News and Notes

All-expense paid trips to the 2012 Greenbuild Conference and Expo will be awarded to students, faculty, staff and other stakeholders within the higher education sector. The Center for Green Schools and USGBC distribute scholarships to promote diversity and social equity within the green building industry and the green schools movement.

Benefits for 2012 scholarship awardees include:

• All-expense paid trip to Greenbuild 2012 in San Francisco from Nov. 13-16
• Meet and connect with high-level professionals in the green building industry
• Network with other college and university representatives
• Participate in special on-site programming at Greenbuild that will include complimentary breakfasts, speaker presentations and an honorary dinner
• Receive training and support from USGBC staff and other green building professionals
• Free access to LEED 101 and LEED 201 online courses
• Earn continuing education hours to satisfy GBCI’s LEED professional credential maintenance requirements
• Play an integral role in advancing social equity within the green schools movement

Students interested in Greenbuild scholarships should also consider applying for mentorship opportunities with USGBC Board members. Board members support students in pursuing studies and careers in fields related to sustainability by offering professional advice, networking opportunities and career building experiences.

Apply now for this great experience. The deadline to apply is August 10, 2012.

Sheet Metal Workers’ Local 36 held their ribbon cutting and dedication for their new headquarters and apprenticeship training program last Friday, April 27. The building is seeking LEED Platinum certification. The energy efficient, reused building features solar thermal and solar photovoltaic as well as a green roof, rain water collection and 18 geothermal wells. Additionally, the building serves as a learning lab for Local 36′s apprentices, where they can learn new and old green building strategies and technologies.

Dan Andrews, coordinator of Sheet Metal Workers’ Local 36 apprenticeship training program and USGBC-Missouri Gateway Chapter member, was featured both in a Post-Dispatch article on Friday, April 27 and in a Channel 5 news interview. Also featured in the Channel 5 interview was Crossroads College Prep School, a LEED Platinum building.

Congratulations to Staples Promotional Products in Overland, MO who received their LEED Platinum Plaque last Thursday, April 26! The Staples’ office is certified under the LEED for Commercial Interiors Rating System and is the 5th Platinum certification in the St. Louis area.

In the photo above, Bill Gossman, VP of Merchandising, Procurement and Logistics at Staples Promotional Products accepts their LEED Platinum Plaque from Emily Andrews, USGBC-Missouri Gateway Executive Director and Phil Hulse, Green Street Properties. The Page Business Center, where Staples is located, originally housed the Dorris Motor Car Company. The renovated building achieved LEED certification several years ago using the Core & Shell Rating System. Landis + Gyr, Staple’s neighbor in the building, achieved Gold certification under LEED for Commercial Interiors.

Recently, the St. Louis Cardinals added solar panels to Busch Stadium to further their ongoing commitment to green the game of baseball. The Cardinals partnered with Microgrid Energy, the Electrical Connection and Sachs Electric on the solar installation, which will produce about 32,000 kilowatt hours of solar energy per year.

Rick Hunter of Microgrid Energy and Jim Curran of St. Louis Electrical Connection – both USGBC-Missouri Gateway Chapter members – are quoted in an article about the new solar panels in the Creve Coeur Patch.

The two solar arrays at Busch Stadium are located on the roof of the ticket building on Clark Street and on a canopy in the left centerfield bleachers at the Ford Family Plaza. Learn more about the installation here.

The Cardinals celebrated the new solar panels with Solar Day at Busch Stadium on Sunday, April 29.

The USGBC-Missouri Gateway Chapter is proud to celebrate and recognize the individuals, groups and organizations actively transforming the built environment while sharing their knowledge of green building and sustainable practices. Congratulations to another amazing class of Growing Green Awardees who were honored at the 4th Annual Growing Green Awards Celebration on March 29. Check out photos from the evening here.

Congratulations on 2012 Growing Green Awardees:

• Emerging Leader: Citi
• Education: Russell Barton – Parkway North High School
• Restoration: Cannon Design
• Innovation: AEP River Operations
• Operational Excellence: Tarlton
• Community Champion: Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis

See all the nominees and learn more about each winner in this presentation (PDF)!

From left to right: Russell Barton, Parkway North High School; Carl Karlen, Cannon Design; Randy Weller, Citi; Joe Brantley, AEP River Operations; Dirk Elsperman, Tarlton Corporation; Keith Jones & Tim Dolan, Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis. Photo courtesy of Christina Bollinger.

