LEED CoreConcepts&Strategies_3rd edition - Page 008

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Imagine getting up on a warm spring morning and deciding it’s

the perfect day to ride your bike to work. Invigorated by your

morning ride and eager to start the day, you head into your

office. As you pass through a common area, you see a group of

coworkers deep in a collaborative work session. They’re seated

around a gorgeous oak table hand-crafted by local artisans and

made entirely of wood reclaimed from a tree that fell naturally in

a nearby forest.

Imagine getting to your desk and sitting down without flipping a light switch—the huge floor-to-ceiling windows nearby provide plenty of natural springtime light, and if it gets cloudy this afternoon, sensors in your work area will kick on overhead lighting to an appropriate level of brightness. Meanwhile, your personal control of the temperature in your work area allows you to stay warm even as your neighbor, who has a higher cold tolerance, works at a temperature that’s comfortable for him.

Imagine being surrounded by decorative elements that invoke nature and keep you connected to the natural world even while you’re inside. Imagine an herb garden in the office cafeteria and an educational display in the office lobby—constant reminders for you and your company’s visitors of just what it is that makes your building so special.

And imagine leaving the office to find that it has started raining. But not to worry, you just duck around the corner to one of the many bus stops nearby. You mount your bike to the rack on the front of the bus and climb aboard.

You settle into your seat at the end of a full day of work, feeling the positive effects of having spent your day in an environment filled with clean indoor air, with plenty of exposure to natural light. Your mind is clear and your energy and spirits high, knowing that your workday cost substantially less in energy and water use than it would have in a more traditional building.

This is what it feels like for me and my colleagues at the LEED Platinum U.S. Green Building Council headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is what it’s like for the thousands upon thousands of people worldwide who work in LEED-certified office space. And if you tweak the details, it is what it’s like for all the students nationwide who study in green schools and live in green dorms, and for the increasing number of families who live in green homes.

Now, imagine that designing, building, operating, marketing, supporting, or celebrating green buildings was at the heart of your everyday work. Imagine being a green building professional.

With the LEED Core Concepts Guide, you’re on your way to just such a career. We hope you enjoy the journey, and we look forward to the innovations you’ll bring as part of the green building community.

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