With state weatherization efforts in full force to modernize outdated buildings and meet current emissions and environmental standards, sustainable building and development are more important than ever. Continuing the march of progress with the most efficient practices available leaves enviro-wonks on both sides of the aisle smiling and paints a bright, green future for the Keystone State.
So this week’s expansion of the Delaware Valley Green Building Council should bring a gleaming-white grin to the faces invested in PA’s green economy. The DVGBC, long an institution for education and development assistance for environmentally-friendly builders, has been making a concerted effort to focus its efforts regionally, bringing together the efforts of community leaders and local investors. Recently, the council opened branches in Delaware and in the Lehigh Valley, spreading its footprint across most of Southeastern Pennsylvania.
“So much of what we do is at an education level and being a resource for the area,” says DVGBC Board Chairman Joseph Healy. “So this allows us to have grassroots connections right there in the communities. This allows us to really listen to what the issues are in those communities and in those neighborhoods, to really know what’s going on. We can then respond to that and deliver really targeted education and resources that will allow those regions to advance the mission of the overall organization.”
The Bucks-Montgomery branch will act as a merger between the DVGBC and the Bucks County Sustainable Business Alliance, combining the business professionals with a vested interest in Bucks County’s green future with disparate interests across Montgomery County, forming a regional effort spanning some of the most wealthy and populous parts of the Delaware Valley. Healy hopes the move will bring in a different breed of member to the organization, getting as many professionals in on the action as possible.
“As an organization, we have had a really strong base of design, building and construction professionals,” says Healy. “We are really now diversifying and expanding the membership of the organization and the branch structure is a great way for us to very quickly leverage the base infrastructure that we have in place and very rapidly reach out into all the areas of the region.”
Source: Joseph Healy, DVGBC
Writer: John Steele