Saturday we celebrate the Earth
March 23, 2013 at 3:43 am | Posted in Events | Leave a commentTags: earth hour, Peles, Timisoara, WWF
Saturday evening from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., 2 billion people celebrate Earth Hour, the largest environmental event in history.
Over 40 cities in Romania symbolically extinguish lights and prepare performances by candlelight, observations of celestial bodies, exhibitions, concerts unplugged supported by local artists, symbolic marches and interactive workshops. Even the most impressive buildings in Romania, will remain in the dark for one hour.
Organization WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature) will celebrate the big night in Timisoara, the city has earned the title of Capital of Earth Hour 2013, but representatives of the association mentioned will be present in every corner of the country, through his friends.
Find out which are Romania’s Greenest Buildings! Thursday, March 28th
March 22, 2013 at 6:02 pm | Posted in Events | Leave a commentTags: Legislation, Property Tax Reduction, RoGBC, Romania Green Building Council, Romania's Greenest Buildings
Are you a RoGBC member or green building enthusiast? Then join us next Thursday on March 28th for the launch of the official report of Romania’s Greenest Buildings! Learn how to keep yourself ahead of the competition by analyzing the case studies we will present!
The event measures the current state and celebrates green buildings successes, proposes tools for municipalities that benefit the community and reward environmental responsibility, and explains the economic rationale of the “business case” for green buildings.
Agenda
10:30 am – 11:00 am | Coffee & registration
11:00 am – 11:15 am | Opening Remarks
11:15 am – 11:45 am | MEASURING SUCCESS: Romania’s Greenest Buildings campaign
RoGBC has partnered with NAI Romania to gather research data, analyze and produce a comprehensive national list of “Romania’s Greenest Buildings”. The RoGBC will present the methodology used and provide additional analysis of the state of the country’s green building market.
11:45 am – 12:00 pm | Q&A
12:00 pm – 12:30 pm |EFFECTIVE TOOLS: Proposed Property Tax Reductions for Green Buildings
The RoGBC will present its toolkit to assist municipalities in implementing legislation that rewards green building accomplishments, creates green jobs, improves local economies and improves local government budgets.
12:30 pm – 12:45pm | Q&A
12:45 pm – 13:15 pm | ECONOMIC BENEFITS
The World Green Building Council with the support of expert organizations has created a report entitled “The Business Case for Green Building: A Review of the Cost and Benefits for Developers, Investors and Occupants”. The RoGBC will summarize the key findings of the report and answer questions.
Speakers include:
- Andrei Chiliman, mayor or Bucharest District 1
- Sorin Oprescu, general mayor of Bucharest (to be confirmed)
- Steven Borncamp, president RoGBC
- Cristina Siu, director of development and marketing, RoGBC
- Mihaela Nicolau, Content Manager, RoGBC
- Andrei Botiș and Florin Maravela, principals of NAI Romania
- Jukka Parkkamaki, SKANSKA Romania
The event is open to the business community subject to room capacity with first priority to RoGBC member companies and invited guests. For more information, please visit the conference page or contact Alina.Balusescu@rogbc.org or phone (021) 222 00 11.
Organizer Research partner Research tool
Triple Green Building Group is offering an online course which prepares proffesionals for the LEED Green Associate exam
March 20, 2013 at 5:56 pm | Posted in Certification, Member Projects, Training | Leave a commentTags: Kelly Gearhart, Learning Resources Network, LEED, LERN, RoGBC, Triple Green Building Group, Vessela Valtcheva-McGee
Triple Green Building Group, member of RoGBC, is offering via the Learning Resources Network (LERN) an online course which fully prepares proffesionals for the LEED Green Associate exam at their own pace.
The online courses consist of audio lectures, slideshows and quizzes that can be taken in order to evaluate your knowledge and progress. Furthermore, the course offers all the readings necessary to pass the exam.
Another advantage is the possibility of interaction with the instructor and the fellow participants, as you are able to post questions for the instructor will and also start online discussions with the other people attending the course, on the subject that has been presented.
The course will be taught online by Vessela Valtcheva-McGee and Kelly Gearhart.
Vessela Valtcheva-McGee has extensive experience with sustainablity in both practice and education. She has been a LEED AP since 2005 and has been a founder and President of a USGBC chapter in the United States, serving as an officer of the executive committee for 6 years. In her capacity as an architect she has worked on LEED projects of national significance and as a consultant she managed the administration and documentation of numerous LEED rating systems on projects of various scopes and sizes. After joining partners to form Triple Green Building Group, in 2008, she has taken the company international creating a base in her native country of Bulgaria where she is serving as Director of Education and Development for the Bulgarian Green Building Council. Vessela is currently an honorary guest lecturer at the Savannah College of Art and Design and is also in the process of becoming a DGNB international auditor and a BREEAM international assessor.
