Each session is 60 minutes. Sessions are approved for 1 CEU for Designers and 1 LU for Architects. Certificates are available post session after completing a 10-question quiz.

Commercial facility management, real estate and design topics are addressed in these NeoCon on-site sessions in the tracks for Workplace/Sustainability/Industry Directions:

Good Leads the Way: United Airlines Headquarters Decarbonization Journey: The renovation and restack of 13 floors at the United Airlines headquarters in Chicago created a hybrid workplace infused with a dynamic energy that reinforces employee pride. This space brings together staff through shared experiences connected to United’s brand story: an airline where Good Leads the Way.

Wellness Real Estate: Supercharging Transformation & Growth: Wellness is emerging as a critical catalyst for growth. This on-site CEU will explore how design that intentionally supports the holistic health of users elevates individual and community well-being and unlocks significant market opportunities. Drawing from Gensler’s research, the session will define and survey a $580 billion U.S. Wellness Real Estate Market and its expansion across the workplace, multifamily residential, hospitality, and retail sectors.

Transforming Buildings into Material Resources: Demolition projects have a significant impact on climate change due to the energy and resources required, as well as the emissions created during the process. Material recovery through deconstruction is an unparalleled opportunity for reducing embodied carbon, while also diverting construction waste, reducing exposure to toxic pollutants, protecting natural resources, and creating green jobs.

How Can Science Make Us All More Creative. Really. In an era where information floods our senses and technology reshapes thinking patterns, the ability to focus has become a precious resource. Our physical surroundings play a key role in enhancing or hindering individual and group creative capabilities. This session explores how scientific research into environmental psychology is leveraged to create spaces that support focus and creativity. From ambient sounds to colors, natural materials, light, and spatial configuration, our environments shape creative potential. Understanding these principles isn’t just about designing better workplaces—it’s about creating environments that help navigate information while maintaining the clarity for innovative thinking.

Virtual sessions in the facilities management track:

FF&E Changes in Sports Spaces: Mercedes-Benz Stadium Clubs: Using case study examples from Mercedes-Benz Stadium’s Field Level VIP Clubs, this panel will take a deep dive into navigating the changing landscape of furniture in public assembly spaces. The dynamic group of experts will discuss client expectations and best practices for specifying the right product for the application – extending beyond aesthetics and considering factors such as durability, mobility, accessibility and functionality. As conversions teams are constantly reconfiguring spaces, the session will address approaches to finishes and features to facilitate versatile, multi-use public environments, and to deliver high quality visitor experiences. This panel will discuss how to champion sustainability and community connections. Panelists will underscore proactive communication across the project’s lifecycle, best practices for engaging complex stakeholder networks and a pipeline for continued client communication after installation and solving for arising issues.

Moving Towards Circularity: A Playbook for Sustainable Furniture Planning & Specifications: Think sustainable furniture planning has to be overwhelming, costly or impractical? Think again! This session empowers facility owners, designers, and specifiers with tools and strategies to simplify sustainability and make a measurable impact–and (gasp!) maybe even enjoy the process.

Discover how informed selections, certified materials, and sustainable practices lead to smarter choices that boost durability, extend furniture life, and keep items out of landfills–while saving money and improving budget efficiency. We’ll guide you through RFPs, procurement, and change management, transforming these steps into powerful tools for creating healthier spaces and minimizing environmental harm.

Whether you’re tackling large-scale projects or refining your specification process, this session offers practical strategies to achieve financial savings. Leave with fresh ideas, useful tools, and the confidence to make impactful decisions that save resources and create lasting value.

The Industry Directions, Sustainability and Wellness tracks feature these sessions:

Behavior by Design: Can Design Make Us Better People?: Beyond aesthetics, well designed environments impacts everyone and enables us to enjoy: Improved wellbeing, business and medical outcomes; reduced isolation loneliness and crime; safe neighborhoods and strong communities. Conversely, bad design can interfere with all of these. Data collected in & on spaces reveals correlations between spatial design and human behavior. Can designers tune design for desired human behavior? Should we? Who decides? This session will present projects and research that illustrate the outcome of spatial design on its occupants and the potential for design-orchestrated behavior. The session will invite audience members into discussion on the implications for the possible future of design.

