Women Reshaping the World / Living Future 2012

Living Future: Women, Leadership and Sustainability 
In the spirit of Mother’s Day, I’ve been reflecting on my experiences at this year’s Living Future conference where the theme was Women Shaping the World. Adding to the event’s richness were the keynote speakers – Dr. Vandana Shiva and Carol Sanford – two powerful, outspoken, knowledgeable and very different women. They’re both worthy of a click to their websites to find out more. In addition, Jason F. McLennan – CEO / Seattle, WA, International Living Building Institute, in his keynote shared his personal reflections on the enriching and matriarchal household of his youth that helped to shape his world view and lifelong commitment as a green warrior.

I also found the conference’s “women’s learning track,” open to both men and women, wonderfully focused on broad range of women’s leadership issues. Here is a list of some of the topics:

• Balancing Acts: Working Women’s Business and Families can Thrive
• Lives of Green Pecha Kucha
• Build Women’s Leadership: Confronting Power and Invisibly
• Women’s Leadership: Journey Through the Ages
• Women and Green Voices of Sustainability
• Within and Without: Exploring the Implications of Diversity

The various panels included an amazing and diverse group of women, each one a leader in her respective company and industry. Speakers ranged in age from their 20s to their 80s, bringing a rich and all-encompassing perspective to the event.

One panel pulled the curtain back on leadership diversity. Three things that one of the presenters Kathleen Smith shared struck me:

• The higher the percentage of women in firms and women in leadership is a good predictor of overall diversity and financial performance of a company.
• Women lead more sustainability efforts within their firms.
• Successful integrated design requires many of the qualities identified as “feminine,” such as these top 15 characteristics:

1. Collaborative
2. Integrative
3. Sensitive
4. Cooperative
5. Creative
6. Compassionate
7. Communicative
8. Relational
9. Focus on Relationships
10. Connected
11. Non-linear
12. Transparent
13. No “Other”
14. Nurturing
15. Partnering

Source: Kathleen Smith, Sustainability Service Line Leader, Senior Associate, Davis Langdon, a division of AECOM.

So when I think about this great event and Kathleen’s presentation, I have these questions:

• How do we attract more women into design / build professions?
• How do we change organizations to operate within systems that embrace the needs, styles and goals of women vs. historical top down command and control models?
• How do we change the conversation and connect feminine principles to accelerating the changes needed to bring about a living future?
• How can architectural design and vernacular change to include the sensitivities of women?

In the days following Mother’s Day 2012, both men and women can benefit by thinking about the gifts of character that your mother, sister, aunt, wife, daughter, or teacher may have given you that you can call upon to bring about more sustainable future.

Dr. Nadana Shiva during a CBC radio Interview

Living Future 2012

I love Portland in the springtime – especially when I’m here for Living Future 2012, an annual conference developed by the Cascadia Green Building Council “to promote the continuous evolution and adoption of sustainability in the built arena.” As is common with this event, the intention of the opening keynote is to move us outside of our silos, jurisdictions and prejudices and spark conversations.

This year’s theme is Women Shaping the World. The event kicked off with an amazing talk by world-renowned environmental leader, Dr. Vanadan Shiva about our planet’s agricultural future. Here’s a recap of her passionate and inspiring message:

• The scarcity of food is a distribution problem not a supply issue
• The science of food production is flawed in its narrow approach and exclusion of externalities
• Removing nature from humanity creates a non-living commoditization of natural resources
• The majority of food produced in the world comes from small farmers yet they are not counted in the food equation as they consume rather than export what they produce
• Scientific-based agriculture creates more yield but degrades quality
• Health problems are directly related to the commercialization of food production and livestock farming
• Degrading the land results in a vicious cycle of needing more chemicals to support agriculture and eliminate pests

As a physicist, Dr. Shiva clearly understands that scientists often times work in silos and therefore fail to see life’s interconnections and externalities. This systemic pattern has huge consequences to people and the planet.

Dr. Shiva’s call to action includes:

• Growing and buying organic
• Supporting local farms and farmers
• Championing biodiversity
• Managing our soil and water resources
• Developing seed banks to support food security

Her non-profit is dedicated to these goals through education and resource sharing. Learn more about it at http://www.navdanya.org/.

