Committee on the Environment

 View Only

Community HTML

ALBION DISTRICT LIBRARY BY PERKINS + WILL IS A 2018 COTE TOP TEN RECIPIENT. IMAGE: DOUBLESPACE PHOTOGRAPHY

Quick Links

Who we are

The Committee on the Environment (COTE®) is an AIA Knowledge Community working for architects, allied professionals, and the public to achieve climate action and climate justice through design. We believe that design excellence is the foundation of a healthy, sustainable, and equitable future. Our work promotes design strategies that empower all AIA members to realize the best social and environmental outcomes with the clients and the communities they serve.

Enjoy our latest on COTE news (and follow us on X and LinkedIn). 

To learn about the Framework for Design Excellence (formerly the COTE Top Ten Measures), click here.

Check out COTE's history and timeline. 

Starting a local COTE or sustainability group and need some guidance? Check out the AIA COTE Network Resources here.

A big thank you to our 2024 sponsors: 
Founding sponsors: Building Green
Premier sponsors: Sherwin-Williams
Sustaining sponsors: GAF Roofing, Milliken, Andersen Windows,
BlueScope Buildings
Green sponsors: EPIC Metals
Allied sponsors: TLC Engineering, Sierra Pacific Windows

Expand all | Collapse all

climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

  • 1.  climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-21-2019 02:50 PM
    Global warming is already here. Denying it is unforgivable. - The Washington Post
    Washington Post remove preview
    Global warming is already here. Denying it is unforgivable. - The Washington Post
    GLOBAL WARMING is already here, striking substantial regions of the United States with increasing severity. That is the upshot of an exhaustive Post investigation in which Steven Mufson, Chris Mooney, Juliet Eilperin and John Muyskens analyzed decades of local temperature records and identified a variety of hot spots where warming has proceeded more quickly.
    View this on Washington Post >


    https://beta.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-warming-is-already-here-denying-it-is-unforgivable/2019/08/18/9af534a4-bf96-11e9-a5c6-1e74f7ec4a93_story.html?outputType=amp



    ------------------------------
    Kira Gould
    Principal
    Kira Gould CONNECT
    Oakland CA
    ------------------------------


  • 2.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-22-2019 05:35 PM
    Right on, Kira -
    Need to get the Republican Party out of the Federal Government,
    Need to institute a national carbon tax or cap and trade system - especially important given the deficits the Party has allowed.
    Need to re-enter the Paris Accord
    AIA needs to publicize its latest resolution - it's too hard to find.
    We all need to get on a carbon diet.
    Ralph Bennett, FAIA, LEED AP

    ------------------------------
    Ralph Bennett FAIA
    Bennett Frank McCarthy Architects, Inc.
    Silver Spring MD
    ------------------------------



  • 3.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-22-2019 06:51 PM
    I meant to complete my post with this reference that brought home a direct and meaningful impact of Global Warming.  While the future may identify many advantages and some accelerated evolution as consequences of global warming, many of us suppose that future generations would enjoy this present or more pristine environments of a nature that we recognize as healthy.

    https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-49345912

    ------------------------------
    Palmer Hafdahl AIA
    Owner/Architect
    Palm's Hawaii Architecture
    Lihue HI
    ------------------------------



  • 4.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-22-2019 08:50 PM
    People who do not address the climate change issue, and sustainability in general, are not architects.

    Nick Peckham, FAIA
    Peckham Architecture, LLC
    2009 North Country Club Drive
    Columbia, MO 65201

    573-777-4444 (o)
    573-489-0901 (m)
    nick@peckhamarchitecture.com




  • 5.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-24-2019 12:07 PM
    Nicholas,

        Really?  Anyone in our profession who disagrees with you on Climate Change is not an architect?  Or shouldn't be allowed to be an architect?  And I assume you mean man made climate change since normal climate change is always occurring.
        Isn't that a little extreme?

