Green Buildings

Re-membering in the age of climate crisis.

Jill

September 11, 2019

Re-membering in the age of climate crisis.

I read with great interest Jonathan Franzen’s recent article in the New Yorker titled “What If We Stopped Pretending? The climate apocalypse is coming. To prepare for it, we need to admit that we can’t prevent it.” I came away with different conclusions than other environmentalists. When I moved back home to West Virginia in 2007, I already had ten years of green building experience under my belt, yet it felt like every time I offered a “green” recommendation on a project, an idea to solve a community problem, or suggested a shift in perspective, I was met with the…

Government, Green Buildings, Op-Eds

State’s future requires triple bottom line thinking (WV Sunday Gazette-Mail, Feb. 10, 2019)

Jill

February 10, 2019

Recently, I attended two different economic forecast meetings in the Kanawha Valley and would like to share some thoughts as a small business owner and environmentalist regarding the future of our state. I am sole owner of a professional services company and while the new federal tax law is helping me financially in the short term, tax law in general does not influence my business decisions when it comes to hiring and expanding. Long-term economic growth would be the driving factor, and what I’ve seen forecasted is more of the same level of thinking and keeping of the status quo.…

Government, Green Buildings, Op-Eds

Ingenuity Can Help West Virginia Change

Jill

November 25, 2015

Senator Joe Manchin’s passionate plea to save what’s left of the coal industry is extremely discouraging for West Virginia. Rather than show leadership during this time of energy transition, Sen. Manchin (as well as Senator Shelley Moore Capito, our Representatives in Congress, and most other statewide leaders) chooses to take the well-worn path of the status quo, and lacks the vision to see a real future for our state, one based on new technologies, services, and renewable energy. Sen. Manchin says that carbon capture and storage (CCS) “has not been demonstrated at any commercial scale power plant anywhere in the…

Green Buildings, Op-Eds

USGBC Strives to Improve Quality of Life

Jill

April 10, 2015

As a commercial interior designer who’s been working in the building industry for over 20 years, I couldn’t agree more with Brooks McCabe’s assessment that the built environment is “more than just bricks and mortar.” And as Chair of the U.S. Green Building Council’s West Virginia Chapter, this definitely holds true for me and our members. The purpose of the organization is to improve the quality of life for West Virginians by transforming the way the built environment is designed, constructed, and maintained, resulting in buildings and communities that are environmentally, socially, and economically prosperous. That is a big purpose,…

Green Buildings, Interior Design

Entrepreneurship Week 2014

Jill

January 2, 2015

In November 2014, the Charleston Area Alliance celebrated National Entrepreneurship Week by highlighting several small businesses, including Watkins Design Works. Click here to read the full article: A Passion For Her Profession.

Green Buildings, Op-Eds

Nature As A Model For Success

Jill

April 4, 2014

(from The State Journal 4/4/14) Green building and issues of sustainability appear to be at a crossroads in West Virginia. Several factors contribute to this. One, the state legislature adopted the ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2007 for energy use in commercial buildings last fall. Now, West Virginia energy standards are finally in line with the majority of the country, including our neighboring states, yet still not at the forefront of current code adoption. (Maryland adopted the most recent energy code, ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2010.) Two, the so-called “war on coal” and the collateral damage of climate change from burning fossil fuels has heightened…

Green Buildings, Op-Eds

Triple Bottom Line

Jill

January 29, 2014

Whether we realize it or not, right now we’re seeing what happens when one leg of the Triple Bottom Line is broken. We all understand a company’s “bottom line.” Indeed, Freedom Industries must be well aware of this common business phrase. But when we only consider the financial bottom line in decision-making (Economy), we leave the other two legs of Equity and Environment potentially damaged. Economy, Equity and Environment – the “three E’s” making up the Triple Bottom Line. Also think of it in terms of the “three P’s”: Profit, People, Planet. We’re sold different stories regarding what our priorities…