Environment and Energy conservation is an important topics to building owners and managers, yet the challenge of getting occupants to buy-in to your initiatives and actually change their behaviors remains difficult. Increasingly, individuals are seeing the messages in the media and making changes at home, yet they often have a difficult time linking it with…
DetailsEvery time I visit a washroom, it’s interesting to see whether they have paper towels or hand dryers. This is because I’m interested in the benefits and drawbacks of each as well as whether I’ll end up with dry hands when I’m done. Personal preferences aside, there is a lot of debate about this issue…
DetailsHave you seen media reports about Earth Hour? By far, the images used most often to illustrate participation (or non-participation) in Earth Hour are buildings. Here is an older image that illustrates the point, by Ryan McCarthy. Some of the recent media highlighted successful participation and others are talking about lagging participation. In the Toronto…
DetailsThis fall, the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC) released the Canadian version of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) LEED EBOM (Existing Building : Operations & Maintenance) certification rating system. LEED stands for Leadership In Energy and Environmental Design system and is the most prominent rating system in Canada for green buildings. It’s a pretty…
DetailsI was interviewed and featured in a National Post article (a national Canadian newspaper) on the 28th of August, the same day as World FM Day, sponsored by Global FM (an alliance of FM organizations) along with IFMA, BIFM, AFE, FMA, SAFMA, ABRAFAC, HFMS and FM Arena. The focus of the article was on the…
DetailsCourage seems to be the biggest hurdle to sustainability. That’s the conclusuion I got from an IFMA supper seminar on Sustainability by Bill Gregory, Director of Sustainable Initiatives from Milliken & Company. He presented a number of case studies. At first, they seemed impressive, with a number of initiatives and features that promoted sustainability, environmentally…
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