An article going around this week suggests that green building is a “social movement” that, like other social movements (prohibition, civil rights, etc.) stands at the precipice of success or failure. The writer argues that green building could easily be “co-opted, repressed, subject to failure, or succeed.” In other words, he’s arguing that the mainstream acceptance of the need to build energy-efficient, low-impact buildings is a matter of social choice—not something that “must” happen. I disagree.

Why? Because treating green building as a social movement is like calling eating a lifestyle choice.
To illustrate: If the suffragette movement or the civil rights movement of the last century had failed or been repressed (realizing that some believe they have), the end result would likely not have been the death and displacement of millions or even billions of human beings. There would be suffering, to be sure, but arguably not on the biblical scale.

An article going around this week suggests that Green Building is a "social movement" that, like other social movements (prohibition, civil rights, etc.) stands at the precipice of success or failure. The writer argues that green building could easily be "co-opted, repressed, subject to failure, or succeed." In other words, he's arguing that the mainstream acceptance of the need to build energy efficient, low impact buildings is a matter of social choice, not something that "must" happen. I disagree.

AFTER ALMOST EIGHT and a half years and around a hundred columns, I am about to lower the tailgate at an entirely new location and with an equally new purpose.

When I originally explained my intent in offering my monthly musings to our readers in the inaugural issue of Green Builder back in January 2006, I said the goal was to stimulate a conversation about what it’s like to engage in this strange but wonderful profession of building.

I invited all of you to take a break and join the discussion, and many of you (over the years I’ve completely lost count of how many) have done just that, oftentimes voicing agreement, and sometimes taking strong exception to my admittedly opinionated assertions.

Green builders have more sales tools at hand than some might think. While eco-friendly homes tend to cost a bit more than comparable buildings using conventional construction, builders typically can market the long-term benefits: savings in utilities costs, durability, quality of life, and the effect on the environment.

Last week at IBS, GuildQuality released results from a a national survey of homeowners who purchased a National Green Building Standard (NGBS) certified green home built within the last three years.