This week's column is being written from Shanghai. Having been in Israel last week and China the week before, I have to ask myself why do I put up with this %&#*!
The answer came in the form of Joel Makower's excellent interview with Cara Pike on her new book, ''Climate Crossroads: A Research-Based Framing Guide for Global Warming,'' which is about the attitudes of the American public about understanding and solving the global warming problem.
One of the clearest messages from Pike's book is that there is a need for a clear message on solutions to global warming. One of her shocking findings was that there are common misunderstandings -- even among environmental professionals -- about the causes of global warming. As a service to our readers I will provide a very simple equation that you can clip out and put in your PDA:
Buildings = electricity = coal = carbon dioxide = global warming
It's equally important to understand what global warming is NOT:
Global warming ≠ ozone depletion/ozone holes, or anything to do with the Oxygen network.
Ozone is three oxygen atoms joined into one molecule (O3). At ground level, ozone is a hazardous pollutant caused by interactions mostly between auto emissions and sunlight. Ozone also forms a protective layer 7 to 30 miles up in the atmosphere that absorbs about 95 percent of the sun's ultraviolet rays and prevents us from all dying prematurely of melanoma. (Notice how global warming is not part of this description . . .)
The other challenge in Pike's research -- one still unanswered -- is exactly how to convey the urgency and sorts of actions necessary to combat global warming.
On the actions front, green buildings is a no-brainer. This week, GreenSource interviewed Princeton University's Robert Socolow with Steve Pacala, one of the originators of the Climate Wedge concept. In order to stabilize climate, Socolow and Pacala believe that eight "wedges" must be implemented in the next 45 years. Socolow's research shows that reducing electricity in buildings by only 25 percent is the equivalent of one ''wedge, '' or four billion tons of CO2 per year.
This is hopeful. As all readers of Greenerbuildings.com know, well over half the electricity used in buildings wasted. Therefore, full implementation of green building technologies could conceivably end up comprising two of the eight wedges necessary to avoid unmanageable climate change. The new SCIenergy benchmarking tool, which is part of its SCIwatch Automated Continuous Commissioning platform, will definitely help people to know where their building -- and portfolio's -- energy consumption is and how to keep themselves lean and mean.
Global warming messaging is an issue I struggle with daily. Personally, I believe that SS Life-As-We-Know-It has already hit the iceberg (ironic image in the context of global warming) and is going down.
Under these circumstances really the only two options are (1) to give up or (2) to take heroic action. In this context, heroic action means doing the right thing and no matter how grim the odds may appear. It is the act of putting people into lifeboats and lifejackets.
That's how we in the green building movement should get up every morning: knowing that our job is to save lives.
The Northern California chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council presents its Super Hero Awards on Friday and many deserving companies and individuals will receive recognition for their daily acts of heroism.
There is a really cool analytical framework out of England called "One Planet Living." The idea is that each building/community/person should try and live within the constraints of the carrying capacity of a single planet -- what a radical concept! So, while the consumptive habits of the average Chinese citizen is roughly on par with one planet's worth of carrying capacity, that of the average American is approaching three planets.
I've worked on and looked at a couple of OPL projects and the toughest area by far for people to reduce their planetary footprint has been food. The University of California system is beginning to lead the way forward by pledging to ensure that 20 percent of its food is ''real'' by 2020. U.C. was inspired by Hai Vo, an only-in-America success story. Hai, the son of Vietnamese refugees, used his passion for good food and desire to become healthier to shed almost 100 pounds and be the driving force behind UC Irvine's participation in the national ''real food'' initiative. (http://realfoodchallenge.org/)
Lest people believe that food and agriculture are only a "side dish" in the global warming picture, we only need to understand that bringing food to our table is responsible for approximately 20 percent of total US global warming pollution. In another fun fact: globally, cows and other ruminant animals produce more global warming gases than all cars and trucks combined. For more information about how to reduce the environmental footprint of serving food in your building, check out other Greenerbuildings.com articles about the sustainability initiatives of Sodexo and Aramark.
As one who has graduated from being peripatetic to being peri-pathetic, I'm always happy to read about Green travel options. People who want to indulge in good green hospitality should check out Leanne Tobias' piece on sustainable travel in California.
This week's Look-Grandpa-I-picked-up-the-$20-bill-you-said-was-fake-but-it's-real! goes to Jones Lang LaSalle for enrolling in 100 percent of its commercial real estate portfolio in the Energy Star program. Energy Star buildings' energy performance is in the top 25 percent of buildings nationwide and Energy Star Certified projects have proven to reduce operating costs and increase building value.
Wrapping up with some shameless self-promotion: To find out how much of a carbon reduction ''wedge'' do LEED buildings represent and what is the current environmental impact of and market forecast for green buildings, tune in November 5 at 12:30 EST to hear yours truly and Johnson Diversey President & CEO Ed Lonergan talk about the theory and practice of sustainability in today's commercial building market. More information about the webinar, including details about how to sign up, is available here.
Rob Watson
Executive Editor, GreenerBuildings.com
You can reach Rob at rob.watson@greenerworldmedia.com or follow him on Twitter @KilrWat.