Greetings with the short list of November happenings:

November is here with that snap in the air. Many of our community were able to attend Greenbuild in New Orleans and now have a new snap in our steps. Greenbuild is a very energizing and empowering experience. 

I brought home a lot of new knowledge about the industry, about our movement and the future of the USGBC, and new motivation to grow our organization to make a difference in our communities. It was great to see so many of our Chapter Members there. I think we'll have over 100 folks from our team in DC for Greenbuild next year!

I think many of you can agree with me that greening the buildings and improving the infrastructure(s) of our communities for sustainability is the most important and practical thing we can do to respond to our environmental challenges and the imperative of social justice.

As an organization, we continue to provide learning, advocacy and networking opportunities.

Our "Voters Guide" is a summary of talking points that you can use to consider how candidates and initiatives stack against our priorities and our mission. Take a look!

Upcoming events:



Advocacy Call - Mon 11/10

Net Zero Mandate for Mass: w/ Sen. Jamie Eldridge - Mon 11/10

Networking Night: Membership recap of Greenbuild - Tues 11/11

Healthy Materials Summit at Google - Fri 11/14

Green Breakfast Club: Greenbuid & ABX report-back - Tues 11/18

Sustainable Dinner with the Emerging Professionals - Weds 11/19

A lot of information is getting onto our blog now - events, programs, advocacy campaigns and more. Following our blog is another way to keep track of our opportunities.

Thank you for subscribing to our mailing list, and don't forget to check us out on LinkedIn, twitter and facebook!

Grey Lee
Executive Director


 The Living Building Challenge on Thursday 11/6 

How will we push the envelope on building design and construction to really see a transition towards sustainability in our communities? Read more here.

 

This will be an intense workshop on how the Living Building Challenge works and how our organization can promote and advance the utilization of this important tool to stimulate the achievement of more green buildings in Massachusetts. 

 

            












 A Mandate for Net Zero in Massachusetts?  
A conversation with Senator Jamie Eldridge - Monday 11/10 

What's next in regards to building codes? What can we learn from our energy efficiency frenemy California? Can we legislate net-zero buildings in the coming decades? Sign up here to join us.

 

            












 Come to our collaborative event with the Sustainable Design Leaders of New England!


Friday, November 14th, 2014


 

You can earn 4 GBCI credits for attending this event.
 

Speakers include:

Nadav Malin, BuildingGreen

Bill Walsh, Healthy Buildings Network

Denis Darragh, Forbo Flooring Systems

Tracy Powel, Assa Abloy

Heather Henriksen, Harvard University

Melissa McCullough, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

 

                                




Other Chapter Activities:

Committee Meetings:

Residential Green Building Committee: Topic is "The Potential for a Net Zero Mandate in Massachusetts," with Sen. Jamie Eldridge - Monday, 11/10 from 5:45-8pm at 50 Milk St, Boston. More information here.

Advocacy Committee: Conference call Monday, 11/10 3:00-4:00 in Boston. More info.

Membership Committee: Tuesday, 11/11 5-7pm in Boston at Nitsch Engineering. This meeting will coincide with the November Networking Night. Meet and Greet!

Green Schools Committee: Thursday, 11/20 6-8pm in Boston. Link here.

Credential Maintenance in-person webinars: 


Home Performance Audits: Wednesday 11/19 4:30-6pm in Boston

A net zero school for tomorrow's leaders: 11/20 6-7:30pm in
Worcester

Green Home Certifications and Labels 101: Tuesday, 11/25 12-1pm in Boston 

 

Mayor Tom Menino's Green Building Legacy

 

by John Dalzell, Boston Redevelopment Authority; USGBC National Board of Directors

 

Remembering Mayor Thomas M. Menino

Before LEED and USGBC became a globe movement, Mayor Menino set Boston on a path to lead the nation in green building.  From the 2007 first-in-the-nation green building zoning requiring large scale projects to meet LEED certification, to promoting green affordable housing, to greening municipal buildings and operations, Mayor Menino transformed practices and the local market place.  And from hosting the 2008 GreenBuild Conference, which brought 28,000 sustainability leaders to Boston, to partnering with the Center for Green Schools to place a sustainability Fellow within the Boston Public School system, the Mayor brought green building to every citizen and student.

