Beyond Certification: Understanding Sustainable Building Standards and Their Impact

Did anyone hear that?

WELL, LEED, Passive House, Living Building Challenge, and the dozens of other voices - Sustainability standards in the design and construction industry have been a catalyst for the improvement of the health of our buildings and their inhabitants for the past few decades, but where does that leave all the non-certified projects? If a project is built sustainably, but no one is around to stamp it, is it truly sustainable?

With an increase in certifiably sustainable buildings, carbon-zero commitments, and new innovative healthy materials being created every year, the team here at Good Folk are optimistic about our future. However, does that mean there were no sustainable projects prior to the advent of these standards? And what about all of the projects without access to the funds, resources, or expertise to attain a certification? Let's get into the weeds.

What do the experts say?

A couple of years ago I moderated a panel of sustainability standards experts at BuildEx in Vancouver where we had a fabulous discussion and much was gleaned by both the attendees as well as the organizers. Towards the end of the session I posed the question,

“If it is our goal to help create as many sustainable projects as possible, do you hope that eventually your organizations will become unnecessary as the standards you promote become the norm for every project?”

The experts paused… I could sense a level of trepidation in their response. They had, afterall, been sent to speak at this session on their company’s dime with the goal of promoting their mission and continuing their growth. Answers were mixed, with some leaning towards the need for these formalized standards to continue to track progress, and others more openly entertaining my utopian proposition. Whatever their answers, my intentions were genuine - I truly believe in a future where former aspirational standards have become so commonplace that we achieve “LEED Platinum” and beyond in our regular design process. Great in theory, but if these sustainable building organizations don’t want to be phased out, how cooperative would they be in supporting a transition?

Con - Exclusivity.

Let’s look, for example, at the WELL AP (accredited professional) where the base price to register is $299 USD - over $400 CAD. If you want access to their practice questions, videos, and flashcards you can pay $568 USD - that is nearly $800 CAD (at the current exchange rate). Medium to large-sized firms will sometimes cover that cost and support their employees to obtain accreditation. However, that leaves the smaller firms and individual designers with a substantial bill and a significant time and mental commitment in order to become accredited.

On the project certification side, those looking to gain WELL Bronze to Platinum-level certification, can plan to pay a $3000 USD enrollment fee, plus 16 cents per square foot of building space at a minimum price of $8000 USD. Large corporate clients or wealthy owners may not bat an eye at these prices, but for many more others this additional cost makes certification goals a non-starter.

Pro - Better air for all.

There’s no better place to start than asbestos, the A-list celebrity of toxic materials. It feels like it has long since been retired since its heyday in the mid 1900’s. But, did you know that asbestos was only fully banned in Canada as of 2018!?... Not only are asbestos abatements still consistently happening, but up until just six years ago products were still being manufactured with asbestos as a key ingredient!

It is only thanks to organizations like the International Living Future Institute, and their “Red List” (originally released in 2006), that poisons like urea-formaldehyde, VOC’s, and asbestos have seen a notable decline. These transparency lists, along with material certifications such as UL’s Greenguard, Cradle to Cradle, BIFMA, ISO, and many others are to thank for healthier indoor air and a better lifespan tracking of materials - without them, we may be on a much darker trajectory than we are. We have these organizations to thank for much of our design and construction progress in recent history.

We’re all in this together!

Before you get the wrong idea, Good Folk Design Studio is in support of sustainability standards - in fact, a number of our team are in the process of obtaining an accreditation. There are many benefits to becoming an accredited professional even if you’re not part of a large firm - gaining a much deeper scientific understanding of the impacts of your design decisions, adding credence to your sustainability assertions, improving online searchability for those clients seeking sustainable solutions, and even the ability to take on consulting projects when clients want pieces of a standard without the resources to fully certify.

Until that idyllic time in the future when the most stringent of standards become part of our building codes, these organizations are educating, advocating, and uniting us around a healthier planet than we would have without them. And listen, as much as I’d love to believe that the greater good was everyone’s core motivator, I recognize that greenwashing as a marketing tool is unsettlingly rampant. With that said, are third party corporations the best long term governing bodies for these improvements?

While I can't fully claim to trust governments much more than corporations, they do seem to stand to gain far less by the enforcing of by-laws and building codes than a corporate body does by marketing their revenue generating sustainability programs. Take, for example, the BC Energy Step Code which has garnered steadily increasing support since its inception. While there does end up being inherent elevated costs associated with pursuing energy efficiency, in the “2021 BC Energy Step Code Market Response Study” 60% (the largest percentage) of respondents stated “better energy savings for the cost premium” as their primary motivator for implementing energy saving measures (BC Housing, 2022). Essentially, builders, designers and otherwise are looking for maximum impact for the lowest possible cost - aren’t we all?

The difference between this horse saving t-shirt and the step code is that the numbers are showing that these types of programs are actually making a positive impact! (this shirt may have saved a horse 🤷🏻‍♂️). If governments continue to glean from the experts developing sustainability standards, implementing the most effective strategies into building code for no added program cost, even offering incentives, then wouldn’t that be the ideal scenario? More environmentally conscious projects, more budget savings, more simplified accessible approach - sounds pretty great, no?

