The USGBC Massachusetts
Chapter  Newsletter
 
                             MA logo
 February 2010
In This Issue
Chapter News and Announcements
Person Spotlight: New Operations Consultant
Upcoming Events: 2010 Innovation in Green Design Award
Advocacy: Massachusetts Stretch Code
Education/LEED: Call for Course Submissions
Events, Announcements & Jobs
Chapter Events

Events

LEED
Study Group

Committee Meetings

The next Deeper Green Committee meeting is Feb. 24th 5:30 -7:30 at 75 Arlington St, Boston (9th Floor)

Boston LEED Users Group (BLUG)
Feb. 23rd - 6pm
at Nexus
Chris Ripman discusses SSc8 -
Light Pollution Reduction

The Education Committee seeks interested volunteers to help organize LEED Users Groups outside the immediate Boston area. Please contact Education Committee Chair Chris Schaffner
[email protected]



Get Involved

If you're interested in becoming connected to USGBC, want to gain leadership opportunities and work with passionate green professionals, then the USGBC Massachusetts Chapter
is the group for you!

Sign up for 2010 Membership
 

Join now!
 
Join a Committee:

Boston's Emerging Green Builders

Deeper Green

Regional & Statewide Outreach

Education

Communications & Membership

Advocacy

New Committees:

Fundraising

Events

We are still looking for a Chair to lead the Fundraising Committee. Email [email protected] to express your interest.

Send an email to find out more about the committees and how to get connected.

EGB Elections

EGB Elections. You can nominate yourself or someone else for a position. Here are the positions that are open. Nominations will run until Friday, February 26th.

Officer Positions:
- Boston EGB Co-Chairs
- Secretary
- Events Committee Chair
- Design Competition Committee Chairperson


To learn more about the positions or run for a position, go to
bostonegb.ning.com

Community Events



If you know of an upcoming community event, please email
[email protected].
with the details and we will post it in our next newsletter.






Chapter Newsletter


Interested in writing for the Massachusetts Chapter newsletter?  Please email Carrie at chavey@
ConcordSqDev.com



Jobs


To submit job opportunities for posting in this newsletter, email
[email protected].


Join our list
Join Our Mailing List
Greetings!

Welcome to the Massachusetts Chapter newsletter.  This monthly newsletter brings you news, upcoming events, and opportunities for involvement from the Massachusetts Chapter of the USGBC.  We are excited about our upcoming website, which will be online by the end of March.


Chapter News and Announcements

The Chapter Welcomes New USGBC MA Board Members
by Melissa Santley 
 

At the close of last month, our members  chose nine new Board Members as stewards of the organization.  The new Board Members will join ten continuing members to oversee the Chapter functions; ensuring a structurally social, fiscal and environmentally responsible organization that meets the needs of its members. 

 

All Board Members serve two years.  We are grateful for  the dedication and hard work of our past board members: Iram Farooq - City of Cambridge; Peter Gorer - Faciligies; Nathan Gauthier - Harvard University; Mark Rollins - Shawmut Design & Construction; and Chris Schaffner - The Green Engineer. 


We are also grateful for the support of our continuing board members: Stephen M. Benz - Sasaki Associates; Robert Brooks - Walden Collaborative; Patricia Cornelison - Arrowstreet Architects; Meredith S. Elbaum - Sasaki Associates; Rosalyn D. Elder - Division of Capital Asset Management; Emily Greenstein - Citizens BankWilliam L. Holland; Julia Ledewitz LEED AP - MIT;  Erik Ruoff - The Green Engineer; and Brian Swett - Boston Properties. 

 

As we thank the dedication of the continuing Board Members, we would like to congratulate new members to the Board: Neil Angus - Devens Enterprise Commission; Andrea Atkinson - Scopa Group; Phoebe Beierle - The Green Roundtable/Nexus; Martine Dion - Symmes Maini & McKee Associates; Jacquelynn Henke - Allston Development Group, Harvard University; Norman Lamonde - Turner Construction Co; Jim Newman - BuildingGreen LLC; Gregory Sampson - Robinson & Cole LLP; and Jennifer Taranto - Structuretone


And congratulations to our new Executive Committee!

Jenn Taranto - Chair 

Jim Newman - Vice Chair
Emily Greenstein - Treasurer
Pat Cornelison - Secretary
We would like to give a special thanks to Steve Benz, our past Chair, for all his hard work and dedication this past year. 


New USGBC MA Committee Chairs

Congratulations to our new Chapter Committee Chairs.  All Chairs will serve a one year term.


Mark Webster - Regional & Statewide Outreach Committee Chair

Christopher Schaffner - Chair of the Education Committee

Jaime Macfall - Chair of the Deeper Green Committee

Marcus Springer - Chair of the Advocacy Committee

Stacy Boyden - Chair of the Events Committee

Suzanne Robinson - Chair of the Membership Committee

Caroline Havey - Chair of the Communications Committee


Click here to learn about each of these great committee's and contact the Chair to learn about upcoming meetings and events.

