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Introduction

The Green Building movement is here to stay, and the United States Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is at the forefront of this movement. Since 2003, USGBC membership has experienced a growth rate of nearly 500 percent.

The USGBC, a non-profit organization, was formed in 1993 to promote the construction of buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable, and healthy places to live and work.

Recognizing a need for a blueprint for sustainable building, USGBC developed the LEED Rating System in 1998, and officially released the rating system in March 2000.

In its current form, the LEED Rating System is divided into the following distinct categories:

  • LEED for Existing Buildings, Operations & Maintenance
  • LEED for New Construction
  • LEED for Core & Shell
  • LEED for Schools
  • LEED for Neighborhood Development
  • LEED for Commercial Interiors
  • LEED for Retail
  • LEED for Healthcare

The USGBC, seeing a need for an independent third-party verification process to certify buildings, as well as credentialing individuals in respective rating systems, set up the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI) in 2008.

GBCI has two primary tasks:

  • Verify that buildings have achieved one of four levels to be classified as a Certified, Silver, Gold, or Platinum building.
  • Test and provide accreditation for individuals in the LEED Rating Systems.

This LEED accreditation is divided into the following three tiers, or levels:

  1. The Green Associates Accreditation is awarded to an individual who has demonstrated a basic, non-technical knowledge of green design, construction techniques, and operations of green buildings.
  2. The LEED Accredited Professional (LEED AP) is an individual who has demonstrated an advanced technical understanding of the green building process.
  3. The LEED Fellow is an individual who has advanced the green building knowledge base.




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Schedules updated: 7/29/2010 at 8:42 PM