Welcome to Rethink Energy and Design. As manager of the BetterBricks Commercial Design initiative at the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance, I’ve had the opportunity to work closely with some of the best minds in the world on sustainable high performance design, and many of those are right here in the Northwest.  As a result, BetterBricks is constantly in the flow of information related to energy efficiency in buildings. We also produce a lot of our own.  We’d like to share some of that. Rethink Energy and Design is here to provide building professionals a platform to connect, collaborate and otherwise participate in the dialogue around energy and our built environment.

An unfortunate truth is that buildings consume a huge amount of energy – 48% of all that we use in the United States. Commercial buildings account for 18%. We all know that’s too much. Our mantra: reduce energy use in new commercial buildings through an integrated design approach. We also encourage owners and design teams to set energy performance targets; use commissioning and training to ensure an effective hand-off to occupants; and measure actual performance and make adjustments as needed to get to the targets set at the beginning.

Core contributors to this Blog are BetterBricks staff members and leading building professionals whose work and vision are at the forefront of the changing landscape of sustainable architecture. We encourage you to be a part of the conversation: leave a comment, forward to a colleague, contact a contributor or volunteer to write an article or two.

Rethink Energy and Design is brought to you by BetterBricks, the commercial building initiative of the non-profit Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance, which is supported by local electric utilities across the Northwest. Through the BetterBricks initiative, NEEA advocates for changes to energy-related business practices in Northwest buildings. In this era of heightened appreciation for the impact climate change is having on our environment and our economy, energy efficiency is a crucial component in addressing these issues. On BetterBricks.com, you’ll find the information, tools, training and resources to help your building make a difference to your bottom line and the environment.