It’s encouraging to see the number of high-quality blogs out there in every niche of the commercial real estate business. These aren’t just young guys like myself who are hungry to learn and grow, but they’re established professionals who see the value in blogging and are passionate about educating and connecting others.
A particular segment of the business that I’m passionate about is green building and sustainable development. It combines my passions for design, innovation and the environment. Luckily for me, there’s more quality content out there than I have time to read. To help you sift through the nearly online pharmacy no prescription endless content I want to pass along my Top 10 Favorite Green Building Blogs. These are in no particular order and I didn’t use any empirical evidence in the rankings such as google page rank, although that is important. I based this top 10 list on the little experience I have in the green building community. This list is in no way exhaustive, but the authors of these sites care about what they’re doing and provide a opportunity for motivated individuals to learn.
1. Jetson Green (Twitter) (Facebook)
Jetson Green is the gold (or should I say green) standard when it comes to green building blogs. It’s updated daily and the variety of authors publish case studies, product profiles, news updates, and opinion articles. This is definitely one I’d add to my RSS feed.
2. Consilience: The Blog
This is a community of sustainable development professionals and academics coming together across various disciplines. Consilience literally means the “jumping together” of knowledge (what a sweet blog name). Each post is written by a different member of the community and it receives tons of engagement in the comment section. I wish they were more involved in the social media space.
3. Green Building Law Blog
Shari Shapiro is one of the foremost authorities on green building law. She’s incredibly smart and she manages to update her blog on a regular basis. With green building comes a number of legal issues to be handled with during and post construction. Look no further than Shari’s blog for the basics on green building law.
4. Green Building Law Update (Facebook)
It’s fitting that I put this blog after Shari’s. The Green Building Law Update is run by Chris Cheatham who got hooked on green building when studying for the LEED AP exam back in 2006. He has since used his blog to launch a construction consulting company. More importantly however, he coined the phrase LEEDigation, a term for green building litigation.
5. Green Buildings NYC (Twitter) (Facebook)
GBNYC is a New York-centric blog focusing on green building projects in the NYC area, however they aim to comment on green building generally, using local projects as a vehicle through which to discuss LEED, Green Globes, and the legal and business implications of the sustainable construction, legislation, and insurance initiatives that continue to grip the entire country with increased frequency. Even if you’re not involved with the NYC green building community, it’s worth a read.
6. Real Life LEED
If you want to be involved with green buildign it’s imperative that you know the LEED system inside and out. As the title implies, Real Life LEED discusses all things LEED and USGBC. For example, recent posts include USGBC Membership Shrinks Another 9%, Every LEED Certification / Accreditation Fee in One Place and the LEED Size Gap: When a Renovation is Ineligible for LEED Certification. As someone who is taking the LEED Green Associate Exam in the near future, this is a great resource.
7. 100K House (Twitter) (Facebook)
100K House is the blog of Postgreen, a company with the goal of creating a LEED Platinum Certified home for $100,000 in hard construction costs. They did it, and they’re now building these homes across Philadelphia. The blog closely follows their projects and discusses why they chose particular building materials, designs, and other construction variables. One suggestion for 100K House and other blogs with Facebook Business pages containing more than 25 fans; you’re eligible to get your own vanity url (facebook.com/postgreen). Here’s how to set it up. For example, the url for my blog’s Facebook page is facebook.com/ASOTREG.
8. inhabitat (Twitter) (Facebook)
Okay, so maybe this isn’t a pure green building blog, but inhabitat is one of the premier “green” sites. It covers everything from architecture, interiors, and products to transportation and fashion. Although it doesn’t cover green building exclusively, it covers a lot of ancillary bussinesses and remains a must-read.
9. Green Building Focus (Twitter) (Facebook)
Green Building Focus is the blog of Green Building Inc., a Birmingham Alabama-based company which aims to broaden the study of sustainable development and construction. In addition to their regular blog content they put on green building events and have a web video series. It’s worth checking out.
10. Green Building Elements (Twitter) (Facebook)
Green Building Elements is updated daily and focuses on a lot of aspects of green building including green design, architecture, materials and urbanism. The blog can be technical at times, but never boring. It’s a quick, insightful read and worth checking on a regular basis.
There are so many quality green building blogs it was hard to narrow it down to 10, here are some other blogs to consider:
- Switchboard NRDC Blog
- GreenBuildings.com (Great LEED Resource)
- Green Real Estate Law Journal (Twitter) (Facebook)
- The Simple House (Twitter)
- The Sustainable Line (Twitter)
I recently discovered this blog written by Andrew Michler, a LEED AP and sustainable building consultant living off the grid since 1995 (I love that).
I want to thank all the bloggers for their dedication to green building and sustainability. Your blogs are a great source of information and invaluable network for those interested in the sustainable built environment.
Are there other blogs that should be a part of this list?
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