Schools In Focus: You Can't Build Your Way to Net Zero

Schools In Focus is a podcast dedicated to the design, planning and management of educational facilities and campuses. Listen in as we chat with industry experts, facility managers, architects, security and safety professionals, and other thought leaders. Catch up on previous episodes here.

This episode’s guest is Lori Ferriss, architect with the Boston firm Goody Clancy and Chair of the AIA Committee on the Environment. We’ll discuss how colleges and universities can’t just build their way to net zero in the quest for carbon neutrality—it’s impossible to achieve carbon neutrality without reducing the operational emissions of existing buildings. Lori co-developed the CARE Tool and collaborated with Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia, to complete a campus-scale study to calculate and compare the carbon impacts of reusing and upgrading buildings versus constructing new structures. We’ll also talk about how the CARE Tool and its use at Agnes Scott can provide a model for other institutions around the country that aspire to achieve carbon neutrality.

Schools In Focus, Episode 35: You Can't Build Your Way to Net Zero

 

Where to Listen

Schools In Focus is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and Amazon Music. Subscribe today, or listen below!

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Architectural Power for the Modern Campus Landscape

    For generations, an outdoor classroom only required a textbook and a patch of grass. Today, not only has the laptop replaced the printed pages, the rise of agile learning has turned campuses into study halls with students listening to lectures and researching topics from quads, gardens, and plazas. The challenge for architects and facility managers is to provide connectivity without cluttering the landscape with visual eyesores or creating safety hazards with extension cords.

  • Rhode Island Boarding School Completes Student Dorm Renovations

    St. George’s School in Middletown, R.I., recently announced the completion of a $26-million renovation project on Arden-Diman-Eccles Dormitory, according to a news release. The school partnered with Voith & Mactavish Architects (VMA) on the new space, which places a new focus on collaborative community spaces open to both boarding students and day students.

  • Construction Begins on New University Research Vessel

    Boat-building company All American Marine recently announced that it has begun construction on a new catamaran research vessel for the University of Texas Marine Science Institute (UTMSI) in Port Aransas, Texas, according to a news release.

  • Northeastern University Breaks Ground on New Housing Community

    Northeastern University recently announced the groundbreaking of a new student housing community on its campus in Boston, Mass., according to a news release. The university is partnering with American Campus Communities (ACC) for development of the project, which will have the capacity for 1,200 students and has a scheduled completion date of fall 2028.