Dr. Shiva and this conference reminds us that looking at the world through a woman’s lens means bringing nurturing, compassion and community into the conversation around development and growth. Her leadership, courage, tenacity and passion serve as a reminder to our building professional community that we must actively apply our collective potential and create a sustainable living future.

Women Shaping the World / Living Future 2012

Our Earth, a one-of-a-kind masterpiece and worth protecting

EARTH DAY IDEAS

At EcoMaven Associates we are always looking for opportunities to tell a green story. Sometimes the story is right under our nose. In recognition of Earth Day, here is a list of 10 low hanging fruit of eco-tips that are ripe for the picking!

Ten ideas to hug the earth:

1. Wash clothes in cold water to help save energy by not heating the water. One load does not add up to much, but in my household we do a full load 5 times a week, almost 50 weeks a year. In the aggregate little savings can add up to a lot.

2. Use reusable and repurposed containers to keep food-packaging waste to a minimum. We each pack our lunch almost every day, and not only are we eating healthier foods by making our own lunch and snacks, but we are decreasing our trash by using the same containers over and over again. We don’t always have the perfect size, but we make do with recycled yogurt and other such containers.

3. Purchase less stuff in general and not only will you save energy, minimize landfill, and preserve natural resources, but you will also save money as well. Next time you put the shopping breaks on, you may want to consider saving that money in a jar and treating yourself to a fabulous experience instead. One friend used that money to buy a WA Discover Pass and commit to more weekends hiking.

4. Dispose less by reusing, recycling, borrowing or even sharing stuff to maximize utility with less waste. Save boxes from your online purchases and use them to ship your next package, use an old toothbrush to clean grout or jewelry, repurpose your empty tissue box as a dispenser for your recycled, plastic grocery bags…the possibilities are endless if we just think creatively before we toss. Here is another blog with more suggestions, too.

5. Turn down hot water heater settings to conserve energy, since heating water 24/7 uses energy even when there is no demand for it.

6. Replace worn out appliances with energy efficient models whenever possible. Upgrading an older refrigerator is a great starting point since it typically uses the most energy in a kitchen, and, chances are that a newer energy efficient model will be less costly to run. Just remember to safely dispose of the old model as they can really leach harmful chemicals into the environment and much of the waste can be recycled. Your waste management company can probably recommend appliance recyclers.

7. Replace incandescent lights with energy efficient lights to reduce your electricity consumption by substituting them with CFLs or LEDs that are growing in popularity due to decreasing costs. Here is a calculator to help you measure the benefits.

8. Consider a car free day where you, your friends, or your family ride a bike, walk or use public transportation to get from A to B to help to reduce your carbon footprint. This might make some errands more fun as you and your kids transport groceries in backpacks, or ride a bike to a local library to borrow books, or stop by your local bookstore to hear an author or enjoy a community event or performance. Here is one resource to review in moving towards a car diet.

9. Learn more about the sharing economy for tools, cars, and even backyards. Yes, it’s a growing trend with more people realizing that borrowing has a greater utility than owning for things in their lives that have sporadic uses. It might even help you meet a few neighbors that are willing to share some muscle to plant that vegetable bed you keep meaning to start. This site is a hub for Collaborative Consumption a descriptor for the new sharing economy.

10. Replace your lawn or flowerpots with some space for growing your own vegetables or fruit. This year one of our son’s decided to grow herbs and some veggies in pots that used to hold flowers. Looks like we will benefit from his tasty experiment, as he loves to cook too.

What ideas do you have for reducing your footprint on the planet and maybe saving money and building community at the same time? — alex

Miller Hull's Design Vision for the Bullitt Center, Seattle's Living Building Pilot Program

A Living Building is a Learning Building

Thanks to an invite by the Seattle AIA and its COTE, I learned firsthand about the inspiring, work-in-progress Bullitt Center. The presentation and hard-hat tour was an amazing opportunity to learn about this six-story, commercial building located in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood – an area of Seattle known for its arts, culture, unique shops and dense urban living.

