Gen. Colin Powell, USA (Ret.) to Give Keynote Address at the Greenbuild Conference

The U.S. Green Building Council announced that former Secretary of State and retired Gen. Colin L. Powell will give the keynote address at USGBC’s annual Greenbuild International Conference & Expo being held Nov.17-19, 2010, in Chicago, Ill.

“General Powell has made another career of sharing his lessons of leadership.” said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO and founding chair of USGBC. “His keen insights and global perspective are especially relevant to our movement in these times of great challenge and change. He exemplifies that leadership is about more than a title: It’s about taking charge during times of great crisis.”

General Powell is a retired four-star general. He previously served as National Security Advisor under President Ronald Regan and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton. In 2001, President George W. Bush appointed General Powell to be Secretary of State, a position he held until 2005. In addition, for the past decade, General Powell has committed his time, energy and leadership to improving the lives of America’s young people as founding Chairman of America’s Promise Alliance — an organization that works with over 400 partner organizations to provide
needed resources that build better lives for America’s youth.

General Powell has demonstrated his exemplary leadership through his public service and private life. He has broken racial barriers as the first African-American Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He has received several distinguished military and civilian honors including two Presidential Medals of Freedom, the Congressional Gold Medal, the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, a Purple Heart, a Bronze Star and the Soldier’s Medal. General Powell also founded the Colin Powell Center for Policy Studies at his alma mater, the City College of New York and has served on the boards of various non-profits.

As a sign of General Powell’s wide-ranging leadership and the powerful message he will bring as Greenbuild’s opening keynote speaker, a LEED Platinum affordable housing building in his childhood neighborhood bears his name. The General Colin L. Powell Apartments in the South Bronx, N.Y., is a cutting-edge 50-unit multifamily project resulting from a partnership between Habitat for Humanity-New York City and Blue Sea Development. General Powell participated in the LEED certification ceremony.

In addition to General Powell’s keynote address, Greenbuild 2010 will feature an array of inspiring speakers and more than 100 education sessions and the world's largest exhibit hall devoted to green building with over 900 exhibiting companies with over 1,800 booths showcasing the latest in innovative, cutting-edge products and services

For more information, visit http://www.greenbuildexpo.org/.

GREENGUARD's Exhibit at HEALTHCARE DESIGN.10 to Help Architects and Designers Specify Healthier Products

Architects and designers who visit the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute's first-ever HEALTHCARE DESIGN.10 exhibit next week will have the opportunity to learn how low-emitting products and materials can help create healthier, more sustainable healing environments.

The GREENGUARD exhibit, which draws attention to the potential health hazards of product emissions and invisible indoor air contaminants, will also identify ways that architects and designers can more easily and efficiently specify low-emitting products.

"Given that many people in healthcare environments suffer from weakened immune systems and/or debilitating respiratory conditions, such as asthma, the need to address indoor air quality in healthcare environments is more critical now than ever before," says Paul Bates, market outreach manager for the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute.  "There's no doubt that airborne chemical exposure from product emissions can exacerbate existing health conditions and can even trigger new problems. If the goal of a healthcare environment is to promote healing, it is incumbent upon architects, designers, and facility managers to ensure that the products they use in those environments are low-emitting."

Hazardous airborne chemicals commonly found in healthcare environments include formaldehyde, benzene, methyl methacrylate, and hexane—all of which can off-gas from healthcare-related products. Many are known or suspected carcinogens, reproductive toxins, developmental toxins, and/or physical irritants, and can be particularly harmful to the sick and the elderly.

Products that have achieved GREENGUARD Certification have been independently, scientifically tested to evaluate their chemical emissions and ensure that they meet some of the world's most stringent health-based requirements. As a result, they're recognized in the Green Guide for Healthcare, the healthcare sector's first quantifiable, sustainable design toolkit that integrates environmental and health-based practices into the planning, design, construction, operations and maintenance of healthcare facilities.

"Why risk exposing patients, doctors, nurses, and staff to potentially dangerous contaminants in a place where they're supposed to be healing?" Bates says. "By choosing the right products—those that have been independently assessed for their impact on indoor air quality—you can be certain that the healing environment you're creating is healthier for everyone involved."

To learn more about GREENGUARD Certified products at HEALTHCARE DESIGN.10, visit Booth Number 258. HCD.10 runs Nov. 13 through Nov. 16. For more information, visit www.hcd10.com.