Today, Boston is home to over 150 LEED Certified Projects spanning almost 40 million square feet of building and including the first ever E+ (energy positive) LEED Platinum homes.  In the process, Mayor Menino taught us "it's not just about the buildings themselves - its about the people inside."  Although Mayor Menino's leadership will be missed; his inspiration will carry us forward.
 

Below: at the LEED ceremony for Atlantic Wharf, Boston's first LEED Platinum Skyscraper

    



2014 LEED Project Showcase videos are ready to view 

Through our media sponsor New England Real Estate Journal, we have created videos of the Showcase, of our major sponsors, and more. 

 

An Overview of the LEED Project Showcase 2014

 

The Chapter's new Membership Video 

 

Check it out at the USGBC MA Youtube Channel for all our new videos! 

 

            



















Emerging Professionals hold the first Sustainable Costume Party 

Including: "Resiliency and the Zombie Apocalypse Phenomenon"

 
On Thursday, Oct 30th, the Emerging Professionals (EPMA) hosted a "Sustainable Costume Party" together with Net Impact Boston. Dozens of people turned up in their best sustainability-themed costumes. 

Guardian Industries graciously supplied the goodies to eat and drink - and let us know that they are the "go-to" team for exterior building glazing solutions. They have some great stuff!

We heard a brief but intense presentation from Shawn Hesse, of emersion DESIGN, considering the similarities between climate change resilience and how to prepare for a Zombie Apocalypse. Thank you Shawn - there is a lot of insight to be gained from considering the way we can shape our built environment to be better at responding to these types of challenges.

   


Green Apple Day of Service: More Green Schools!

 

We have a few more service projects to report back to you all about:

The Center for Green Schools reports that Green Apple Day of Service 2014 brought together hundreds of thousands of volunteers participating in 3,760 service projects in all 50 states and in 42 countries throughout the world. Thanks to everyone for making the 3rd Annual Green Apple Day of Service a success! 

 

Thank you to the sponsors of the mini-grants:  NStar, National Grid, Arrowstreet, Re-Stream, Triumph Modular, Capitol Waste Services, and in-kind sponsor Excel Dryer. 
 

Below: McKinley Middle School w/ YouthBuild Boston hunting those phantom loads!

 

   



Advancing the Design and Adoption of Safer Materials in the Building Sector

 

Wednesday, December 3 in Boston

  

This FREE one day workshop is to build understanding and facilitate collaboration between designers, health professionals, material specifiers, and investors that support the design, adoption, and scaling of safer materials in the building sector. By building innovative collaborations, we will be better able to identify and overcome challenges in this sector as well as identify opportunities to build a marketplace for safer materials. The workshop will provide a forum for these different groups to discuss their needs, challenges, motivations.


Speakers Include:

  • Gail Vittori, Co-Director, Center for Maximum Potential Building Systems
  • Amanda Kaminsky, Sustainable Construction Manager, The Durst Organization
  • Monica Nakielski, Project Manager, Sustainable Initiatives, Partners HealthCare
  • Pam Eliason, Senior Associate Director, Industry Research Program Manager, Massachusetts Toxics Use Reduction Institute
  • Ram Nagarajan, Associate Professor of Plastics Engineering, UMASS Lowell

Registration includes access to the sessions, light breakfast, lunch, and an evening reception. This event is hosted by the U.S. Green Building Council and UMASS Lowell in partnership with the USGBC Massachusetts Chapter.

 

    


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The UChapter LogoSGBC Massachusetts Chapter is a non-profit organization serving the sustainable design community throughout the Commonwealth by providing a wide range of green building education, networking and advocacy services. 

For more information visit: www.usgbcma.org