Cutting down on carbon emissions has been at the forefront of the Go Green movement. However, some initiatives that target a completely new, green infrastructure have gone unnoticed yet are essential to competitiveness, long-term sustainability, job growth, energy independence and national security.

Blowing Cellulose Installation
Efficiency and conservation are often a sound investment economically and environmentally.

According to the Department of Energy, heating and cooling account for 50 to 70% of the energy used in the average American home. A large proportion of energy is lost through cracks in walls and ceilings. In terms of energy conservation, people can make immediate improvements to their energy profile simply by adding insulation to their home.

Arguably (video), the best insulation for any green home is cellulose. According to the U.S. Green Building Council cellulose requires comparatively less energy. Some cellulose insulation is 75% recycled material. There also is renewable cotton, abundant fiberglass, even soy-based foam insulation, which has the highest percentage of renewable resource ingredients in the industry with 60%.

By adding insulation to their home a homeowner adds to their home value, while conserving energy and reducing their utility bill. The period for the homeowner to get a ROI (Return On Investment) will vary, and long-term savings will outweigh upfront costs.

Smart Meters can help in finding areas in the home where the loss of energy dollars occurs. In some locations, local governments are providing residents with them for free. This seems the best strategy for getting residents the tools necessary to cut energy costs. The idea is that consumers are more likely to make necessary changes to their energy consumption when they actually see where inefficiency occurs.

Save the Future for Me Kid T-shirt
Sustainability is a new way of thinking about an age-old concern: ensuring that our children and grandchildren inherit a tomorrow that is at least as good as today, preferably better.

Aside from personal effort, there are a lot of groups and organizations that people can get involved with that tackle larger projects. UNPEPP (the University-National Park Energy Partnership Program) is a great example. UNPEPP is a PPP (Public Private Partnership) that connects federal grant monies with university students eager to change the United States landscape one national park at a time. Universities all across America use the federal grant money to create internship opportunities for students to travel to a national park in their area and work with energy and environmental professors, experts and park staff to do energy audits, recommend energy conservation measures and carry out renewable energy technology. Ultimately parks can save thousands in energy costs and cut their carbon footprint. (See UNPEPP 10 year Report.) This type of partnership is a rewarding experience for everyone involved and similar PPPs are at the forefront of the green energy movement.

A third part of building the green energy infrastructure involves business owners. While individual efforts generally result in relatively smaller improvements and PPPs sometimes get delayed by energy policies hung up by the legislative process, some private businesses can tackle cost-saving projects that can create a large impact. More businesses are now seeing the potential for going green without delay.

LEED Gold Certification
Because of decreased utility costs, a business owner could recoup the ROI (Return On Investment) within a short a period as two years

Devised in 1998 LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification is a scoring system that many private business use to help gauge just how far a company has gone to merge green initiatives into their designs. Specifically, the LEED Green Building Rating System provides an environmentally sustainable benchmark for buildings and neighborhoods.

According to USGBC, 72% of electricity consumption and 39% of energy use come from buildings in the United States alone. LEED certified buildings use efficient resources to improve performance with energy conservation, CO2 emissions reduction, and water efficiency all while enhancing the ecosystems they are a part of – not diminishing them.

One major company, Globetrotters Engineering Corporation (GEC), an architectural company founded by engineer and CEO, Niranjan Shah, is an example of a company that adheres to LEED certification. GEC is responsible for many facets of modernization and expansion of O’Hare International Airport in Chicago (the first privately managed terminal in the United States). Niranjan Shah benefits from green design by proving that it is helpful to society and profitable all at the same time. Another company that earned LEED Certification is the Washington D.C. based mortgage company, Fannie Mae, which was responsible for the first-ever LEED data center.

There are countless other companies that are earning LEED certification. Government incentives to companies earning LEED certification is a way to boost the number of participants. Such guidelines bolster environmental sustainability and show that federal agencies are environmentally friendly, even while members of Congress dither over federal energy policy.

On a larger scale, organizations like the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), founded by Bill Clinton and counselor Doug Band, are doing their part to bring the strongest political leaders together to tackle world problems. However, small projects at home, public private partnerships and LEED certification are methods that combine to allow everyone a chance to curtail inefficient energy use.

Written by Marcus Reyes

Other AG posts on the topic of LEED certification or net-zero architecture

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