Buildings & Land

2009-04, Sense and Response: A Bioclimatic Dialogue of Place (PDF-0.7MB)

Preindustrial societies had an intimate connection to their environments in part because survival was dependent on a constructive understanding. This resulted in fantastic forms of settlement that maintained a stable and sustainable relationship. Increasing use of energy and technical prowess allowed societies to loosen this relationship, at times becoming abstract and capricious. Our current increasing awareness of our ecological dependence has resulted in a renaissance of understanding of how we should inhabit the earth. A new sensing of our place in the world has engendered a bioclimatic relationship, resulting in new forms of settlement which respond to place (May 2009).

D05-11, Design for Health — Summit for Massachusetts Health Care Decision Makers (PDF-2.0MB)

Presented in this report, the primary goal of the Design for Health Summit was to bring together leading health care facility decision makers, discuss the arguments for and evidence supporting "healthy design," and brainstorm initiatives and implementation strategies to achieve healthier hospitals — healthier for patients, healthier for staff, healthier for the environment and community, and healthier for hospital financial security. Included in this report are Summit recommendations for individual hospital policies, collective actions and initiatives, and strategies for higher performance architectural and engineering systems (17 October 2005).

D04-23, Energy Performance Contracting for New Buildings (PDF-485)

The way buildings are typically designed, constructed and operated offers little incentive for energy efficiency. Architect/Engineer firms are often paid a flat fee or a percentage of construction costs, an arrangement that discourages them from spending extra time on innovation and efficiency. Performance contracts provide an incentive to design and construct efficient buildings, making it worthwhile for designers to integrate energy efficiency into the plan from the start, when it is possible to have the largest impact with the least effort and cost. This report was funded by The Energy Foundation (2004).

D04-04, Lightfair: Economics of Daylighting and Occupant Productivity (PDF-1.9MB)

This PowerPoint presentation was made for a seminar on daylighting as part of Lightfair 2004 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The presentation focused on the economics of daylighting and occupant productivity, along with an introduction to RMI's research into biophila and buildings (30 March 2004).

D03-17, Green Building Sources (PDF-440k)

This document is a compendium of information including books, publications, CDs, organizations, and web sites about the issues, products, and needs for green development (21 July 2004).

D03-16, An Introduction to Green Building — Part 2: Environmental Sensitivity with Building Materials (PDF-80k)

Choosing "green" building materials is not a cut-and-dried process. There are many considerations — sometimes conflicting. No project will be composed of a perfectly green set of materials and strategies; rather, designers and owners must determine what the most important characteristics are for the project and what the occupants need (2003).

D02-15, An Introduction to Green Building—Part 1: Resource Efficiency (PDF-32k)

"Green building" is a way of enhancing the environment. It benefits humans, the community, the environment, and a builder's bottom line. It is about tailoring a building and its site to the to local climate, site conditions, culture and community, in order to reduce resource consumption while enhancing quality of life (2002).

D02-14, Why Build Green? (PDF-120k)

A green building project does not have to cost more up front. In fact, building green often costs less. Careful "front-loaded" planning and design can pay for itself — with interest — in avoided downstream costs such as elaborate mechanical systems, expensive redesigns, drawn-out approvals, litigation, and stalled construction. This 4-page brochure describes 8 Green Development case studies (2002).

Green Office Guide (508k)

The City of Portland Office of Sustainable Development's Green Office Guide is an excellent resource for greening offices and operations. In the guide you'll find numerous resource saving opportunities, technical information, financial incentives, and other great resources. This article appears courtesy of the City of Portland Office of Sustainable Development, www.sustainableportland.org (2002).

D96-03, Foreword to Sustainable Design Guide of the Japan Institute of Architects (PDF-19k)

When people experience a space in which they can feel comfortable, see what they're doing, and hear themselves think, they do far more and better work; they remain healthier and more alert, friendlier and happier. "Green" architecture — creating serene and beautiful structures that grow organically in and from their place, structures that do not exploit or pollute but rather increase harmony with the whole world around them — might be a good place to start seeking kansei synthesis (1996).

D94-27, Greening the Building and the Bottom Line: Increasing Productivity Through Energy-Efficient Design (PDF-1.1MB)

This landmark study makes a new economic case for green design in the workplace. Its message to corporate managers: while energy-efficient design can pay for itself in reduced energy costs alone, it may also produce vastly greater benefits in higher worker productivity, lower absenteeism, fewer errors, better quality, and increased retail sales. Eight documented case studies show that productivity gains from green design can be as high as 16 percent (1994).

D94-09, Greening the White House (PDF-21k)

On Earth Day 1993, President Clinton initiated the "Greening of the White House," a successful and influential effort-coordinated by RMI-to make the nation's most famous house a showcase of energy, economic, and environmental performance. This paper provides a general outline of the project's aims and methods (1994).

D92-22, Negawatts for Buildings, Urban Land (PDF-23k)

Retrofitting rental properties is a win-win-win proposition: it prevents pollution, makes occupants more comfortable, and increases owners' profits. From Urban Land (1992).

D92-21, NMB Bank Headquarters: The Impressive Performance of a Green Building, Urban Land (PDF-110k)

In project design and construction, 'green' means putting environmental concerns first. Doing so can mean big pay offs, as this Amsterdam office building proves. This article, by William Browning, appeared in the June 1992 issue of Urban Land (June 1992).