LEED by example

Think about your every day life. What are constant resources you use? Materials you wear? Cars you drive? What do you think your life would come to if you were to HAVE to go without them? From the research I have done the past several days, I have realized how our resources are depleting and that one-day things we have grown accustomed to, may not be there in the future. Let’s take a step back and look at what McDonough and Braungart say in Cradle to Cradle about what makes up our planet and some target areas to focus in on, for ways of improvement. The article and video provided great importance. They talk about the Great Depression and how they were at one, point miles ahead of us when it came to recycling, whether it was jars, jugs, foil, bottles or anything of the sort, they just didn’t have the money to dispose of these essentials so quickly. Now days it is the “norm” to throw things away after a couple times of use. That is the problem with our generation today, we think things should just be handed to us on a silver platter and once they newest thing is out, that old Ipod is in the trashcan. Which later ends up in a landfill and never ends up decomposing because of the way it was manufactured and its overall composition. I would say the industries progress is coming along but it is still somewhat of a disappointment because if they were so serious about improving our planet, why is it all of a sudden coming out of the woodwork now more than ever? We have always heard that we should recycle, but it wasn’t until recently that things like LEED have been talked up more, “Going Green for a Brighter Orange,” apparel being made from recycled fibers and so on. Don’t get me wrong it is a wonderful thing that we are finally taking baby steps to the road to recovery, although, “it takes approximately 500 years for soil to build up an inch of its rich layers of microorganisms and nutrient flows and we are losing 5,000 more than what is being made.” McDonough and Braungart certify this, and knowing this there is no way our society can keep up this pace of life without chemicals, landfills, non -decomposable plastics etc, overriding our planet. I know we have grown accustomed to our everyday lifestyle, so what is the harm in making a few changes here and there to start making an impact and keep living this daily standard of living.

Earlier today I noticed a sticker on a hand dryer that said “every one hand dryer saves 24 trees.” That put things into retrospect for me because; there are not even 24 trees on my neighborhood street combined. They are becoming a rarity with the mass amount of paper use, lumber and everything in between. I catch myself lately instead of using a paper towel in the kitchen, either grabbing a linen towel or simply air-drying my hands. Just over the past week, this course has made an impact on me, and some of the choices I make in my everyday life. I think we as civilians could use some encouragement to act upon becoming sustainable. It can be a rewarding job knowing as an interior designer, you designed a building that was composed solely of reusable and recycled, natural products and that can be environmentally safe for people to work and be in. In the AAFA (American Apparel and Footwear Association) they hope to instruct textile, apparel, and footwear companies, “to become more aware of various national regulations governing the amount of substances that are permitted in finished home textile, apparel and footwear products.” With doing so, they hope to create an environment that can withstand the test of time. Speaking of shoes, it also stated in the readings this week that shoes today are made up of chemicals and plastics without even giving it a second thought. They are hard or impossible to decompose when they become of no use, so they never deteriorate. AAFA can help change this process of shoe making, if they can get the word out and people to listen. A few of the chemicals discussed throughout the AAFA Restricted Substances List were, pesticides, disperse dyes, solvents, metals flame retardants, and fluorinated greenhouse gases, which ties me into some of my research.

I found an article written by McKinsey & Company that talks about the Global Greenhouse Gas Abatement Cost Curve. There are research articles over countless countries that are in return having a greenhouse gas problem and if we want to put off global warming or even stabilize it, something must be done because it could be a challenging goal to meet. Throughout the lecture notes this week, I picked gathered a lot of information about up and down cycling. There is a slight difference between the two, however they can both be beneficial to us all. Down cycling is described as creating new products from something old and of no use, but its second life is of less worth than what it was originally. A couple examples would be “nonwovens, making nylon fiber into a park bench or taking shoe soles and make them into tracks or playgrounds.” As for up cycling mentioned in both the lecture notes and readings it is creating something new from something old. Unlike down cycling this new life is of equal or greater worth. A great example mentioned was taking an old plastic bottle and making it into a polyester fabric. I think up cycling would be a wonderful contribution to sustainability because you are taking something ordinary and making it two times as great.  

From the GOTS Manual, which come to find out means Global Organic Textile Standard relays some of the same information the AAFA does. It is here to “implement quality assurance for certifiers.” I think this is a wonderful organization that defines clarifications for “products such as yarns, fabrics, clothes and textiles.” Which ties in with LEED, which I found the credit weightings very interesting and beneficial.

-All LEED credits are worth a minimum of 1 point.

-All LEED credits are positive, whole numbers; there are not fractions or negative values.

-All LEED credits receive a single, static weight in each rating system; there are no individualized scorecards based on project location.

-All LEED rating systems have 100 base points; Innovation in Design (or Operations) and Regional Priority credits provide opportunities for up to 10 bonus points.

Interior designers can become LEED certified and this can further help us in the work field. Take a look at this video for a little bit of an insight.

I think AAFA, GOTS, and LEED all have something great to offer and they are all making contributions in preserving our planet. A major advantage to LEED is “certified spaces save money for families, businesses and taxpayers; reduce carbon emissions; and contribute to a healthier environment for residents, workers and the larger community.” This was found in an article entitled U.S. Green Building Council Announces Changes to LEED 2012. All of these foundations are thriving around making our planet a better place. I found an article How Starbucks Took the Lead on LEED, and it was announced it was “their intention to complete U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED certification for all new company-owned stores,” that started in 2010. They designed it to fit their business model to a T, which I found intriguing first of all because I am wanting to further my knowledge on LEED and second for my obsession for coffee. Everywhere we look we can find something that shows contribution towards becoming a sustainable planet. People must become aware of this growing issue and taking the time to set an example, can cause others to follow. So go ahead, take the LEED.