The building is named for its benefactor – the Bullitt Foundation – whose vision states, “A future that safeguards the vitality of natural ecosystems while accommodating a sustainable human population in healthy, vibrant, equitable, and prosperous communities.” It seems appropriate that the project was selected to participate in Seattle’s Living Building Pilot Program.

BACKGROUND
The Living Building Pilot Program assists projects attempting to meet the requirements of the Living Building Challenge. This Challenge is an innovative global green building rating system created by the International Living Building Institute to recognize buildings meeting the highest level of sustainability. The Living Building Challenge requires buildings to meet a series of prerequisites relating to site, energy, materials, water, indoor air quality, and beauty and inspiration.

FEATURES
It will take a full year after occupancy to meet the rigorous Living Building certification and ensure that the building is performing at, or in excess of, its net zero energy and water use goals. Here’s a partial list of the building’s leading-edge features:

• Water – Harvested rainwater will be use throughout the building, and treated using a dual filtration system, conservation methods include waterless urinals and composting toilets
• Solar – Over 400 PV panels will generate an estimated 242 KW of renewable energy and feed excess capacity back into the local grid
• Geothermal – Over 25 geothermal wells will heat and cool the building moving hot or cold water through the building, as needed
• Windows – State-of-the-art, German-designed and US manufactured, they provide both day lighting, ventilation and triple-paned insulation and are operated by a smart, real-time control system
• Materials and Finishes – Broke new ground in sourcing materials and avoiding Red List items; built a knowledge database to share with the industry. This proved to be one of the key challenges of the project.
• Human Scale – Designed to fit within the unique character of the surrounding area yet large enough to attract tenants, this mid-rise feels people scaled (vs. an imposing skyscraper)
• Green Community – Adding green space includes a transformed pocket park, McGilvra Place; installing a green roof with native plantings; a nearly perfect “walk score,” benefiting the local community.

Special thanks to presenters and tour hosts Brian Court, AIA, LEED AP, Miller Hull; and Casey Schuchart, Project Manager, Shuchart Construction Company.

Look for progress updates, as I plan on regularly checking in with the Design Team and reporting on this state-of-the-art Living and Learning building. – alex

Seattle / Bainbridge ferry ride to Emerge

Last December, I had the distinct pleasure of participating in the inaugural Emerge workshop, the brainchild of Kathleen O’Brien, founder of O’Brien & Co, a 20-year-old, Seattle-based sustainability-consulting firm. In the Pacific Northwest, Kathleen is a legend, particularly in green building circles. Many of us have only recently discovered “green” thinking, but Kathleen, among her many successes, developed the Sustainable Building Advisor (SBA) program in 2005 with over 1,250 SBAs certified to-date across North America.

Kathleen launched a two-day workshop titled Emerge: Leadership for a More Sustainable Society to share her knowledge, the experience of other innovators and early adopters in the field, and to catalyze a community of new leaders to catapult the greener building movement toward real transformation.

The setting at IslandWood was a key character in the experience – from the ferry ride across the beautiful Puget Sound, to driving through rolling hills and then to experience the unique mojo that this “unconference” center offers.  The 255-acre center with its LEED Gold buildings, healthy delicious foods, nature walks, tree loving docents, animal sounds – centers on education. For those early birds, the workshop also included yoga in the main lodge.

Emerge Group In Action

The workshop delivered in a variety of ways:

Wisdom: Borrowing from Change and Systems Theory and Servant Leadership concepts, key readings, lectures, and case studies, the faculty of presenters probably had a century’s worth of combined experience in sustainability and in running their own companies.

• Kathleen challenged us all to rethink “command and control” management styles to a more collaborative and holistic decision-making model and to behave like leaders in service to each other, humanity and the planet regardless of our title or position within our organizations.

• Fiona Douglas-Hamilton, a commercial and residential construction expert, led a passionate presentation on new capitalism, the thinking and language of emergent leaders towards real happiness versus emotionally impoverished consumption based economies.