Building Products Selection & Procurement: The release of LEED V5 this year represents the boldest major update for materials and products in over a decade. The material selection landscape is changing each day, and those designing as well as specifying finishes, furniture, flooring, etc. are placing a critical lens on the process taken to affect change in the built environment. This session will cover what’s new for V5 and how to maximize points in the new rating system. You will hear from USGBC staff and members of the LEED Technical Advisory Group who helped launch the new rating system. USGBC will discuss the Building Product Selection & Procurement credit, which is rooted in the impact areas of LEED Version 5. Members of the Materials & Resources Technical Advisory Group will address the ways in which the criteria areas, which have been intentionally aligned with the Mindful Materials Common Materials Framework, will impact the industry from the perspective of those designing, specifying and manufacturing.

Creating Long-Term Value from the Experience Design Process: When architecture, interior design, technology, signage, and service design are coordinated separately, the result is a fragmented experience for users. And as organizations expand, this siloed approach to design results in a broader sense of inconsistency, affecting trust, loyalty, and satisfaction. The solution to this fragmentation and inconsistency is experience design: an integrated, human-centered, place-oriented approach that brings all design disciplines together. While many organizations are going through the process of experience design, they are missing a crucial piece of the puzzle: how to maintain that value over time. The key? Experience design guidelines that turn experiential thinking into a set of actionable and adaptable outcomes. This session explores how both organizations and designers can create, implement, and continuously update experience design guidelines to maximize long-term ROI.

The post FMs and designers at NeoCon 2025 can learn about decarbonization, wellness, material recovery, building products, and design data appeared first on FMLink.

For decades, IFMA has recognized and championed the business case for energy efficiency — highlighting its role in enhancing U.S. economic competitiveness, reducing environmental waste and strengthening national security.

Consumers and businesses alike rely on Energy Star ratings when making informed decisions about appliances and equipment. Eliminating this publicly funded resource without consulting the industries and individuals who depend on it is shortsighted and irresponsible. Dean Stanberry, immediate past chair of IFMA

Facility managers face the realities of energy management every day. Commercial buildings are among the largest consumers of electricity in the United States, making them key targets for energy-saving opportunities. Facility managers not only reduce operational costs through energy-efficient strategies but also educate building occupants on best practices and emerging technologies.

Energy Star is not just for U.S. households — it’s a global benchmark with far-reaching influence across commercial facilities of every type. From HVAC systems to lighting, life safety equipment and manufacturing tools, Energy Star provides independent, trusted confirmation of quality and efficiency. Facility managers, building owners and employers depend on this program to maintain healthy, sustainable workplaces that support core business functions. Michael V. Geary, CAE, President & CEO of IFMA

IFMA says it remains committed to collaborating with policymakers and industry stakeholders worldwide to promote efficiency, innovation and sustainability in the built environment.

The post IFMA urges Congress to preserve Energy Star and other critical building sector programs appeared first on FMLink.

Energy savings of up to 15%

Advantages of PCM ceiling panels stem from the fact that they support thermal comfort with no mechanics, energy expenditure, or fossils fuels to burn! A valuable, sustainable solution for a world prioritizing decarbonization, ceiling panels with PCM technology can reduce energy costs and consumption by as much as 15%.* By enabling energy savings, these ceilings offer advantages including:

• Reduced reliance on fossil-fuel powered HVAC systems
• Less wear on HVAC systems — critical to facilities with aging systems and strict budgets
• Improved thermal comfort — especially well-suited for changing climates or environments with daily hot-cold fluctuations
• Ability to enhance indoor environmental quality with features like acoustical sound blocking and absorption
• Easy installation and little-to-no maintenance

Energy-saving ceiling products also fit into the thermal comfort portion of the WELL Building Standard and can contribute to energy and atmosphere credits for LEED.

