US Green Building Council Massachusetts Chapter Celebrates Building Performance and Green Innovation with 7th Annual Green Building Awards

Each year, in honor of Earth Day, the USGBC MA Chapter community gathers to recognize superior achievement in the green building industry. We have two awards: the Green Building of the Year and the Green Innovation Award. The Chapter seeks to recognize and encourage higher-level performance in buildings. Thank you for your interest and your work for green buildings. High-performance buildings are all around us - we see them every day. However, they don't always get the attention they deserve, considering the effort that has gone into their creation and into their ongoing management. Our awards program is designed to highlight these achievements and provide recognition to the parties responsible for the green buildings in our communities which are making the world a better place. The Green Building of the Year is a competition among buildings that are saving energy, conserving water, and improving the user experience. Achievement on these metrics also results in a building that costs less to operate and is more beneficial to occupants than conventional structures. By comparing buildings against each others' measured performance, we help push the entire industry towards improved performance and value. Similarly, the Green Innovation Award acknowledges that significant creativity and expertise can go into a component of a building project, which can set the stage for future superlative performance. Green buildings are an important part of the Massachusetts "innovation economy." Our members are working with new technologies and new design, construction and facility management techniques to configure buildings in better ways, with improved results for all. This year's entries include a wide variety of buildings designed, built and operated by chapter members and sponsors. The development of green buildings brings together teams from a wide variety of disciplines. Our entries for Green Building of the Year include major downtown office towers, residential facilities and academic centers. Each has demonstrated incredible attention to detail on the part of the facility managers. In Massachusetts, we have a tremendous amount of talent in the building industry, and many individuals and firms committed to sustainability. Working on thousands of projects here and beyond, our community of green building professionals is pushing the envelope on achievement in the built environment. Our Green Innovation Award helps to recognize and reinforce this collective creativity. This year we highlight innovations in rainwater management and building project re-use. These are just a sampling of the way Massachusetts is a leading innovator in the green building and real estate arena. The community that coalesces around the USGBC is expert, exacting and passionate. We share a common engagement on green building projects and a common vision of the future. Our mission is to promote the design, construction, and operation of sustainable buildings and communities in Massachusetts through education, mutual support, and advocacy, enabling an environmentally and socially responsible, healthy and prosperous environment that improves the quality of life. As an organization, we welcome anyone interested in sharing this mission to join us and participate in our many programs and activities. We support professional development and general green building education. We advocate for state & local regulations and legislation which will support our green building industry. We convene the community to facilitate relationships and connections that can help solve the challenges we face in the building industry. Thank you for being a part of our work, participating in our mission, and coming together for the Earth Day Gala to celebrate the best work of our peers through the Green Building Awards. Grey Lee, LEED AP, is the executive director of the US Green Building Council, MA Chapter.