Message from the Chair

By Vince Capogna, LEED AP ID+C, 2010 USGBC-LI Chapter Chairman

Dear Friends,

We have just left behind a decade that many may be only too happy to forget but let’s not forget that the storm clouds of the past decade did have at least one silver-lining, or more accurately, a green-lining.

This past decade surely can be remembered as the moment in time when ‘green’ permeated the fabric of our collective being. What started quietly grew in momentum and acceptance in no small part thanks to the introduction of a revolutionary rating system that promised to finally quantify what ‘green’ building should mean and offered a way to independently verify and rate this achievement. LEED has become the internationally recognized green building certification system. LEED certification has now become synonymous with environmentally responsible, energy efficient, healthy, safe buildings that have been thoughtfully designed and executed, economical and efficient in operation.

According to a survey by Clear Seas Research in 2009, 93 percent of industry professionals surveyed believe green building is on the rise and will continue to gain momentum in the next three years. A full 65 percent expect green building projects to increase greatly. As Ric Fedrizzi, president, CEO, and USGBC founding chairman recently stated, “Every day, more and more business leaders, elected officials and everyday Americans are recognizing that sustainability is the key to a thriving future. These individuals look to their local USGBC Chapter as the local champion of green building in their communities…” For anyone whose New Year’s resolutions included the phrase ‘success in 2010’; the secret is out, you need to be an active participant in our Chapter. Accurately predicting the future may be difficult but adequately preparing for it is easy. Our Chapters educational programs are second to none and the opportunity we provide to network with and learn from true leaders in the green building community is unmatched.

I am proud to hold the first paid membership in our Chapter (Feb. 15th 2005) and have been on the Board of Directors from it’s inception in 2006. I have been privileged to work alongside some of the most incredibly talented, dedicated, and selfless individuals that I am fortunate enough to now call friends. What has been accomplished in four short years is nothing short of amazing and something we should all feel quite proud of.

With the greatest respect for all those who have worked so hard to bring us to this point I look forward to continuing the momentum that seems to be propelling us to seek ever higher levels of achievement and success. Together, as we once again move the bar up, I have every confidence that our Board of Directors, Committee Chair, and volunteer members will continue to rise to the challenge and commitment to work with our fellow Long Islanders to improve our quality of life by improving the quality of the structures we build, and the environment in which we all live, work, and play.

What was once a dream became a movement dedicated to the proposition that every person deserves to live in a green home; work in a green office, business, or factory; shop in a green store; heal in a green hospital; and learn in a green school. This dream is seeking to become a reality on Long Island. From Habitat for Humanity of Nassau constructing an affordable new home in Elmont that is on track to achieve LEED Gold certification, to a somewhat grander home in the Hamptons that may be one of the first zero-energy, carbon neutral, LEED Platinum homes in the country, our Chapter is helping to make this dream a reality. This past December I was privileged to stand along with eight of our Long Island Town Supervisors as Supervisor Bellone spoke of the newly formed Long Island Green Homes and Buildings Consortium and its goal of bringing affordable energy efficient residential retro-fits to all of Long Island’s existing homes. Regarding offices, business’ and stores; we have seen a LEED-CS Certified office in Garden City, a LEED-CI Certified Chipotle Grill in Deer Park, a LEED-NC Gold mixed-use (office/residential) in Watermill and others in between. We are proud to have almost a dozen LEED-EB Certified Stop-N-Shops all across Long Island and we are home to the first supermarket in New York State to achieve a LEED-NC Gold Certification with the Wild-by-Nature in Oceanside. On April 28th I hope everyone reading this will join me in honoring North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System’s President and CEO, Michael Dowling at our annual Green Building Gala. Mr. Dowling has made a commitment that ALL construction (including interior renovation) shall seek LEED Certification thereby making this Long Island based Health system one of the greenest, healthiest healing environments in the nation. Our Green Schools committee has begun outreach to schools across Long Island to help educate and improve our learning environments wherever possible. This fall we received incredibly inspiring entries for our annual academic scholarships and were proud to award four scholarships to College students on Long Island. We are also proud that the Hampton Bays Middle School is on track to be the first LEED certified school in New York State. At present we have just under 200 projects on Long Island that are registered and seeking LEED certification. We have a lot to be proud of and yet so much more that we would like to do.

In 2010 we intend on doubling our scholarship offerings to include High School students that desire to expand their knowledge and focus on sustainability and green building issues. A collaborative effort has begun between committees to design, construct, and operate a mobile educational trailer which can be towed to schools across Long Island bringing education on green building directly to the students. Our Education committee will be expanding its offering of training seminars for professionals seeking to expand their knowledge or become officially accredited. Workforce training seems to have been neglected during this green building boom, as such; we will be offering training to the trades for the first time. We will be expanding our offerings of networking opportunities throughout the year so that everyone has the ability to hear first hand from their peers about how green is done. We will continue to expand our morning salons, evening programs, weekend study groups and daily advocacy. The message that when you build green everyone profits will continue to be brought to every Town, school, business, homeowner and building owner with a greater emphasis on how and where the existing residential and commercial building stock can benefit.

With your help we will be able to do this and so much more. If you have not been involved before, resolve to change that in 2010; we need your help. As a non-profit we also rely on the financial support of the many generous business’ and individuals on Long Island. In this difficult economic time your generosity has never been more appreciated and respected.

To quote USGBC founder, David Gottfried; “At the end of our life we must feel a sense of purpose and legacy. What better way to feel proud than reducing our environmental footprint and showcasing a pathway for others? … It’s not about one person and it’s not about LEED. It’s about all of us on this planet waking up and banding together”. Together let us renew our commitment to leaving the world a little better than we found it so that future generations have an unfettered opportunity to do the same. We have been blessed to be engaged in such an interesting and challenging moment in time. Let us enjoy the work and journey that lay before us knowing that our cause is just and our Mission critical for the health, security, and wellbeing of our friends and family.

Sincerely,

Vince Capogna
Chairman