Day: November 23, 2014

In 2015, the GreenHome Institute (GHI) will also be continuing their work with affordable housing developers by replicating a very successful program delivered in partnership with their Chicago office and USGBC Illinois. The Wege Foundation will be supporting the GreenHome Institute’s Green Affordable Housing training with a $20,000 grant. This grant will help thirty to forty affordable housing developer stakeholders become LEED credentialed and trained on how and why to design, build, and rehab multi- and single-family buildings to the new LEED v4 standard, which is due to launch in October of 2016.

Terri McCarthy, Vice President of Programs at the Wege Foundation says, “We are very excited to continue working with the GreenHome Institute because we are very supportive of LEED in the affordable housing sector in Kent County. This program will help ensure healthier and more energy efficient affordable housing for residents who are most in need, through design and trades training, credentialing along with credible third party inspections and energy testing of these homes.”

The GreenHome Institute is thrilled to continue this partnership with a foundation who has helped them in the past to jump start the LEED for Homes provider-ship with a $36,000 grant. It is clear the foundation wants to see LEED v4 be just as successful as LEED 2008. Without support from the Wege Foundation, it would be near impossible to educate, train, and consult to help overcome the stringency of the new program.

Throughout this project, GHI will be sharing the lessons we learn with the USGBC IL chapter and their programming committee who in the past 3 years attracted nearly 70 participants with roughly 30% going on to become LEED for Homes accredited. Some have even gone forward to develop green- and LEED-registered affordable housing. We believe every USGBC chapter can create partnerships locally to expand Green Affordable Housing in their communities. We hope that what we learn during this process can help reduce the barriers to develop with LEED v4 for Homes.

We plan to start this project in early spring and complete training in the fall of 2015. Stay tuned as we progress!

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GreenHome Institute has partnered with the Blue House Energy to deliver to deliver convenient online education that earns you CEUs. This is training is ideal for contractors, remodelers, trades, architects, raters, and more.

Building Science Basics is the ‘fundamentals’ course. It covers heat, air, and moisture flows, indoor air quality, ventilation requirements and air sealing fundamentals. Once you’ve completed Building Science Basics, you can pick and choose from a series of modules that build on the basics. GHI members always get special pricing and great offers on all BHE training that relates to GreenStar program requirements.

Building Science Basics Course 

• House as a System
• Indoor Air Quality
• Ventilation and Combustion Spillage
• Bonus Module – Air Sealing Fundamentals

Continuing Education Units – CEs Available 

• BPI 4.5
• GBCI 10
• AIA (HSW) 10
• NARI Green 10
• State contractor / designer may be available*
• NATE – Pending

Register now!

Member – Registration
Non Member – Registration

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The Grand Rapids based non-profit, formerly the Green Home Institute, has changed their name to the GreenHome Institute.

When it comes to sustainability, health, and energy efficiency in our homes, there are so many different options, choices, and conflicting messages. It can be difficult to know what to do. The GreenHome Institute is taking the guess-work out of green through:

• online and in-person education and training
• free resources and tools
• third-party inspection services

Executive Director Brett Little believes consumers have plenty of options when considering sustainable housing. “We are a non-profit that exists to empower people who seek healthy and sustainable choices in the renovation and construction of the places we live. We are very excited to help people make sense of all the green home information, products, and programs out there.” GHI accomplishes their goal by providing timely, relevant, and accurate resources so that the public can compare options and rule out the possibility of ‘green washing.’

Through their LEED for Homes program and GreenStar Certification, the GreenHome Institute has verified over 5,000 new and existing residential buildings that are now certified healthy, durable, energy, and water efficient. Little believes these buildings improve the communities they are in: “A green home should be attainable to anyone, regardless of socio-economic class or race. It should be the norm in all construction and remodeling in the future.”

As director of the West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum, Dan Schoonmaker says that now is the time for the GreenHome Institute: “The market has evolved significantly over the past 14 years since their inception (as the Green Home Institute) but it’s the next 14 years that I am excited about! McGraw/Hill Construction predicted this year that 30% of the residential market will commit to green activity, equating to nearly a $100 billion industry by 2016. This new name and realigned programming better communicates to the market what the GreenHome Institute is trying to do and how they can help.”

When building and renovating, it can be tough to determine which products or processes lend to a greener project. The GreenHome Institute offers two free online education sessions for both LEED and GreenStar that homeowners, designers, and contractors can use to generate green scopes of work for subcontractors (such as insulators, heating and cooling, electricians, plumber, energy raters, and other professionals). These can be used to prompt design and bidding for light remodels in all areas of a home (including basements, kitchens, or additions) as well as “full gut-rehabs” or even new construction projects.

The GreenHome Institute serves anyone in the Midwest who lives in a residential building—single-family or multi-family—who seeks design, construction, renovation, or weatherization services. Our mission is to empower people to make healtheir and more sustianable choices in the places we live. 

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