    ------------------------------
    Robert Smith AIA
    Architect, AIA, LEED AP
    Talley & Smith Architecture, Inc.
    Shelby NC
    ------------------------------



  • 6.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-24-2019 12:43 PM
    Robert

    Thanks for your reply.

    115,336 is NCARB’s latest tally of architects in the United States: each is an architect. Each is unique and different, as are the nearly 8 billion people living today.

    Each architect’s journey is impacted by family life, education, experience and mental impacts. My journey includes seeing much of the planet while still young as part of the US Merchant Marine. Then grad studies first with Lou Kahn, then with Bucky Fuller, and internship with Moore Turnbull, then Lawrence Halprin.

    My view is we are all in this together. There are resources enough for all. I thank Fuller for coining "comprehensive anticipatory design science" as a tool for designing a world better for all.

    So I made the post understanding the interactive nature of all elements of sustainability, including buildings fashioned by architects.

    Sustainability in the global sense and health in individuals both take work. They do not respond well to, “I don’t believe science.”

    I welcome other thoughts.

    Nick Peckham, FAIA
    Peckham Architecture, LLC
    2009 North Country Club Drive
    Columbia, MO 65201

    573-777-4444 (o)
    573-489-0901 (m)
    nick@peckhamarchitecture.com




  • 7.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-24-2019 01:10 PM
    Nicholas,

    I am not arguing against sustainability, energy efficiency, or the responsible use of materials.  I believe wholeheartedly that good architects were doing these things long before it was culturally fashionable and before we were familiar with buzzwords like global warming, green design, and climate change. 

    My concern with your statement is that it establishes a specific litmus test that you were applying to our entire profession.  It essentially said that "you are not an architect if you do not believe in the climate change issue."  And without clarity, it is not clear whether you are referring to responsible, sustainable design or the politically loaded idea that because of climate change we should allow the government to step in and control nearly every aspect of our lives.  Which is the direction many politicians, Democrat and Republican, would like to take this.  

    As an architect, I hope you are more interested in real results and actions that will improve our environment.  But there are many that simply want to use climate change as a vehicle to increase their own power.  This is done under the guise of the government "doing something."  And when the government does something it rarely solves, or even improves, the problem it was supposed to address and we have to live with the consequences.


    ------------------------------
    Robert Smith AIA
    Architect, AIA, LEED AP
    Talley & Smith Architecture, Inc.
    Shelby NC
    ------------------------------



  • 8.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-25-2019 11:53 AM
    Robert,

    Good messages... thanks for standing up!

    Nick, and Ralph, 

    Accept it or not, America and the AIA are not majority democrat...  Yes, the AIA leadership are progressive activists, but the rank and file are not.  And we are sick and tired of being misrepresented.  (Frankly, I miss the AIA that used to serve its membership, instead of organizing silly protests.)

    It may be difficult for you to tolerate, but it's possible for an architect to practice sustainability, good stewardship of Earth's resources, and rationally respond to climate change.  

    The sky is not falling.

    ------------------------------
    Dennis Wells AIA
    Oklahoma City OK
    ------------------------------



  • 9.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-26-2019 05:29 PM
    >It may be difficult for you to tolerate, but it's possible for an architect to practice sustainability, good stewardship of Earth's resources, and rationally respond to climate change.

    >The sky is not falling.

    But just in case it turns out the sky is falling, though...seems like a little awareness-raising is helping a lot of organizations and businesses step up their sustainability practice. So many clients are too distracted by other things to focus on sustainability, which makes it pretty hard for us to practice good stewardship.


    ------------------------------
    S Fischer AIA
    MSR Design
    Minneapolis MN
    ------------------------------



  • 10.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-26-2019 05:52 PM
    Regarding the comment about climate actions being done under the guise of the government "doing something." That doesn't seem like much of an issue now because the federal gov't isn't doing something or much of anything... except roll back regulations to the 'good old days' when you were allowed to pump as pollution as you wanted into the sky, oceans, etc. We can acknowledge what's happening and take action or we can ignore the science, keep our heads in the sand, and let our children and grandchildren deal with the consequences. The choice is ours.

