The Other 99%

There are 4.9 million commercial buildings in the US.

In 2009, more than 275 projects achieved LEED-EBOM certification. Compare that with only 12 certified projects in 2004, 11 in 2005, 17 in 2006, and 27 in 2007. (Stats taken from the Center for Sustainable Systems) For me it's very hard to hold those numbers in my head at the same time. And while I know it's not really a fair comparison to pit the entire commercial building stock of the US against a program that's only 6 years old, I hope I'm trying to make is clear. Existing buildings are the key to sustainability, if we are to achieve it in this country.

But this is a challenge so large, how shall we meet it? With the literally billions of square feet that need to be retrofitted throughout the country how can we possibly come up with a strategy to handle it all. When it comes to scaling sustainability I believe there are two core principles that our industry must utilize in order to do our part to solve the national energy crisis.

Stress what matters to most clients...ROI

When discussing scaling green building, there is often a discussion around education. The argument goes if building/business owners simply understood sustainability more clearly they would of course embrace it en mass and we'd rapidly grow a market that achieves wide scale. Sadly, I believe in our day and age everything is politicized and "green" is seen as something only some folks will be interested in. The job of greening America's building stock is a big one, and we cannot afford to make green building something only folks in blue states are interested in. We simply cannot afford to align the green building as a movement, liberal (i.e. Al Gore), or otherwise. Doing so will marginalize 49% of Americans and immediately inhibits scale. The scalable market for sustainable measures isn't found in the passionate few who think about sustainability every day. It's found in the greater population of business and property owners who don't. If we want green to scale to those folks we have to make the simplest most compelling argument possible. ROI - simple return on investment. There is a very real link between sustainable retrofit/renovation and cost savings. Exploiting that link and making green building not simply something that is done for altruism and prestige, but in the pursuit of profit is the only way to grow the market.

I know this strategy is limiting. By focusing our efforts only on those measures that are most profitable we limit the scope of what a green retrofit can be. However, given the enormity of the task at hand...we must get to work now...

Profitability is also the "gateway drug" to larger sustainability efforts by property owners and managers. Once business and property owners begin to see the benefits of simple efforts toward greener operations, the doors will open to a wider world of possibilities. We didn't get to this lousy building stock overnight...we can't expect to correct it overnight.

The Perfect Cannot be the Enemy of the Good. (Or, Incremental Change is OK)

When it comes to the greening our existing building stock we have to recognize as an industry that every building won't be able to employ every measure of sustainability in our tool kit. That doesn't mean we do nothing. It means that we attack the problems we can with every client every, every time. Affordability, return on investment and durability of retrofits are key selling points. At this point the most compelling argument for this kind of retrofit is being made in lighting technology. Lighting currently consumes about 25% of energy in commercial buildings. But promising new LED sources/fixtures along with improved lighting controls are becoming proven technologies that can be widely deployed at relatively little cost. We can right now, reduce the impact of lighting in the commercial buildings of the United States by incredible sums. I recognize that simply retrofitting a lighting system doesn't turn a brown building green, but if it makes a dent, we should take a swing.

One last thought...incremental change to system as large as the US commericial building stock is probably preferable to wide scale change anyway. Imagine if you could have waved a wand in 2005 and put the best CFL replacement lamp in every single building in America. Later this year we'd be disposing of them in favor of even better LED alternatives.

It is a testament to the brightest thinkers of the green building community that they want to design and build structures with a minimum or a net positive effect on the planet. I applaud those efforts and want to see them continued. But unless as an industry we can go after the other 99% of buildings in the US, we will not have solved our energy problem, we will only have some examples of buildings and technologies that could.


Can we make every small business green?

Before you get on the subway in my neighborhood and head into Manhattan these are some of the buildings you encounter. I've only been in some of the store fronts but from what I can gather none of them have been retrofitted in a very a long time. Knowing some of the shop owners as I do, I know that many of them don't think about sustainability on a daily basis. They're thinking about closing the next rental deal on an apartment or restocking their shelves with magazines. Maybe they are thinking about staffing for the next party at the bar. The owner(s) of these buildings probably isn't thinking about keeping them sustainable, he/she just cares that the rent comes in.

To my mind these folks aren't going to be swayed by arguments about the imminent threat of global warming or reducing dependence on dirty energy or forgien oil or even national security. These shop owners and business people are just barely making a profit and just barely keeping their employees paid. They don't have the resources to attack the problems of the nation. So how do we bring long term sustainability to these folks? How do we affect all buildings - not just the ones with an altruistic owner or one desperate to have a LEED plaque in the vestibule?

