LEED: Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (USGBC) is a Green Building Rating System. A voluntary national standard for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. LEED provides a framework for assessing building performance and meeting sustainability goals. See website for current standards including: New commercial construction and major renovation projects (LEED-NC) Existing building operations (LEED-EB), Commercial interiors projects (LEED-CI), Core and shell projects (LEED-CS), Homes (LEED-H), Neighborhood Development (LEED-ND). See also codes and the USGBC website.
ACEEE - American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy - a non-profit organization “that acts as a catalyst to advance energy efficiency policies, programs, technologies, investments, and behaviors." Resources include Energy Efficient Links and a robust Glossary.
American Solar Energy Society (ASES) - An association of solar professionals, advocates and enthusiasts based in the United States. With Solar Home Basics guides and excerpts from the magazine Solar Today.
Association for Environment Conscious Building - AECB brings together builders, architects, designers, manufacturers, housing associations and local authorities, to promote excellence in sustainable design and construction, rather than gimmicks and green accounting tricks. Resources include a Member Services Directory, a Library of conference proceedings, and information about Carbon Lite training and courses.
Build It Green - A membership-supported Bay Area nonprofit whose mission is to promote healthy, energy- and resource-efficient building practices in California through outreach and education. Tools and resources include directories of green products, professionals, and design guidelines.
BuildingGreen - UCB Only. Includes information designed to help building-industry professionals and policy makers improve environmental performance of buildings. Includes: Environmental Building News and GreenSpec Product directory.
Center for Livable Communities - includes the Ahwahnee Principles. The Local Government Commission (LGC) is an organization of elected officials from California and other states. In 1991, the LGC developed the Ahwahnee Principles. In 1997 the LGC developed the Ahwahnee Principles for Smart Economic Development . The Center for Livable Communities helps local governments and community leaders be proactive in their land use and transportation planning, and adopt programs and policies that lead to livable and resource-efficient land use patterns. The Center is a partner in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Smart Growth Network.
Carboun: Middle East Sustainability and Environment Carboun.com includes resources covering a wide spectrum of issues addressing the energy and the environment of the Middle East. It includes resources on sustainable design, reducing and conserving energy and material resources, and protecting/regenerating local ecologies and habitats.
The Cohousing Association of the United States - Cohousing communities balance home ownership with shared common facilities. Includes links to international and national projects, development issues, and news.
EcoMall -- Site map with links, newsletters, construction products, investments etc.
Global Green USA -- US affiliate of Green Cross International. R.E.S.C.U.E. Resource Efficiency & Sustainable Communities for the Urban Environment. Works to create a global value shift toward a sustainable future. Promotes the cleanup and reuse of military facilities, promoting the safe and environmentally responsible destruction of chemical weapons, the "greening" of affordable housing, and the prevention of international natural resource-based conflicts.
Greener Buildings -- is a free resource for environmentally responsible building development. Includes building design, construction, and operation, provides tools, action steps, and other resources that improve buildings' environmental performance reducing costs and negative health impacts.
Healthy Building Network -- an organization whose mission is to "Transform the market for building materials to advance the best environmental, health and social practices".
iGreenBuild.com -- provides building professionals and concerned citizens with information about environmentally responsible building. Includes B.I.P.E.R., Building Industry Professionals For Environmental Responsibility, monthly e-Newsletter.Articles about sustainable building design for commercial and residential buildings. Green products, product reviews and samples.
The Long Now Foundation was established in 1996, to develop Clock and "Library" projects and to become a long term cultural institution. The Long Now Foundation seeks to promote "slower/better" thinking and to foster creativity in the framework of the next 10,000 years.
New Buildings Institute (NBI) -- a nonprofit organization working to improve the energy performance of commercial buildings.
Northwest Ecobuilding Guild -- The Northwest EcoBuilding Guild is an association of builders, designers, homeowners, trades people, manufacturers, suppliers and others interested in ecologically sustainable building
O2 -- International network of designers, links to resources and projects.
Rocky Mountain Institute -- A nonprofit research and educational foundation, the Institute creates, and helps individuals find new techniques for resource efficiency.
SmartGrowth -- part of the Sustainable Communities Network. The Smart Growth Network coalitions to encourage metropolitan development that is environmentally smart, fiscally smart, economically and socially smart.
Solar Living Center - The Solar Living Institute -- 12-acre demonstration center located in Hopland, California, powered entirely by working renewable energy systems, has a 5,000 sq. foot strawbale building with innovative passive solar design and the creative use of recycled materials.
Sustainable Buildings Industry Council. -- SBIC is an independent, nonprofit organization whose mission is to advance the design, affordability, energy performance, and environmental soundness of America's buildings.
Sustainable Sources -- available through Greenbuilder.com. Sustainable Sources provides resources that offer practical options to the conventional methods of building, community, travel, and more.
Urban Ecology -- Links to Building Livable Cities, Planning Sustainable Regions, Bay Area Green Web and the Urban Ecologist. Links to current Infill Projects.
Wallace Stegner Environmental Center, San Francisco Public Library -- Links to environmental directories, Eco-Links, Activism, collections and calendar.