• David Eisenberg, who leads the non-profit Development Center for Appropriate Technology (DCAT), shared his journey in turning conservative building inspector adversaries into green champions one open heart at a time.

• John Cunningham is a large-sized man and commanding presence who liked to “whisper” in delivering his presentation which meant no one was talking and everyone was really listening as he communicated the various strategies he learned through his many years in labor negotiations.

Because of the limited size of our group, everyone had an opportunity to interact with the speakers during their sessions and to share our individual personal journeys during breaks and meal times.

Community: Spending 48 hours together, including communal meals and double-occupancy rooms, melted away inhibitions and barriers even among a few direct building-arena business competitors.  The community experience continues within social media platforms with an alumni-only LinkedIn group.  This has been a terrific way to stay informed of upcoming talks, etc. that can help further the conversation and to share resources.

Resources: The comprehensive workbook that we each received at the beginning of the workshop is chock full of information – from hard copies of presentation materials to a rich list of books to read and reference materials from the speakers.

Accountability: By participating in this workshop and connecting with other participants, I recently found myself in a client meeting wondering how my Emerge peers might respond to a new initiative being presented – ah, the value of peer pressure.  The workshop includes some time to start a Personal Development Plan and prepares you to ask yourself tough questions as a person, a leader and a temporary resident and fiduciary of planet Earth.  Kathleen has also allocated time for individuals to follow up with her directly for one individual consulting session to help with personal and professional goals.

The workshop is intensive, which means you are going non-stop and working late into the night in groups charged with choosing from variety of real world scenarios.  The goal is not just to solve a problem, but to put into practice the leadership principles provided that day within your groups.

Working in teams offered a solid way to exercise our imagination, creativity, and problem-solving, team building in a fun way – no PowerPoint – basically just paper, crayons, pipe cleaners and stickers!  The teams presented their scenarios and outlined action plans for tackling some tough sustainability issues.

This workshop requires an investment in time and money, two resources that always feel scarce. However, for me, it was invaluable to take time out of my fast-paced life to slow down without daily distractions, to focus on some big issues in sustainability with brilliant, caring, solutions-oriented business and community leaders who gave me a much needed positivity boost. Developing an action plan that serves as a measurement tool in my personal progress is a powerful plus and having a team of alumni I can turn to for additional support is truly enriching and adds to my happiness meter.

More information including registration for the March 2012 Puget Sound Emerge workshop can be found at http://www.kathleenobrienleadership.com/blog1/

In service and community,

–alex

Kathleen enjoying "J" sharing a personal anecdote

One of the Emerge Case Study Teams

I did some research, and it turns out that the Air Force Academy has 30 acres of solar panels representing 6MW of electricity generation. Annually, this installation saves the Academy over $1million and reduces carbon dioxide emissions by 9,400 tons. The AFA project represents a partnership with the Department Of Defense, Colorado Springs Utilities and SunPower. And there’s more: as part of the larger DOD Net Zero Energy Initiative, this installation is only the first effort in the Academy going 100 percent renewable by 2020. You can read more about a variety of DOD Green Programs by clicking here.

The Academy and its solar arrays are situated along I-25, making a powerful statement and setting an example for millions of commuters. After all, if solar energy can power the training of tomorrow’s fighting men and women, it’s good enough for our homes’ energy needs!

There’s good news for homeowners, too. While solar energy has been around forever, the cost of converting that energy into electricity from parts, installation and maintenance and very long return-on-investment has been a major barrier to wider acceptance. But, technological innovations, lower priced solar components, more solar capacity in the US and more trained installers mean competition for our business and lower prices. And remember to research and capitalize on all available incentives – at the federal, state and local level and from some PV and component manufacturers. These can all help accelerate your ROI.

If you’re considering a remodel or reroofing your home, be sure and ask your contractor about necessary prep work to accommodate future solar. Doing so, will make sure your home’s structure is ready when you decide to add renewable energy KW hours to your home.

Next time you’re traveling, notice the ever-expanding adoption of various forms of renewables in other markets, too. Remember to share your experiences and comments with our eco-conscious readers.