It starts when the green building community can accept that the perfect should not be the enemy of the good when it comes to reducing resource consumption. Ideally, a block like this would get completely redesigned. Buildings would get renovated with greener, healthier materials. Layouts would change to make better use of daylight. Perhaps options like green roofing, or window replacement would be considered. But for these business owners, locked into long term leases, the best thing might be to retrofit their lights, and install occupancy sensors...the point here is that we might have to nibble at sustainability, but it's no less important to bring the concepts of conservation to these so-called down markets. Can we prove that green retrofits are profitable? Can we show them that their are real dollars to be saved from this kind of investment? How do we incentivise green for these folks...we must prove that it's a smart choice for all businesses.

What steps can we take to make sustainability more affordable for every business?


A Little Fabric Shop...

I love walking around my neighborhood (Astoria, Queens) because it's one of those areas of NYC where you get a true cross section of the population. There are some upper middle class, middle class, and working class folks of every ethnic and religious denomination. You're as likely to run into a white out-of-work actor as you are 2nd generation land owner leaving his local mosque. The other great thing about Astoria is that it's a great case study for small business environments, especially retail. Raquel and I were walking home when she decided to stop into the fabric shop along the way. The place was full of patches, brightly colored yarns, sewings kits, and bolts of fabric. It had the potential to be so exciting a place, so welcoming an envrionment, yet it wasn't. It was, instead this cold grey pall was cast over what should have been a vibrant visual array of fabric and supplies.

I didn't even have to glance upward before I realized the cause. The place was lit exclusively with 5000k T12 fluorescents and not evenly. Look upward and you saw that the fixtures were open, you could see the harsh lamps directly overhead. Worse than that the ceiling tiles were hanging down or removed in some cases to reveal the tin ceiling from whenever the place was built above. As I walked around the space, I couldn't help but think that this place needed a renovation, not just because it was lighting the space inefficiently but because it was lighting the space poorly. And therein lies why I find the sustainble retrofit market so exciting. The opportunity for these kinds of projects is everywhere, literally everywhere. As designers, builders and specifiers, let's look around and find our next opportunity. If I were pitching this shop owner on a retrofit, it wouldn't be to save the planet by being more efficient. I would tell him, he'd sell more fabric if his customers could see everything more clearly and in the proper color, and that he'd save money on his electric bill if he used less of it. I didn't pitch him this past Sunday, but the week is young... perhaps this little fabric shop in Queens will be Build2Sustain's first customer.


The opportunity is everywhere

When it comes to opportunities for sustainable retrofit and renovation. There really is no limit to what's possible. I have a 10 block walk to the subway everyday to get to midtown. In those 10 blocks there are literally thousands of square feet of commercial real estate that are in need of retrofit or renovation. That's to say nothing of the millions of square feet of residential space. It's time for smart financing options and business savvy design to scale sustainable practices to every neighborhood.

Here's my challenge to you. Talk about sustainable options to one business owner you might not have this week. Get their feedback. It could be your local grocer or your mechanic. Talk to someone who you might not think would traditionally "get it." I bet you'd be surprised how ready people are for sustainable options. The key is not to tell them what to do. Nobody wants to be told what to do. And don't sell either, talk to them. Ask them how long they've been at their location. Do they like it? What would they change. Nearly anything an owner would change can be swapped out for something more sustainable. I challenge you to do that this week.

Until sustainability is everywhere it's really nowhere. That includes the local laundromat, the hair salon, the deli. It means the world we live in every day. Let's go fix it.

LEED EBOM as an Agent for Great Change

This month, we are pleased to have Sheri Lucas share her perspective and experience with LEED EBOM.  

Sheri has been charged with introducing sustainable design, construction, operations and maintenance practices into Wells Fargo’s retail banking stores since 2005. With over 12 years experience in retail real estate strategy, this LEED AP loves the win-win game of increasing efficiency while reducing environmental impact. Sheri has a BS in Interdisciplinary Studies from Boston University and is currently studying for the GMAT while juggling her love of hiking, baking, and photography. She can also be found on Twitter and the Wells Fargo Environmental Forum.

EBOM, EBOM, EBOM. I utter this acronym with every other sentence. It seems LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance has become the love of my life. 

Yes, I really do love EBOM. Not because I’m a masochist. No, because EBOM is so much more than prereq’s and points and templates and calculations and performance periods. EBOM is a much-needed agent for greatly changing the way we do business, from floor to ceiling, from input to output. Nearly everything that happens in and around the four walls of every business is covered by EBOM.  

I’m stating the obvious when I point out that EBOM is designed for our existing building stock. And that stock is beyond enormous. According to the EPA, in 2002 there were nearly 4.9 million office buildings in the US alone. Anyone familiar with LEED knows the built environment has significant impact on the natural environment, its occupants, and the communities that surround every building.  

This is what makes EBOM so vital. We can wax poetic about the brand new NC Platinum high rise all we want, but most of our buildings already exist. Most are not optimally performing. They ingest precious resources like it’s going out of style.  

Oh, that’s right, it is going out of style!  

I’m also sorry to say that most of those pre-existing buildings aren’t very pleasant to be in, whether it’s due to bad lighting or lousy air quality.  

