According to the USGBC, "the list honors the bipartisan work of the Congress members who have introduced key energy efficiency and building legislation this year." SEE THE LIST.

"Typically, issues about lighting, heating and insulation are left until after initial decisions about the size, shape and orientation of the building have been made. Leon Glicksman, MIT professor of building technology and mechanical engineering, has long argued that that’s the wrong way to go about it, and that in order to come close to optimizing energy use in buildings, it is essential to make those considerations part of the process from the very beginning. And so Glicksman and some of his students have been developing a simple, open-source web application that allows people to do a basic analysis of a proposed building’s energy usage in just a few minutes, making it possible to try multiple variations quickly to see what factors make the biggest difference." READ THE FULL ARTICLE

"Insulating Concrete Forms (ICFs) have been around since the late 1960s, but have garnered more attention over the last several years as an increasing push for green building and energy-efficient homes has taken hold in the construction industry," writes Wayne Engebretson is this solid look at ICFs. READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE

"The winners of the 2009 International Interior Design Association/Metropolis Smart Environments Awards are an Ivy League forestry school, the offices of a Portland, Oregon, architecture firm, and an organic café in ur-organic San Francisco. They couldn’t be more different. Yet their expertly crafted interiors, which tether great looks to an increasingly pressing environmental imperative, signal good news for a nation that spends more than 90 percent of its time indoors: interior design isn’t just about pretty pictures anymore." SEE THE WINNERS HERE

"From site location, to energy use and recycling, this standard will set the foundation for green buildings through it's adoption into local codes," according to American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc. (ASHRAE). GET THE DETAILS.

"St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn., is one of the few educational institutions to receive a U.S. Green Building Council LEED Platinum rating for one of its buildings. The college's Regents Hall of Natural and Mathematical Sciences opened in September 2008 and is expected to reduce energy costs by 50% compared to the Minnesota Energy Code, which is based on ASHRAE 90.1-2004." READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE

OTTAWA — The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) announced $5 million in funding the establishment of the NSERC Photovoltaic Innovation Network. The Network is comprised of 29 top scientists and engineers working in the field of advanced solar cell research at 13 universities across Canada. Eleven private sector companies are also part of the network.