A Green 2025 for Architects

In the United States alone, the building and construction industries contribute to 37% of the world’s greenhouse gases from carbon produced during construction and everyday heating, cooling, and lighting. Our planet cannot keep up with these increased carbon levels – and it’s showing. Just this year, wildfires ravaged homes across California, forcing hundreds of thousands to evacuate and destroying countless homes and structures. These extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and the decline of natural resources are all the direct result of increased carbon levels. These risks threaten to irreparably transform the earth we know and love, jeopardizing the reality of future generations.

As we continue into the year, the need for the design and construction trades to prioritize sustainability is imperative. Designing and constructing buildings that help combat high greenhouse gas levels will improve our chances to repair the planet while building infrastructure that is healthy, resilient, and regenerative – setting our future generations up for success.

Goodwill of the Great Plains is slated to open the doors of its new Mission Support Center in Sioux City, Iowa this year. Goodwill was founded on the principles of sustainability: selling secondhand clothing to prevent landfill overflow, reduce resource consumption, and decrease carbon emissions. When we began designing the new building for Goodwill, we knew the building needed to reflect the company’s deep roots in sustainability – and live up to our own sustainability standards.

The new 25,000 SF state-of-the-art facility will house Goodwill’s adult day services, where Goodwill will be able to provide a wider scope of services to its patrons. The building is designed to be a Net-Zero Energy Building, as certified by the International Living Future Institute (ILFI). This means the facility will produce enough on-site, renewable energy through geothermal and solar energy sources to offset the building’s annual energy use.

During the design process, CMBA Architects focused on selecting systems and products that not only meet Goodwill’s needs but also integrate sustainable practices that help lower carbon emissions – improving our chances to repair the planet. The result: a facility that is durable, low maintenance, and above all, energy independent.

While we can’t create change for the planet overnight, sustainable change can start with a single building, like Goodwill of the Great Plains. To combat the increased greenhouse gasses that are destroying our planet and quality of life, the world needs architects and designers to unite in implementing environmentally sensitive, sustainable design into each project.

This year, CMBA is looking forward to building a greener future – one sustainable design at a time.