LEED

The LEED for Cities and Communities grant program will support the first 15 cities to seek certification under LEED v4.1

May 25, 2019 - Smart Cities Dive

The need to slash emissions from buildings is increasingly urgent, and critics say LEED won't get us there.

June 8, 2018 - CityLab

In its first year alone, Zero Cottage has produced 22 percent more energy than it consumes. But can such an urban project be replicated in a suburban setting?

November 17, 2014 - Build a Better Burb

An overview of how Los Angeles County’s Department of Parks and Recreation is creating projects that tackle the effects of climate change, by planner Clement Lau.

August 1, 2014 - UrbDeZine

The latest dust up over green building rating systems, especially their efficacy relative to each other, highlights the danger of mixing the ideals of environmentalism with the self-interest of running an environmentalist organization.

May 20, 2014 - Ecobuilding Pulse

If two Ohio state senators get their way, the Buckeye State will be the latest on the anti-LEED bandwagon.

November 11, 2013 - Ecobuilding Pulse

What does it take to build sustainably? That a question that the USGBC's LEED program hoped to define. A group of developers in New York is trying to go beyond LEED to create "truly sustainable buildings".

November 9, 2013 - The New York Times

The USGBC's LEED rating system certainly has its share of warts. But in states across the U.S., the timber, plastics and chemical industries are challenging LEED requirements for insidious reasons: to protect the market for their products.

August 29, 2013 - The Atlantic Cities

Brasilia’s new soccer stadium, the Estadio Nacional de Brasilia Mane Garrincha, is on track to become the world’s first LEED Platinum-certified FIFA World Cup arena. It's also seen as a symbol of the country's over-investment in sporting events.

July 29, 2013 - Green Source

Bob Graves discusses the concept behind Envision, "a holistic framework for evaluating and rating the community, environmental, and economic benefits of all types and sizes of infrastructure projects."

May 22, 2013 - Governing

Norwich, England will soon be home to the "greenest building in the U.K.," reports Mark Wilding.

May 21, 2013 - Building Design

Is a new luxury 6,721 square-foot home located in a gated community on the far outskirts of Las Vegas truly “the new face of efficiency"? Kaid Benfield elaborates on how the LEED certification system can be so easily gamed.

January 23, 2013 - The National Resources Defense Council

NYC's recently released energy efficiency ratings are full of surprises: 1930s landmarks such as the Chrysler and Empire State Buildings outperformed later mid-century structures, as well as contemporary LEED-rated designs.

December 29, 2012 - The New York Times

South Front, in Wilmington, NC, made use of an abandoned and decayed, 40s-era public housing project, salvaging and renovating every building rather than scraping the site. Scott Doyon talks about several of the reasons that's cool.

December 21, 2012 - PlaceShakers

With supporting evidence from a USA TODAY analysis, Thomas Frank examines the LEED points system and finds that certification, and the tax breaks and other rewards that go with it, can be easily obtained without proven environmental impact.

October 30, 2012 - USA Today

Can a new food ratings system do for public health what LEED has done for green buildings? Claire Moloney discusses the certification program being launched by the USHFC that aims to recognize restaurants who use nutrition best practices.

July 31, 2012 - Green-Buildings.com

Championed for over a decade, the LEED certification program has given notoriety to many newly constructed 'green' buildings, but new measures are helping us measure sustainability at the community scale, writes Kaid Benfield.

June 22, 2012 - Switchboard

Elizabeth Daigneau looks at the various ways in which cities and counties can earn eco-certification, including everything from "the roads they build to the vehicles that ride on them."

June 3, 2012 - Governing

Greg Hanscom reports on efforts by FEMA and the Green Building Council to incorporate "climate resiliency" into green building certification criteria in recognition of the increasing effects of climate change.

March 19, 2012 - Grist

Jeffrey Spivak reports on the federal government's pioneering efforts in net-zero building design and construction.

March 12, 2012 - Planning