Greenbuild

Enthusiasm was in full swing at Greenbuild’s Opening Keynote & Celebration at the Chase Field in Phoenix. The impressive baseball stadium and home of the Arizona Diamondbacks played host to the nearly 28,000 Greenbuild attendees who listened to a keynote speech from former Vice President and Nobel Laureate Al Gore before enjoying a closing concert from nine-time Grammy award winner Sheryl Crow. The event kicked off on the baseball field, where attendees snacked on ballpark-themed hors d’oeuvres such as barbecue chicken sliders, Cracker Jacks and mini root beer floats. The plenary began at 7 p.m. with a talk by David Kohler, President and COO of Kohler Co., who described Kohler’s initiatives in water-conservation and social responsibility.

President, CEO and Founding Chair of USGBC Rick Fedrizzi spoke next, describing the plethora of opportunity present in the green building sector despite the current economic climate. Fedrizzi also introduced heads of the World Green Building Council’s international partners, including representatives from: Australia, the U.K., South Africa, New Zealand, Germany, Italy, Taiwan, India, Canada, Mexico and Brazil. The speakers took turns addressing the crowd on parallel stages across the stadium, each describing the particular environmental challenges facing their respective countries and how green building is playing a role in tackling those challenges and strengthening their countries’ infrastructures.Former Vice President Gore charmed the crowd with playful stories concerning his current status as a “recovering politician.” Gore praised the USGBC and Greenbuild attendees for their dedication to the issue of climate change and emphasized the connection between many of the country’s current problems and its reliance on foreign oil. Political action, Gore said, was the last puzzle piece needed to make real strides in American’s ability to prevent and reverse climate change.

Sheryl Crow capped off the night with a highly charged performance that included many of her most popular hits. Crow, who is well known for her environmental activism and her promotion of new energy efficient technologies, brought down the house with her cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Rock & Roll," the final song of her encore.

Greenbuild didn’t come to Arizona by accident. A strong USGBC chapter, the Valley’s new light rail system, Phoenix’s LEED Silver convention center addition and USGBC’s recognition of Arizona’s growing commitment to sustainability all factored into this decision.

Once we knew it was a go, the AZ chapter established a 22-member Host Committee and 10 subcommittees comprising over 100 professionals. In addition to soliciting, judging and recommending Greenbuild’s prestigious tour venues, outdoor activities and off-site education sessions, we focused our energy on leveraging Greenbuild for the benefit of Arizona. Four objectives emerged – increasing Arizonans' Greenbuild awareness and attendance, showcasing Arizona during Greenbuild, building the chapter’s capacity to educate and advocate, and advancing green jobs in Arizona. In January, Countdown to Greenbuild was launched on online, in print, in person and on PDAs! Ten months flew by and now we’re only one week away!

To me, when Greenbuild comes to you, it represents an unprecedented opportunity to expand your community’s understanding about green building. We’ve worked non-stop to get as many Arizonans as possible into Greenbuild to experience the depth and breadth of the green building movement. But because not everyone can attend Greenbuild we also embraced this year’s “Main Street Green” theme and partnered with cities, museums, community organizations and even the Grand Canyon folks to create lots of opportunities to bring Greenbuild attendees and the public together to celebrate sustainability, learn and have fun. Check it out @ www.usgbcaz.org and stop by to see us at our booth!

- Beth Vershure, Executive Director of the Greenbuild ’09 Arizona Host Committee

The METRO light rail team is looking forward to serving you upon your arrival to the Valley of the Sun for the Greenbuild International Conference and Expo. Light rail is a convenient shuttle trip from the airport to many hotels, the Phoenix Convention Center – your conference host – and other regional attractions found conveniently along the 20-mile METRO line.




Key station locations to be looking for are the:

• 3rd Street stations at Washington and Jefferson which give you the most convenient access to the Phoenix Convention Center and other downtown Phoenix amenities.
• 3rd Street/Mill Avenue station drops you off in the heart of downtown Tempe which offers unique dining and shopping options as well as within walking distance to Tempe Town Lake.
• Encanto, McDowell and Roosevelt stations along Central Avenue offer distinctive arts and cultural opportunities including the Heard Museum, Phoenix Art Museum and the Irish and Japanese cultural centers respectively.

For more on where to visit or how to use light rail, visit our homepage at www.metrolightrail.org to download the METRO Ride Guide or the new Arts and Culture Ride Guide.

METRO runs from 4 a.m. – midnight Sunday through Thursday; we stay open later on Friday and Saturday nights until past 2 a.m. Our peak frequency is every 10 minutes during weekdays; every 15 minutes on Saturdays; on Sundays, we operate using a 20-minute schedule. Believe it or not, our peak period is actually all day, meaning between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m. on weekdays, you can catch a train from any station every 10 minutes. And the ride only costs you a $1.75 for a single ride or $3.50 for an all-day pass.