    ------------------------------
    Craig Graber AIA
    Brooklyn NY
    ------------------------------



  • 11.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-26-2019 06:51 PM
    Actually natural climate change isn’t “always occurring.” The most recent was over 10,000 years ago. The natural cycle was on a cooling trend until the pollution that began with the Industrial Revolution and has increased unabated to this day has reversed the natural cycle. After 10000 years of stability - which permitted us to create agricultural calendars and build cities (think about when architecture began) - we are now faced with unprecedented challenges. Don’t worry - the earth will continue - but we bear responsibility for our inaction in the face of knowledge. Scientists have known about this for decades - and architects at least since the early 1970s.

    Anthony Abbate, AIA, NCARB
    Florida Atlantic University
    Associate Provost for Broward Campuses
    www.fau.edu/broward
    Director of School of Architecture
    www.fau.edu/arch




  • 12.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-27-2019 01:34 AM
    Edited by Timothy J. Kohut AIA 08-27-2019 01:34 AM

    We are, without scientific doubt, standing on a precipice from which we may not be able to pull back.   If you put cynical perspective aside and look at the science (it is impossible to look at the Keeling Curve and deny that mankind is playing a role in the Climate Crisis), it is clear we need to turn the ship, and fast.  The debate and denial - much of this fueled by the fossil fuel industry - has succeeded in postponing critical action mankind, governments, and all architects, should be taking.  The sad truth behind the debate lies in the fact that we will likely see more dramatic signs of the Climate Crisis in our lifetime - not leaving this to our children or the next generation (the ice sheet melts in Greenland and Antartica are far outpacing predictions, and there are other signs).   

    Practicing in California I'm convinced that the economics will carry the day.  We're building ZNE buildings (affordable housing) today, not because the State and the Energy Codes push us in this direction, but because it is now cheaper to install photovoltaic panels on buildings than it is to connect to the grid - even if you have to finance the installation.  We are beyond grid parity and fast approaching what Stanford economist Tony Seba calls "God parity" (the point at which the cost of roof top solar will fall below the cost of electrical transmission).  This is something we see in every affordable housing project we develop, design, and build.  We see Swanson's Law playing out with every new project (cost of PV drops 20% every time worldwide production doubles).  The cost of renewable energy keeps dropping (making it easier and even cost-neutral to hit our AIA-2030 Challenge targets).  It's not just solar.  Wind is even cheaper.  The question is, will the economics win the day quickly enough?   The fossil fuel industry, and those who believe in their magic and affordability will not give up easily.   

    Anthony's statement that natural climate change "isn't always occurring" is correct and is a position endorsed by those who believe (or want to believe) in science.   This is not an eery coincidence of unfortunate events we are witnessing in the changing world and climate around us; we are party to this change.   The unfortunate reality is the Climate Change debate has long since moved from one over science to one over ideology.   Climate Change was once a cause of great Republican leaders (Reagan, George H.W. Bush, John McCain, Arnold Schwarzenneger).  Championing change, and sometimes visionary change, now belongs to a single party and many cast doubt or disparage regulation that would limit energy consumption, or put a cap on carbon.  

    Nick's statement is pretty bold, and touches a nerve.  I for one would challenge our profession to touch the nerve more profoundly.  It's time for the profession to look at issues of the operational economics for what we design and build.  I believe there is a moral obligation to act, and act fast.



    ------------------------------
    Timothy Kohut AIA
    Director of Sustainable Design
    National Community Renaissance of California
    Rancho Cucamonga CA
    ------------------------------



  • 13.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-28-2019 03:12 PM

    This argument that minimizes the climate crisis is very reminiscent of the reaction that the tobacco industry had to the medical findings many decades ago that smoking will kill you.   Their first strategy in saving their industry was to completely deny it.   As the medical evidence piled up, the only way they could extend the life of their industry was to then cast doubt on it;  to say "we're just NOT CERTAIN it will kill you".   

