What does it mean to be "green"?

Through my entire experience over ISP, I still find myself preoccupied with one question: What does it mean to be "green"?

I found countless websites, materials or resources that claimed to be environmentally friendly yet under close scrutiny were quite the opposite. Some environmental sites preached the need for everyone to live one certain way to have the smallest impact possible where as others approached environmentalism like an unattainable goal.

So, after weeding through all the different interpretations of what it means to be "green", I have come to associate the "green" movement in general with a holistic approach to health: mind, body and soul. Being "green" is about balancing all of your needs with those of others and not just other human beings but the place you live and all the living things that you interact with. I think of being "green" as a denunciation of the Greek idea that "Man is the measure of all things".

My biggest problem with things like LEED certification is the idea that you can put a sticker on something and call it "green" rather than approaching the building as a whole. Like the Frameworks for Healthier Neighborhoods package, I believe more in empowerment then the close scrutiny of inumberable rules. All the meticulous divsions and awarding of points seems rather trivial to me.

Being "green" is about balance and respect. I think of being "green" as a denunciation of the Greek idea that "Man is the measure of all things".

Any Excuse for a Party!

I seriously can not believe that today was my last day. This morning I came in and put the finishing touches on my spreadsheet, wrapped up some of the organizational work I was doing upstairs and then everyone suprised me with bagels and pastries and a present!

As a going away gift they gave me two incredible coffee-table books! It was so nice and thoughtful of them and they are such great books. Thanks so much!!

After the going away party I did a little more library maintenance before calling it a day.

I really can't even express how much I have learned these past three weeks.

Starting a New Buisiness

Today really brought out the challenges that face new and growing small buisinesses. I was still working on my spreadsheets but upstairs P and R had a meeting with a buisiness advisor of some sort to talk about the future of their sustainable material retail company now located in the basement and it was really a fascinating meeting to over hear.

The company is at a major cross-roads right now in terms of what service it will attempt to provide. Three architects started the company 4 years ago and it still hasn't met with much success. They aren't even breaking even with sales. Too often, clients will come in and it will because a consulting session rather than a sale. It has been really difficult to find a balance between profit and education on alternative materials. Now, they are discussing the idea of real-life retail store vs. online powerhouse. The company I think will end up making the distinct movement towards a shop with daily buisiness hours rather than an online resource but it was still cool to hear both sides of the equation.

I has been really intersting working with a company like this at such an unstable time because before I didn't really understand what is involved in becoming a successful retailer or what being a retailer even meant. Not only did I get a lot farther on my spreadsheets today but I learned a thing or two about buisiness.

Everything about Floors

Rubber, Cork, Bamboo, Rubber + Cork, Linoleum, Terrazzo, faux-Stone, Palm lumber and sustaibable harvested Hardwoods.

Those are all the basic flooring options that I've been researching today and all this week making the flooring section of my spread sheet by far the most complicated and far-reaching of them all. Both Tiles and Solid Surfaces I could condense to one-page but right now Flooring is 2 and a half pages and counting.

Strictly going by materials, I would have to say that cork is definitely my favorite thus far. I absolutely love the feel of cork underfoot and the material is suprisingly durable and resilient. On the downside of cork though, now that I think about it, my favorite warning to accompany a product warranty for cork warned against wearing stilletto heels on the cork floor because some of the impressions might not recover 100% after impact. It applied the same warning to placing furniture and such onto the cork. Every material has its pros and cons and despite its draw backs, cork is something I would love to have in my kitchen to take some stress off my feet while I am busy cooking.

Another surprising flooring option that I've actually warmed up to is linoleum. I know what you are thinking and I had the same initial reaction of disgust simply because linoleum just sounds tacky but the material has come a long way. Of everything that I have researched it is by far the most versatile and is suprisingly comfortable underfoot.

While at face value this work might seem a little boring it is suprisingly interesting to point out all the miniscule differences between the products. I pretty much decided on all the different brands that I'll include on my spreadsheet so now I starting to finalize everything. Tomorrow I think I'm going to focus specifically on the certifications of each product, most specifically LEED Credits so that potential clients can look at these spread sheets and immeadiately get a sense of the products specs.

Everything about Countertops

Today I shifted from tiles to solid surfaces which are pretty much just countertops.

Again, I noticed the same trend in terms of a great deal more sustainable infrastructure out West as opposed to here on the East coast. Washington state is an especially noticeable hot-spot for sustainable innovation. The brands Squak Mountain Stone, Richlite and Paperstone are all based out of Washington.

Of all the countertops and materials that I looked through today I would have to say that IceStone is still definitely my favorite of the bunch. In terms of color choice, sustainablility and ethical buisiness practices, IceStone beats out the competition hands down. Not only is IceStone 99.5% inorganic but uses 100% recycled glass, sustainably harvested Mother of Pearl chips and post-industrial recycled material to make up of the slabs of imitation stone. To top it off, the slabs are also manufactured in a day-lit factory right here on the East coast in Bronx, NY.

Everything about Recycled Glass

The title says it all. My spreadsheet on the different sustainable or "green" tiles available is in full swing. The three brands that I have highlighted are Sand Hill Tiles, Oceanside Glasstile, and Blazestone Tile from Bedrock Industries for recycled glass. All three recycled glasstile manufacturers are located on the West Coast which is a definite trend that I am starting to notice as I do more and more of this research.

Again, my day was mostly research broken up by errands which I am really starting to enjoy. I feel like I can really sink my teeth into these spreadsheets so I've been really careful about double checking my information.

I am still absolutely fascinated by all of the options available to people. I know if I were designing my house I would have no idea what to pick let alone how to stay within my budget once I eventually did start shopping around.

Week 2 Summary: Progress?

This has been an altogether exhausting week. Working so many hours has just been unreal so I already requested off for pretty much all of next week except for Monday night at the restaurant so with the end of this week I'm really looking forward to the next. Hopefully I'll have time to like, eat and sleep.

With everything at ISP I really feel like I'm making progress. It has been fascinating to really analyze all the different checks and balances required to deem something as "green" or not. It is such a broad label that in a lot of ways I feel like it has lost some of its meaning. So many products out there advertise to being "green" but if it has to travel half way around the world to get to you are you really making any progress?

I am perpetually shocked by the incredible number of descisions that homeowners who are remodeling or even starting from scratch have to make. Every detail counts and I mean that in ever sense of those words. It's incredible the amount of thought that has to be put into every aspect of a well designed house. Then, it becomes a matter of working with the actual construction team to make all of the nit picky design elements come true. Like, when it comes to replacing a floor, a lot of times some of the advertised "green" adhesives don't work very well or since it is an a-typical material, your average contracter won't even really know what to do with it. There is do much subtlety involved in design and making a building or room come together as it should. Until now, I never realized the true scope of all the choices that have to be made.