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Welcome
This months edition includes information on a range of relevant environmental initiatives - local and global.
Don't forget to note two important dates in your diary - 16 November will mark the celebration of the Green Building Council's 3rd birthday 'Greens on the Greens' lawn bowling event and 30 November is the 'Business of Sustainability Conference and Trade Fair'. You can find more in the 'Events' section of this newsletter.
We welcome our newest members: Abigroup Contractors, Allstaff Airconditioning (VIC), Energetics, Green Design Indoor Plant Hire, Hansen Yuncken, Mellor Gray Architects and Powerscape.
Maria
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News
If you need to improve your green building presentation skills we are offering eight people the opportunity to join the Green Building Council team on a fantastic presentation course. Could you benefit from attending?
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Despite it being a windy night in Melbourne, over 100 property and construction professionals attended the Melbourne Forum (30 August) which focused on the "Demand for Green Buildings". Speakers included Daniel Grollo, Joint Managing Director, Grocon; Roger Kluske, Manager Sustainability, Victorian Property Group and Tom Cantwell, Partner, Phillips Fox. Chaired by Maria Atkinson, Executive Director of the Green Building Council, participants were given three uniquely different and fresh views on how the government and industry is responding to the demand for green buildings. The next Melbourne Forum will be held on 25 October 2005.
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The US Department of Energy has an online database of environmental attributes of buildings from around the world. The database includes residential and commercial developments; interiors and whole campuses. It includes projects with green certification or with one or more notable environmental features.
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The World Business Council for Sustainable Development has released a brief and informative report on what is happening to the world's water supply.
Less than 3% of the world's water is fresh - the rest is seawater and undrinkable. Of this 3%, over 2.5% is frozen, locked up at the Poles and not available to us. As humans we therefore can only rely upon 0.5% of the world's fresh water which we must also share with our precious ecosystem.
After agriculture, industry is the second largest user of water.
The report includes suggestions for what industry can do to alleviate water stress.
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'The Environment, Nature's Wisdom' is the theme of World Expo 2005 in Japan, acknowledging the need for a new direction for humanity, which is both sustainable and harmonious with nature. There are numerous displays from around the world (121 countries and four global organisations are taking part), many of which show innovative, yet practical solutions for a more sustainable world.
The Expo, which is being held in Aichi, Japan will run from 25 March 05 - 25 September 05, during which time 15 million visitors are expected.
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A study has been done identifying the top ten green schools in the United States. Those undertaking the study looked to the United States Green Building Council's LEED standards, as well as a number of their own insights and impressions to come up with criteria for picking the schools.
The award-winning Clackamas High School in Oregon managed to earn a silver LEED citation for its 265,000-square foot green building on a 4l-acre site. Linking architectural intentions to Amory Lovins' Rocky Mountain Institute, which deals with complex, energy-efficient systems, Boora Architects secured a 44 percent reduction in energy consumption. Students were encouraged to join in creating full-scale mockups of buildings to test daylighting and ventilation through convection along with both sustainable energy and long-life materials.
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Are you interested in green procurement? The Australian Environmental Labelling Association has put together an overview of a range claims about the environmental credentials of a number of Australian products. Several statements, policies and programs are explained in order to help us understand the relevance and meaning behind the claims.
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Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and the United States have joined together to create a new Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development.
The agreement states that the partnership is consistent with efforts under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and will complement but not replace the Kyoto Protocol.
Prime Minister Howard has described the Agreement as 'fairer and more effective than the Kyoto Protocol'.
The WWF has suggested that 'an agreement on climate change that doesn't limit pollution is the same as a peace plan that allows guns to be fired'.
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Green building rating schemes are not all about energy efficiency and saving trees anymore. They also address issues which affect occupant wellbeing, and this is starting to take on real commercial value in the marketplace.
Companies are realising how important the indoor building environment is to staff productivity and they are demanding greener buildings for higher profits.
The building industry is responding to this demand by using green building rating systems to advertise the quality of their building while manufacturers are bringing new 'green' products onto the market.
This article examines some of the green building rating systems that Green Building Councils around the world have adopted, and the astounding response from their respective building industries.
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The national green purchasing database provides, for the first time, an Australian listing of products and services on the basis of their actual environmental performance.
The product information available includes:
* quantifiable environmental performance information;
* pictures and manufacturer contact details for each product;
* key product life cycle impact information;
* a spreadsheet format allowing easier comparisons;
* introductory technical material to help you consider the different environmental loads.
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Green Star
The enthusiasm for our Green Star Accredited Professional courses continues this month, with the 7 September course in Canberra selling out weeks in advance. There are five more courses planned for 2005. If you're interested in attending, we recommend you book early.
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We're looking forward to our two new Technical Managers joining the team at the end of the month. Providing the Green Building Council of Australia with an international perspective - our Senior Technical Manager, Michelle Malanca, joins us from San Francisco and Technical Manager, Elena Kosheleva Bondareva, is coming from Moscow.
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Contact
Contacts
For queries regarding membership and sponsorship:
Suzie Guthridge
Business Development & Marketing Manager
suzie.guthridge@gbca.org.au
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