Kelly Gearhart is a founder and Principal with the international green building consulting firm Triple Green Building Group (Triple Green). She has served as an officer on the board of the USGBC Atlanta Chapter for two years as well as serving as a member of USGBC’s Southeast Regional Council. Accredited in the new Building Design + Construction and Existing Buildings: Operations + Maintenance programs, Kelly has taught over 75 full-day and multi-day LEED courses, facilitated seven full-day and multi-day green building charrettes, presented at 12 conferences, consulted with more than 100 clients on green building strategies and worked on over 30 LEED registered and certified projects across the U.S. and internationally. Currently, Gearhart is managing LEED projects, teaching courses at Berkeley, delivering LEED workshops around the U.S. and working to implement carbon reduction strategies in cities and municipalities throughout California as the Co-Chair of USGBC Northern California Chapter’s Climate Change Task Force.
The course can be attended at anytime of day or night, preferably at least 2-3 times a week.
For more information about the course and registration details please go to this link:
http://www.yougotclass.org/catalog-complete.cfm/TripleGreenGroup
Câlnic visit follow-up, March 14th
March 20, 2013 at 4:44 pm | Posted in Building Greener Schools, General, Green Building Projects, Member Projects | Leave a commentTags: Building Greener Schools Campaign, Calnic Alba, Rehabilitation Project, Romania Green Building Council
On March 14th, the RoGBC team made a new visit to Câlnic in order to present their proposed technical solutions for the problems that had been previously identified and to receive a feedback from the beneficiaries regarding the sustainability strategies that are desired to be implemented.
Since there was a positive reaction to the proposals, they were followed by a more detailed presentation of the list of works that will be carried out on the building site. The lack of connection to the water distribuition and sewerage systems represents the major issue regarding the school’s building and resolving it as soon as possible is mandatory. Another important operation is introducing a heating system that will incorporate either a heat pump or a central system fueled with natural gas, depending on the funds provided by the local authorities.
Beside the officials that had announced their presence, the mayor of Câlnic, the vice-president of the Alba County Council and representatives of the National Agency for Rroma people, at the event there was also a representative of the Prefecture of the Alba County and representatives of the Alba County School Inspectorate .
In the following weeks, the project’s team will meet on every Wednesday, at 9 AM, at the AECOM headquarters, in order to further develop the details of the rehabilitation of the School from Câlnic, a project carried out within the “Building Greener Schools” campaign.
Review for the Building Envelope of Green Buildings course
March 19, 2013 at 5:26 pm | Posted in Certification, Training | Leave a commentTags: Aurore Julien, Building Envelope of Green Buildings, Green Building, Romania Green Building Council
The course is extremely rich in information that addresses the principles of bioclimatic design of the façade: natural light, passive solar design, shading systems, natural and mixed ventilation, as well as the principles of sustainable renovation of the facade, and how to select materials and the sustainable facade systems. All these are supported by examples and case studies, including even workshop sessions. Students learn about energy saving opportunities due to chosen insulation, windows, double facades, shading systems, ventilation, renewable energy, lighting, HVAC control systems, space efficiency and organization.
I believe the whole idea of the course is to understand how architecture can maximize the benefits of environmental and climatic conditions. Furthermore, the international experience of the speaker Aurore Julien offers a new approach on the matter.
Text: Adriana Potlog
Review for the Lighting Design and Smart Buildings course
March 19, 2013 at 5:23 pm | Posted in Certification, Training | Leave a commentTags: Dr. Dorin Beu, Green Building, lighting design, Romania Green Building Council, Smart Buildings
The course was interactive and with comprehensive content: energy efficiency in lighting, energy efficient light sources, LED lighting, natural lighting, tube lighting, control systems, interior lighting, exterior lighting, the management of outdoor lighting systems, general lighting plan of a village, influence of lighting on users health, and environmental lighting. The course included explanations about the European program Dialux, calculating and measuring energy performance according to SR-EN15193, lighting solutions to improve energy efficiency in lighting, creating a LED luminaire and an illuminating system with photovoltaic cells . We were presented some case studies about lighting in offices, schools, hotels, commercial spaces, lighting in car parks, public lighting, public lighting management.
The course is not hampered with much technical data or calculations, thus being accessible to the non-experts who are interested in the topic.
Examples and case studies show some errors made in certain choices, with an issue of liability and economic analysis of lighting, but also the influence on health and the environment.
Text: Adriana Potlog
RoGBC team is visiting the School in Câlnic
March 14, 2013 at 3:41 pm | Posted in Building Greener Schools, News from Members | 1 CommentTags: Building Greener Schools Campaign, Calnic Alba, Rehabilitation Project, Romania Green Building Council
Today, March 14th, the RoGBC team makes a new visit to Câlnic to discuss technical details about the rehabilitation project, carried out within the “Building Greener Schools” campaign.
During the visit, AECOM will present the architectural design in order to receive feedback from the beneficiaries regarding the proposed solutions. The discussion will also include technical details about the implementation of the solutions described in the sustainability strategy.
The list of works on the building site will be presented and an assessment of the potential local labor force will be made; this may include carpenters to help restore the window wood frames or other skilled people that could help with maneuver. Architects and engineers will use this visit to check some of the measurements of the architectural plans.
