Green For The Greater Good

I just got off the phone with a builder friend of mine from the East Coast. We hadn't talked for several months and we caught up on kids, family, dogs, weather and all the normal chit chat, then we of course drifted in to the industry talk. He is a green builder and has been for quite some time. He was telling me about his latest project and that's where the fun began.

He's working on a rather large addition to an existing home that sits within 200' of the Atlantic Ocean. He went on to tell me how frustrated he was because his clients wouldn't pay any attention to him when he reviewed the intricate sill pan and flashing details that they were employing to ensure that hurricane driven rain would not penetrate their building envelope.

He was equally frustrated that they could care less about the new zoned heating system with the aerosol sealed duct system, remote programmable controls and the super high efficiency heating and cooling unit. After that he went on to rant that the homeowner took a cell phone call right in the middle of him explaining why they had strategically located the new tank less hot water heater inside the new master closet, close to the master bath rather than down on the main level.

"I don't know why in the H@#$ these people even decided to build green!" he finally said. Now you have to know him to truly appreciate how passionate he is about his craft and green building, but I had to laugh and I replied, "Who cares!!" After a dramatic pause, at which point I thought he might jump through the phone at me, I went on, "What difference does it make WHY they decided to build green, isn't it great that people will now build green even without a reason!"

He conceded that was probably right, after all, not everyone is building green to save the environment, stop global warming, or because they know it's the right thing to do. Not everyone has to build green for the greater good, whatever their reason, just be thankful that they are!

Flat, Hot and Crowded

I've been reading the book Flat, Hot and Crowded by Thomas Friedman, and can't help but keep talking about it lately with anyone that will listen. Not so much do I think that the book is exceptionally well written, and quite frankly the message didn't really need to take 438 pages, but the message is worth hearing.

Friedman's mantra is that with a world so technologically connected, the global playing field is becoming level.=(Flat) Global warming continues at a rate that can no longer be ignored.=(Hot) And finally, the global population will reach over 9 billion by 2040.=(Crowded) These factors combine to paint a pretty scary picture.

What Friedman calls for is a radical change in energy use that will represent an opportunity for the US to preserve its global economic leadership. By creating clean energy ideas that will sell, we can not only stem the outgoing tide of the flat, hot and crowded world, but do it while creating a renewed American focus and national purpose.

Agree or disagree with all of Friedman's facts, predictions and prognostications it will certainly make you think a little.

Creativity and Climate Change

As we all look at new ways to market ourselves and our businesses in the new green age, I thought this was very interesting:

http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/407

Free Online Green Building Training Videos

I'm excited to share a new benefit for all Montana Green Building Program Members. In conjunction with the GBI we have set up a training page for the Montana Green Building Program. The site contains over sixty videos with over thirty hours demonstrating Green Building Best Practices based on the NAHB Green Building Guidelines. It also has a Learning management System (LMS) that allows each user to follow his or her own progress. This is a great addition to existing member benefits, and a great opportunity to help each local energize their green build programs. It is a great resource and we are grateful to the GBI for their help and support in setting it up.

The website address is: www.greenbuildertraining.org/mt

The registration code is GREENMT

Once you enter the site, all you need to do is click on “register for an account”, use the code and you will have access and we will be able to track use.

National Green Building Standards

I just got back from spending three days in Washington DC at NAHB. I was fortunate enough to spend this time with some of the most knowledgeable green builders from around the country, as well as much of the staff responsible for managing NAHB's incredible green program.

By far the most talked about and celebrated topic was the recent approval of the National Green Building Standard. NAHB spearheaded the development of the standard in conjunction with the International Codes Council and in January of this year it was approved by the American National Standards Institute. The ANSI approved standard sets the green baseline for all new residential construction including multifamily, renovations and additions. Setting a quantifiable definition for what green is has been the challenge of the green building movement for a long time. This ANSI approved scoring sytem may be the real start to creating national industry concensus and get us all speaking the same language...GREEN!

Check out the standard at www.NAHBGreen.org if you haven't already.

Welcome to the Montana Green building Program Blog. After an exciting year and the launch of the Montana Green Building Program the real work has begun. Use this site to help other members throughout the state stay informed on what you're doing, share ideas, ask questions, or just share your success stories. Enjoy!!