Largest Higher Education Project Receives Living Building Certification
Emily Pollock posted on April 18, 2018 | | 73 views
Students and faculty enjoy Hampshire College’s R.W. Kern Center lounge, recently accredited for its eco-friendly and livable design. (Image courtesy of AGC Glass North America.)
The R.W. Kern Center recently became one of only 18 buildings to be certified as a Living Building by the International Living Future Institute (ILFI). Finished in 2016, the Kern Center was built as part of Massachusetts’ Hampshire College and houses its admission and financial aid offices, several classrooms, a student lounge and cafeteria. The 17,000-square-foot building is the largest higher-education project to be certified under ILFI standards.
According to ILFI’s website, Living Buildings “strive for net-zero or net-positive energy, are free of toxic chemicals and lower their energy footprint many times below the generic commercial structure.” To be Living-Building certified, Hampshire College had to send in a year’s worth of usage data showing that the Kern Center used a net-zero amount of water and energy, and that it generated a net-zero amount of waste.It also had to demonstrate that the Kern Center was built without 20 toxic chemicals on the Living Building Challenge Red List.
To achieve these objectives, architectural firm Bruner/Cott & Associates put significant thought into the building’s ecological footprint. The Kern Center…