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Email newsletter@greenguard.org |  | May 2009
Feature Article
GREENGUARD Announces Executive Director  GREENGUARD Environmental Institute (GEI) is happy to welcome back Henning Bloech to lead GEI as Executive Director. Henning helped start GEI and was its first employee in 2001. As Director of Communications, Henning was instrumental in establishing the GREENGUARD Indoor Air Quality Certification Program.
As GEI’s Executive Director, Henning is responsible for the strategy and positioning of GEI and its programs in the global market. He will ensure continuous, global growth for GEI, lead strategic development and identify sustainable initiatives that protect the environment and public health. Henning is leading the development, promotion, and advocacy of GREENGUARD Certification programs and capabilities worldwide. He will direct and manage strategy, marketing, communications, relationship outreach and training in support of public affairs and professional efforts for GEI. Additionally, he will represent the Institute at key strategic events with external stakeholder groups; and initiate participation in private and public programs establishing environmental policies, standards and codes. "I am excited to welcome Henning back to lead the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute," said Dr. Marilyn Black, GEI’s founder. "Henning’s background, experience and expansive knowledge of the green space make him the right choice to lead this rapidly growing organization. Under Henning’s leadership, we will continue to expand our certification programs and further strengthen the GREENGUARD brand as the world’s foremost indoor air quality certification program.” Most recently Henning was the Global Sustainability Director for the Performance Surfaces and Materials business of INVISTA. There he was responsible for developing and leading sustainability strategy and environmental programs for INVISTA brands and businesses including STAINMASTER® carpet, ANTRON® carpet fiber and CORDURA® fabrics. Henning is an accomplished sustainability expert and strategic marketing and branding professional with global experience across various industries including chemicals, textiles, carpet, building products, automotive and technology. He has extensive experience in leading corporate sustainability strategy and marketing programs, environmental supply chain management, environmental product certifications and life cycle assessment. He holds a Masters Degree from Georg August University in Göttingen, Germany. Back to top 
Press Room
GREENGUARD In the News The GREENGUARD Environmental Institute 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 are recent articles and features. Building Operating Management
Showing Off Sustainability at Arizona State San Francisco Chronicle
Allergic to down? Here is an alternative for mattresses, pillows MobileTex
Freudenburg Expands Partnership with BMW Upholstery Journal
Green Means Go National Floor Trends
Adhesive Makers Say: ‘We’re Sticking Around’
Charlotte Business Journal
CMUD lab sets new standard Earth 911
8 ways to not get tricked while going green
Green Lodging News
Home2 Suites by Hilton Unveils More Design, Sustainability Details The Wall Street Journal
As Eco-Seals Proliferate, So Do Doubts SAFbaby
Naturepedic’s Organic Cotton Mattress: Wool Free and Latex Free Building Design & Construction
New York design firm MKDA relocates, designs ‘Green’ office space for 50th anniversary PRWeb
Blinds Chalet Announces 7 Ways to Use Window Treatments to Lower Your Energy Costs To read these and past articles visit the Press Room/Articles under the 'About GEI' tab on the GEI website.Read More... Back to top | | | | |
Updates
GREENGUARD at MIT Sustainability Summit
The GREENGUARD Environmental Institute was the distinguished sponsor of MIT’s first Sustainability Summit in Cambridge, MA. This highly charged summit brought together key experts in industry, science and policy to share collective ideas and strategy for sustainability in built environments and global economies. GREENGUARD at Hospitality & Design Expo 2009
Dr. Marilyn Black, founder of the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute, and a leading expert on pollutant exposure and indoor air quality, will be part of a panel at this year’s Hospitality and Design Green Day, on Wednesday, May 13th at 1:45 p.m. The panel titled, “Says Who? Taking the green colored glasses off when it comes to third-party product certification” will discuss the differences between third-party certification programs and the role each program plays in the green environment. GREENGUARD Certified products will be well represented at the Hospitality and Design Expo (May 13-16th, Las Vegas, NV). Click here to see a complete list of GREENGUARD manufacturers and their booth numbers. GREENGUARD at NeoCon 2009
Dr. Black will also be presenting at NeoCon at 4:00 pm on Tuesday, June 16th on “Greening of Children’s Environments.” Learn how to reduce indoor environmental exposure for children, how to specify non-toxic construction, furnishing and cleaning materials and what is required in achieving acceptable indoor air quality for LEED for Schools certification. Click here for a complete list of manufacturers with GREENGUARD Certified products exhibiting at NeoCon (June 15-17th, Chicago, IL).
