ShareThisGreenbuild 2010: Net Zero is a Dominant Theme
This past week in Chicago has been an exciting buzz of anticipation along with a cautious touch brought on by the continuing economic malaise. But the annual gathering of green professionals hosted by the US Green Building Council has continued to grow over the years and this year it looks no different with what looks like will be over 30,000 in attendance.
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The LEED for Homes program has continued to grow nationally and the number of homes achieving certification is accelerating. The program saw over 1,000 homes certified this past month, bringing the total to around 9,000 homes that have achieved certification. The number of residential projects that have registered is at an all time high with over 25,000 currently in the pipeline.
To help meet this demand for information on residential green building, the USGBC has hosted a special residential track of sessions at Greenbuild. This track helps facilitate a “conference” within a conference and is currently in its fourth year. The number of people that attended the residential track was at an all time high and several of the sessions were standing room only.
One theme that was prevalent in the residential track is the pursuit of net-zero energy homes. The main take-away seems to be that net-zero energy is achievable with current technologies and building products. It isn’t going to be easy for the typical homebuilder, but for a building team that is interested, it is more a matter of will and interest rather than a lack of resources.
Increasingly, forward-thinking builders are using this economic downturn to re-tool themselves into stronger, leaner, and more environmentally sound practitioners of solutions that will help bring us the most environmentally and energy sound homes in years to come.
I’m looking forward to seeing everyone again at Greenbuild in Toronto, Canada, next year.
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