Green Building as a Second Language

Presenter: Kathleen O'Brien, O'Brien and Company, Seattle, WA

Can you define sustainability without using the word sustainable? Integrated design without using the word holistic?  Clients’ eyes glaze over when we, who so passionately believe in green building, begin to speak in “green-ese.” Acronyms, unfamiliar terms, and complex explanations can turn them off. Yet, a truly sustainable process and result requires the full engagement of the building user. How can we effectively inform our clients without overwhelming them? 

In this workshop, Kathleen O’Brien, renowned leader in sustainable design and building consulting, education and research, will draw from her years of experience translating technical concepts into more understandable language. In particular, she’ll share what she learned from writing The Northwest Green Home Primer, which has been called “the essential, real world green home manual,” aimed at the lay public and just out this past March.  We will practice fun ways to present concepts as complex as the integrated design process, embodied energy, net zero energy, ecological footprint, without “dumming” them down. We’ll also practice sustainable building goal setting using methods that do not leave anyone behind, yet respects the gifts each person involved bring to the table.

 

Presenter Bio

Kathleen O'Brien
Kathleen O'Brien is founder and president of O'Brien & Company, a nationally recognized leader in sustainable design-build consulting, education, and research.  Ms. O’Brien has been a leader in the sustainable building field since the early 1980s, and has personally educated thousands of individuals in workshops, trainings, and certification courses.  She organized the first regional conference in the Northwest for the green building industry and has worked with local chapters of the National Association of Home Builders to develop award-winning green building programs. Her own green home has achieved the highest rating in Built Green, won the Parade of Homes Environmental Achievement Award, and has been featured on Home and Garden TV.  She has published more than 100 articles including features in the Journal of Light Construction, Environmental Building News, Construction Data, and Building with Nature, as well as full-length technical publications for the green building industry. The Northwest Green Home Primer is her first major work aimed at the general public, out of belief that an informed public will result in an informed demand for more and better green homes.