Up to 50% in tax credits

While the above advantages can work to help a facility realize ongoing savings related to lower energy consumption and less reliance on mechanical heating and cooling — a project owner can get a “head start” on cost benefits because PCM ceiling panels qualify for certain tax credits. Projects utilizing energy-saving ceiling panels may qualify for Investment Tax Credit (ITC) 48E, which was introduced under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and offers tax incentives for investments in clean energy technologies. Because of their thermal energy storage properties, most projects using PCM ceiling panels may qualify:

• Up to 40% federal tax credit
• Additional 10% tax credit if the project is deployed in an “Energy Community.” (i.e., a Brownfields site or fossil-fuel-dependent community)

When investing in energy-saving ceilings for a project, consider a solution that helps you maximize tax savings opportunities. For example, when installing an Armstrong Templok Energy Saving Ceiling, the ceiling panels, and associated grid, trim, and labor all qualify for tax credits under ITC 48E. Moreover, these panels are made in the U.S.A. of domestic and global content, meeting a requirement for additional tax savings.**

Qualifying energy saving ceiling projects include those of taxpayers and non-taxpaying entities and span multiple sectors, including:

• Public — such as government entities
• Private — corporations, healthcare facilities and others
• Education — K-12 and higher education
• 501 (c)(3) charitable organizations

The list of ideal projects is extensive and includes K-12 schools, public and private universities, dorms, museums, hospitals, nonprofit offices/facilities, military bases, courthouses, faith-based buildings, convention centers, and arenas — to name a few. In addition to getting information from the ceiling manufacturer, it’s important to consult your tax advisor to confirm qualification of your project.

More affordable, more sustainable

Thanks to tax credits, the use of energy-saving ceilings could make your next construction or renovation project more affordable. And, with PCM technology helping reduce energy costs, the impact on your bottom line won’t stop there. You can learn more about energy saving ceilings and related tax credits by visiting Armstrong Ceilings.

Notes:

• *Cooling energy savings according to research estimates measured in lab tests. Results may vary.
• ** This article lists various federal tax credits and deductions that your project may qualify for when purchasing Armstrong TEMPLOK Energy Saving Ceilings. Please consult your own tax attorney or advisor.
• LEED is a registered trademark of the U.S. Green Building Council; WELL Building Standard is a trademark of the Well Building Institute.

The post Enjoy tax and energy savings with the right ceiling solutions appeared first on FMLink.

May 13, 2025 –

Over the past three years, the BIFMA e3 Subcommittee — comprising a diverse group of BIFMA members, government agencies, architects, designers, and other industry stakeholders — collaboratively reimagined the standard. The rigorous revision process began with a pilot review and continued through two cycles of association ballots followed by two ANSI ballots. Each phase generated invaluable feedback that helped shape a more transparent, accessible and performance-driven standard.

Key guiding principles during the revision included:

• Simplification of the standard: Streamlining requirements for clarity and ease of implementation
• Establishment of minimum requirements per tier: Transitioning from a credit-based system to clearly defined minimum standards for each performance level
• Alignment with key partners: Maintaining strong consistency with foundational sustainability frameworks such as LEED, WELL and ILFI

As a result, the updated standard introduces several significant enhancements:

• LEVEL 4 achievement: Establishing a new milestone for industry excellence and innovation
• Climate-positive criteria: Pushing the envelope of sustainability by advancing beyond neutrality
• Chemical optimization: Implementing a class-based approach that sets stringent criteria for chemical management

The revised framework builds successively from foundational policies and inventories (Level 1) through assessments and, ultimately, optimization, culminating in the industry-leading benchmarks set by Level 4.

Mendy Claridge, e3 Subcommittee Chair and Director Program Management and Transformation at Kimball International, stated:

This revision represents a bold step forward for sustainable furniture design and manufacturing. By streamlining the requirements and integrating progressive criteria, this allows the industry to meet market sustainability demands while aligning with complementary standards globally.

BIFMA extends its sincere thanks to every individual and organization that contributed insights throughout this review process, saying that their collaboration ensured the development of a standard that not only meets current environmental challenges but also sets a visionary roadmap for the future of sustainable furniture design.

To access the ANSI/BIFMA e3-2024 Furniture Sustainability Standard and additional BIFMA standards, visit BIFMA.

The post Revised ANSI/BIFMA Furniture Sustainability Standard streamlines requirements and aligns with key sustainability frameworks appeared first on FMLink.

The annual recognition was announced at the 2025 Green Schools Conference in Orlando in collaboration with the Green Schools National Network (GSNN). The Green Schools Conference is said to be the only event to unite everyone involved in creating and advocating for green schools. The two-day event provides a platform for the green schools community that inspires and facilitates the movement’s progress.

