Starting in 2023 USGBC-Missouri Gateway Chapter will be Missouri Gateway Green Building Council! |
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Greetings!
Thank you so much for supporting green building this year! As we close 2022 and look to a new year, we are excited to reflect on what has been a great year and even more excited to look at what is yet to come.
This year, we returned to in-person events - from happy hours at Green Dining Alliance restaurants to a Net Zero Building Showcase at IBEW, it was great to see so many people enjoying our programs and networking with peers. While we look forward to more in-person events, we also acknowledge the convenience of virtual events. We are excited to continue to offer our Virtual Coffee Breaks and will provide a virtual option for our evening programs for the foreseeable future.
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Our Green Schools Quest has truly been one of our flagship programs. This year we paired 54 schools and mentors – an increase from the past two years during the pandemic. The excitement surrounding this program led to piloting the Missouri Green Schools program with our partners, the Missouri Environmental Education Association, starting in 2020. This program is designed to help Missouri schools improve the health and wellness of students and staff, reduce environmental impact, and incorporate environmental and sustainability education. As our green schools work continues to grow, we look to strengthen our relationship with MEEA to continue providing these excellent programs to students and schools across the state.
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In 2022 we officially launched the Building Energy Exchange - St. Louis (BE-Ex STL). This resource hub, led by BE-Ex STL director Malachi Rein, is a new initiative to support building energy efficiency in our region, including the City of St. Louis' Building Energy Performance Standard (BEPS). BE-Ex STL has a multitude of resources available on its website including: Industry Playbooks geared toward various vertical markets, financing resources, and (in 2023) a Remote Energy Audit which will provide building owners with a low cost/low level audit for their buildings as they work toward BEPS compliance. This will also work to improve their building’s performance.
As I said, 2022 was an exciting year, and I know 2023 will be as well!
Starting in January, the USGBC Missouri Gateway Chapter is rebranding as the Missouri Gateway Green Building Council. We are excited about the new name, as it goes back to the roots of our organization. Incorporated in 2001, the St. Louis Regional Green Building Council quickly became USGBC-St. Louis Regional Chapter, when we signed on as one of the first six Chapters of the USGBC. In 2010, we merged USGBC-Missouri Heartland Chapter to become USGBC-Missouri Gateway Chapter. Green Building Council keeps our ties intact to USGBC as a USGBC Community. And Missouri Gateway ensures our name is welcoming to and encompassing of the entire St. Louis metropolitan area, including Southern Illinois as well as the former Missouri Heartland Chapter territory which became our Mid-Missouri Branch in Columbia & Jefferson City to our Ozark Branch in Springfield, MO.
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We hope you will be able to attend our Annual State of the Council Event on January 30th at the new Jack C. Taylor Visitor Center at the Missouri Botanical Garden, which is pursuing LEED Gold certification. We are very much looking forward to our first in-person State of the Council event since 2020, as well as the official celebration of our new brand!
I opened by saying thank you, and it cannot be said enough. Thank you so much for your support as members, sponsors, volunteers, and donors! You are the ultimate renewable resource and we could not do what we do without you!
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Chris Ruth
2023 Board Chair
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Missouri Gateway Green Building Council MISSION: To initiate, develop and accelerate the implementation of green building concepts, technologies and principles that promote environmentally responsible, prosperous and healthy places to live, work, learn, and play.
Missouri Gateway Green Building Council COMMITMENT to Equity & Inclusion: We recognize that we are a predominately white organization – our staff, our leadership, and our membership. As an organization, we recognize that we have unintentionally contributed to the status quo of injustice and systems that are racist. We know that environmental degradation and climate change disproportionately affect communities of color. We are working to do our part to address and breakdown systemic and institutional racism while understanding our own implicit biases.
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STAY CONNECTED @MOgreenbuildings |
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Missouri Gateway Green Building Council
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