     

    The fossil fuel industry and their politicians learned much from the tobacco industry and they've followed this same strategy.   We have to always ask ourselves,  what motivates the deniers and doubters to go against overwhelming climate science evidence?   Money is almost always the motivator.

     

    The AIA has a moral responsibility to promote all actions that reduce the effects of Climate Change.

     

    -Russ Ver Ploeg, AIA,  LEED AP

    Ver Ploeg Architecture

    Des Moines, IA






  • 14.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-30-2019 12:20 PM
    It's so appropriate to name responsibility for rolling back methane limitations or lying about skipping the G7 meeting on climate change.

    We are obligated to advocate appropriate actions by the Code of Ethics - we need to call out those who have no ethics.

    Ralph Bennett FAIA, LEED AP





  • 15.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-30-2019 12:21 PM

    Activist / Architect or Architect / Activist ?

     

    As a member of a group of architects whose names are forever inscribed in some

    U.S. Secret Service data base of known troublemakers, our fate for having picketed

    The White House demanding that the 2011 Solar Decathlon not be evicted from the National

    Mall (Extant only by the efforts of architect/activists of the 1890's-1900 era in pushing

    The McMillan Commission to remove the railroad yards, etc from the ruins of the L'Enfant

    design), I think all of us are environmental activists by our choice of profession.

     

    Surely not one of the 115,000 of us in the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">USA</st1:country-region></st1:place> seeks to degrade the human condition

    by designing habitations or workplaces that drip on, freeze or melt , or otherwise endanger

    our clients. As flawed mortals, we have all at times fallen from our ideals.

     

    Just by trying to make architecture that offers Commodity, Firmness, and Delight, we are all

    surely trying to fight the effects of Global Warming.

     

    What divides us would seem to be the degree of passion we attach to the current debate, and

    whether the streets are as valid a place as the drafting room to join the battle.

     

    As someone who has been active since 1962 in both places (marched with Dr. King on

    <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Washington</st1:place></st1:state> 56 years ago), I salute all my brothers and sisters who toil in our misunderstood

    and ill-compensated profession. Like most of you, I would make the same choice of profession

    again in a heartbeat, as daily we work for the advancement of our and other species on Planet

    Earth.

     

    And with us, blather doesn't work – many times from our efforts real, sustainable, handsome,

    buildings must rise to affordably protect and inspire our larger family.

     

    John F. Corkill, Jr., AIA






  • 16.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 09-03-2019 05:14 PM

    My colleagues are fluent in discussing the virtues of good design and the value we – who are trained in architectural design – have to offer in society.

    We can focus on buildings – the area of the vast inventory of the man-made world "assigned" to us – and we can also focus on the bigger picture.

    That is the picture of the totality of the man-made-in-the-world.  The climate crisis and global warming present challenges that are unprecedented and hugely complex.  We are used to thinking about complexity and have the ability to distill, seek and define patters, provide order, and solve problems creatively.

     

    With regard to the built environment an immediate area that the profession can look at is apparently simple, but potentially important to those of us in areas vulnerable to flooding and eventual inundation.  Here in South Florida the local jurisdictions require, when applying for building permits, an updated survey of property, a 'flood elevation certificate,' and a certified soils report - usually test boring analysis and recommendations for foundation system design.  Geotechnical engineers can perform percolation tests as well as determine the location of the water table (within a range).  This additional information: elevation of the water table (average) and the salinity of the underground water, would be an important determinant of: 1) longevity of existing foundation systems (depending on their ability to resist corrosion), and 2) parameters for design of new foundation systems for saline groundwater environments.