Anisa Heming, director at the Center for Green Schools, stated:

This year’s Best of Green Schools awardees are individuals and organizations dedicated to improving our schools and creating healthy and resilient learning environments. The awards are an opportunity to spotlight how anyone can make an impact in their community and support students and educators. We are grateful for all those who believe in our mission and join us in achieving it.

Ileana Albareda, executive director at the Green Schools National Network (GSNN), pointed out:

The 2025 Best of Green Schools honorees are proof that sustainability in education is not just a goal, it’s a movement. Their work is transforming schools into healthier, more resilient places for students to learn and thrive. They are part of a growing network of changemakers, and their leadership is inspiring others to take action, push boundaries, and create lasting impact.

This year’s Best of Green School winners represent some of the most engaged individuals and organizations in the green schools movement. In 2024, the Center for Green Schools reached over 600 unique individuals from over 350 school districts at its educational events. It published an online School Health Research Library and several new publications and briefings, including individual school health research highlights, a School District Indoor Air Quality Management Plan Toolkit and executive-level briefings on decarbonization and climate resilience planning.

The awards were presented to organizations or individuals that have worked to move green schools forward in eight categories. This year’s recipients are:

K-12 School: Rochester School

• The campus for Rochester School, in Colombia, was built in 2012 and was designed for sustainability, learning, and health. The school has achieved over 70% energy savings and 40% potable water savings compared to a conventionally-built school of the same size. The campus features a solar aquatic center, intelligent classroom hubs, and other campus features that serve as a living textbook for the curriculum. The school takes pride in graduating students who embody the principles of these innovative systems and contribute to the world’s sustainable future.

 Ambassador: Lauren Click   

• Lauren Click from Arizona is transforming food waste education in public schools. In 2024, Let’s Go Compost expanded from a single school to 111 public schools, 75% of which are Title I. Under her leadership, the nonprofit provides hands-on composting educational tools that make waste reduction education accessible and impactful for students nationwide.

School System: Denver Public Schools

• Denver Public Schools has worked on sustainability initiatives since 2009, focusing on environmental protection, economic prosperity, and social development. The DPS Sustainability Team approaches its work with bold action, innovation, and accountability while engaging students and staff in creating a livable future and thriving learning environments.

 Student Leader: Molly and Emma Weber

• Emma Weber and Molly Weber from Boulder, Colorado, spearheaded a local campaign for climate justice in their school district and later expanded to a statewide movement. They built a network of over 60 students in their school district, won a first-of-its-kind Green New Deal for Schools resolution through their school board, and are currently working with state senators and representatives to pass legislation. Their efforts have focused on implementing sustainable infrastructure, climate curriculum, climate disaster plans, and pathways to green jobs in public schools.

 Business Leader: Texas Disposal Systems 

• Eco Academy, an education program of Texas Disposal Systems, is designed to help minimize waste in Central Texas schools by educating K-12 students about trash, recycling and composting options on their campuses. The program provides training, curriculum, signage and other educational materials for staff, administrators, and students to make recycling fun and enable real-world application. Each school’s participation is documented, and diversion data is made available.

Policy Maker: U.S. Rep. Robert C. “Bobby” Scott and U.S. Senator Jack Reed 

• U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) and U.S. Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) have been steadfast in supporting a federal role that ensures that high-need communities have resources to build and repair healthy, green schools for their students. They introduced the Rebuild America’s Schools Act, which, if passed, would invest $130 billion in school buildings. They have led the way for their colleagues for many years. In 2023, their offices were essential in funding a national clearinghouse for school infrastructure and a grant program to help states serve their school districts better.

  K-12 Educator: Erin Stutzman

• As an educator in the Boise School District, Erin empowers students through community outreach and project- and place-based learning, helping them use their voices to create meaningful change at local, state, and national levels. In collaboration with Nez Perce youth and tribal elders in Lapwai, Idaho, her students have had the opportunity to learn from Indigenous customs and build partnerships around shared environmental goals. Together, they have secured rooftop solar panels through grant writing, advocated for climate action in schools, and supported the nationally recognized Save Our T-Pack initiative to protect Idaho’s wolves.

School District Champion: Darien Clary

• Darien Clary, the director of sustainability at Austin Independent School District, has led efforts to integrate sustainability across 130 facilities, serving 73,000 students and 10,000 staff since 2016. Her work has influenced green building practices, renewable energy, and sustainable food systems, earning recognition in the New York Times and Forbes. She has also authored publications on whole-school sustainability.

For more information and links to individual recipients, visit 2025 Best of Green Schools.

The post Best of Green Schools Awards honor work to advance safer and more resilient campuses appeared first on FMLink.

Peter Templeton, president and CEO, USGBC and GBCI, explained:

PERFORM helps organizations advance sustainability across their real estate portfolios, ensuring every building — regardless of type or starting point — contributes to achieving organizational performance goals. USGBC and the green building community are committed to wholesale market transformation, which means accelerating and scaling measurable performance improvement across the built environment. PERFORM will enable organizations to meet sustainability and regulatory goals while addressing the urgent needs to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions, strengthen resilience, protect human and ecosystem health, and advance equity across all communities.

PERFORM is designed to track and improve sustainability performance of diverse building portfolios, enabling incremental improvements across all owned, occupied or managed assets. Through PERFORM, organizations set their own goals, implement plans and strategies, measure improvement, and communicate improvements to stakeholders. It includes a suite of complementary tools, including:

• Standardized portfolio-wide guidance and assessment to help organizations develop actionable plans, goals and strategies
• Measurement and verification of portfolio-wide performance improvement relative to organizational commitments, including emissions, energy, waste, water and more
• Technical support for existing building portfolios at various levels of performance aligned with their unique organizational goals, strategies and circumstances

PERFORM empowers organizations to bridge the gap between their sustainability targets and actionable, measurable outcomes, particularly in a global context where many companies are looking for tangible ways to demonstrate real progress toward their emissions reductions and sustainability goals.

Recent research by the Financial Times with Smurfit Kappa found that while many organizations set ambitious sustainability targets, they lack robust and actionable plans to achieve those goals.

Additionally, a report by New Climate Institute found that many organizations with corporate net-zero commitments have not meaningfully improved the quality or credibility of their net zero strategies. PERFORM aims to bridge that gap.

PERFORM complements USGBC’s globally recognized LEED green building system, which certifies buildings and projects to a defined, consensus-based, leadership standard. PERFORM works with entire real estate portfolios to help set customized goals, implement plans, measure improvement over time, and verify achievements. In addition to verifying the achievement of energy- and climate-related sustainability goals, the PERFORM program can be used to verify progress and achievements across a holistic set of environmental, social, and resilience metrics.

Sarah Zaleski, chief products officer, USGBC and GBCI, stated:

Organizations that have set portfolio-level sustainability goals to satisfy stakeholders, meet public commitments, and comply with evolving regulatory standards are now looking for pathways to make meaningful and verifiable progress. PERFORM builds on USGBC’s decades of expertise as a market accelerator to partner with organizations around the world to achieve their portfolio goals.

In 2023, USGBC and GBCI launched a Portfolio Accelerator program to test and refine the program to meet evolving market needs. With the input of global portfolio owners, USGBC has established a comprehensive assessment process, including an evaluation of progress against performance commitments, and verification of portfolio-level progress and performance. Program participants include Grubb Properties, Proximity Parks and others.

Zaleski added:

As part of PERFORM, we are expanding our partnerships with Schneider Electric, ClimateFirst, Carbonsight, and Kode Labs to collaborate on data exchange, streamline portfolio-level data and introduce new portfolio-level tools that drive improvement.

In addition, USGBC and GBCI will strengthen partnerships with Measurabl to enhance data sharing for verification of portfolio-level sustainability metrics and with GRESB, Nareit, and ISSP to support organizations in the early stages of their sustainability journey, focusing on guidance and education.

PERFORM, officially known as Arc PERFORM, can be accessed on Arc, a new digital platform and workspace that brings together all of USGBC and GBCI’s products under one seamless, easy-to-use, and intuitive user experience. From the Arc dashboard, organizations can select PERFORM, which provides access to a custom target-setting tool where users can indicate the metrics to be tracked, set targets from their sustainability action plans and existing tracking systems, and submit to GBCI for verification of performance claims, for an additional cost.

The post USGBC’s PERFORM program offers tools to meet sustainability and regulatory goals across real estate portfolios appeared first on FMLink.

For 2024, the judges examined 120 projects — the most entries ENR ever received. From this pool, 35 projects located in 19 countries were selected as outstanding, showcasing OBO and its partners’ remarkable achievements in global construction.

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill was the design architect, and B.L. Harbert International constructed the embassy, with PAGE Architects serving as the architect of record. The new embassy exemplifies excellence in architecture, sustainability, and innovative construction practices. This recognition signifies the importance of modern embassies in promoting diplomacy and engagement in host countries. The embassy in Windhoek will serve as a vital hub for U.S. diplomatic efforts in Namibia, enhancing collaboration and cooperation.

The U.S. Embassy Windhoek incorporates advanced energy-efficiency systems, including photovoltaic (PV) canopies that supply approximately half of the Chancery’s energy needs. In addition, passive environmental strategies and drought-tolerant native landscaping reduce heat gain and irrigation needs, integrating seamlessly with Windhoek’s sustainable water treatment program. Further, the site and landscape design were carefully planned to respect the Klein Windhoek floodplain located adjacent to the property.

Throughout the project, an estimated $17 million was invested in the local economy, and more than 2,000 Namibians were employed during its construction. The new embassy reaffirms the strong partnership between the two nations, serving as a hub for diplomatic activities and cultural connections for years to come.

The award will be featured in the December 16 issue of ENR, alongside other outstanding projects from around the globe, and the official presentation will take place during ENR’s virtual Global Best Projects awards event on December 19.

OBO provides the most effective facilities for United States diplomacy abroad. Since the start of the Department’s Capital Security Construction Program in 1999, OBO has completed 178 new diplomatic facilities and has more than 50 active projects in design or construction worldwide.

The post New U.S. Embassy Windhoek, Namibia, wins Best Government Building in <i>ENR’s</i> Global Best Projects competition appeared first on FMLink.

Jasmine Davenport, EPA Senior Advisor for Climate Justice, remarked:

EPA’s Indoor Air in Schools program stands as a beacon of hope, ensuring every child breathes clean air in their learning environment, advancing environmental justice by prioritizing health equity and fostering safer, healthier schools for all communities.

As part of the celebration, EPA and the grantees heard from leaders from the School District of Philadelphia (SDP) on their efforts to date to improve air quality, reduce pollutants, and reduce building costs. District leaders and school staff are already noting better attendance and school performance in buildings that have undergone upgrades.

Oz Hill, Deputy Superintendent of Operations at the School District of Philadelphia, commented:

We are grateful to the EPA for their investment to improve air quality in schools, like Philadelphia, and across the nation. The School District of Philadelphia is strategically working to upgrade HVAC systems and focus on expanding energy-saving initiatives, reducing emissions, and enhancing indoor environments across the district as we work to become the fastest improving, large urban school district.

The five grantees will soon begin their work to monitor and reduce indoor air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions at schools from kindergarten through grade 12  (K-12) in low-income, disadvantaged, and Tribal communities.

These grants to protect children’s health are made possible through the Biden-Harris Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, the largest investment in climate action and environmental justice in history. These projects will help schools develop and implement comprehensive indoor air quality plans through training, education, capacity building and research and demonstration projects.

The following organizations received awards:

• The University of Utah will support the development of indoor air quality management and greenhouse gas reduction plans for schools in urban and rural areas in Utah and Nevada, as well as with the Northern Arapaho Tribe in Wyoming. This will be accomplished through energy efficiency assessments of school buildings, indoor/outdoor air pollutant monitoring, demonstration of effectiveness of air pollution reduction strategies, development of an IAQ school phone app, community engagement, training, educational activities, and by providing indoor air quality and greenhouse gas reduction guidance to schools.

• The American Lung Association will deploy the Clean Air School Challenge to raise awareness, educate, build capacity, increase implementation, and recognize the efforts of schools in low-income, disadvantaged, and Tribal communities nationwide as they implement comprehensive indoor air quality and greenhouse gas management plans.

• The New York State Department of Health and Health Research will provide capacity building in indoor air quality and greenhouse gas reduction in disadvantaged and Tribal schools throughout New York State and additional states across the country. The twoorganizations will draw on past experience to enable hundreds of disadvantaged and Tribal schools in New York to adopt sustainable IAQ management plans to make air quality improvements and greenhouse gas reductions that will improve the health and performance of many of New York’s 1.6 million disadvantaged students plus teachers and school staff.