Hoping it’s sunny in your world. – alex

Recently, I took a trip out to the PSE Wild Horse Wind and Solar Facility in Kittitas County, Washington, and learned firsthand where my green power comes from. An added bonus was the drive east on Highway 2 over the Cascades where I experienced an abundant feast of fall colors and blue skies above.

My time living in Texas amid prehistoric looking oil rigs prepared me for the odd visual presentation dotting the eastern Washington horizon. These giant windmills reminded me of huge flowers swaying in the high desert breezes. Impressive really.

At Wild Horse, there are 149 wind turbines that can produce 273 MW of electricity or enough to power 70,000 homes. The wind towers are 221 feet high and weigh 104 tons about a 1/3 as tall asthe Seattle Space Needle. Each turbine blade is 129 feet long and weighs over 7 tons. The average car is just over 13′ and weighs almost 3500 lbs.Additionally, there are two major solar arrays, one with 315 panels producing 52 kW and another on the ridge with 248 panels capable of producing 45 kW. The site is situated where winds and sun are strong year round. This energy is part of the renewal sources that customers fund as part of a utility company’s green power portfolio.

Of course, those actual green electrons don’t directly travel to my home and feed my appliances. They are part of Puget Sound Energy’s portfolio of power sources that produce my electricity.

Luckily the sites’ learning center is open daily from April through November and offers free guided- and self-guided tours. There’s even a conference center available for groups that want to take advantage of the broad vistas offered at the top of Whisky Dick Mountain.

I’m hoping take to my kids’ high school Environmental Studies class there for a field trip soon, as wind and solar energy will become the norm for future generations. As it turns out, I learned that the friendly staff at the Renewable Energy Center enjoy sharing their knowledge with young and old alike. Next time you are heading east over the cascades stop and learn about renewable energy and tell them I sent ya’! — alex

Links of interest:
US Department of Energy, Renewables
America Wind Energy Association
American Solar Energy Society
Kittitas County Tourism

Let’s talk about Energy Efficiency:

In a nutshell, energy efficiency – is about doing more with less – reducing the amount of energy used, reducing the amount of money spent on purchasing energy, and reducing the harmful effects of energy production that contributes to pollution and global warming.

• Residential
In your home, improve the amount of heat or cooling that escapes into the environment by insulating walls, floors and attic spaces. Add new windows with higher E-values and buy appliances and fixtures that use less electricity and water. Use power strips to turn off computers and other phantom power wasters. Educate yourself and your family on the many ways that your behavior impacts your use of energy and resources in your home.

• Commercial
At your office, apply energy improvement measures and systems that monitor and automate the HVAC and lighting system. Manage building zones according to occupancy levels. Remember the days when you would see office towers lit up and every computer monitor on? What a waste! Educating your employees, facility managers and building owners about the benefits of energy conservation, supporting efficiency upgrades and tenant behavior will make a positive difference to your company’s bottom line.

Save $
• If you read my blog, you already feel strongly about helping the environment and take your stewardship role very seriously. Other folks are interested in saving money as energy efficiency measures pay out perpetually since while we are alive we always need to use energy (from renewable and non-renewable sources). Look for low-hanging fruit – places where conservation and small investments will make big impacts.

Save CO2
• Really reducing your carbon footprint requires intention and action. Conservation comes first, but you can go the next step by considering greener power sources such as solar or wind. It’s a good bet your local utility has an energy efficiency program that makes sense for you. It likely includes information on the federal, state and local incentives.

Improve Marketability
• There’s lots of talk about green-washing in my industry, and there’s no denying it exists. Overall, most individuals and companies are trying to move towards safer products that factor in a life-cycle analysis. Homes and buildings in the future will disclose their energy consumption just like that MPG sticker on your car. Homes and buildings that are energy hogs will be discounted, while those that are considered efficient will become more marketable.

Energy Auditor
• Measure your impact by having an energy audit performed on your home or business. Establish a baseline and listen to recommendations on the biggest culprits that are wasting your resources now. Make your improvements. Then measure your results a year from now, and see how small changes can have big impacts.