So there you have it. EBOM is the most important of all the rating systems. My hope is that more building owners jump on this bandwagon and stat. We have a lot of work to do. 

But there’s more – something I didn’t realize when I first elected to roll EBOM out across a couple thousand buildings. EBOM not only focuses on the physical system and structure, it focuses on our on-going, day-to-day habits, procedures, and events. And even while we’re still compiling our prerequisite submittals, we’re already triggering great changes across our footprint.  

We’re working with our contract management team to secure a recycling component to our waste management contracts. We’re working with our purchasing teams to ensure our supplies are environmentally friendly in a meaningful way. We’re designing an integrative green cleaning policy. We’re measuring our greenhouse gas emissions and aiming for our benchmarks. I could go on and on. 

But what do I mean by “meaningful” environmental-friendliness? Well, the ever-important certification path associated with all the rating systems necessitates a rigorous approach. That third-party nod confirms we’re walking the talk. This is immensely important, especially in consideration of all the hard work that goes into eliciting great change. We want everyone to know we understand the difference between green and greenwash. Meanwhile, there is currently lack of strong national green business certification in the marketplace. There is no widespread independent system for verifying sustainable practices within the four walls. 

Stephanie Rico, from our Environmental Affairs group, recently commented to me, “We have great localized green business programs like San Francisco Green Business, but recognition from one local body isn’t going to resonate in another town across the country. Having a nationally recognized system for verification would be my dream come true.” Well, Stephanie, I have some good news. To my (pleasant) surprise, much of EBOM covers actual business practices. I often find myself telling people it not only addresses the building itself, but everything that goes on inside, as well. And certification of those efforts is indeed on a national scale. 

In seeking to reduce our impact, we looked to EBOM as a way to reduce our buildings’ energy use. What we hadn’t recognized was how effective it would be at greening our daily practices. We’re already seeing great changes. And I’m excited to witness the ongoing expansion of those changes as we continue on this path.

Week in Review

Missed some of our content this week?  Here's a quick snapshot:

The number one issue that resonated most with you was that Your Office Sucks. We love seeing how many people identify with the issues we raised.  We'd love to hear a bit more about your experience in workspaces and what exactly you hate about the space you work in now (or have worked in the past).  The comment section awaits!

We also challenged you to think beyond Mediocre when it comes to the building stock of this country.  Because no one wants to be mediocre.

Holding fast in third place is my post from last Friday about The Trouble In Going At It Alone: a commentary on my experiences and observations at an Education Facilities Forum.

And if you're new to us, be sure to check out our Podcast and let us know what you think!

The Trouble in Going at it Alone

This past Monday, I attended an Education Facilities Forum to get to know some product vendors and build relationships.  Overall, it was a good experience.

But, I observed as the day went on how things get done in the education world.  Here were these representatives from schools (colleges, private schools, and public school districts) talking to various product reps about things they anticipated needing.  Someone is looking to retrofit their library and ask about lighting sources or a new control system.  They like what a product rep says, and they will likely order and install it without a second thought.  I understand that schools often have very sensitive budgets and this makes them feel as though they're spending less money.  But I have some concerns.

One is that they won't know what questions to ask.  Take the person who's looking to do a library retrofit.  What if they love the idea of LED fixtures that a rep introduced to them.  They're low energy, not as expensive as other LED products shown to them in the past, and will last for 15 years without the hassle or expense of swapping light bulbs.  Sounds perfect.  But they never thought to ask, what happens 15 years from now?  And years later, when the first fixture fades or fails, they may be surprised to find that the only way to "relamp" is by tearing all the fixtures out and replacing them with new ones. Schools stay in business a lot longer than 15 years.

Secondly, aside from helping them get the best products for their situations, having a professional advocate can help any facility make sure they're getting the most bang for their buck.  By taking a little extra time (and yes, money) with a professional to plan your retrofit/renovation, you can ensure that you are focusing on the systems in your building that will give you the most savings.

And that's where Build2Sustain comes in.  We're out to convince all of these property owners, tenants, and facilities managers that hiring a strong team who will take the time to think about your space as a whole and make smart choices for you will save you money both in savings and avoidance in costly mistakes in the short- and long-term.  It takes the courage to think and do things differently, but we want to help.  We want to find your team and make sure you attain your goals.  Join us.

Commercial Real Estate Investment Company to "Green" its Entire Portfolio

The NY Times yesterday highlighted Jamestown Properties, a German commercial real estate company that is planning on undertaking sustainable renovations for all of its US properties.  You can read the full article here.  In the article, Matt Bronfman, the managing director and COO, mentions a "European perspective" as a reason why.  I am fairly certain that this perspective is just as conscious of company profits.  Here at Build2Sustain, we dedicated an entire white paper to the business benefits of sustainable renovation.  How long will it take for American companies to see the advantages in making similar investments in their holdings a high priority?