     

     

    Anthony Abbate AIA NCARB

    Associate Provost for Broward Campuses

    Professor and Director School of Architecture

     

    Florida Atlantic University

    Higher Education Complex

    111 East Las Olas Boulevard

    Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301

     

    954.762.5295 office

    954.328.0973 mobile

     

    aabbate@fau.edu

     

    www.fau.edu/broward

    www.fau.edu/arch

     

     






  • 17.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-27-2019 09:00 AM
    It still puzzles me that this has been co-opted as a political issue. Flooding, drought, fire, and damage from severe storms are NOT political issues, but they ARE issues of human health, safety and welfare. As architects, this is absolutely our realm, and we must take a leadership role. It's when we DON'T provide a safe and sustainable environment that other forces (government) must step in. We must be the ones who are educated enough about the risks that we can be the expert advisors to our clients...that's what they hire us for. The AIA's Framework for Design Excellence (aka Top Ten Toolkit) is a tool all architects can use to address these issues at the level appropriate for their area, their project, and their clients.
    https://www.aia.org/resources/6077668-the-cote-top-ten-toolkit

    ------------------------------
    Betsy del Monte, FAIA, LEED BD+C
    Cameron MacAllister Group/ SMU
    Dallas, TX
    ------------------------------



  • 18.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-29-2019 01:00 PM
    I am among those who believe the overwhelming scientific evidence that human activity, particularly the burning of fossil fuels, is altering the climate of our planet.  However, even for the doubters of climate science, there are strong reasons to develop net zero energy buildings.

    1. Cost savings for heating and cooling over the lifetime of the building.
    2
    . Conservation of diminishing resources.
    3. Increased national security due to reduced reliance on imported fuel from other countries.
    4. Improvement of air quality through elimination of airborne particulates and gases resulting from combustion of fossil fuels.
    5
    . Reduced acidification of oceans resulting from excess carbon dioxide in the air.
    6. Reduced destruction of natural habitats required for fuel resource extraction.  
    7. What am I forgetting?

    Let's move forward with designing the most energy-efficient buildings we can.  No matter what your perception of the universe is, these efforts can only help make a better world for future generations.

    ------------------------------
    Margaretha Eckhardt AIA, CSI, CCS, LEED AP
    Payette Associates, Inc.
    Boston MA
    ------------------------------



  • 19.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-30-2019 12:19 PM
    Recent articles in the New York Times documenting fires in the Amazon Basin, Indonesia and Siberia are harrowing accounts of what is happening to our planet. The fires in the Amazon and Indonesia are set by human beings to create more agricultural land. The burning of peat in Siberia is a consequence of everything else that civilization is doing.

    ------------------------------
    Andrew Vernooy AIA
    Professor
    Montana State University School of Architecture
    Bozeman MT
    DirectorDirectorDirectorDirectorDirectorDirectorDirectorDirector
    ------------------------------



  • 20.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 08-29-2019 12:59 PM
    This provides some weather data which will be helpful in understanding the Post story.
    https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/temp-and-precip/national-temperature-index/time-series?datasets%5B%5D=uscrn&parameter=anom-tavg&time_scale=p12&begyear=2004&endyear=2017&month=12

    ------------------------------
    Victor Wolbrink AIA
    Principal
    POTOSI WI
    ------------------------------



  • 21.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 09-03-2019 05:11 PM
    One of the many reasons i love our profession is that architects do, for the most part, embrace facts.  Our built work is governed by the laws of physics first last and always, no matter what other codes or rules or design apply.  Codes and design goals may not require us to design resilient, climate adaptive buildings, but if we don't - nature always bats last.

    A few years ago Joe Romm said something that stuck with me - "In the next 25 years, climate change will impact all our lives more than the internet did in the last 25.'  Personally i believe this.

    ------------------------------
    Gail Napell AIA
    San Rafael, CA
    ------------------------------



  • 22.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 09-03-2019 05:10 PM
    If we set aside the political discourse for a moment, there are immediate, actionable strategies we can insert in our designs today that can help both the health of the planet and the health of our clients and neighbors. 

