Chrisna du Plessis: Your Role in a Regenerative World (Video)

 

 

Colorado State University hosted the presentation, Your Role in a Regenerative World,  by renowned built environment expert, Chrisna du Plessis on Wednesday, September 12^th in the LEED certified Lory Student Center Theater.

Chrisna du Plessis is Associate Professor in Sustainable Construction at the Department of Construction Economics of the University of Pretoria, and was formerly Principal Researcher at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa. She is known internationally for her work on the policy and research strategy for sustainable building within developing countries and is currently concentrating on urban sustainability science at both theoretical and technical levels.

“Chrisna is an inspirational leader in the sustainability movement – her compelling messages help all of us to envision healthy, thriving environments and cities and to understand our potential roles in places and economies that regenerate just as nature does,” said Brian Dunbar, Director at the Institute for the Built Environment.

Dr. du Plessis’ presentation, co-hosted by Colorado State University’s Institute for the Built Environment and School of Global Environmental Sustainability was made possible through regional event sponsors including: City of Fort Collins Office of Sustainability, U.S. Green Building Council- Colorado Chapter, Alliance for Sustainable Colorado, Lory Student Center, CSU Public Lands History Center, CSU Department of Design & Merchandising, CSU Department of History,  Center for the Advancement of Sustainable Enterprise, and the Sustainable Living Association.

Collegian: CSU’s Institute for the Built Environment helps Fort Collins businesses stay sustainable

By Kate Simmons
October 11, 2012

 

When businesses in Fort Collins want to learn about sustainable building practices, they can turn to CSU’s Institute for the Built Environment (IBE).

The IBE is an on-campus non-profit focused on fostering stewardship and the sustainability of natural and built environments through research-based, interdisciplinary educational forums.

Graduate students from multiple colleges across the university — including construction management, landscape architecture, business, natural resources and interior design — have interned with IBE over the last 17 years.

“Students are given the opportunity to interact with professionals and to start to build their professional network which ultimately helps them be more employable,” Associate Director Josie Plaut said.

Students help lead trainings for companies interested in making their buildings LEED accredited and teach green sustainability programs. They are also involved in outreach education and assist in building renovation plans.

“The benefits (to students) are to interface on real world projects with real world professionals,” Project Manager April Wackerman said. “To learn how to manage time and responsibilities, to gain skills in the professional world related to consulting and green building services in the construction industry.”

IBE was created in 1994 through a grant from the College of Applied Human Sciences. According to Plaut, the dean at the time wanted to encourage more interdisciplinary work so faculty members from different colleges came together to create a project that would focus on sustainable and healthy building practices.

The governing board still has members from multiple colleges on campus, including the Department of Design and Merchandising, College of Business and the Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences.

By having contributions from multiple educational disciplines, IBE is better equipped to execute project plans because each discipline offers a unique perspective, according to Elliot Dale, a green building associate.

“It’s important to get a variety of perspectives and opinions. It gives us a better understanding of the issues to be dealt with; it’s obviously challenging but it’s worth the challenges,” Dale said. “Someone might not know the construction lingo if they’re from the history department but it doesn’t mean that their viewpoints aren’t important and they can add in another, unexpected perspective.”

While IBE started at CSU and still exists within the university and is run by CSU students and staff, IBE is a completely self-funded, independent non-profit. They charge a service fee for their certification programs, trainings and outreach education. They receive no university funding and even though they are an institute within the university, IBE is an independent non-profit.

“We feel like the greatest thing we provide to the students is practical application of the theories and concepts that they learn in the classroom,” Plaut said.

Senior Reporter Kate Simmons can be reached at news@collegian.com.
Original publication from the Collegian can be found here.

People Respond to Incentives

Written by: Brody Hatch, Sustainable Building Associate
                                              Ph.D Economics

Economics is a science that relies heavily on assumptions in order to model and analyze the real world.  These assumptions can range from the idea that people are rational and will act in their own self-interest, to the idea that resources are scarce and therefore subject to the law of supply and demand.  One of the most basic and fundamental assumptions is that of incentives.  A well-known Harvard economist, Gregory Mankiw, ranked the idea that people respond to incentives at number four on his “Ten Principles of Economics” list.  In his book, The Armchair Economist, Steven Landsburg states that “most of economics can be summarized in four words: ’people respond to incentives.’  The rest is commentary.” 

