Green Options

Sony Pictures Studios believes in creating a culture on their Culver City campus. For CEO Michael Lynton and Co-Chairman Amy Pascal this includes a culture of environmental responsibility and sustainable stewardship, according to Jon Corcoran, VP, Corporate Safety and Environmental Affairs and John Rego, Director, Environmental Sustainability for the movie studio.

During a recent tour of the facilities, they each pointed out that education and employee awareness were key to behavior changes when it comes to environmental stewardship. This philosophy is in keeping with the Japanese tradition of creating an employee culture, a loyalty that reaches beyond the standard employee-employer structure, and one that gives and takes both ways. [Pictured: John Rego, Sony Studios; Paige Donner, Greening Hollywood; and Jon Corcoran, Sony Studios; photo by Ann Burkart]

Case in point: On June 29th, as part of Sony Studios “Links Green Series” they hosted a lunch time “Residential Solar and Hybrid Car Program,” presentation. This is an incentive program, offered through the studio, that gives employees a check for up to $5000 when they either buy a hybrid electric vehicle or install solar voltaic panels on their residence. This incentive “payback” is above and beyond the State and Federal tax incentives. Believe me, I asked. Don’t everyone blast your resume off to Sony Pictures Entertainment now!

The LEED certification has been the standard of green building certifications over the years, but has it lost it’s luster?

While any structure built in a way that lessens its footprint is welcomed, some of the buildings that people try to turn green simply make no sense.

LEED certification, in all its greatness, does not take the building’s intended purpose into account; this leaves us with some hilarious, unabashedly self-contradicting buildings. Here are the ten of the most laughable green buildings:

Or they will… unless you weigh in: California has a requirement that all new buildings be zero carbon by 2020; every electron a building uses must come from power generated onsite. Obama plans the same requirement nationwide by 2030.

So you would think that to meet their new neighborhood certification, on-site renewable energy would be a LEED requirement, not just an option. But it won’t be. What’s worse, it will be worth a measly 3 points out of the total 110 possible points to get LEED certification.  But you can change that.

Architecture Involution LLC (Ai3), a leading architect firm that specializes in educational design and Triumph Modular, the premier provider of temporary and permanent modular buildings have teamed up to launch the CASE 21 (Creative Academic Sustainable Environments for the 21st Century) classroom solution. CASE 21 is a high-performance learning environment employing state-of-the-art green design, organizational layout and technology integration.

The Jewel-Osco grocery chain opens its first green store today in Chicago’s River West neighborhood. The new store features not only green construction but some green items inside as well, including locally produced foods and organic selections.

The Chicago Sun-Times reports that the new store took five years to develop, thanks to a slew of special engineering and site use requirements. Among the challenges: building the facility 25 feet over Metra’s train tracks to provide bridge access for local residents.

It took almost 10 years and $500 million to plan and complete, but the California Academy of Sciences’ new ultra-green museum in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park is ready to open. The public will be able to get its first glimpse of the building — dubbed a “masterpiece in sustainable architecture” — starting at 9:30 a.m.  Saturday, Sept. 27.

So what’s so green about the new facility? Almost everything, from basement to rooftop. The building is designed to earn the top level — platinum — of LEED certification for green construction. A “living roof” will boost insulation and prevent 2 million gallons of stormwater runoff each year. A canopy of solar cells will generate 213,000 kilowatts of electricity each year, enough to meet 10 percent of the museum’s needs. And radiant-floor heating and denim insulation will keep temperatures comfortable while minimizing energy consumption.

Why did more than 300 people spend a beautiful Sunday afternoon inside the first LEED-certified house of worship in the United States last week? Most likely because they want to help pass on lovely spring days to their children and grandchildren.

In 2006, Evanston, IL, which hugs Chicago’s border to the south, and Lake Michigan to the east, signed the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement along with more than 800 US cities. Those cities who signed the agreement aim to lower carbon emissions to 1990 levels by 2012.

In an effort to achieve carbon reduction to 1990 levels, more than 130 dedicated citizens formed nine task forces, and devised broad recommendations on how this progressive and diverse city, home to Northwestern University and a lively downtown, could reduce its carbon footprint. Last weekend, a broad coalition of citizens and city government workers unveiled a draft of the Evanston Climate Action Plan.

Young children are especially susceptible to the negative effects of modern life, including indoor air quality and heavy metal exposure, such as lead. Many eco-living families feel like they have to sacrifice some of their green morals when placing their children in daycare or preschool. These families do the best they can by packing their children organic snacks, but there is little they can do about other aspects of the program. Now, parents in Atlanta, Georgia will have a choice to enroll their children in the first completely eco-friendly child care center FIO360.

What makes a child care facility eco-friendly? According to FIO360,

• Solar tubing to conserve energy and provide natural daylight throughout the facility;

• Radiant, heated floors in all classrooms-proven to reduce energy costs, enhance air quality and improve circulation, which contributes to a stronger immune system, a healthier heart and better sleep;

• Activclassroom whiteboard technology and software informed by teachers to foster an interactive learning environment that keeps students engaged, focused and enthusiastic;

• Streaming video capabilities in each classroom for parents who want to periodically join in on their children’s learning and play experiences throughout the day;

• Waterless urinals and sensor-activated faucets in all lavatories to preserve water;’

With all the buzz around green building, it's no surprise that K-12 schools around the country are starting to see the benefit of sustainable design. In fact, there are 32 K-12 buildings in the US and Canada that have already been LEED-certified.

Incorporating environmentally elements such as energy-efficient lighting, heating, and cooling, locally-sourced materials, renewable energy sources, non-toxic sealants, adhesives, and paints, green roofs, and greywater systems, schools are creating buildings that are

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