So here’s to doing more with less. – alex

Check out these rich resource links to learn more:

• Department Of Energy (DOE)
• DIY Energy Assessments
• Puget Sound Energy Conservation
• Seattle City Light Conservation
• Kitsap Energy Upgrade Tour
• Snohomish Public Utility District Conservation

Special thanks to http://www.sustenergy.org/ for use of this video

Where to find EcoMaven Associates riding the green wave this September 2011:

3rd – 5th
Bumbershoot, Seattle
We’ll be enjoying music, art, literature, film and community at Seattle Center.

6th
Cascadia GBC Transformational Lecture, Bellevue
Inspirational thoughts from women-in-green rock star, Kathleen O’Brien. Kathleen is a founding principal of O’Brien & Company, a nationally recognized sustainability and built environment consultancy.

10th
NW Ecobuilding 10x10x10 Slam!, Kenmore
Come celebrate green building hosted by the Northwest EcoBuilding Guild’s Seattle Chapter, and emceed by Patti Southard, of the King County Green Tools Program.

14th
Built Green Conference and Festival, Issaquah
Our team is presenting the Northwest Harvest House education session entitled “Harvesting the Power of the Sun, Soil and Rain.” Hear from the project architect, builder and solar system and rainwater harvesting specialists. We take the stage at 10am.

14th
Puget Sound Business Journal 40 Under 40 Celebration, Seattle
I’ll be dressing up to honor my client, Model Remodel’s Jason Legat, at this awards presentation. Can wait to congratulate and get to know the other 39 outstanding business and community leaders, as well.

15th
Eastside Greendrinks, Kirkland
Later this month, I’ll be mingling and raising a glass of local wine with greenies on the Eastside at the wonderful Simplicity Decor shop in the heart of downtown Kirkland.

16th
Juanita Farmers Market, Kirkland
We’re participating at the farmers market Community Booth where we’ll showcase green building and remodeling with City of Kirkland green team partners.

20th
Eastside LEED Users Group (ELUG), Bellevue
Come learn about the International Green Construction Code, Advancing Safety and Sustainability in the Built Environment hosted by GLY.

20th
AIA Seattle hosts Future Shack, Seattle
This is a great event for design folks and the greater community. Model Remodel is a repeat sponsor and one of their project’s Northwest Harvest House was submitted into the competition by the project architect and designer, Velocipede.
Please update me on other don’t-miss green community events in our area. –alex

My family and I recently returned from NYC where enjoyed a stroll along Section 2 of the High Line – an extraordinary historical, elevated-train-track, redevelopment project on Manhattan’s West Side. I can personally attest to the fact that the park’s designers, project team and key stakeholders have given the City’s residents and visitors another stunning crown jewel.

Visiting shortly after the new section’s official opening, I observed as diverse an audience as you can imagine in a city that some feel is the center of the universe. No longer a melting pot of cultures determined to assimilate, but a rich and assorted mixture of languages, cultures, political perspectives and socioeconomic classes to name a few demographic variables. The High Line is another example of how NY continues to reinvent itself as do the immigrants who arrive through its many ports.

One thing that stood out to me as I was suspended above the buildings, traffic and sidewalks is how much people enjoyed the Alice in Wonderland feeling of the space. Park visitors experience panoramic vistas, an elevated forest, beautiful vegetation, birds and butterflies, art and public seating. All of it encouraging people to slow down the manic pace that exemplifies this city and lengthens the NY minute.

The design team deserves a big high five for rethinking how to use this abandoned space and repurposing existing materials. This practice is so much more sustainable and responsible than tearing down and building new. Economic redevelopment is happening, too. The area that surrounds the High Line is exploding with new restaurants, retail, hotels and apartments.

As urban planner and author, Jane Jacobs stated, “The more successfully a city mingles everyday diversity of uses and users in its everyday streets, the more successfully, casually (and economically) its people thereby enliven and support well-located parks that can thus give back grace and delight to their neighborhoods instead of vacuity.”

If you can, visit the High Line. If you are inspired, consider bringing the lessons of this project to your community. In either case, share with our readers, your places real or imagined that can motivate others in improving their neighborhoods. High Five! –alex