Nadine Block, who manages Government Outreach for SFI, gives an overview of the White House Forum on Federal Leadership and Sustainable Building she recently attended.

I recently had the honor of participating in a White House Forum on Federal Leadership and Sustainable Building.

A number of Administration leaders spoke, including Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis and the Government Services Administration Administrator Martha Johnson. Following the speeches, there were multiple panel discussions centered on sustainable building issues. Topics discussed included the role of public-private partnerships, as well as the role of government in incentivizing green building.

It was great to see so many high level officials from both the private and public sector come together to collaborate on the future of green building. I really enjoyed being able to take part in this event and am excited to work with the Administration and other stakeholders on this issue as it progresses. If you would like to know more about the forum check out the videos below.

Nadine Block, who manages Government Outreach for SFI, shares announcement of world-wide support for USGBC to open its LEED standard.

The call for a change in the LEED standard is truly global.  Twelve nations have urged USGBC to end LEED’s discrimination against wood and accept all credible forest certification standards.

In a July 22nd press release, the international non-profit Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), a leading umbrella organization that endorses national forest certification systems, stated:  “Standards from Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, the Slovak Republic, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, along with forest industry associations and companies from many of these countries, have joined North American elected and government officials, professional foresters and other leaders who have told USGBC that  in order to increase the use of wood in buildings, all credible certification systems, including PEFC and FSC, need to be accepted.”

Approximately 543 million acres are certified to national standards endorsed by PEFC- including 377 million acres in North America alone- none of which are recognized by the USGBC’s LEED standard.

Several of these same countries, along with others, accounted for the more than 5,800 signatures on SFI’s online petition that was delivered to USGBC’s President and CEO, Rick Fedrizzi, Thursday, July 15th.

USGBC must do the right thing.  It is not just North America.  The whole world is watching.

Jason Metnick, SFI Senior Director of Market Access and Label Use, provides an update on LEED benchmarks.

As you may have seen, the USGBC recently requested comments on a fourth round of draft benchmarks to evaluate forest certification programs in its LEED green building rating system. SFI has cautioned the USGBC that a process like the one currently proposed could result in never ending revisions, assessments and evaluations year after year with no clear results.  We believe it is time for USGBC’s leadership to end this process and give credit for wood use and forest certification standards.  SFI strongly supports green building, and we believe SFI and other credible certification programs are a clear fit for green building rating systems.  Wood from responsibly-managed forests, like those certified to the SFI Standard, is an excellent choice for any new construction or renovation.  Wood is renewable, it sequesters carbon and is powered by solar energy.  These factors, coupled with wood’s desirable aesthetic and structural characteristics, make it a great choice for green buildings.  We therefore suggest that the USGBC should:

USGBC leaders should listen to elected officials, government agencies, professional foresters, and others who are telling them to end the discrimination against North American forests and accept wood certified to all forest certification standards used in North America – SFI, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), Canadian Standards Association (CSA), American Tree Farm System (ATFS) and Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC).

It’s not too late to show your support and urge the USGBC to sunset the forest certification benchmarks.  Please sign our petition, and check out our short green building video.  Also, please forward the petition and video to friends and family who care about the future of North American forests.  You can find more information about the comment period on the USGBC’s website, and you can check out our public statement regarding the fourth round of public comments on SFI’s website.

SFI’s Jason Metnick, who works directly with companies in the wood and paper supply chain, headed to the American Institute of Architects Expo 2010 in Miami. The conference is held this year at the Miami Beach Convention Center June 10-12. Check out his coverage of the first day below.

“Design as Exploration” is the theme of the 2010 AIA Expo, and we are thrilled to be a part of it. Responsible building and design are often seen as necessities to many architects and builders, which is a welcome evolution. We want to further that thinking by spreading the word about the role of forest certification and SFI in green building, as well as the overall benefits of using wood as a building material.

Today, SFI premiered a short video outlining the importance of forest certification in green building. Green building represents optimism and growth, and the fact that the industry is growing so quickly means progress in recognizing and using more responsible materials. Wood is renewable, durable and aesthetically pleasing, making it an outstanding resource for building projects. While we are thrilled many architects and builders recognize this fact, we think it’s imperative LEED open its system to all credible forest certification systems, including SFI.

LEED limits itself and the future of green building by only recognizing FSC-certified wood. As Kathy has discussed in previous posts, wood should get credit for being wood-it’s a more responsible choice than other building materials that LEED is crediting. Using wood products from certified forests goes another step above and beyond. Forest certification provides assurance to buyers that they are getting wood and paper products from a responsible source, backed by a rigorous third-party certification audit. However, limiting the forest certification credit to FSC-certified products may discourage builders from using wood at all. We continue to encourage the USGBC to open its LEED rating system to benefit North American forests and the economy.

If you’re at the AIA Expo in Miami, stop by booth #1892 and the film festival to say hello and learn more about what SFI has to offer. You can also follow SFI happenings from AIA on Twitter . For continual updates on potential changes to LEED, go to www.sfiprogram.com/leed.

Built Green Canada: Inclusive – and Expanding

The fact non-profit Built Green Canada is expanding across Canada is wonderful news for anyone who views wood as a great environmental choice – the Built Green™ program is one of many green rating tools with an inclusive certification policy.

And when it updated its building product catalogue at the end of March, Built Green made it crystal clear it recognizes wood or wood-based products certified to all of the third-party certification programs used in Canada – the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, the Canadian Standards Association, the Forest Stewardship Council and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification system.

That means builders across Canada seeking Built Green certification are not limited in wood choices like they are under the LEED program, which is currently reassessing whether to open up its certification credit. They will have access to more wood from responsible choices, which means a lot when only 10 per cent of the world’s forests are certified. Built Green Canada joins programs around the world such as the ANSI National Home Building Standard, ANSI/GBI 01-2010: Green Building Assessment Protocol for Commercial Buildings, and BREEAM in England that recognize all credible forest certification programs.

Built Green has already enrolled more than 13,500 homes in the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia since 2004 – and it’s expanding across Canada because builders are asking for it. Built Green President David Bengert says that’s because the program delivers environmental performance with a lot less cost and complexity. If the response to our online petition asking LEED to open up its forest certification credit to all credible certification programs is any measure – Built Green’s inclusive certification policy will also make it attractive to builders. And that’s not only good for forest certification and Built Green, it’s also good for forests and communities across Canada.