Browsing: Sustainability

The built environment plays a pivotal role in shaping our wellbeing. Here Jennifer Taranto, vice president of sustainability at STO Building Group and a recently appointed LEED Fellow, discusses what she is seeing—from the influence of workplace design on healthy habits to the evolution of green building motivations over time.

As trends shift within the construction industry, one question is still in the forefront: How do we make our buildings efficient, sustainable, and cost neutral? For this reason, the Passive House Standard has become more prevalent within growing economic markets as well as larger cities pushing to meet demanding carbon reduction goals. Passive House construction significantly contributes to carbon reduction and aligns well with net-zero design ambitions in many ways.

Each year, DOE releases an annual report with key findings, updates, and metrics from the Better Buildings Initiative. Year over year, Better Climate Challenge and Better Buildings Challenge partners are pursuing ambitious GHG, energy, water, and waste reduction goals, and sharing their proven solutions with the marketplace.

A Seattle Amazon Fresh location has received a Zero Carbon Certification from the International Living Future Institute (ILFI), becoming the world’s first grocery store—and Amazon’s first building—to receive the certification. ILFI awarded the certification in September, and is currently evaluating four additional Amazon locations, which are on track to achieve this validation of their carbon-reduction efforts.