Blogs

PARTNER CONTENT Stone wool insulation: a two-prong tactic for meeting decarbonization goals

By Alison Karfeld posted 08-24-2023
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Buildings are a regular target for decarbonization efforts, particularly amid intensifying urbanization. New high-performance building construction and deep-energy retrofits have the potential to significantly lower energy demand. Yet, to alter the trajectory of global warming going forward, it is essential that project plans address both operational carbon and the embodied carbon of each building. One way design professionals can support decarbonization efforts is by working with manufacturers to specify materials that are built on a model of promoting and prioritizing global sustainability. There are two prongs to this approach. Prong #1—when ...
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Letter from the Chair: September/October 2023

By Lori Ferriss AIA posted 08-24-2023
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Dear COTE Community, This summer has been a roller coaster for anyone following the climate news. I won’t recap any of the alarming headlines – we are living them daily. Instead, I want to celebrate the major policy wins occurring on all fronts, in part thanks to this community. In London, an unprecedented decision barred the demolish a historic Marks & Spencer store after a lengthy battle over environmental and heritage value . The State of California became the first in the United States to incorporate embodied carbon reduction requirements into their building code after tireless advocacy by AIA California and many others. In Massachusetts, the ...
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Top Ten Awards Updates: Quantifying Equitable Communities / by Helena Zambrano

By Kira L. Gould Hon. AIA posted 08-24-2023
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By Helena Zambrano , AIA The architecture profession has recognized social equity to be a fundamental outcome of good design. A widespread desire for equitable design is a positive development, but one that is vague and has been interpreted in various ways. When approached successfully, equitable design can increase the number of people who benefit from architecture, help individuals thrive, and result in safer, healthier communities. Other times however, the idea of equitable design is used to get away with less desirable outcomes, such as offering everyone equal access to subpar results or insisting that everyone has the right to pollute ...
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COTE Advocacy Update (September/October 2023)

By Arathi P. Gowda AIA posted 08-21-2023
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Cote Advocacy Update By Arathi Gowda As we wrap our Summer and prepare for the faster pace of Fall the COTE Advocacy team is reflecting on two great events: the COTE Open Forum at A’23 the COTE network summer quarterly call In both sessions we heard a groundswell of interest from COTE membership seeking ways to engage in our network of Architects at the intersection of design and the environment. At the COTE Open Forum several members started the event by sharing updates. To begin Lindsay Baker, the CEO of the International Living Future Institute, inspired us by sharing a vision to shift our industry towards a living future. In her words ...
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COTE Network Update (September/October 2023)

By Kira L. Gould Hon. AIA posted 08-21-2023
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By Bunny Tucker The COTE Network Q3 in August included almost 100 participants gathered virtually to discuss policy and advocacy successes at the local level. Z Smith spoke about Louisiana’s adoption of the 2021 IECC; Tom Chase and Ken Levenson presented the opt-in stretch code requiring Passive House for multifamily buildings in Massachusetts; Simona Fischer and Sheri Hansen explained the new revisions to Minnesota’s commercial building code review period; and Meghan Lewis described the range of approaches to embodied carbon legislation taking place in the US. You can find the recording of the session along with the presentation slides and ...
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Next Gen Promise: 2023 COTE Top Ten for Students Competition

By Kira L. Gould Hon. AIA posted 08-21-2023
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by Robin Z. Puttock, AIA What an exciting time for the AIA/ACSA COTE Top Ten Student Competition! This year we experienced a record-breaking number of entries from all over the world. The esteemed jury met in July and the winners were announced on August 24. The winning entries can be found here . And they are: TIMBR | TIMBER INTEGRATIVE MEANS + BIOPHILIC RESILIENCE Students : Marcus Puste, Farah Ossaimee & Dolin Diaz Faculty : Kristin Nelson & James Leach Institution : University of Detroit Mercy WATERSHED Students : Eric Luth & Andrew Baltimore Faculty : Gundula Proksch ...
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Partner Content: Coatings elevate sustainability of three multifamily projects By Sherwin-Williams