In this one-day course taught by Dan Chiras, Ph.D., author of Green Home Improvement and numerous other books on home energy and energy efficiency, participants will learn many ways they can slash their or a client’s home energy consumption, reducing energy bills and improving comfort of their homes. Students will view numerous energy-saving measures implemented at The Evergreen Institute. Students will develop a ten-point plan to implement at home with the goal of cutting energy bills by 25 to 50%.

Topics include:
• How and where energy is used in homes
• How to identify energy waste in homes (home energy audits)
• Areas where the most significant savings can be made for the least cost
• Economic and environmental benefits of energy conservation and energy efficiency
• Key strategies for slashing energy consumption
• Hiring a professional home energy auditor and energy retrofitter
• Financial incentives for efficiency measures.

Who Should Attend?

• Individuals interested in entering the home energy efficiency field
• Energy professionals interested in furthering their knowledge of home energy efficiency
• Homeowners interested in cutting their energy use, saving money, and reducing their ecological footprint
• Builders who want to increase their knowledge of residential energy efficiency
• Architects interested in increasing their knowledge of home energy efficiency
• Students of architecture and environmental studies interested in learning more about energy efficiency
• Educators wishing to learn more about energy efficiency
• Utility company employee who want to learn more about energy efficiency
• Building department officials, real estate agents, bankers, and insurance agents interested in learning more about home energy efficiency
• Green building consultants who want to broaden their knowledge

Instructor: Dan Chiras, Ph.D.

Dates: April 14, 2012 at Gexpro in Fenton, St. Louis, Missouri. They are located at 1620 Headland Drive.

Time: 9 am to 5:00 pm

Cost: Workshop free; however, attendees are required to purchase the book Green Home Improvement by Dan Chiras for $40

To Register: Click Here

Materials Required:
Notepad and Writing Instruments
Lunch and drinks
Calculator

Prerequisites:
None

Local Accommodations: click here

Directions: click here

Mark your calendar for the third annual Green Ball, a Celebration of all things GREEN in St. Louis! Sponsored by the Moonrise Hotel, the Green Ball benefits the EarthWays Center of the Missouri Botanical Garden.

- Groove to live music
- Dress in your best green digs for the green fashion contest
- Sip creative cocktails and local beer and wine…open bar
- Enjoy cuisine featuring locally sourced delicacies
- Complimentary valet parking for carpools of 4 or more
- Creative “green” attire is encouraged

 WHEN: Friday, April 27th, 7:00 – 11:00 pm

 WHERE: The Moonrise Hotel, 6177 Delmar in The Loop

 Fee: $60/person

Purchase tickets at www.moonrisehotel.com/greenball

 Click here for more information.

The Fundamental of Lighting Course is an introductory course hosted by the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America – St. Louis Section covering the basic and most important principles of lighting. Over the two days, the following different topics will be taught:

The new Fundamentals of Lighting Course is designed as the entry level course for those who have little lighting knowledge. The set of 7 instructional lessons is ideal for those who have very basic awareness of lighting and for those who are interested in a refresher course.

WHEN
Friday, April 20 and Saturday, April 21, 2012
The course will begin promptly at 8 AM each day and a lunch break will be included.

WHERE
William Tao & Associates
7955 Manchester Rd #125
St. Louis, Missouri 63143
Web site: www.wmtao.com

FEE & MATERIALS
A student manual and ready-reference will be provided to each student as part of the course fee, which is $275 for IES members, $325 for non-members and $175 for students.  There is a volume discount for company’s who enroll two or more people.  The charge per person is $295. There is a $20 late fee registration for each set of books that must be ordered after April 9^nd 2012.

Please deliver all payments (via U.S. mail) me at the address below and registration forms (via mail, fax or email) to me on/before April 6, 2012. Please make your check out to “IES STL.”

Please contact Claudia Gabay-Jones (314-743-3213/claudia.gabay-jones@frostelectric.com) with questions or for more information.

Daylighting: Designing for Natural Light In-store

DAYLIGHTING IS A COMPLEX COMBINATION of science and art. When executed well in a retail store, it can enhance the shopping experience, attract people to the store, and reduce energy costs. Daylighting design is all about balancing quantity of light, glare, and heat gain to create an aesthetically pleasing and comfortable space. Unfortunately, the complexity of daylighting design often prevents it from being addressed in retail environments.

Daylighting in a space can affect sales and even employee longevity and sick days. For example, if an area of the store is too bright or too hot from sunlight, shoppers will tend to avoid merchandise in those areas of the store.  And if the cashwrap is placed by the windows, store employees are forced to deal with visual and temperature stressors, which often result in headaches and other symptoms, reducing their ability to fight illness like colds and the flu, and ultimately resulting in missed workdays. . .

Click here to read the entire article.