IES Blog

There has been a lot of negativity surrounding the state of the job market, new construction and business development in the United States. Sometimes it’s unavoidable. Turn on the television, read a newspaper or grab a magazine and you’re bound to see it. But if you’re in the green, clean or low-carbon sector, there appears to be a big light at the end of the tunnel.

A green jobs infographic released by JobVine highlights some promising statistics. Take a look at green construction, for example. In 2005, only $3 billion was spent on non-residential green construction in the United Sates. In 2010, that number skyrocketed to $54 billion. The best part? Non-residential green construction is predicted to be $145 billion by 2015. These are figures that anyone in this space can smile about. With President Obama continuing to push green tax incentives and loan programs, the future is looking good.

“As we recover from this recession, the transition to clean energy has the potential to grow our economy and create millions of jobs – but only if we accelerate the transition. Only if we seize the moment.” – President Obama

From the nationwide increase in green jobs to the projected growth of green construction, it seems the industry is indeed seizing the moment!

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Tags:construction, energy, Green, jobs, low carbon, Obama

It’s true that the U.S. government’s investments in green technology haven’t always paid off – just ask those who picked up office furniture, industrial supplies and T-shirts last month at the Solyndra bankruptcy auction. But that doesn’t mean additional funding is gone, especially with President Obama and former President Clinton’s recently-announced plan to invest $4 billion in energy upgrades to public and private buildings nationwide.

A recent article on Politico.com explains the duo has teamed up for the latest installment of President Obama’s “Better Building Initiative.” Government officials say the plan, which is meant to spur job growth and energy efficiency, avoids many of the problems of previous loan guarantees. How? By relying on both government and private investments; $2 billion from each over the next two years, to be exact. But what’s perhaps most interesting about this plan is what it says about the United States’ dedication to green technology and more energy-efficient commercial and industrial buildings.

Obama [was] joined by Clinton during a Washington, D.C., event Friday to sign a memorandum for a minimum of a $2 billion commitment from federal agencies over the next 24 months. The money will go toward hiring contractors to perform energy efficiency and other green upgrades at federal facilities. There also will be a $2 billion private-sector commitment, covering up to 1.6 billion square feet of commercial and independent property and involving roughly 300 manufacturing plants.

In this case, the U.S. government’s decision not to dwell on past mistakes certainly appears to be a good thing for the green building and energy efficiency industries at large. Here’s looking to a greener and more efficient future!

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Tags:Building, energy, Green, Obama, US Government, Washington

Earlier this year, AIA challenged its member to design a dream house for Barbie – yes, Ms. Barbra Millicent Roberts herself. The AIA Barbie® Dream House™ Design Competition is part of Mattel’s spotlight on architecture as its “Career of the Year” for Barbie.

And it looks like the competition was a success! With more than 30 entries, the design submitted by Ting Li, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP and Maja Paklar, Assoc. AIA, took home top honors.

This Mother Nature Network article, “A palace fit for a doll: Barbie gets new green digs in Malibu,” links to the winning design.

Now you would think with such a high-profile “character” as Barbie, this would be a positive for the architecture community. Unfortunately, some of the articles I’m seeing online actually think the architecture profession itself needs a makeover, not just a new spokeswoman.

In an opinion piece on The Christian Science Monitor, John Cary states‘’Architect Barbie’ builds a dream home, but her profession needs a makeover.’

According to the article, “The American Institute of Architects has announced the winners of its contest to build a dream home for the Mattel doll, ‘Architect Barbie.’ The contest misses the point that the severe gender gap in architecture is a problem of retaining women – not one of recruiting them.”

What do you think? Does the architecture community have an issue retaining women? And if you answer yes, is that an issue exclusive to architects, or all professional careers?

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Tags:AIA, Architects, Barbie, Building, careers, LEED

Are your kids going to a brand new LEED certified school? Probably not, but the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) recently announced a new program, the Center for Green Schools. This new initiative is encouraging both the construction of new schools to be LEED certified as well as existing schools to make repairs with sustainability as a main component. As this program looks to green our schools, it realizes it won’t be an overnight process so before making large scale changes it is offering some easier options for older schools, like using green cleaning products or changing air filters.

“The education sector is doing more in the way of green building than any other sector, more than health care, more than commercial, more than religious institutions. But we still have a really long way to go,” said Rachel Gutter, director of the USGBC’s new initiative.

Along with helping schools build a greener facility, the Center for Green Schools is also looking to educate teachers so they are able to implement sustainability lessons into their classes. The thought behind this is if students learn sustainability at a younger age, just as they do with languages, they will be able to retain the information more easily.

The USGBC is looking for all of our children to attend greener schools by the end of this generation. Do you think this is possible?

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Tags:Building, education, LEED, students, Sustainability, USGBC

I was recently asked to complete an interview questionnaire for the CIBSE Young Members website. Having benefitted from CIBSE Young Engineer’s activities over the years, I was more than happy to help out.

CIBSE YE offers graduates and school leavers an opportunity to find out more about the industry, meet recent graduates working in the profession, and gives young engineers a chance to network with peers and even prospective employers.

One of my interview questions focussed on advice to students and graduates. My guidance was to take heed of the rapidly changing nature of the industry. With sustainability at the centre of what we do, forward-thinking young engineers are in a strong position to make a real difference to the way we design buildings. This was summed up very well in an interview I read recently with David C.J. Peters, an HVAC consulting engineer for US firm Southland Industries. You can read the full interview at Consulting Specifying Engineer here.

In addition, one of my colleagues Liam Buckley, was one of the six shortlisted in the this year’s CIBSE/ASHRAE Graduate of the Year Award.  You can read about all their hopes for their careers and the future of building services engineering in CIBSE Journal - unsurprisingly it oozes green ambition!

Many graduates and school leavers are unaware of the sheer scale of the building services industry, and the myriad of career opportunities within. So, if you’re a student or recent graduate considering a career in the built environment, CIBSE YE is a great first point of reference.

Check out mine and past interviews on the CIBSE YE website.

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Tags:ASHRAE, building services, careers, CIBSE, graduates, Green Building, students, sustainable buiding, young engineers