Posted: November 28, 2007
(Washington, DC) November 28, 2007 - The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) will announce its LEED® for Schools green building rating system during a half-day pre-conference workshop at the Green California Schools Summit. The Summit will take place at the Pasadena Convention Center on December 4-6, 2007.
LEED for Schools is the USGBC’s green school rating tool that school projects are using to design and construct healthy, energy-efficient, green, high-performing school buildings. The workshop will draw upon USGBC’s extensive green building background, tools and resources to explore effective strategies geared at promoting green schools and encouraging district-wide adoptions of green building programs.
The Green California Schools Summit is the first major event in California to address all aspects of the state’s high performance school revolution – from planning, building and operations, to curriculum and “green culture.” The pre-conference workshops, taking place on December 4, offer an opportunity for in-depth discussion about green schools issues and interactions with panels of experts.
“This is the first major opportunity that we’ve had in California to focus completely on K-12 schools in terms of the potential for energy savings and sustainability,” said California State Architect David Thorman.
Secretary of State and Consumer Services, Rosario Marin, whose agency approves all public school construction; and financing and Secretary of Education, Dr. David E. Long, join Thorman as co-chairs of the summit. The co-chairs will be present to open the event, along with Commissioner Timothy A. Simon of the California Public Utilities Commission and Pasadena Mayor Bill Bogaard.
The LEED for Schools workshop, “How to Get Your Green School Built – LEED for Schools and Green School Advocacy,” will be presented by Rachel Gutter USGBC School Sector Manager, along with Wendy Rogers, AIA, principal at LPA Architects, and Pauline Souza, AIA, Associate Partner and Director of Green Services at WRNS Studio. From parents to facility planners, teachers to school boards, participants in this workshop will assess the needs of various stakeholders in school construction and learn how to work together to create a Green Schools Toolkit for effective advocacy and successful green school projects.
“20% of America goes to school each day,” said Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO & Founding Chair, USGBC. “We owe it to our children – the future leaders of our world – the opportunity to live and learn in healthy, comfortable and safe structures.”
LEED for Schools will also be the subject of a shorter breakout session during the main
conference educational track on December 6. This session is open to all full conference
registrants and is part of a spectrum of 75 educational sessions led by top state and national experts who will cover issues ranging from funding sources for green projects to empowering students to become the next generation of environmental professionals. The exhibition floor will include a model green school building and more than 200 companies offering cutting edge green products and services.
To sign up for the LEED for Schools special pre-conference session, call 323-936-7125 or go to www.green-technology.org/gcschools.
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About USGBC
USGBC is a nonprofit organization working to transform the way buildings and communities are
designed, built and operated. USGBC envisions an environmentally responsible, healthy and
prosperous built environment that improves the quality of life. Founded in 1993, the council now
comprises more than 12,000 member organizations representing every sector of the building
industry and a network of more than 72 local chapters, affiliates and organizing groups.
USGBC offers a broad portfolio of LEED green building programs and services; professional
education workshops; and the Greenbuild International Conference and Expo. For more
information, visit www.usgbc.org.
About LEED for Schools
The LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for Schools green rating system provides green-building guidelines and offers third-party verification to ensure schools’ stakeholders that their buildings incorporate the best in science, design and technology to make their schools truly green. The LEED for Schools rating system was launched by the U.S. Green Building Council in spring 2007 and has currently LEED certified 60 schools as green. Additionally, there are over 350 school buildings that are in the LEED certification process and plan to certify upon completion of construction. Visit www.buildgreenschools.org for more information.
About the Green California Schools Summit & Exposition
The Green California Schools Summit & Exposition takes place in Pasadena, CA on December 4-6, 2007 at the Pasadena Conference Center. The Summit will focus on the strategies, technologies and services that will ensure that new and existing public schools are models of sustainability and provide healthy learning environments for students. Visit: www.green-technology.org/gcschools/