Everyone knows there are many different slang terms for money: dinero, scratch, greenbacks, dough, sawbucks, c-notes, bones, smackers, and beans to name just a few. There are also many phrases that we commonly use that incorporate the idea of money such as 'Don't nickel and dime me!' or 'Just give me cold hard cash!. However, there is a new economy with its own vocabulary that is emerging in developed nations that has very little to do with fiat money. It is the green economy and the lexicon of this economy deals not in greenbacks or dinero, but instead it deals in words such as sustainability, green jobs, net-zero buildings, hybrids, carbon footprints, and acronyms such as GHG's. And for the record, green building is not just a concept which is embraced by tree huggers anymore. All types of participants in the free-enterprise system as well as all levels of government are embracing green building and sustainable development.
What does all this talk about GREEN really mean though? The term GREEN is really somewhat subjective and difficult to pin down. A more easily defined term is sustainable development. Sustainable development is using resources in such a way that the needs of humans today are met without jeopardizing the needs of future generations. It is a lofty but important goal to strive for, but it's also important to keep in mind that conservationism and sustainable development are not new phenomena. The Native Americans practiced conservation and sustainable development long before the Europeans arrived. Early American settlers and pioneers also embraced many green building and sustainable development concepts as well. Although it might be true today that many places around the world have at one time or another lost sight of the need to protect and preserve the natural world, the conservation movement is alive and strong and has adherents spread across the continuum and around the globe. In fact, the US government is currently mandating that all government buildings have at least a silver LEED rating which will have a profound impact on the real estate industry, but just how mainstream GREEN becomes is hard to say. Much will depend upon the cost to benefit ratio and how well green building advocates can quantify the savings commonly associated with green building features.
More importantly, perhaps, is that private businesses are starting to embrace GREEN concepts, realizing there are real savings that come as a result of making the choice to construct sustainable buildings or do green retrofits. In fact, even the Empire State Building, an American icon of capitalism, has undergone a green retrofit. The truth is that buildings in cities across the US are the second largest energy user and producer of CO2 and green-house gases, second only to manufacturing. They are the silent polluters that have flown under the radar for a long time. Now, however, there is an effort underway to change this as many people are beginning to realize the value of sustainable development and the long-term positive impact it can have on the bottom line.
After the second day of class, it is clear to me that green building is here to stay and not merely a passing fad. Also, I now understand that green building and sustainable development must permeate every facet of the construction process from the early stages of planning and development to contending with waste materials once the building project has been completed. And although I don't believe the green economy will ever supplant the real economy, I do think the two can live in harmony, even in highly advanced post-industrial economies such as the US economy. In our rush to coronate the new green economy, I can only hope the government does not impede real estate growth and development by implementing measures, restrictions, and regulations that are so restrictive and costly that they undermine the profit-structure inherent in the real estate industry. Green aficionados must keep in mind that profit is not a bad thing and free-market capitalists must remember that unbridled greed is! Remembering this will help us strike a healthy balance between the green economy and the real economy. Furthermore, day two of class reminded me that I love the idea of building a net-zero energy use home and hope to do so one day.
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