Systems Thinking in Green Building
Definition
Systems thinking treats a building as a changing network of materials, resources, energy, people, information, and relationships across space and time. A decision is evaluated by how it changes the wider system, not only by its local effect.
Sourced Facts
- The guide describes the built environment as a series of relationships in which each part can affect many other parts. PDF p. 26; guide p. 19
- It contrasts open systems that import resources and export waste with more closed systems that slow resource throughput and make outputs useful elsewhere. PDF p. 28; guide p. 21
- Feedback loops, information flows, delays, goals, and mindsets can all be leverage points for changing system behavior. PDF p. 29; guide p. 22 PDF p. 30; guide p. 23 PDF p. 31; guide p. 24 PDF p. 32; guide p. 25 PDF p. 33; guide p. 26 PDF p. 34; guide p. 27
Interpretation
Interpretation
For design and operations, define the system boundary explicitly, map inputs and outputs, identify delayed effects, and look for interventions that improve several outcomes at once. A local efficiency gain is not automatically a system improvement if it shifts harm to another life-cycle stage or building subsystem.
Evidence
- Primary pages: PDF p. 26; guide p. 19, PDF p. 27; guide p. 20, PDF p. 28; guide p. 21, PDF p. 29; guide p. 22, PDF p. 30; guide p. 23, PDF p. 31; guide p. 24, PDF p. 32; guide p. 25, PDF p. 33; guide p. 26, and PDF p. 34; guide p. 27
- Source note: LEED Core Concepts Guide - Third Edition > 2. Sustainable Thinking