US Green Building Announces Recertification
The U.S. Green Building Council announced earlier this month that it will begin offering LEED recertification for all LEED-certified projects. To be eligible for certification, projects must submit 12 months of data demonstrating continued or improved performance.
“For the last 25 years, USGBC has sought to make the communities in which we live, work, learn and play, healthier, more resource efficient and less damaging to our ecosystems,” said Mahesh Ramanujam, president & CEO, USGBC.
“Recertification has always been part of the overall vision of LEED, and plays a key role in its continuing evolution. We are focusing on the areas where we can make the biggest impact to improve the standard of living globally—the performance of our buildings. That’s why we want all LEED projects to continue to demonstrate leadership and ensure they are actually providing real benefits to the people who inhabit them.”
Once recertified, the projects will meet standards for the newest version of the LEED rating system available, according to the council.
The recertification will be valid for three years.
The announcement comes just after the USGBC launched its “Living Standard” initiative, which aims to “collect and share stories that prove that anyone has the power to make a measurable impact on the quality of life of everyone around us.”
“The standards that USGBC aspires to raise are that of the quality of life itself, in populations in every corner of the planet,” added Ramanujam.
“The Living Standard campaign highlights how people can use LEED to help improve everything from the buildings we inhabit, to the air we breathe, to the way we feel, to how long we live. And LEED recertification plays a key role in meeting the intention and spirit behind this campaign. LEED recertification is an opportunity for us to see lasting change by improving existing buildings. And with so many existing buildings in the world, even an incremental improvement can make a tremendous impact.”
