Feature

Earth Day and IAQ
Senator Gaylord Nelson first proposed Earth Day in 1970 as a nationwide environmental event that would place the environment onto the United States public agenda. It has continued as a global event that promotes environmental stewardship and year round progressive action worldwide. With 20 million people participating in the first years' events and 1 billion people expected to participate in 2008, we can all agree that environmental awareness has momentum.

GREENGUARD Environmental Institute (GEI) continues its mission to promote public health awareness through healthy indoor environments. Here are some tips to help you achieve high quality indoor air for all building occupants - office workers, consumers, children, elderly and the infirmed:

1. Make sure you use low emitting, non-toxic products in construction, furnishing, and activities. These can be found in the product guide at www.greenguard.org.
2. Ensure that all new construction and renovated rooms meet the clearance levels of 500 micrograms/m³ TVOC and 50 ppb formaldehyde.
3. Change air filters on a regular schedule and use a minimum of MERV-13.
4. Choose and use low emitting, energy efficient computers, printers, and copiers meeting EPEAT™ and GREENGUARD requirements.
5. Fix all water leaks promptly and remove any materials contaminated with mold growth.
6. Keep relative humidity less than 60% indoors.
7. Use air cleaners emitting less than 50 ppb ozone.
   

GREENGUARD Sponsors Robotics Team
GREENGUARD Environmental Institute (GEI), the nation's largest certifier of chemical emissions from building products and furnishings, was a primary sponsor of Atlanta's Westminster Schools Robotics team, The WiredCats. First formed in 2007 to compete in the 2008 FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC), the team adopted the 'Go Green' motto and their GreenBot won them entrance into the 2008 FIRST Championships held at the Georgia World Congress Center, April 17 - 19, 2008.

The 2008 FIRST Championship featured 343 high school aged teams coming from as far away as Brazil and Israel. Each of the teams had to go through one of 33 regional events to qualify for the prestigious event. With 1,125 teams and 28,000 students competing, a berth in the finals was not an easy task.

The WiredCats have taken the Recycle, Replace, and Reuse methodology with their team because it reflects their commitment to the environment and their desire to bring the 'green' message to the robotics community. GREENGUARD Environmental Institute supplied financial support and technical expertise to the team. The robot was also equipped with wallcovering, adhesives, and a vacuum cleaner, which were GREENGUARD Certified or shown to meet the GREENGUARD standards. You can visit the Wiredcats team site to learn more about them at www.wiredcats2415.com.

GREENGUARD makes Sustainability Award

The GREENGUARD Environmental Institute sponsored its first annual GREENGUARD Sustainability Award, which was part of Georgia Tech's Business Plan Competition. In its eighth year, the highly successful competition attracts student teams from throughout Georgia Tech and is organized by the College of Management and the Institute for Leadership and Entrepreneurship. The GREENGUARD award was established to recognize the student team whose business plan best incorporated sustainability principles in the process and/or final product. The 2008 winner, selected by a panel of judges, was Jat Biodiesel, a remarkable group of undergraduates who business concept utilized jatropha seeds as a source for sustainable fuel that is low cost and competitive with traditional petroleum. The GREENGUARD Award was presented by Dr. Marilyn Black, founder of GREENGUARD and Georgia Tech graduate, at the awards banquet in March 2008. For more information on the Business Plan Competition, contact bizplan@mgt.gatech.edu.

Industry Trends

Over the last month, GREENGUARD participated in several tradeshows and traveled to numerous customer locations to talk with product manufacturers, consumers and building professionals about the growing awareness of sustainability and the environment.

At the National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) annual meeting in Fort Lauderdale, GREENGUARD was impressed with the strong interest of wood flooring manufacturers to identify an appropriate breadth of measures of sustainability. This was so that they could communicate and ultimately differentiate their products with their customers. When one thinks of a product like wood floors, so many potential environmental issues come into play. While wood is a natural resource, it can also be rapidly renewable. It could avoid using synthetic chemicals, but be treated with solvent-based stains and finishes. The members are convinced that they have a story to tell, particularly about chemical emissions, indoor air quality and the environment.

In Atlanta, at the International Window Covering Association annual meeting, the tone was slightly different. The World Congress Center, where the event was organized, was struggling through some repairs due to the recent tornadoes that struck the area. While the environment was certainly a dominant theme, daylighting and thermal comfort tended to be the focus. Indoor air quality is not immediately associated with blinds and shutters. However, based on the size and composition of window treatments in general, they can have a significant impact on the air we breathe. GREENGUARD Environmental Institute met and spoke with a number of people at its booth in the exhibit area, explaining this relationship and pointing out the importance of choosing low-emitting products and materials.

So, it clearly is important to remind people about how the indoor air we breathe is directly related to all the products we use in the space.

GREENGUARD News

GREENGUARD Environmental Institute often serves as a resource for publications and media outlets, providing information on various topics that relate to product emissions and indoor air quality. The following represent recent articles/features.

Newsweek
How Green is Your Stuff?

The Green It Review
GREENGUARD Chemical Emissions Certification

Orange County Register
"Green Paint" - Environmentally paints that contain fewer harmful Chemicals

Cincinnati Enquirer
Not all Performance Fabrics Act Alike

Green Technology World
Report Shows How Green Technology Can Improve Indoor Air Quality

"Go Green, Live Rich"
David Bach's new book "Go Green, Live Rich" mentions GREENGUARD on pages 84-85

To read these and past articles, visit the Press Room/Articles under the "About GEI" tab of our website. Read More...

Upcoming Events

In the next few months, GREENGUARD will be participating in several events. For more information, please visit the Events tab listed under About GEI.

Sustainable Facility Care (Presentation)
The Newseum - Washington, D.C./April 30, 2008

AIA National Conference (Presentation)
Boston Exhibition and Convention Center - Boston, MA/May 15th - 17th, 2008

Neocon World's Trade Fair 2008 (Presentations and Exhibiting)
The Merchandise Mart - Chicago, IL/June 9th - 11th, 2008

For a snapshot of GEI's 2008 events, click on 2008 Calendar under the About GEI/Events tab. We will continue to update this information, and appreciate any feedback from you.

Continuing Education

GREENGUARD Environmental Institute (GEI) is proud to be a recognized USGBC Education Provider, and provides numerous Continuing Education Courses related to indoor air quality principles.

Healthy Indoor Air by Design
Credits: AIA (1LU), IDCEC (0.1 CEU), CSI (1-ECH), USGBC

Clearing the Air on IAQ: Making Sense of IAQ Standards and IEQ Requirements
Credits: AIA (1LU), IDCEC (0.1 CEU), CSI (1-ECH)

Building Blocks for Healthy Indoor Air
Credits: AIA (1LU), IDCEC (0.1CEU), USGBC

Design to Prevent the Damaging Effects of Mold
Credits: AIA (1LU), CSI (1-ECH)

GEI is taking their Health, Safety, and Human Welfare courses on the road to architecture and design firms, industry meetings, campuses, and manufacturer showrooms across the country. If your firm or group is interested in learning more about these courses, please send a request to education@greenguard.org.