Greenbuild International Conference Begins

PHILADELPHIA — The Greenbuild International Conference and Expo kicked off today to bring together green building industry leaders from across the globe to discuss leading technologies and innovations.

The world’s largest international conference devoted to green building began with several education sessions and featured a LEED Certification Work Zone. Representatives from the world’s leading green building firms and organizations are set to present workshops focused on a wide variety of subjects from lighting to lifecycle safety.

In all, the conference will host more than 100 education sessions, events and tours and more than 700 exhibitors. The conference, which will also pay tribute to the USBGC’s 20th anniversary, will continue for three days in order to foster international collaboration and promote sustainable buildings. Approximately 30,000 people are expected to attend.

“Philadelphia is the perfect city for Greenbuild — with its rich history and its forward thinking vision, much like Greenbuild itself,” said Kimberly Lewis, senior vice president, community advancement and conferences and events with the USGBC, in a statement. “As the USGBC celebrates its 20th anniversary, we are reflecting on how far the building industry has come and the work we still have ahead of us. Greenbuild gives us the chance to share our knowledge and raise the bar on green building.”

Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is scheduled to deliver the keynote address Thursday at Temple University. Nate Silver, statistician and author of The Signal and the Noise, will close out the ceremony. Other master speakers include Edward Mazria, founder of Architecture 2030, and Joe Van Bellenghem, group head of sustainability for Lend Lease.

The international conference and expo also marks the launch of the newest green building rating system LEED v4, which will build upon earlier versions of LEED in order for projects to perform at higher levels, according to the USGBC.

“This new version of LEED is a critical step in the evolution of green building,” said Scot Horst, senior vice president of LEED, USGBC, in a statement. “LEED v4 is focused on performance and entering new markets. We’ve already seen its potential in more than 100 beta projects internationally.”

The carbon neutral Greenbuild is an annual event hosted by the USGBC.