Government Sector Leads the Green Building Movement from the Front

Governments at all levels in the United States have made a significant contribution to the green building movement in recent years. Many governments have clear policies that mandate LEED certification for public buildings. One out of every four building projects in the LEED pipeline is a governmental project.

It is important to maintain this momentum because a very large number of existing government-owned buildings still need a serious improvement in their energy efficiencies. At the same time, new construction continues to grow a rapid pace in the government sector, which is where the opportunity is ripe for introducing energy-efficient building norms. The Obama Administration's "Better Building Initiative" is one of the key programs aimed at meeting energy efficiency challenges in new and existing buildings across the nation.

The annual USGBC Government Summit, scheduled to be held on May 10 and 11, 2011 in Washington, D.C., is expected to bring together various government agency representatives and green building experts to push the green building agenda forward. Such events provide an opportunity for brainstorming of ideas that usually leading to lasting changes in the manner in which the green building movement is pursued in both government and private sectors.

The annual summit in 2010 had result in the formation of a working group on healthy buildings based at National Institutes of Health. That became the foundation for a major research initiative on establishing the relationship between green buildings and human health. The 2011 summit will provide a common platform for building professionals in private and public sectors as well as government building contractors to discuss innovative ideas to expand the scope of the green building movement.

The summit will be marked by innovative ideas and guidance provided by experts from the government and the building industry, policy-oriented discussions, and plenty of opportunity for networking and creation of working groups to carry the movement forward. Events such as the USGBC Government Summit are an important way to promote the goals of sustainable development in the building and construction arena, with particular attention to the government sector.

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