By Alison Karfeld posted 07-10-2023
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Coatings elevate sustainability of three multifamily projects From thermal protection and fireproofing to low VOCs, AIA partner Sherwin-Williams explores the role of coatings in three green buildings. For sustainable buildings, the choice of coatings can play as important a role as nearly any other element of the structure. Low-VOC options help preserve occupant health, powder coatings add durability, cool-roof coatings increase energy efficiency, and more. Here’s a look at the coatings specified for three green-built multifamily projects around the country. Green space, cool roof highlight affordable LA apartment building ...
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A report from the Committee on Climate Action and Design Excellence (CCADE)

By Illya Azaroff FAIA posted 06-27-2023
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According to the IPCC synthesis report, it is projected that rapidly rising disaster risk is projected to reach 560 events a year – or 1.5 disasters a day – by 2030. That is why we must build capacity across all sectors, among our members, in all our components, here in the US and in the 100 countries where AIA is active. Therefore, it is incumbent upon us as the American Institute of Architects, to open a pathway for members to take climate action in all of its forms. CCADE has advanced the review and revisions to the framework for design excellence over this past month. Input solicited from our community of leaders, knowledge communities ...
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Reflections on A'23 COTE Open Forum

By Bunny Tucker AIA posted 06-22-2023
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The sold-out COTE Open Forum session at A’23 brought together almost 300 participants to discuss Climate Action & Climate Justice, Policy & Advocacy, the Inflation Reduction Act, Resilience & Adaptation, the 2030 Commitment, and the Framework for Design Excellence. Lindsey Baker, CEO of the International Living Future Institute, provided brief remarks to set the stage for rich conversation among participants. She forecasted that the transformation of the built environment will no longer take place building by building. Rigorous design and execution have proven the case at the unit scale; widespread adoption at the policy level is now necessary. ...
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A'23 COTE Open Forum: A COTE Leader Perspective: Ganesh Nayak

By Kira L. Gould Hon. AIA posted 06-22-2023
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by Ganesh Nayak, AIA / COTE Leadership Group Member The COTE Open Forum at the A’23 Conference on Architecture at San Francisco, “Realizing Climate Action and Climate Justice” tried to explore how architects are tackling topics of Climate Action and Climate Justice, and how we are working with communities to create climate-responsive design that addresses health and equity. As always, the Open Forum draws on the collective wisdom of the COTE community, providing a feedback loop to inform its work. Lindsay Baker, CEO of the International Living Future Institute, anchored the presentations preceding the break-out discussions. Some salient points: we ...
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Fostering Growth and Collaboration: Insights from the AIA 2023 Convention – COTE Open Forum

By Wei Wang AIA posted 06-21-2023
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Stepping into the AIA 2023 convention as the national AIA COTE liaison for the Young Architects Forum (YAF), I was filled with anticipation and did not know what to expect. This year's AIA COTE Open Forum sought to unravel the practical implications of "climate action" and "climate justice," exploring how designers and communities can collaborate to redefine value, embrace a culture of care, reuse urban fabric, and practice climate-responsive design centered on health and equity. Our breakout session delved into the specific challenges and opportunities surrounding the establishment and growth of COTE chapters. Here are the topics that stood out to me from my ...
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Letter from the Chair: July/August 2023

By Lori Ferriss AIA posted 06-20-2023
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Dear COTE Community, As we wrap up A’23, the AIA Conference on Architecture, I am buoyed by the inspiring work and energy of this community. COTE’s three official sessions brought together 22 speakers, over 30 facilitators , and 800+ participants , while the countless additional programming led by many of you centered themes of climate action, climate justice, and the agency of architects to drive change throughout the conference. At Performing Beautifully , we reflected on the history of the COTE Top Ten Awards and the continued importance of charting the rapidly evolving leading edge of sustainability. 2024 COTE Chair Michelle Amt described how ...
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Performing Beautifully: The 2023 COTE Top Ten Winners

By Michelle Amt AIA posted 06-12-2023
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What makes an AIA COTE Top Ten winner ? To start with, they’re innovators, either through technological advancement or through advancements within their approach, typology, client type, or region . They’re integrators, connecting systems and communities in ways that celebrate their interdependence and reveal their unique opportunities . They’re advocates, taking responsibility for effects within and beyond a site’s physical boundaries and leveraging their projects to advance the greater good. Finally, they’re synthesizers, merging design and performance to create places and spaces that ignite the soul. At A’23, the ...
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AIA 2030 Letter from the co-chairs (May 2023)