Person Spotlight

Welcome to Our New Operations Consultant!


Suzanne

Suzanne Abbott is our new Chapter Operations Consultant. Previously, Suzanne was the Regional Director of EarthShare New England where she was consistently dedicated to the mission of motivating individuals and organizations in creating a healthy and sustainable environment.  Her work with the environmental non-profit federation focused on managing the annual giving campaigns of environmental and conservation charities.  In providing leadership to the donor cultivation process, she supported over 100 organizations by representing member groups at workplace giving campaigns in local, state, government, and corporate platforms.


In recent years, Suzanne has also served on the Board of Directors for Sports Saves Souls as the Development Director. Suzanne is a LEED accredited professional specializing in Building Design and Construction and has a B.S. in Environmental and Resource Economics from the University of New Hampshire.


She resides in Reading with her husband and 5-year-old son.

Upcoming Events

Earth Day - Innovation in Green Design Awards 2010
by Brendan McCluskey

Although many were left feeling disappointed after the anticlimactic Copenhagen Climate talks and the environment seems to be at an ever unstable place, lift your heads as we have something to celebrate: the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day! At this pivotal time the new USGBC MA Chapter is excited to bring the Massachusetts community together to celebrate all the good that we are doing and inspire an even greater level of change in our industry.

To celebrate, the Chapter is planning their 3rd Annual Earth Day Celebration (stay tuned for details) and the Call for Entries is now open for the Innovation in Green Design Award. The Award Program is specific to entries that were built, implemented or created in Massachusetts and this year entries will be grouped into two categories - Building Construction or Green Product/Technology. Learn more about how to submit your project, product, or technology and download the application here. Winners will be recognized at the Earth Day event in April.

In 2009, Sasaki, a renowned design firm, was awarded the inaugural prize not for any project they were working on, but an internal program they established in their office. GreenLAB is a program Sasaki instituted at their Watertown offices to experiment with new green materials and methods and increase awareness to green-minded professionals. The project was particularly successful as it was replicable and some of the technologies were even applied in other company locations.

Read more...  


Submissions are due no later than 5:00 PM on Wednesday April 7, 2010.

Sasaki's Winning Submission
Advocacy
The Massachusetts Stretch Code
by Douglas Tierney

A new energy efficiency mandate, known as the Stretch Code, is headed to many cities and towns in Massachusetts. Its road was paved back in July of 2008, when Massachusetts passed the Green Communities Act, which required all municipalities to adopt the new and more stringent version of the energy efficiency code, known as IECC 2009. This effectively sets the minimum level of energy efficiency, but also includes an appendix, the Stretch Code, which gives cities and towns the option to raise the bar even higher. The Stretch Code represents an approximately 20% improvement over the IECC 2009, and uses the HERS rating system for performance verification, although there is also a Prescriptive compliance path for renovations and additions.

In early November of 2009, Newton became the first town to officially adopt the Stretch Code, with Cambridge following suit in December. One would be hard pressed to find a municipality that has not at least debated the issue, and over the next few months it seems likely that the ranks of adopters will multiply several times. In addition to doing their part, towns that adopt the Stretch Code take a large step towards achieving "Green Community" status, thus becoming eligible for $10 million in annual funding. The other criteria require as-of-right zoning and expediting permitting for renewable energy, a municipal energy management plan with a commitment to 20% reduction within 5 years, and a commitment to purchase only fuel-efficient vehicles for municipal use.



Chapman Construction/Design Headquarters in Newton, MA received LEED-CI Platinum certification.  Image Credit: Chapman Construction.
LEED/Education

Education Committee Announces a Call for Course Submissions

The USGBC MA Education Committee is accepting applications to develop and present vendor-neutral, educational programs related to high performance and sustainable building practices.   In accordance with USGBC MA's mission to provide its members with educational resources, the Chapter intends to gain certification for up to ten (10) GBCI-approved courses in 2010. Certified programs will be hosted and promoted by USGBC MA under the GBCI Education Provider designation. Attendees will receive continuing education (CE) credits supporting their LEED professional credential maintenance.

USGBC MA is accepting applications for 2010 courses that meet the following requirements:
  • Minimum 50 minutes of instruction time
  • Content geared to increase the competency of LEED professionals, and support valid green building practices in a vendor-neutral manner
  • Developed and presented by instructor qualified in the subject matter
Submit Your Program Today!
Please submit an application for course review to USGBC MA Education Committee Chair, Chris Schaffner ([email protected]) by March  15, 2010. Include at a minimum the following information:
  • Abstract or outline describing course content
  • Learning Objectives (What will participants gain from attending this event?)
  • Primary audience (Building owners? Residential contractors? Architects? Engineers?)
  • Instructional time
  • Brief bio describing Instructor's qualification to present this content
Sincerely,

 Chapter Logo

Massachusetts Chapter Newsletter Editors:
C
aroline Havey, LEED AP
Jim Newman