Build It Green has a new look! As we unveil it, let’s look at our roots and what’s next.
In 2005, when California’s residential green building sector was in its infancy, a group of innovative doers and thinkers, determined to make green building thrive, formed Build It Green. They built an organization that coalesced the sector – from builders, suppliers, and entrepreneurs to government officials and activists – to explore and create together, to produce resources to help the green building grow and succeed, and to elevate aspirations about what is possible.
Our founders were on to something. BIG created GreenPoint Rated (GPR), an accessible, highly credible residential green building standard. To date, 113,000 homes have been certified green under GPR. Here in California, BIG played a part in establishing some of the nation’s strongest state and local residential green building codes and trained literally thousands of green building professionals. Our work, along with our partners, established our state as a beacon for what is possible in the residential green building field.
During the last two decades we have also been learning and evolving. Today we see that environmental, social equity, and affordability issues intersect in the places that Californians live. We also see that our state has world-leading aspirations for tackling these issues and that if they are not approached in holistic, integrated ways we will fail to reach our aspirations and, instead, be forced into ambition crushing tradeoffs. We see the opportunity, and need, for Build It Green to step into our next chapter. Just as 20 years ago we catalyzed California’s residential green building sector, today we can, and must, spark California’s regenerative communities field.
Regeneration enables changemakers to see the potential of places, to understand how homes fit into bigger human and natural systems, and to discover how to approach complex, interwoven issues in ways that deliver a multitude of benefits to both people and nature. What’s more, regeneration enables changemakers to evolve themselves, develop new patterns of thinking, and to see possibilities that they would have never envisioned before.
BIG’s new look reflects our commitment to making regenerative communities California’s norm. Our new logo reflects the importance of operating at various scales — the building, the human community, and the natural system. Operating at these connected scales, we can help communities develop unique approaches to interwoven social equity, affordability, and environmental issues and inspire programs, business practices, and policies to spread regeneration throughout the state. Our new look aims to invoke the connection between people and nature, and the fact that it will take a field of changemakers – many of whom have never worked together before – to make regenerative communities a reality in California. Our new look is bright, reflecting that regeneration is rooted in potential and optimism, rather than pessimism and fear.
Just like in 2005, our success depends on coalescing doers and thinkers, creating resources, and fueling aspirations. We at BIG invite you to join us on this regenerative journey. Sign up for our newsletter. Follow us on social media. Donate. Join us in partnership and collaboration. Be part of the effort to, again, make California an inspiration for the nation and beyond.
— Jeremy Madsen , Executive Director
Alex Coba
Communication Associate
As a proud California native from Stockton, Alex brings a wealth of experience and a versatile skill set. He has a solid communication background with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Public Relations from California State University, Chico. Alex is adept at strategic communications and media relations, with experience gathering and sharing stories from his local communities that uplift the unique spirit and values of those places. He is excited to join Build It Green, where he can apply his talents to further BIG’s mission to help communities across California thrive