Blog - New Buildings Institute

Electrification Nation?

Posted on July 29, 2020 by Stacey Hobart

Natural gas, once the darling to replace carbon-intensive coal in electricity production, is increasingly being recognized as a significant cause of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that are fueling climate change. The main component of natural gas is methane, which when...

2021 Energy Code Progress Challenged: Climate and Affordability Stand to Lose Unless We Speak Up

Posted on July 28, 2020 by Kimberly Cheslak

In December 2019, more than 1,000 government representatives from cities and states across the U.S. did something remarkable when they voted to improve the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) by 10%. Since building energy use accounts for nearly 40%...

Delivering Climate Solutions From Existing Buildings: No Time to Waste

Posted on July 13, 2020 by Kimberly Cheslak

With buildings accounting for up to 75% of carbon emissions in U.S. cities, addressing carbon emissions from the built environment is essential to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement and limit the rise in global average temperature to below...

Finalizing the 2021 IECC takes the next step forward

Posted on June 29, 2020 by Maria Ellingson

The 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) development process has officially entered an appeals phase and we wanted to share an update. With the International Code Council’s (ICC) release of the Final Action Results in early April, six appeals were...

GridOptimal Metrics Offer Guidance on Optimizing Building-Grid Interaction

Posted on May 18, 2020 by Alexi Miller

Measurement and metrics are at the core of nearly all business activity today. Those in the buildings and energy efficiency field are accustomed to some standard metrics: Energy Use Intensity (EUI), percent better than code, cost per square foot, and...

Could coronavirus be a wake up call for climate action?

Posted on May 8, 2020 by Ralph DiNola

We are living through an unprecedented global health crisis that has upended our daily routines and halted the economy in a matter of weeks. Rebounding from the loss of lives and the economic fallout caused by the coronavirus across the...

Improved Building Energy Model Code Challenged

Posted on March 12, 2020 by Kimberly Cheslak

Update: Finalizing the 2021 IECC takes the next step forward Better building codes mean lower energy bills, which results in lower costs for consumers and fewer carbon emissions for the planet. Sounds like a winning combination, right? That’s why we were...

Reilly Loveland Wins USGBC Green Schools Ambassador Award

Posted on March 12, 2020 by Reilly Loveland

NBI Project Manager Reilly Loveland was recently awarded the USGBC Center for Green Schools Ambassador Award at the March Green Schools Conference and Expo held this year in NBI’s hometown, Portland. Ore. We asked Reilly some questions about the award,...

The Embodied Carbon Conundrum: Solving for All Emission Sources from the Built Environment

Posted on February 26, 2020 by Amy Cortese

Increasing urgency among policymakers and the design community to meet the goals of the Paris Climate Accord has spurred more aggressive codes and energy policies in jurisdictions around the United States. These strategies are making gains on driving down carbon...

Los Angeles Mayor Garcetti Leading the Way to Decarbonization with Municipal Buildings

Posted on February 11, 2020 by Reilly Loveland

Less than year after Mayor Eric Garcetti unveiled a Green New Deal for the city of Los Angeles, he is building on that leadership with a new Executive Directive that will help kick-start the decarbonization movement by accelerating the transformation...

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