Living Building Challenge

The Living Building Challenge is a philosophy, advocacy tool and certification program that promotes the most advanced measurement of sustainability in the built environment possible today. It can be applied to development at all scales, from buildings – both new construction and renovation, to infrastructure, landscapes and neighborhoods. Living Building Challenge comprises seven performance areas: site, water, energy, health, materials, equity and beauty. These are subdivided into a total of twenty Imperatives, each of which focuses on a specific sphere of influence:

NOTE: This chart does not include the Scale Jumping overlay allowed for some Imperatives. Scale Jumping allows multiple buildings or projects to operate in a cooperative state – sharing green infrastructure as appropriate and allowing for Living Building, Site or Community status to be achieved as elegantly and efficiently as possible.

Certification is based on actual, rather than modeled or anticipated, performance. Therefore, projects must be operational for at least twelve consecutive months prior to evaluation. To earn 'Living' status (full program certification), projects must meet all assigned Imperatives and have proven performance through at least twelve consecutive months of operation. To celebrate successes and to educate other efforts, project teams may earn Petal Recognition (partial program certification) by satisfying the requirements of a minimum of three categories, of which at least one must be water, energy or materials. The first Living Buildings^SM were certified in October 2010.

The Living Building Challenge was initially launched by the Cascadia Green Building Council (a chapter of both the US Green Building Council and Canada Green Building Council). The International Living Building Institute was created of and by Cascadia in May 2009 to oversee the Living Building Challenge and its auxiliary programs. In April 2011, the International Living Building Institute was renamed the International Living Future Institute (the Institute), and became the umbrella organization for both the Living Building Challenge and the Cascadia Green Building Council, along with The Natural Step USA and Ecotone Publishing.

There are more than a hundred project teams pursuing the Challenge, most of which have officially registered with the Institute. Select projects include:

International Living Future Institute

The International Living Future Institute is a non-governmental organization (NGO) committed to catalyzing a global transformation toward true sustainability. The Institute seeks partnerships with leaders in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors in pursuit of a future that is socially just, culturally rich and ecologically restorative.

The Institute’s core programs include the Living Building Challenge, Cascadia Green Building Council, The Natural Step Network USA and Ecotone Publishing. These programs move across scales, offering a global vision for lasting sustainability, partnering with local communities to create grounded and relevant solutions and reaching out to individuals to unleash people’s imagination and innovation.

External links

• Living Building Challenge website
• International Living Future Institute website
• PNNL Sustainable Building Rating Systems Summary
• ASHRAE Standard for the Design of High Performance, Green Buildings
• Comprehensive Assessment System for Building Environmental Efficiency
• Energy Star
• U.S. Green Building Council
• Green Globes assessment and rating system
• Building Research Establishment’s Environmental Assessment Method
• GBTool Overview
• The 2030 Challenge