by Michael J. Crosbie, PhD, AIA

Summary: “Green Community” is a year-long exhibit, open through next October at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., that collects many strands in the fabric of sustainability and presents them comprehensively. The goal is to show the myriad efforts in conservation, planning, design, and architecture that contribute to the quality of life on a green community scale.

The exhibit is organized in two parts. The first includes six themes, each an element of defining what actually makes a community green. Each theme presents a number of green communities as examples. “Remediating, Repurposing, Reinvigorating” focuses on how old development sites, such as brownfields, can be reborn with new communities and a new lease on community life. Beyond land re-use, this part of the exhibit also looks at re-using old buildings for new purposes—one of the most sustainable ways to build for the future.

“Getting Around” considers the role of mass transit and density in green communities. The message here is that density is a key to making mass transit options viable (while individual transit systems—cars and highways—have led to a loss of density and the rise of sprawl).

“Resourcefulness” focuses on the role of green communities in preserving natural resources through a variety of conservation strategies. The most precious of these are water and land for agriculture. The exhibit shows ways in which communities are recycling water for potable and non-potable uses and community celebration, and how open land can be properly managed for more efficient farming.

“Land Conservation” presents some challenging notions of how to preserve open land. Traditionally in this country, proponents of low-density suburban development have argued that this has a minimal impact on land use. But high-density development in concentrated areas, even in rural regions, makes more sense, allowing large tracts to be preserved.

“Waste” considers the very definition of what’s trash and what’s not—and the economic impact on the community. Waste can generate income for residents, along with conserving natural resources and lessening the cost of disposal. The exhibit graphically shows the percentage of recycled waste achieved by various U.S. communities. The average percentage is 32. San Francisco has a recycled waste percentage of more than twice that.

“Close to Home” presents a number of green community initiatives in the Washington, D.C., region, such as green roofs and public transportation. Plans call for the exhibit to travel after it leaves the Building Museum in October, and this section will change to present green community ideas being pursued in the host city.

Earth, wind, fire, and water
The second part of the exhibit gives a new twist to the four elements: earth, wind, fire, and water. Each is considered for its potential in helping to make communities green. Solar power is explained in its harnessing of the sun’s energy. Employing the power of water is an efficient way to generate electricity and efforts to recycle gray and black water. Earth is a material resource for building, but it can also produce “edible” landscaping as a food source, along with xeriscaping using native plants that require less water and no fertilizer. Air is considered not only by how we can help keep it clean, but also through its use to generate power through wind. Profiled in the show is the community of Greensburg, Kansas, destroyed in May 2007 by a tornado. Today Greensburg is coming back with a sustainable rebuilding plan, dotted with windmills to generate energy. The point the exhibit makes is that the town is harnessing the very agent of its devastation to grow as a green community.

Why dedicate a year to a single exhibit? Architect Susan Piedmont-Palladino, curator of the show, says that the subject was important enough for the museum to want to reach various audiences—not only architects, planners, and environmentalists, but also tourists who flock to the city during the summer months and students who are there during the academic year. The show will close at the end of the Solar Decathlon, a biennial event that brings thousands of energy-conscious folks to Washington. The museum is also hosting a series of lectures and discussion groups in conjunction with “Green Community.”

But reaching beyond the converted is an important goal, says Piedmont-Palladino. Exhibit-goers outside of the design professions have reacted strongly to the show, saying that they didn’t realize the scale of so many green initiatives under way. They also believe that their own communities can benefit from the ideas explored in “Green Community.”