Washington, D.C. — The Sustainable Buildings Industry Council (SBIC) is now accepting applications from both the public and private sector for the 2008 Beyond Green High-Performance Building Awards.  The Awards recognize the initiatives that shape, inform and catalyze the market for high-performance buildings, as well as the real-world application of high-performance design and construction practices.  All application materials are available on the Council's Website (www.sbicouncil.org).  The application deadline for the 2008 Awards program is October 15, 2008.  An independent, impartial jury of industry leaders will select the winning entries.

The 2008 Beyond Green Awards program is a key part of SBIC's commient to the design, construction and maintenance of high-performance buildings.  Awards will be given in two categories: High-Performance Buildings (Category A) and High-Performance Initiatives (Category B).  Applicants are challenged to demonstrate the successful application of the whole building approach and to show how they maintained the proper balance of the eight design objectives (accessible, aesthetic, cost-effective, functional, historic, productive, safe/secure and sustainable) that make up a high-performance building.  High-Performance Buildings entries may be commercial, government, institutional, residential, and school buildings.  High-Performance Initiatives may be policy programs, educational initiatives, consumer awareness efforts, research product development and new construction processes.

Award winners will be invited to present their projects in Washington D.C. in January of 2009, in conjunction with an awards reception.  Additional recognition will include regional and national media exposure, an announcement on SBIC's Website and in its newsletter, a handsome plaque, and inclusion in future SBIC educational programs.  Winning entries will also be published on the Whole Building Design Guide (www.wbdg.org), which is maintained by the National Institute of Building Sciences.  The Whole Building Design Guide receives over 250,000 visitors and delivers more than 1.7 million downloads per month.

Last year's awards were presented at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC.  The winners in the High-Performance Buildings Category included: the SmithGroup, Inc.; Dattner Architects; Lucchesi Galati; Lord, Aeck, Sargent Architecture; Phipps Conservatory & Botanical Gardens Inc.; Innovative Design, Inc.; Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP; and, Lehrer + Gangi Design + Build.  Last year's award winners in the High-Performance Initiatives Category included: the Rocky Mountain Institute and the Athena Institute; NJIT for the New Jersey Schools Development Authority; and, the United States Environmental Protection Agency.