• The Go Green Initiative will partner with the National School Boards Association and their state affiliates to provide education and training for school staff, administrators, and school board officials involved in improving school indoor air quality and reducing climate pollution across all 50 states, as well as providing targeted, intensive technical assistance and capacity building in Tribal and low-income school districts in all 10 EPA regions.

• The U.S. Green Building Council’s Center for Green Schools will build capacity among school district staff in low-income, disadvantaged and Tribal communities to establish indoor air quality management and greenhouse gas reduction plans. This work builds on long-running and successful support that the Center for Green Schools has provided to hundreds of school district staff, who collectively serve 9.3 million students. The program places direct emphasis on making capacity building and training activities more accessible to school district staff serving low-income, disadvantaged, and Tribal communities.

Background

Approximately one-sixth of the U.S. population attends or works in roughly 130,000 schools around the country and many of these schools do not have the resources and support needed to effectively prevent or solve indoor air quality problems. In fact, half of all K-12 students attend schools that do not have indoor air quality management plans or programs in place. Air quality in schools is of particular concern because children’s developing organ systems are often more sensitive to environmental stressors, children are frequently more heavily exposed to toxic substances in the environment than are adults, and children breathe more air in proportion to their body weight than adults.

There is substantial evidence that comprehensive management of indoor air quality in schools improves student academic performance and attendance, reduces the spread of airborne illnesses like COVID-19, lengthens the lifespan of building systems, and lowers greenhouse gas emissions from schools while providing significant cost savings through lower energy consumption. The $34 million in grant funding the EPA is announcing today will help highly qualified organizations in the field provide much-needed support to schools in overburdened communities across the country to put in place comprehensive indoor air quality management programs.

Learn more about the Grant Funding to Address Indoor Air Pollution at Schools. This page will be updated in the future with details on how schools can connect and partner with the grantees.

Learn more about how to improve IAQ at Schools.

The post Five organizations will help improve IAQ at schools nationwide through $34 million in EPA grants appeared first on FMLink.

GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan stated:

This project is a prime example of how the Biden-Harris Administration is fulfilling its commitment to invest in America while expanding opportunities for small businesses. The Howard H. Baker, Jr. Courthouse is a place where hundreds of dedicated public servants work to ensure justice and we’re proud to support that vital effort while reducing our environmental impact, saving taxpayer dollars, and creating jobs in the community.

The project consists of securely underpinning of the building foundation with low-embodied carbon concrete and steel that will support the foundation and restore it back to its original condition. The project also includes work on the slab that will reduce the risk of future foundation settlement issues. Once the foundation is stabilized, the contractor will make repairs to the building’s interior spaces, roof, brick, and storm drainage.

GSA anticipates using over 700 cubic meters of concrete masonry units (sometimes called cinder blocks) and two metric tons of cold-formed and galvanized steel. GSA expects that both categories of materials will meet its most-stringent “Top 20%” emissions thresholds, And estimates that selecting these low-carbon materials will avoid over 50 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions.

The funding for the improvements — made possible by the Inflation Reduction Act, the largest climate investment in history — will be used for low-embodied carbon (LEC) materials that have fewer greenhouse gas emissions associated with their production.

The Howard H. Baker, Jr. U.S. Courthouse project is one of more than 150 LEC material projects that GSA announced last November. The project is expected to be completed by summer 2025.

The announcement furthers the Biden-Harris Administration’s Federal Buy Clean Initiative, under which the federal government is, for the first time, prioritizing the purchase of low-embodied-carbon asphalt, concrete, glass and steel that have lower levels of greenhouse gas emissions associated with their production, use and disposal. These investments aim to expand America’s industrial capacity for manufacturing goods and materials of the future, address the climate crisis, and create good-paying jobs for workers in the region.

The Inflation Reduction Act includes $3.4 billion for GSA to build, modernize and maintain more sustainable and cost-efficient high-performance facilities. This funding includes $2.15 billion specifically for LEC construction materials. GSA’s Inflation Reduction Act projects will implement new technologies and accelerate GSA’s efforts toward achieving a net-zero emissions federal building portfolio by 2045. Through these investments, GSA estimates a total greenhouse gas emissions reduction of 2.3 million metric tons, the same amount that 500,000 gasoline-powered passenger vehicles produce each year.