    I think we can all agree that the first strategy in combating climate change from an architectural perspective should always be energy efficiency (including embodied energy).  Lots of ways to achieve this and not enough time in this thread to go through all the options.  (Check out Betsy del Monte's COTE Top 10 link in this thread if you haven't already.)

    After efficiency there are a number of directions to go.  One specific path that is worth pursuing is to eliminate natural gas use in all our future projects.  When looking at the full life cycle of natural gas related to GHG emissions, it's not the savior or 'bridge' fuel source to renewables that has been presented over the years.  The life cycle GHG emissions of natural gas quickly approach those of coal and oil when we take a closer look at leakage rates and methane losses.  More detail and supporting reference studies can be found here: Environmental Impacts of Natural Gas  including information associated with air pollution, land use, ecosystem degradation, and water use and pollution.  Per the IEA Global Energy & CO2 Status Report, in 2018, "The US was the single largest driver of higher [natural gas] demand" so, it's something we in the building industry can/should address today.  

    To get to the point, the actionable item is to tell your design engineers to eliminate natural gas use on your projects.  It can be done and is being done as a means to significantly reduce our collective GHG emissions and address health issues associated with the life cycle of natural gas.  You'll probably get resistance and some of excuses, especially if it's a hospital or involves a central plant, but after a little persuasion, some cost analysis, and research it's amazing how most designers come around and find a solution.    

    Optimistically, 
    Brian Alessi

    ------------------------------
    Brian Alessi, AIA
    Director - Energy & Sustainability
    tk1sc
    Los Angeles, CA
    ------------------------------



  • 23.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 09-04-2019 09:45 AM
    And I would like to add that a few months ago (in the middle of CDs) on a multi-family housing project in our office, I switched from all gas ranges in every unit to all electric and discovered that my Electrical Engineer had already designed the load/connections for all-electric ranges due to the State of California's Title 24 Energy Code (regardless of the gas going to the ranges)........so eliminating the gas line actually saved $$ on the construction side and we did not incur any new design fees on the electric-load side.  I had been unaware of this and wanted to pass it along to those working under California's Title 24.

    ------------------------------
    Angela Brooks FAIA, LEED AP
    Principal
    Brooks + Scarpa Architects Inc.
    Hawthorne CA
    ------------------------------



  • 24.  RE: climate change is here. even if Fed-level politicians are not responding, we can.

    Posted 09-11-2019 10:46 AM
    In California (T24) and other locations (ASHRAE), modeled compliance is based on heating, cooling, domestic hot water, lighting (for mid and high rise residential) and plug loads (which are assigned and cannot be manipulated).  From an energy modeling standpoint, both Title 24 and ASHRAAE are silent on energy associated with cooking.   Switching from gas to electric is always a good move, and for multi-family there is big savings in high-pressure steel gas lines.  While the 2019 California Energy Code is focused on ZNE (electricity, excluding hot water heating), and has removed a penalty for heating hot water using electricity (with an eye on heat pump water heaters), the 2022 Code will likely begin to penalize for using natural gas.

    As an architect who does energy compliance, I am personally challenged trying to get multi-family projects the AIA-2030 targets (using the AIA-DDx) using natural gas fired central boilers, even with a robust solar thermal system.  The future, as seen by the State of California, is to electrify everything with heavy reliance on heat pump water heaters (and heat pump boilers sometime soon).  Ditching natural gas for cooking is a no-brainer at this point, but no benefit for T24.  Anyone working with higher end projects would be well served to specify induction cooktops.  Those of us working in affordable multi-family are still served best by specifying electric cooktops and ranges.

    ------------------------------
    Timothy Kohut AIA
    Director of Sustainable Design
    National Community Renaissance of California
    Rancho Cucamonga CA
    ------------------------------