January 4, 2012 It’s the beginning of a new year. Just as people develop personal new year’s resolutions for self-improvement which, we hope, we’ll stick to, people should develop company or professional new year’s resolutions, too. What can you do to improve your effectiveness for your company, which will, as a result, make yourself more [...]

November 2011 According to the USEPA, energy use in commercial and industrial buildings costs U.S. companies about $200 billion per year. And for many businesses, energy costs (with unit prices rising every year) are among their largest expenses. Therefore, the direct financial benefits of reducing energy use should drive all companies – even non-“smoke stack” [...]

July 26, 2011 Despite the rancor in Congress about federal government spending, a new low-cost, money-saving initiative began this year to incentivize energy conservation. President Obama and the Dept of Energy (DOE) launched the “Better Buildings Initiative”, which hopes to channel private sector investment through incentives to upgrade offices, stores, schools and other municipal buildings, [...]

August 8, 2010 There is growing interest in the USGBC’s LEED program. Though criticized, this is an accepted, concrete (no pun intended) program that defines “green” building. Some companies who are cool to climate change (another pun, there!) or sustainability programs have embraced LEED for several reasons. First, it requires outside body certification. One accumulates [...]