News and Notes

Join the St. Louis Chapter of ASHRAE on Monday, February 8 for their Student Night and to hear Gordon Holness, the national president of ASHRAE.

Students from SIU-Carbondale will present the designs for a renovation of the interfaith center on campus, where they incorporated ground source heating & cooling, LED lighting, passive solar heating.

Gordon Holness will address ASHRAE’s plan for reducing energy consumption in existing buildings via the Sustainabil­ity Roadmap and Vision 2020 Plan.

WHEN: Monday, February 9
4:15 – 5:05 pm  – Student Program
5:15 pm – Dinner & Chapter Announcements
6:10 – 7:00 pm – Gordon Holness presentation

WHERE: Russo’s Spazio at Westport – 12031 Lackland (63146)

COST: Free to current St. Louis Chapter ASHRAE Members, $25.00 for non members.

Register in advance.

USGBC-STL is committed to recognizing volunteers who have contributed significantly to the Chapter, devoting time and talents “above and beyond” on a particular project or program! This month we are thrilled to recognize Vicki Woodside, CI Select, member and past chair of the Marketing Committee and Christy Cunningham-Saylor, Vertegy (an Alberici enterprise),  member of the Program Committee and Education Task Force.

Vicki Woodside of CI Select is proudly recognized by Andy Carrigan of the Marketing Committee, for going “above and beyond.” When the previous Marketing Committee chair stepped down, Vicki accepted responsibility as interim chair and got the committee organized and moving. In the months following, the committee produced an exhibit booth, launched the new website, and hired a PR firm.

Christy Cunningham-Saylor

Christy Cunningham-Saylor of Vertegy (an Alberici enterprise) is recognized by James Roseberry of the Program Committee for her enthusiasm and work on the Program Committee – especially for her efforts on the 2009 keynote program featuring Baye Adofo-Wilson, willingness to join task forces and sub-committees, and all around good attitude.

Thanks, Vicki and Christy, for your commitment and hard work!

While the current focus in Haiti is on rescue and care for immediate needs, there will be an immense amount of rebuilding to do. USGBC is working with the Clinton Climate Initiative to address immediate needs and promote smart rebuilding.

Thanks to the support of many, the Clinton Foundation alone has raised over $6 million in these few short days, but immediate rescue assistance continues to be critical. The Clinton Foundation has established a Haiti Relief Fund. For more information or to donate, visit the Clinton Climate Foundation’s Haiti Relief Fund.

To learn more about USGBC’s disaster relief and rebuilding efforts, visit the USGBC website.

The official word is in – Crossroads College Prep has received LEED Platinum certification on their new Science Wing Addition! Congratulations to the Crossroads team for all their hard work. This moves the St. Louis Region’s LEED Platinum count up to 4 commercial projects & 30 residential projects.

For more information about the Crossroads College Prep Science Wing, see our blog post from last year. And for more about other LEED projects in St. Louis, see our LEED in St. Louis page.

The St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association (RCGA) recently launched the Green Business Challenge as part of the St. Louis Climate Prosperity Project.

The Green Business Challenge co-sponsored by Sustainable St. Louis and open to all RCGA-member companies. The effort is meant to inspire St. Louis area companies to take the first steps toward sustainable business practices.

The Challenge is open from January to November 2010. Scorecards will measure achievements in six categories:

• Green Team Formation
• Energy Efficiency
• Indoor Environmental Quality
• Waste Reduction
• Water Use Reduction, and
• Clean Transportation Options.

For more information, visit the Green Business Challenge webpage!

Illinois Building Performance Institute presents . . .

Building Analyst & Shell Specialist Contractor Training

WHEN: February 1 – 5, 2010, 8:00 am – 5:30 pm each day
WHERE: Southern Illinois University – Carbondale
COST: Student fees are $1700 made payable to EarthWays Center prior to the star of class. Upon passing written and field exams students will be refunded half of the $1700 fee thanks to the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity.
ELIGIBILITY: This class is offered only for students who live in and/or do considerable business in Illinois.

A Building Performance Institute (BPI) certified contractor is trained to provide whole house energy assessments and make recommendations for improvements that will make the home more efficient, comfortable, durable and safe. For more information about BPI, visit their website.

For more information, visit the EarthWays Center Home Performance with Energy Star website or download a PDF of the BPI Training Invitation.

USGBC is now accepting proposals for educational sessions for the 2010 Greenbuild International Conference and Expo, Greenbuild International Forum, and Federal Summit. Greenbuild 2010 is practically next door in Chicago, IL and it would be great to see a few St. Louisans presenting!

The deadline for submitting proposals is 5 pm Pacific Standard Time on January 15, 2010. January 15 is also the deadline to apply to review educational programming for USGBC Conferences and Events in 2010.

Learn more and download the call for proposals on the Greenbuild website.

USGBC-STL has finally jumped into the land of social media! Check us out on Twitter at www.twitter.com/USGBCSTL or become a Fan of USGBC-STL  on Facebook - or both!

Don’t forget, if you’re a member, you can also contribute to the Chapter blog. Learn more by checking out our blog guidelines.