   (more…)

January 5, 2016

{Green Careers} : Kick off 2016 at our Professional Certifications Event on January 12

As the sustainable building and energy efficiency field grows, so do the possible professional accreditations for people in or entering the industry. Green Careers will start off the New Year with a discussion about these professional certifications and exams. Come and learn what’s out there and why each is important for a particular career path.   Our Speakers Industry professionals will share information and insights about the Certified Energy Manager (CEM) certification, the WELL Accredited Professional (AP) credential, and the various certifications courses that the Building Performance Institute (BPI) has available. Our speakers include: (more…)