It seems like
everything today is engineered to be of some protection to the environment and
the people in our lives both professionally and personally are expecting us to
keep up. The problem is often not that we don't want to or that we don't care,
but in fact that we become overwhelmed at the massive amounts of information
being thrown in our direction and can find it very confusing attempting to
figure out which methods are best, or in fact even how to begin becoming a more
environmentally conscious builder.
Being associated
with caring for the planet is not a new trend, but it is one that is gaining in
popularity at an exponential rate. Whereas ten years ago consumers were pleased
to build in such a way that would be helpful to the planet but also just as content
without it, today's consumers are demanding products which are not only
friendly to the earth, but which are utilized in such a way as to promote and
re-enforce sustainable
building design.
Getting a Green
Education
With all the
confusion surrounding the environmental movement, it is important to not only
get all the facts, but to have them presented in such a way that they are
easily understood and incorporated into already existing practices.
The Canada
Green Building Council encourages their members to pursue and achieve this goal
though LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Professional credentials.
Becoming a LEED accredited professional ensures that you
and your colleagues have the knowledge and access to information that you need
to contribute to the successful applications of your companies projects for
LEED certification. By signing up
for a membership with the CaGBC you will
have exclusive access to discounts on a variety of workshops to both help you earn and maintain your credentials. This will ensure that you are well prepared to support your
company's green building projects through all the
stages of development. It will also allow you the ability to network with other
like-minded individuals which will in turn create new idea for protecting the
environment while possibly allowing you to create partnerships which will
reduce operating costs.
What are Green
Buildings?
Green buildings
are constructed
using environmentally sound techniques.
Many people mistakenly associate the term "environmentally” with the word
"expensive”, but this is not the case. For example, utilizing recycled materials for example cuts out part of the cost of
production of new supplies while at the same time ensuring that items such as
boards, plastics, and metals bars/railings are re-purposed rather than simply
being tossed into a landfill. LEED certified buildings also average high annual savings in water, energy and other areas of traditional consumption.
We
owe it to the planet and to ourselves to ourselves to provide a cleaner,
healthier future.
Consider a membership with CaGBC today and become a part of
the future solution!