Sustainable Practice at Board & Vellum

The impact buildings have on the environment — and on us — is profound. The energy required to operate and construct buildings accounts for 40% of the world’s carbon emissions. That’s a huge share of the total, and it doesn’t even include carbon emissions from the manufacture of building materials.

The design of buildings is also an indoor air quality issue, directly impacting our health. According to the EPA, Americans spend approximately 90% of their time indoors, where air pollution is often two to five times greater than the air outside. Whether inside or out, breathing clean air is fundamental to quality of life.

These statistics mean we have both great responsibility and great opportunity for change. While we all have been touched by the effects of climate change and the health of interior environments in one way or another, it disproportionately affects the world’s most marginalized communities. We are not only designing for ourselves, but for the greater good. Even the efforts we engage in locally can help globally.

This motivates us to constantly strive to do better. It means we push every design further in a way best suited for the project. It means we get involved with our community to advocate for those who need extra voices to back them up. Large efforts, partnered with aggregate small ones, have outsized impact.

It also means we vow to never stop learning. Sustainable practices are constantly evolving to meet changing needs and to leverage new proven technologies. None of us can know what the future holds, but the time for action is now.

Of course, no one can tackle these problems alone, so we are excited to work with you towards designing the healthier and more vibrant future we believe is possible.

We know sustainability can be overwhelming. There is so much to know! Our goal is to break down options and concepts for sustainable practices into easy-to-digest bites, so you can make informed decisions about your design. We will discuss sustainability goals from the beginning of your project — you get to be part of the process from day one. We’ll remove the noise so options for building green are more approachable.

Having an in-house team of architects, interior designers, and landscape architects means we can view a challenge from different angles at any point throughout your project. This collaboration leads to creative solutions to ensure your project is the best it can be. We look at energy use, carbon emissions, water use, healthy materials, site issues, and community impacts to find strategies that are better for people, the environment, and your wallet.

Some clients have very specific sustainable strategies they want to employ on their projects. We can help you run with those, as well as identify efficiencies you might not have thought of. If you have no idea where to start, that’s fine too! We are happy to distill the strategies down and work together so we can identify which ones align with your personal values and project needs.

We believe you cannot have a sustainable project without great design, and that great design incorporates sustainable choices. Since a large portion of a building’s carbon footprint is from its construction, the most sustainable building is one that is loved and will be around for people to enjoy for many, many years to come. The ability to optimize a site’s design, environmental impact, and energy efficiency requires fluidity between the more creative processes and the strictly-defined metrics.

We test out the efficacy of our designs with energy, daylighting, and carbon modeling to gauge how well our ideas are working, and then fine-tune them. This helps us identify which strategies are best for your project, rather than slapping on generic ones that aren’t specific to your needs. We also work closely with any consultants to ensure selected concepts are carried out throughout the entirety of the project.

And no, you don’t have to get a certification to call it sustainable. Certifications can be great for marketing purposes and to prove that you made an effort to push the envelope (and if you’re interested in this, we would love to help). But if that’s not for you and you are just trying to do better, we can still use certification programs’ guidelines to implement the best strategies in your project.

For example, Passive House strategies can lead to an amazingly comfortable home, even if the house is not Passive House Certified. These strategies can make it easier to get to net zero energy and further reduce your energy bills and carbon emissions. And removing Red List materials (materials that are both unhealthy for you and contribute to climate change) from your project will give you better overall indoor air quality and reduce your environmental impact. There are many ways to make a project more sustainable that don’t require you to go for certification.

What does sustainable design mean to you? Lower energy bills? Better indoor air quality? Happier and more productive employees? A beautiful and resilient, drought-tolerant landscape? No matter the reason for pursuing a more sustainable project, we can help.

We employ sustainable design strategies across our portfolio — from single-family homes to multifamily developments, from vibrant commercial environments to civic spaces like public parks — in architecture, interior design, and landscape architecture.

Whether you are aiming for the highest level of green building certification with the Living Building Challenge, or simply wanting to lighten your environmental footprint, we can help you figure out which strategies are most appropriate for your unique project and help you meet your goals. Let’s work on being the change together.

Certification can be beneficial in many ways. Some jurisdictions give you incentives if you go for a green building certification such as more buildable height, greater FAR, or expedited permitting. It is a great marketing tool if you want to prove to your current or future tenants that you care about their health and the environment. It can also be a way to lead by example and educate your community about the importance of green construction.

Our team of architects, interior designers, and landscape architects has various green building accreditations to help you push your design to the next level and achieve certification if you so choose. We currently have team members with experience in Passive House, Living Building Challenge, LEED, BuiltGreen, and Net Zero projects. We will work closely with you and the entire project team to help you navigate the certification process and meet your goals.