By David G. Arkin AIA posted 05-09-2023
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AIA 2030 Letter from the co-chair Dear 2030 community, Earlier this year the AIA was invited to participate in a collaborative effort to align North American architecture, engineering and construction industries on Embodied Carbon . The workshop was convened by Architecture2030, Building Transparency, the Carbon Leadership Forum, the International Living Future Institute, and the US Green Building Council. In attendance were members of the organizing groups along with representatives from the Contractors Commitment, the Climate Positive Design Challenge, American Society of Landscape ...
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An update from Architecture 2030 by Erin McDade, Assoc. AIA

By Eana Bacchiocchi posted 05-09-2023
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Architecture 2030 update for the AIA 2030 Commitment by Erin McDade, Assoc. AIA From the Industrial Revolution beginning in the late 1700s until 2005, U.S. building energy consumption and CO 2 emissions grew steadily as building floor area increased. Each year, we added about 3 to 5 billion square feet in building stock, and those buildings needed energy—electricity, natural gas, heating oil—to operate, driving up the sector's consumption and emissions. Since 2005, however, something extraordinary has happened: building floor area growth in the U.S. has continued to steadily increase, but building operational energy consumption has flattened and building ...
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Partner Content: Creating Net-Positive Communities

By Eana Bacchiocchi posted 04-21-2023
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By Jeff Terry and Jennifer Keegan for GAF Companies, organizations, and firms working in the building, construction, and design space have a unique opportunity and responsibility. Collectively, we are contributing to nearly 40% of energy-related carbon emissions worldwide. While the goals, commitments, pledges, and promises around these challenges are a step in the right direction, no one entity alone will make major improvements to this daunting issue. We need to come together, demonstrate courageous change leadership, and take collective approaches to address the built environment’s impacts on climate. Collectively, ...
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Letter from the Chair: May/June 2023

By Lori Ferriss AIA posted 04-21-2023
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CONGRATULATIONS to the 2023 COTE Top Ten Award recipients!! This year’s awardees demonstrate creative , innovative , human-centered approaches to climate action and climate justice. They achieve true environmental and ecological regeneration , advance our discourse about inclusive and equitable places and processes, and strive to reconnect humans to nature through design and education. The winners are : Casa Adelante 2060 Folsom , Mithun with Y.A. Studio Confluence Park , Lake|Flato Architects with Matsys DPR Sacramento Zero Net Energy ...
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COTE Network Update: May/June 2023

By Bunny Tucker AIA posted 04-21-2023
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The COTE Network recently hosted the second of this year’s Quarterly Calls. Nearly 70% of the COTE Network leaders expressed interest in learning more about embodied carbon in our survey conducted during the Q1 meeting. During our Q2 call on Tuesday, May 2 , we were joined by leaders working to understand and reduce lifecycle carbon in the building industry. The session was designed to bring attendees u p to speed on what you can do as an architect, connect you with the best resources available, and to answer any questions you may have. The recording of this call will be available here . During ...
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COTE Advocacy Update: May/June 2023

By Arathi P. Gowda AIA posted 04-21-2023
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As we make our way through pollen season and consider the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report , there are several nuggets that give us that extra push to champion c limate a ction and c limate j ustice. Here are a few of the highlights from the IPPC’s Headlines report: Mitigation Pathways All global modelled pathways that limit warming to 1.5°C (>50%) with no or limited overshoot, and those that limit warming to 2°C (>67%), involve rapid and deep and, in most cases, immediate greenhouse gas emissions reductions in all sectors this decade. Near-Term Action Deep, ...
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Why the AIA COTE Top Ten Matters

By Michelle Amt AIA posted 04-20-2023
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“Design awards reward aesthetics . LEED ratings award performance . The Top Ten program does both.” T h ese are the words of H enry Siegel, FAIA , and we agree. But n ow that every AIA awards program refers to the Framework for Design Excellence , what is different about the AIA COTE Top Ten Award? The AIA Committee on the Environment (COTE) Top Ten began as the “Earth Day Top Ten” in 1997. From its inception , the award has had two main purposes: to expand the profession’s definition of design excellence to include sustainability; and to teach the world, through published case ...
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