Germany's Insights on Green Building

Green building is a growing staple of international commerce, and German-American collaboration is a theme that's gaining resonance on the green building and products front, as demonstrated by a pair of conferences this month in Washington, D.C., (one last weekand onethis week, April 28-29).

The German Embassy’s April 19 conference on绿色建筑的新市场机会highlighted innovations pioneered in the U.S. and Germany.

会议所接受的一个关键主题是开发建筑物和城市系统，以与自然环境无缝和可持续性。

Water as a Central Planning Element

Herbert Dreiseitl，校长Atelier Dreiseitl，建立了许多以水域为主题的有远见的项目：清洁，收获和再利用水。使用水作为关键规划元素的使用统一了开放和建造空间的使用，并有助于将自然，光和可持续原则纳入城市项目。

Atelier Dreisel从事大规模的城市规划项目，滨水区修复，城市中心和世界各地的公园。Projects featured in Dreiseitl’s presentation included a water restoration plan for Singapore, a city plaza in Germany, and a park in Portland, Ore. The Atelier’s projects have been economically successful as well as visually and ecologically transformative, said Dreiseitl, because activity is drawn to spaces that combine natural and built elements in a sustainable context.

Using Project Design and Materials to Reduce Energy Usage.

Stefan Behnisch，校长Behnisch Architekten，使用多种策略来减少能源使用，同时承认光线和空气。

Double facades in translucent cladding seal exteriors for energy efficiency while admitting natural light. Benisch also leaves interior slabs exposed (by eliminating dropped ceilings, for example) to help regulate interior temperatures and reduce reliance on mechanical heating and cooling. In projects which use this technique, cooler nighttime air is absorbed by the structure to moderate the heat of the sun; conversely sunlight is absorbed during the day to moderate the evening chill. Extensive use of LED lighting provides for long-term energy efficiency and an immediate reduction in building maintenance, as bulb changes and relamping is eliminated.

Innovative projects in which Behnisch has used these strategies include the LEED Platinum-ratedGenzyme Centerin Cambridge, Mass., and联合利华的总部in Hamburg, Germany. The Unilever headquarters, which seems to float on its foundation, is clad inVector Foiltech ETRE membrane, a light-weight, translucent cladding system that provides higher insulation and better weather-resistance than glass. ETRE foil systems also can be integrated with solar shading and typically self-clean in the rain.


Designing Buildings and Products that Regenerate

William McDonough and Michael Braungartprovided insights into theirCradle-to-Cradleprogram, which calls for buildings, communities and products to minimize harmful ecological and environmental outcomes, and to maximize energy efficiency.

在实践中，摇篮到摇篮要求最大程度地减少有害废物和排放，用“干净”的材料和过程制造，并在产品或结构的使用寿命结束时回收。

Building on McDonough’s path-breaking career in sustainable architecture and community design, McDonough and Braungart have establishedMcDonough Braungart Design Chemistryto help companies develop sustainable products using sustainable processes.

Government as an Agent of Sustainable Change

The role of the public sector in encouraging sustainability was a second theme of the German Embassy’s New Market Opportunities Conference. Michelle Moore, the Obama administration’s联邦环境主管, detailed the Obama Administration’s greenhouse gas reduction policy, intended toreduce U.S. government climate change emissions 28 percent by 2020. Key elements of the strategy, which Moore predicted would help to grow jobs in green industries, include green building and procurement requirements and federal funding initiatives for sustainable community improvements.

The German government, too, has taken a leadership role in sustainability. Germany has adopted comprehensive regulations on building energy efficiency and is remodeling federal government buildings -- including the German Embassy in Washington -- to be green and energy efficient.

德国裔美国人在可持续发展方面的合作将在另一个华盛顿特区的活动中进一竞彩足球app怎么下载步探讨April 28-29 forum(register这里) sponsored byGermany’s Institute for Construction and the Environment, andThe Green Standard, the U.S. green product training and education organization on whose board I sit. The conference will explore the growing global use of environmental product declarations (EPDs) and lifecycle assessments (LCAs), and their implications for international trade and economic growth with an emphasis on building products and services.

乔尔·塞金迪（Joel Secundy）将在会议上讲话，他指导奥巴马政府为提高美国服务行业的全球竞争力以及德国和美国专家在绿色产品认证，贸易和可持续建筑方面的努力。联邦环境质量理事会的威尔·加维（Will Garvey）将讨论美国政府对绿色认证产品和服务的需求不断增长。会议将在最新的EPD和LCA系统之前进行详细的培训课程。我将参加论坛，期待在那里与您见面。

Leanne Tobias是创始人和执行校长孔雀石有限责任公司, an advisory firm that specializes in the development, leasing, management, financing and certification of sustainable or green real estate on a global basis.Write to Leanne about your thoughts on trends for 2010 or ways to jumpstart the economy at[电子邮件保护]. She'll share the best ideas in future posts.

Image Credits
Top image and first inset image -- Tanner Springs Park, Portland, Oregon, courtesy of Atelier Dreiseitl.
联合利华总部，德国汉堡，由Behnisch Architekten提供。
The Genzyme Center, courtesy of Genzyme Corporation.
德国大使馆，克里斯托弗·艾弗里尔（Christophe Avril）摄影©德国大使馆，华盛顿特区。