Act Green Blog

Green building, in other words, the construction of highly energy efficient office buildings, hospitals, schools, etc., may not be as popular in headlines as global warming or renewable energy, but it is no less important in the fight against climate change.

Thomas Friedman outlined the underlying problem in his new book, Hot, Flat, and Crowded. He discussed the importance of switching to compact fluorescent light bulbs, recycling, and being as energy efficient as possible. But then Friedman inserts a reality check, identifying several growing cities in Asia. Some small cities in China are booming with population growth, new construction, and with thousands of new cars on the road each week. Any of the progress made here at home with improved recycling and energy efficient light bulbs just went down the drain.

During the upcoming United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, there must be a strong emphasis on the benefits of training laborers to build buildings and infrastructure of new and growing cities to be highly energy efficient. Without new growth becoming energy efficient, or better yet, having a net of zero emissions, no significant progress will ever be made to fight global climate change