People respond to many different types of incentives, some altruistic, most, not so much.  Some are motivated by a sense of duty or community in how they live their lives or the choices that they make.  The reality, however, is that the vast majority of people and corporations (especially corporations) are driven primarily by financial incentive.  This fact becomes apparent when we examine the popularity and success of super low-cost retailers, like Wal-Mart or Ikea.  Not to say that they are bad organizations, just they neither is a great example of social responsibility, at least currently.

It’s important to note that these same principles apply to the sustainability and corporate social responsibility movements.  While there are some who will willingly invest in sustainable buildings and social responsibility, most will cite the “high cost” associated with doing so as being prohibitive.  This prohibitively high cost could be the reality or it could just be perceived.  In 2007, the organization Building Design +Construction conducted a survey among a sample of its mailing list.  Among the results published in “Green Buildings Research White Paper: Where Building Owners, End Users, and AEC Professionals Stand on Sustainability and Green Building”, the group found that 86% of respondents believed that a green building cost more to construct.  Most said they believed it to be at least 6% more, with another large group saying over 15% more.  The perception alone of higher costs often deters builders and corporations from providing sustainable and responsible products. 

There are two ways to catalyze change in the business practices corporations and the behaviors of consumers for the better.  One is to make social responsibility and sustainable building cost effective for the producers (financial incentive).  If green building becomes cheaper than traditional building, green building will become the norm; the same is true with socially responsible consumer products.  This is slowly becoming a reality in green building.  A 2007 Davis Langdon Study found no significant cost difference green and non-green buildings of the same type.  A 2006 Cost and Benefits study by Greg Kats found that green building was associated with a 1-2% cost premium.  While a 2% premium may in fact represent a large amount of money when you consider multi-million dollar buildings, these increased costs are quickly recouped.  A 2008 study by the New Building Institute found that LEED buildings perform 25-30% better than average in their energy efficiency, translating into an annual cost savings of more than $8k for an average sized elementary school.

Another catalyst for change is consumer demand for change.  Individual consumers have little influence over the manner in which products are designed and produced, but collectively, consumers wield almost infinite power over producers.  In order to remain successful and profitable, corporations must adapt to the changing tastes and preferences of their consumer base.  An emerging “taste” among consumers is social responsibility and sustainability.  A 2010 Edelman Goodpurpose study found that 87% of global consumers believe that business should place and equal weight on society’s interests as on business’ interests.  The Guardian conducted a survey and found that 60% of UK consumers consider ethics when purchasing clothing, over 80% consider the environment when purchasing groceries and transport, and 79% said that companies offering products and services with low environmental impacts would be more likely to win their loyalty.  This increased demand for socially responsible products has created a situation where corporate social responsibility has become a profit maximization strategy.  Either the corporation strives to become socially responsible, or it loses a large segment of its market (financial incentive). 

If we want things to change for the better, we can’t just expect people and corporations to change their behavior “because it’s the right thing to do.” Unfortunately, in today’s day and age, cash is still king.  There must be a financial incentive associated with doing the right thing in order for the movement to truly gain traction and trend mainstream.  As technology advances and consumer preferences shift, this is slowly becoming reality.  As consumers, we can speed up the process by staying informed and demanding accountability and responsibility.  Collectively, we catalyze change.