GREENGUARD Sponsors High School Robotics Team...The Green Machine
For the second year, GEI provided funds to help sponsor the Westminster High School, F.I.R.S.T. robotics Team, “The Green Machine”, so named to incorporate the School’s colors and the Team’s theme to emphasize and promote sustainability. F.I.R.S.T. (“For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology”) and the competition were founded by noted inventor, Dean Kamen, in 1992. This year more than 1,700 high school teams competed worldwide. The Westminster Team won two regional competitions and a birth at the international championship in April, where they finished in the top 32 teams in the world. Drive motors, batteries and other components of the 120 pound, Green Machine were tested for emissions and met the GREENGUARD Children and Schools criteria. Back to top | | | 
Josh Jacobs
Technical Information Manager LEED AP
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Ask the Expert
Why are Third-Party Certifications/Labels Important? In the current tsunami of green labels and environmental claims, there are many points of confusion. One of the biggest is who ‘certified’ the environmental claim. Third-party certifications tend to have the most accountability and transparency when it comes to development and management of their programs. Third-party certification programs are differentiated from first-party programs, where a product manufacturer makes a self declaration, or second-party programs that rely on industry specific standards. Currently, all three programs are common in the marketplace. However, there are a number of key independent third-party programs including Cradle to Cradle, EcoLogo, FSC, GREENGUARD, Green Seal and SMART that architects, designers, builder and users can count on.
Sustainability News
GREENGUARD Children & SchoolsSM Certified Insulation and LEED® The effective use of insulation to minimize energy costs and improve control of environmental comfort in high-performance buildings has led to insulation being highly utilized in many LEED® certified buildings. This heightens the need for assurance of low emitting, non-toxic insulation as an important step in protecting the health of all building occupants. With this in mind, the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute recently applied for a Credit Interpretation Request (CIR) regarding low-emitting insulation. On 3/11/09, the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) responded by approving the award of a credit for the use of GREENGUARD Children & Schools Certified insulation. The point will be awarded on different credits, depending on which LEED Rating System is utilized (the points apply to both existing LEED Rating Systems and LEED 2009). The points are as follows:
LEED for Commercial Interiors (where roof, floor, or wall insulation is installed outside of the LEED project scope, but the insulation meets GREENGUARD Children & Schools criteria): SS Credit 1, Option L: Other Quantifiable Environmental Performance
LEED for Commercial Interiors/New Construction/Core & Shell/School (where all roof, floor and wall insulation meets GREENGUARD Children & Schools criteria): Innovation in Design Credit Back to top | | | | |
Recently Certified Manufacturers
GREENGUARD Indoor Air Quality Certified®
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| | Artopex
Artopex Inc offers GREENGUARD Indoor Air Quality Certified® seating, metal storage products and laminate casegoods. Artopex has spent over 29 years building quality office furniture and solid relationships with clients all over North America. Their mission is to offer a complete line of office furniture that reflects perfectly – functionally and the aesthetically – the personality, spirit and image of their clients. www.artopex.com | | | 
| | Bush Industries
Bush Industries offers GREENGUARD Indoor Air Quality Certified® video bases and audio stands. Headquartered in Jamestown, NY, Bush Industries is a leading global manufacturer of ready-to-assemble (RTA) and OfficeReady™ furniture for home and office. www.bushindustries.com
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| | Mondo America Inc.
Mondo offers GREENGUARD Indoor Air Quality Certified® rubber flooring surfaces. Based in Laval, QC, Canada, Mondo is committed to producing surfaces that do not harm the environment at any stage of the manufacturing process—from the time raw materials are harvested to production to disposal following the product's useful life. www.mondousa.com | | | 
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VS America
VS America, Inc. offers GREENGUARD Indoor Air Quality Certified® lounge seating. With US Headquarters located in Charlotte, NC, VS America, Inc. focuses on educational and office furniture with ergonomic designs. www.vs-furniture.com
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American Gypsum Company
American Gypsum offers GREENGUARD Children & SchoolsSM Certified interior gypsum panel products. American Gypsum, based in Dallas, TX, is a subsidiary of Eagle Materials Inc. (NYSE: EXP) and is a full-line producer of gypsum board products, including M-Bloc® with Mold & Moisture Resistance panels.www.americangypsum.com
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| | Bradley Corporation
Bradley Corp offers GREENGUARD Children & SchoolsSM Certified surfacing materials: Terreon® solid surface, Terreon® recycled solid surface and EveroTM natural quartz. Based out of Menomonee Falls, WI, Bradley Corp is a leader in commercial handwashing fixtures and washroom products. www.bradleycorp.com | | | 
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Karndean International LLC
Karndean International LLC offers GREENGUARD Children & SchoolsSM Certified vinyl flooring. Headquartered out of Pittsburgh, PA, Karndean focuses on developing imaginative, contemporary designs that replicate all of the beauty of natural flooring materials for both residential and commercial environments, but with none of the practical drawbacks. www.karndean.com
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| | Liquid Nails®
Liquid Nails® offers GREENGUARD Children & SchoolsSM Certified adhesives. Based out of Strongsville, OH, Liquid Nails offers a broad range of adhesives, caulks, sealants and home repair products. www.liquidnails.com/index.jsp | | | | GREENGUARD Environmental Institute
2211 Newmarket Parkway, Ste 110
Marietta, GA 30067
800.427.9681 | |
Continuing Education
GEI is proud to be a recognized USGBC Education Provider, and provides numerous Continuing Education Courses related to indoor air quality principles, including the following:
Indoor Air Quality and Healing Environments (New!)
Credits: AIA (1LU), USGBC 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) Back to top | | |