This project is part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, focused on growing the American economy from the bottom up and the middle-out — from rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure, to creating a manufacturing and innovation boom, to building a clean-energy economy that will combat climate change and make our communities more resilient.

To learn more about the funding, visit GSA’s Inflation Reduction Act webpage.

The post GSA selects Chitina to modernize U.S. Courthouse in Knoxville with low-carbon building materials appeared first on FMLink.

The U.S. snapshot provides data disclosed to CDP-ICLEI Track in 2023 on local climate projects and investment needs according to each state and across key sectors, yielding valuable insights on how the rapid emergence of new funding and financing mechanisms such as the Inflation Reduction Act and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law can best be applied. The snapshot is a representative sample of infrastructure data and provides critical insight into the kinds of projects U.S. cities are seeking to advance for climate action, key areas for public and private investment, regional needs and disparities and opportunities for aggregation.

Designed to benefit local and state governments, the U.S. snapshot highlights an understanding of local project needs and tracking municipal climate action, particularly to awardees of federal funding initiatives like the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, as well as technical assistance and capital market providers. The snapshot identifies 270 projects across the priority sectors of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, including 121 projects in buildings and energy efficiency from 80 cities, 88 projects in transport from 60 cities and 61 projects in renewable energy from 47 cities, totaling US$18.3 billion in financing needs.

On the strength of its annual disclosure process, CDP’s compendium of projects is expanding every year, which includes cities, states and public authorities disclosing their climate finance needs, along with details on the local impacts of climate change and ongoing mitigation efforts. In 2023, over 160 U.S. cities and six U.S. states, representing over 25% of the U.S. population, reported climate risks, climate action plans and projects at all stages of development through CDP.

Katie Walsh, CDP’s Head of Climate Finance for cities, states and regions and North America Lead, stated:

CDP’s snapshot of the latest U.S. project pipeline shines a light on how city and county projects can be supported under initiatives from the Inflation Reduction Act to deliver on the United States’ most historic funding package ever for climate action. Local governments across the country have been working on their climate, resilience and environmental goals and have a range of projects to achieve them. CDP stands ready to connect these projects with valuable preparation support, funding and financing initiatives as well as a mechanism to track local implementation.

Angie Fyfe, executive firector, ICLEI, remarked:

Congratulations to the 130 U.S. cities and counties who reported on climate projects seeking financing. We must continue to mobilize capital markets if we are to meet our collective goals to improve the livability of our communities, protect and restore nature and achieve a just transition to a carbon-free economy. Local governments that report through the CDP – ICLEI Track are leading this push for investment, and they should be recognized for their efforts.

CDP analysis covers a wide range of relevant metrics, including the status of climate action plans, mitigation and adaptation measures already in place, factors that impact a jurisdiction’s ability to implement projects and the identification of climate hazards. In addition to project data, CDP provides context on a local government’s social, political and economic environment, allowing stakeholders to place projects into the local context and appropriate funding.

Robert Fernandez, director, ESG Research, Breckinridge Capital Advisors, pointed out:

The U.S. municipal bond market plays a crucial role in financing the Country’s infrastructure plan, including supporting cities, states and public authorities in their response to climate change. Being able to access critical climate data and information, like from the CDP-ICLEI Track, helps municipal bond investors like Breckinridge access additional information about a local government’s climate challenges and goals.

The Snapshot, which tracks projects seeking financing and funding, is crucial to delivering on local environmental progress, says CDP.

Kate Wright, executive director of Climate Mayors, asserted:

Local governments stand at the forefront of climate action, driving change through innovative projects that increase community resilience. Climate Mayors are meeting the moment by leveraging unprecedented federal support to increase the scale and ambition of climate action. Tools that can help cities track climate progress, match projects with available funding and guide investments are critical to our shared success.

CDP encourages more cities and states and regions and public authorities to share critical information on their pending projects through the current 2024 disclosure cycle to help connect with increasingly available funding and financing opportunities through the Inflation Reduction Act.

View the 2023 U.S. Infrastructure Snapshot, with interactive map and graph, at CDP.

The post CDP’s U.S. Infrastructure Snapshot reveals local climate projects and investment needs appeared first on FMLink.