At the beginning of 2004, there appeared in this column a three-part series titled "LEED: Leading the Way." It took an in-depth look at the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design green building rating/certification program. Quite literally, due in large part to its phenomenal success, it is changing the way America and the world builds. The series examined the origins, application and future prospects for the LEED program. In the year and a half plus since that series appeared in these pages, there has been much happening behind the scenes concerning the LEED program and, in general, the green building movement. This month, we'll begin a two-part "look-see" at what's been going on.
"If it's not LEED, it's not green," Fedrizzi, also President of CarrierCorp, said. There's no doubting that the LEED program has proven to be highly successful, providing owners and developers a means by which they can produce and market green buildings. Paradoxically, it raised the bar for these very same people and helped minimize "greenwashing" (inflated claims for a building's green attributes). A means by which claims of environmentally sustainable/responsible design can be held accountable and to a higher standard is an integral aspect of the LEED program.