There are various types of fare media that can be purchased at any time from our fare vending machines located at each station. For conference-goers staying multiple days, a time-saving measure would be to purchase one 3- or 7-day pass, versus several all-day passes, for $10.50 or $17.50. The machines act much like ATMs accepting cash, credit, debit and your change.

METRO serves more than 40,000 riders per weekday – 50 percent greater than the original weekday projection set for this system. We are extremely pleased with our ridership and are eager to serve as your primary mode of transportation during the Greenbuild conference.

If you have any questions that can’t be answered by our online information at metrolightrail.org, please feel free to call our talented customer service team at 602-253-5000.

Look forward to seeing you on board soon,
Rick Simonetta
METRO light rail CEO

What are your plans for the week of Nov. 9?

Whether you’ll be heading to Phoenix for Greenbuild 2009 or following the action from hundreds of miles away, we invite you to join us in celebrating a very special week!

Arizona Gov. Janice K. Brewer has declared Nov. 9-13 USGBC and Greenbuild International Week. We congratulate the governor for recognizing the importance of a more sustainable built environment, and we’re looking forward to celebrating the progress of global green building in Arizona next week during Greenbuild.

Click here to read Gov. Brewer’s proclamation in full. With the global uptake of the LEED program, the cost-effectiveness of building green, and the many benefits of green building to environmental, economic and social sustainability, there is plenty to celebrate. If you’re not heading to Greenbuild, there are plenty of ways you can join us in celebrating this week: tour a LEED certified building in your area, watch selected Greenbuild sessions live at GreenbuildExpo.org, or register for a USGBC course or workshop.

We hope you join us in observing this exciting week!

It’s a great time to be a college student in Arizona.

That’s because the U.S. Green Building Council has invited the students, faculty, and staff of Arizona’s colleges and universities to attend the Opening Keynote & Celebration of Greenbuild – for the reduced price of $10.

This unforgettable event will take place on Wednesday, Nov. 11, at Chase Field, and will feature a keynote speech by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, as well as a performance by Grammy Award winner Sheryl Crow. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m.

Making Greenbuild affordable for Arizona’s college community is crucial to USGBC’s mission. Not only does it allow Arizona’s hubs of higher education to be inspired by green building, but it also directly benefits their efforts at campus sustainability. All ticket proceeds will go to USGBC’s Green Campus Campaign, which increases accessibility to LEED for campus development, and supports student leadership and advocacy efforts.

Already, Arizona’s colleges and universities have taken an incredible initiative in building green and creating sustainable campuses. All of the following schools have at least one LEED-certified building on campus:

• Arizona State University
• Chandler-Gilbert Community College
• Mesa Community College
• Northern Arizona University
• Pima Community College
• University of Arizona
• Yavapai College

We are proud to recognize Arizona’s community of higher education as a leading force in building green, and elated to offer students, faculty, and staff the opportunity to attend Greenbuild’s premiere event at a reduced ticket price.

How to register: Every student, faculty, and staff member of all Arizona colleges is eligible for the reduced ticket price. Choose the $10 option for the “Opening Keynote & Celebration” in the Auxiliary Events section of the registration form. Tickets will be available for pick-up at the Phoenix Convention Center starting Monday, Nov. 9, at 8 a.m. Please bring your school ID when picking up tickets.

Get inspired without breaking the bank. See you at Greenbuild!

As thousands of professionals from the building industry file into the Phoenix Convention Center this coming November, attendees will not only be treated to opportunities to learn and share ideas, but might even pick up a few job leads along the way. This year’s show will feature the first-ever Green Building Job Fair on Tuesday, Nov. 10, from 1 to 5 p.m. The event is a free-of-charge gathering aimed at fostering career connections between job-seekers, recruiting companies, and professionals in the field of green building. For more information, please visit the Green Building Job Fair page.

For those Greenbuild attendees unable to make the fair, the jobs Resource Center, a hub for green building job-seekers and recruiters, will be open Wednesday through Friday. This comfortable space will provide a place to post resumes, network, and hold informational interviews.

Aside from these career-building resources, USGBC and Booz Allen Hamilton will also be releasing a new study at Greenbuild detailing the role of green building and LEED in jobs creation, the gross domestic product, and the recovery of our economy. Once the study is released, stay tuned to usgbc.org, greenbuildexpo.org, Twitter, and this blog to learn more!

From landmark statistics to career connections, Greenbuild and green jobs make a winning pair.