LEED Certification

USGBC founded in 1993 is a 501(c)(3) non profit community.
LEED (Leadership in energy and Environmental Design): It is a program for certifying high performance, sustainable buildings and neighbourhoods and is USGBC's primary vehicle for transforming the market. While the built environment is rapidly changing, green buildings remain a small percentage of total market shares. The goal of green building movement is to transform building practices, thereby shifting the market towards sustainable construction.

• Participation in LEED is voluntary
• Underlying the rating systems are universally acknowledged energy and environmental principles
• Consensus Based: Each revision is reviewed by USGBC members through a public comment and balloting process
• Ever Evolving: As new technologies evolves, LEED responds through an ongoing refinement process
• Promotes a whole building approach to sustainability by recognizing performance across several key categories. These include;
• Sustainable Sites
• Material and Resources
• Water Efficiency
• Indoor Environmental Quality
• Energy and Atmosphere
• Innovation in Design

Role of USGBC: Today USGBC continues to support green building mission through these five activities:

• Steward market transformation
• Provides tools and expertise
• Builds community, chapters and conferences (Greenbuild)
• Forums for industry dialog
• Educates the industry and the public

USGBC has 6 guiding principles:

• Triple Bottom Line
• Leadership
• Harmony between nature and human
• Integrity
• Inclusiveness (giving everyone an opportunity)
• Transparency

LEED Project Boundary: Portion of the project site submitted for LEED certification. For multiple building developments, the LEED project boundary may be a portion of the development as determined by the project team.

LEED defines open spaces as the area the property minus the development footprint.