At the headquarters of the Seattle-based Bullitt Foundation, author Mary Adam Thomas documents the building of the Bullitt Center, a structure she regards as the world’s greenest building in her recently released book, “The Greenest Building: How The Bullitt Center Changes The Urban Landscape.”
The Bullitt Center stands as an eye-catching model of environmental design. Using the Living Building Challenge, created by the International Living Future Institute, an organization dedicated to making green building the new normal as a guideline, a team of dreamers and designers, contractors, architects, and environmentalists set out to construct the building of the future today.
In an upcoming article, I look forward to discussing some of these details from her book, including:
- How the building runs only on solar energy in one of the cloudiest cities in the world
- How a state-of-the-art ventilation system ensures the Bullitt Center air is always fresh and non-toxic
- Why no one who works in the Bullitt Center is more than 30 linear feet from a window
The Living Building Challenge addresses the seven key “Petals” of a building:
- Place
- Water
- Energy
- Health & Happiness
- Materials
- Equity
- Beauty
In our upcoming interview, we will discuss imperatives within each petal for creating an eco-friendly structure that also contributes to the well-being and happiness of those who use it.
From Amazon
Ecotone Publishing, January 2016, paperback
“The Greenest Building: How the Bullitt Center Changes the Urban Landscape takes readers on a private tour through the profoundly game changing Bullitt Center, the first Class A commercial office structure in the world designed and engineered to meet the rigorous demands of the Living Building Challenge.
“The book begins with Part I, the contextual backstory of the Bullitt Foundation and its transition from a family based philanthropic organization to an influential ecological grant maker led by noted environmental pioneer Denis Hayes. Part II summarizes how designers, engineers, and builders engaged with forward-thinking regulators, lenders, and community members in a combined effort to create an extraordinary building that stands for what is possible in the urban built environment.”
Stand by until later this month for our interview with Mary Adam Thomas.
Image via Bullitt Center
