Let me start by saying how honored I am to be a part of the Build2Sustain advisory board. When James Bedell (@jamesbedell on Twitter) first approached me, I was floored. With all of the other great attorneys out there who deal in the “green building” arena (see the links to some of their sites in my blogroll), my first thought was “Why me?” At heart I am a risk manager for construction professionals, not a major “green” advocate in any political sense.
Then James explained the Build2Sustain concept. In short, B2S is a concept a long time coming. The plan and method to the B2S “madness” is to make sure that we show the world that sustainable works, both economically and environmentally. Anyone that hears me talk about sustainable building will hear my “People think with their wallets” approach to the sector, and to sustainable construction. I firmly believe that if we can show how economically viable sustainability can be, the rest of the benefits will follow. James explained that this philosophy (for lack of a better word), is one of the underpinnings of the B2S concept.
James has also called my thought process an “intelligent conservatism” and sees me as a “skeptical professional.” While I truly appreciate the great sentiments, I must admit to having an eye toward the risk side of the risk/reward calculation. Usually, I’m the one in the room sounding like Eeyore from A. A. Milne when it comes to relatively new concepts like sustainable building. However, I do firmly believe that we need to build sustainably and that the economic health of the real estate and construction industries depend on such an approach (whether through LEED, Green Globes, or other measures of sustainability). Build2Sustain, through its practical approach to making sustainability a reality, should, I hope, bring this more into focus.
I look forward to the learning experience of being on the advisory board with the truly talented and forward thinking people that comprise it. B2S is a great concept and I look forward to helping turn it into a reality by assisting in a small way to help with the legal and risk management issues that arise with any new endeavor.
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I have run across Build2Sustain through reading your blog and I am definitely interested in learning more about and from the group.
You said a couple things in this post the really resonate with me — like you, I tend to come at things from a cost/benefit and risk analysis perspective. It feels like the cost side of the equation has often been misstated and continues to be misstated. If folks look at problems from a short term quarterly viewpoint, they always seem to miss long term return on investment. This is most dramatic when you start to inject tragedy of the commons type issues into the equation where the real costs get spread in ways that cannot be quantified.
While I have the client-centric view of these issues on one level, there is the other piece that it really feels like sustainable building and development really are the right thing to do even if there is some investment to make it work.
I appreciate your thoughts Tim. I too take a very client-centric view (as we lawyers must), but also like you, try and take the broad view of the issues of sustainability and look for the best way to show the benefits.
Green design has become a buzz word in the industry, but it’s always been important, and it will only continue to become more important. In the US our buildings are designed to last only about 50 years and many never make it that long. I think this needs to change and buildings need to be able to be reused and transformed rather than replaced.
Good points. I hope that the Build2Sustain project can make this point. Reuse and renovation will be key especially in major metro centers.