A Ski Bum’s Guide to Sustainable Living

Written by: Elliot Dale, Sustainable Building Associate
                                          M.S. Construction Management

As the climate continues to warm and dry, today’s ski bum is on the front line to keep snow in the mountains!  Their very existence depends on it!  Take heart that the ski bum will do whatever’s necessary to see another blue-bird powder day.  Most ski bums already have green tenancies:  they spend most of their free time in the forest, they drink PBR out of cans (recyclable), and many can knit their own beanies.  With a few subtle tweaks, a fairly climate-sensible ski bum can be turned into a lean, mean, sustainable living champion!  Below are a few recommendations to get the ski bum back on the sustainable straight and narrow:

Ditch the car and walk or take the town shuttle: even though your steez factor may take a ding, you know that driving your 1984 Vanagon up to the mountain isn’t doing the environment any good.  Mountain towns are small and don’t require a vehicle.  Choose housing within walking or biking distance to work, the mountain shuttle, the bar… and that’s about everywhere you’ll need to go!  Let’s face it, the town shuttle’s free, and you could really use that saved gas money on an extra breakfast burrito at the lodge.

Support local business through local purchasing: plenty of dining and retail options exist in most mountain towns.  Make an effort to seek out those establishments that are owned and operated by your neighbors.  You’ll help keep money in the local economy, your purchases will travel a shorter distance (thus greatly reducing their carbon footprint), and in the event that you find yourself owning one of those businesses in the future, the favor might get returned to you by the next generation of ski bums!

Buy used ski gear: while many of you are (or wish you were) sponsored and/or get a great pro-deal, consider buying used ski gear.   By doing so, you will drastically reduce the economic and environmental costs of new material extraction, manufacturing, and transportation, all while keeping the goods out of the landfill.  And depending on how retro the used gear is, you may be able to bump that steez level back up a few notches (see the first recommendation)!

For the ultimate sustainability ski bum, go back to the basics and get in the backcountry.  Backcountry skiing creates way fewer greenhouse gas emissions, it’s a nice little workout, you get away from the crowds at the resort, and there are unlimited powder turns for all!  Remember to be safe, educated, and always travel with a partner!

Have fun, and see ya on the slopes!

Green Bash 2012!

Attend the event as 'Friends of IBE' and receive 50% off your non-member discount.

Email: cahs_ibe@mail.colostate.edu for more information.

Register here.

NCRES Special Event: Hands-On Advance Air sealing Workshop with SIGA

Location: 320 E. Vine Drive, Fort Collins, CO  (Rocky Mountain Innosphere)

Date/Time: Wednesday, October, 3^rd  5:00 to 8:00 p.m.

Cost:  $25 for NCRES members ($45 non-members)

Registration:  Contact John Fassler 970.556.6195 or john.fassler@nrglogic.com

The Three Elements for Successful Air-tight Construction: Planning, Application and Quality

This three-hour workshop will help improve the value you provide to your customers and will help you differentiate yourself from others in the building industry. The work shop will include examples of building assemblies, how to tackle problems of moisture management, how to design and construct an air tight envelope, and how blower doors quantify performance.  

This workshop is both discussion and "hands on". We will use SIGA membranes and adhesive tapes on model houses to understand the planning and application of a system that creates an air-tight envelope, manages both interior and exterior moisture and seals the construction from pest infiltration. 

Benjamin Lüssi, from Switzerland, will be teaching the workshop.  Benjamin has been in the building industry since 1995 working as a Carpenter, Project Manager and now as Product Manager for SIGA - U.S.  His goal for the workshop is to teach European air sealing methods while learning more about U.S. construction methods.  SIGA is a leading provider of Air Sealing products in Europe where air sealing standards and codes are extremely stringent.  This is an exceptional opportunity for building practitioners in the Front Range to get hands on experience with European Advanced Air Sealing methods – without the expense of going to Europe. 

The workshop is limited to 20 participants. If you plan to attend, please register as early as possible.  The class fills quickly. Please register here.

Loveland City Council receives LEED Gold Certification for the Loveland Library project

Loveland Library

The Loveland City Council was presented with  LEED Gold Certification for the Loveland Library project on August 21 by the U.S. Green Building Council. The project was first started in August of 2010 and received its LEED Certification in July of 2012. The Institute for the Built Environment (IBE) Green Schools Specialist Stephanie Barr is featured in the video clip below.

To view the video clip of the presentation, please click here.