Local authorities present at this meeting are the mayor of Câlnic, vice-president of the Alba county council, and representatives of the National Agency for Rroma people and representatives of the Prefecture.
Project partners:
Timișoara, Botoșani and Ploiesti compete for the Earth Hour Romania Capital
March 8, 2013 at 11:58 am | Posted in Events, General | Leave a commentTags: Earth Hour City Challenge, Events, Romania Green Building Council, WWF
About the Challenge
The Earth Hour City Challenge is part of the Earth Hour campaign implemented in Romania. Cities and towns compete by expressing ideas, projects and initiatives for environmental protection – including projects started in the last 5-10 years and those set to be implemented in the future. The 2013 Competition is being held between the 7th of February and the 9th of March 2013.
Who are the organizers?
Earth Hour is a concept initiated and organized by WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature), one of the biggest international NGOs working on nature conservation which has active campaigns in over 100 countries on all continents.
WWF-Romania, which was created in 2006, oversees projects and campaigns which have as a goal the conservation of the Carpathian and Danube areas. For more information please visit www.wwf.ro.
What cities qualified for the Finals?
Timiṣoara participates for the second time in the final. It scored 81.3 points out of 100 due to energy efficiency, education and communication, conservation and biodiversity values present in past projects. Future projects focus on energy efficiency and education, and the municipality’s plan for taking part in Earth Hour on the 23rd of March was marked with 18 points out of 20.
Botosani is in the final for the first time, scoring 75.6 points due to green spaces which are larger than the European regulation – 27.34% m2/person, and due to past education projects, transport plans for the future and reported recycled waste.
Ploiesti is in the final for the first time and scored 59.6 points. The high score comes from assessing education projects, transport, and biodiversity conservation and from having a green City Council.
What is the prize/award?
The winning city will be awarded the Title of Earth Hour Capital Romania 2013; it will be promoted at a national and international level, and will host the official event on the 23rd of March 2013. At the event, the WWF team and national press will participate making the city a landmark on Romania’s map.
What will differentiate the competitors?
The contribution of the cities is not the only one that matters, but the people living in those cities. They are asked to participate by recycling PETs/plastic bottles. The city which will recycle the largest quantity of PETs/plastic bottles will win the Title of Earth Hour Capital, Romania 2013. The final will take place on March 9th, 2013.
For more details on the campaign please visit the Earth Hour, Romania website at www.ora-pamantului.ro.
To find out more about the international campaign please visit www.earthhour.org
Text: Adriana Potlog, Associate Member RoGBC
Zeppelin Evenings # 46: Open. Reinventing public space
March 1, 2013 at 5:38 pm | Posted in General, Member Projects | Leave a commentTags: member project, zeppelin
Date: 12 March
The public space comes back as a key topic of Romanian architecture. Communities start to express their right to urban squares, pedestrian streets, squares or parks. The public space is part both of urban strategies, as well as construction and design; it needs to be looked upon as an artistic and social issue, but also as an economic drive for cities and the background for sophisticated, and often spectacular, technical solutions.
Preliminary list of speakers:
Kai Vöckler, Germany
Urban planner, researcher, professor at the Art and Design University in Offenbach, Kai Vöckler is the founder of Archis Interventions and involved in multiple operations of urban intervention in several European cities;programme director of the South Eastern Europe (SEE) Network; author of profile papers, co-author of exhibitions.
www.kai.voeckler.de, www.seenetwork.org
Eugen Pănescu, Cluj
Architect and urban planner, founding partner of the Romanian-German Planwerk office. Planwerk is the reference Romanian office for designing public spaces and urban planning. Winner of four awards at the Biennale of Architecture, nominated at international awards, the team created some of the most important public spaces in the last years: Unirii Square and Unirii Boulevard in Cluj, Unirii Square in Brasov, Piata Garii and a network of smaller spaces in Sibiu etc.
Vladimir Us, Chișinău
Artist and curator, initiator of Oberliht Association and Kiosk programme. Vladimir Us built in a couple of years one of the most prestigious art centres in this part of Europe and placed Chisinau on the map of top modern urban interventions. Public spaces in key locations of the city are carried out and developed based on the collaborative effort of an international network of architects and artists.
Marius Marcu Lapadat, București
Professor at the “Ion Mincu” University of Architecture and Urban Planning (and Dean of the Faculty of Interior Architecture) and founder of MB Studio. Marius Marcu Lapadat is known as architect and designer, winner of awards at the Biennale of Architecture and various international awards. He co-authored the pedestrian look of the historical centre in Bucharest.
News section:
Launching the publication of OAR to promote the architecture competition. The publication targets the national and local administration, public institutions as well as major private investors, and is carried out by the Order of Architects in Romania and Zeppelin Association.
To register for the event, please complete the form on the website.
Choose a language
-
License
The content of this blog is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.
Blog at WordPress.com.
Entries and comments feeds.
rogbc.wordpress.com 