Leed Founders Win Un Award

• 31 December 2015
• Local News
• 1400 Views

The United Nations has highlighted the importance of energy efficient buildings in reducing carbon emissions by presenting its top environmental award to the US Green Building Council (USGBC).

The Champions of the Earth award was won by USGBC for its role in founding the globally recognised LEED green building rating system.

USGBC said in a statement that LEED certifies 1.7 million square feet of building space daily in 150 countries and territories adding that, in the US, buildings account for 40% of energy use and that leaky, inefficient buildings incur losses of $130bn every year. Worldwide, USGBC said, buildings are contributing as much as one third of total global greenhouse gas emissions.

“In little over two decades the USGBC has gone from 60 firms and a few not-for-profit organizations, to 76 chapters, nearly 13,000 member companies and organisations, and more than 198,000 LEED certified professionals today,” said UN Under-Secretary-General and UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner