Is the market at or near bottom? Good news is always welcome these days. While still deep in negative territory, builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes rose five points in April to the highest level since October 2008, according to the latest National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index [...]

Here’s an article I wrote for the October 2008 issue of Illuminate that talks about the C2C product certification program: In 2005, McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry (MBDC), founded by architect William McDonough and chemist Michael Braungart, launched the Cradle to Cradle (C2C) product certification program. The program resulted from manufacturer requests for a label that [...]

LEED 2009 (LEED 3.0) is coming April 27. The new version of the LEED rating system will incorporate all of the rating systems that address commercial buildings–New Construction, Commercial Interiors, Schools and Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance–into three LEED 2009 systems: * Green Building Design & Construction * Green Interior Design & Construction * Green [...]

Sky Factory Offers EcoSlim Luminous SkyCeilings, an edge-lit product that the company says provides authentic illusions of sky displayed in an ultra-thin, toxin-free system. The new version of the product (EcoSlim) offers a low-profile design that eliminates ceiling clearance limitations, paving the way for renovation and retrofit installations. The image tile is only a quarter-inch [...]