USGBC and Google Make a Splash at Greenbuild

Stealing the show at its annual

Greenbuild

conference in San Francisco, the

U.S. Green Building Council

announced a major $3 million grant from Google that will allow the organization to expand its efforts in the materials industry. The

USGBC’s LEED

green building certification standards have become a benchmark for sustainable design and architecture since they were introduced in 1998.

As LEED senior vice president Scot Horst points out, Google’s grant allows LEED to take an important next step: “Improving the indoor environment, increasing materials transparency, and advancing the understanding of materials’ impact on health are critical targets for the LEED program as it continues to evolve.”

Google chose to work with the USGBC because of its own company-wide commitment to creating a healthy work environment. Says Google’s green team lead Anthony Ravitz, the USGBC is “the perfect partner to help spur real change on the healthy materials front.” The grant will allow for new initiatives to develop over the next two years in three areas: research on building materials and health, transparency, and industry engagement.