21 Projects Honored in Inaugural Lifecycle Building Challenge
EPA-sponsored program aims to spur building industry recycling
The winners of the first annual Lifecycle Building Challenge were announced at the West Coast Green Conference in San Francisco on September 20. A partnership between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Building Materials Reuse Association, West Coast Green, and the AIA, the contest was conceived to “jumpstart the building industry to help reuse more of the 100 million tons of building-related construction and demolition debris sent each year to landfills in the United States.” Green Building Blocks, the competition sponsor, provided cash awards to student winners, and Green Building in Alameda County, Calif. provided the awards.

President Stewart Honors International Design Winners at West Coast Green
AIA President RK Stewart, FAIA, FRAIC, awarded top prize to the winners for the Royal Institute of British Architects-USA international competition "Building A Sustainable World: Life in the Balance" at the West Coast Green Residential Building Conference and Expo on September 22. The competition drew 65 entries from 18 different countries, challenging participants to develop concepts for “healthy, vibrant communities designed to address climate change and reverse, rather than add to, environmental damage.” Each entry offered solutions to environmental and social challenges of enormous scope.

CITIZEN ARCHITECTS
AIA Members Run for Seats on the USGBC Board
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) announced its list of candidates for seats on the council’s 2008 board of directors on October 1, and a number of AIA members are running for office. The USGBC board has one open seat in each of four categories: at-large director, building product manufacturers, contractors/builders, and state and local government.