Sustainability heroes or dark knights.

I’ve only got one final question, would all the sustainability heroes donning those coveted letters behind their names be willing to lay them down in favour of public health? I remember getting to the end of The Dark Knight for the first time and having an initial visceral reaction to Bruce taking the fall for Harvey Dent. I was irate! But after Commissioner Gordon’s epic speech, I had an immediate change of heart (like everyone else). Does it matter who or how, or does it just matter that good prevails? (Genius, 2008)

Good Folk believes the latter, which is why we are addressing sustainability from many different angles. Of our five company pillars three of them directly address environmental sustainability and indoor air quality - Healthy Materials, Retained Resources, and Nature Integrated Design. To track our implementation of these pillars, the GF team is developing a project sustainability audit process to ensure these strategies are being used in a tangible and effective way. As mentioned earlier, some of us are working on obtaining sustainability accreditations to bring legitimacy to our claims and make us available to those looking for specific consulting services. Good Folk leverages strong relationships with knowledgeable product reps and healthy materials databases such as Mindful Materials to offer the best possible products to our clients. Finally, our designers sit on multiple committees to help advocate for the progression of sustainability in our industry.

All of that isn’t to pump our tires, we certainly aren’t the only ones. For example:

Holland Licensed Interior Design uses a strong human-centered design approach and works with clients ESG strategies to optimize the health of their projects.
Michael Green Architecture invests in technologies to improve building health and efficiency, including their contributions to mass-timber.
Modern Office of Design & Architecture (MODA) is a standout in rich hands-on design research and concept design as they develop the future of innovative processes and materials.

The work is being done, but there is always more room for improvement. So be optimistic, keep working hard, read books, attend conferences, join committees, get accredited (or don’t), advocate, buy a horse saving t-shirt, get a Batman tattoo, and perhaps most importantly collaborate with one another! It is when we stand together and not stand out that the biggest change happens.

References

Figure 1 - If a tree falls in a forest. Gorden. (2020, October 9). If a Tree Falls in the Forest. [Cartoon]. Buy The Way. http://buytheway.ascjclass.org/if-a-tree-falls-in-the-forest/

Figure 2 - Asbestos abatement. Alliance Environmental Group. (n.d.). What is Asbestos?. [Photograph]. Alliance Environmental Group. https://www.alliance-enviro.com/residential-services/environmental/asbestos-removal/

Figure 3 - We’re all stars and we see that. Ashley. (2022, June 19). My 13 Favourite Songs From High School Musical. [Screenshot]. Medium. https://ashleywritess.medium.com/my-13-favourite-songs-from-high-school-musical-fae7cc210228

Figure 4 - Horse saving shirts. Kury de Castillo, C. (2022, March 15). Calgary thrift store limiting number of items that resellers can buy. [Photograph]. Global News. https://globalnews.ca/news/8684904/calgary-thrift-store-reseller-policy/

Figure 5 - Dark knight. The Virtuous Girl. (n.d.). A Dark Knight. [Meme Graphic]. Pinterest. https://ca.pinterest.com/pin/730779477027292872/

Figure 6 - Stand together!. Peters, J. (n.d.). Super High Five!. [Cartoon]. Pinterest. https://ca.pinterest.com/pin/389139224025746993/

BC Housing Research Centre. (2022, December). 2021 BC Energy Step Code Market Response Study. BC Housing. Retrieved September 22, 2024, from https://www.bchousing.org/sites/default/files/media/research/2021-BC-Energy-Step-Code-Market-Response-Study_0.pdf

Energy Step Code. (n.d.). History. Energy Step Code. Retrieved September 22, 2024, from https://energystepcode.ca/history/

Energy Step Code Council. (2019, July). BC Energy Step Code. Energy Step Code. Retrieved September 22, 2024, from https://energystepcode.ca/app/uploads/sites/257/2019/08/BCEnergyStepCode_GuideDigital_v02July2019.pdf

Genius. (n.d.). Christopher Nolan (Ft. Batman, Christian Bale & Gary Oldman) – The Dark Knight: Final Scene. Genius. Retrieved September 22, 2024, from https://genius.com/Christopher-nolan-the-dark-knight-final-scene-annotated

Holland Licensed Interior Design. (n.d.). Holland. Holland Licensed Interior Design | Office Design and Workplace Strategy. Retrieved September 22, 2024, from https://www.hollanddesign.ca/

International Living Future Institute. (n.d.). The Red List. International Living Future Institute. Retrieved September 22, 2024, from https://living-future.org/red-list/

IWBI. (2024, August 15). WELL AP. IWBI. Retrieved September 22, 2024, from https://www.wellcertified.com/well-ap/

IWBI. (2024, August 15). WELL Program Pricing. IWBI. Retrieved September 22, 2024, from https://www.wellcertified.com/pricing/

Michael Green Architecture. (n.d.). MGA. Michael Green Architecture: MGA. Retrieved September 22, 2024, from https://mg-architecture.ca/

PSAC Union. (2022, July 15). What is asbestos? Public Service Alliance of Canada. Retrieved September 22, 2024, from https://psacunion.ca/what-is-asbestos

For Better or Worse: Certifiably Sustainable.