Portland-based New Buildings Institute is inviting designers, builders, developers and owners of zero-energy and low-energy commercial buildings to submit projects for its .

The database, according to NBI, is the most comprehensive list of zero-energy and zero-carbon buildings in North America, and includes verified projects and emerging projects with a stated goal of getting to zero. Submitted projects are confirmed by NBI and added to the interactive database, which people can use to search for projects based on location, building size and building type.

“As more cities and states set lofty climate action goals, zero-energy buildings are playing an increasingly important role in reducing carbon emissions and costs associated with operating buildings,” New Buildings Institute CEO Ralph DiNola stated in a press release. “By submitting their buildings to our registry for inclusion in the Getting to Zero Buildings Database, people can … increase awareness about the positive economic, environmental and human health impacts of zero-energy buildings.”

A zero-energy building is one that consumes only as much energy as it produces via renewable energy as measured over the course of a year. The number of commercial buildings in the database has grown by more than 30 percent over the past year to 628.

Submissions for 2020 are due by Jan. 31, 2020. The form is available at: .

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Researchers earlier this year found that carbon dioxide levels in the Earth’s atmosphere reached their highest recorded levels ever at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii.

Such findings help explain in part why the U.S. Green Building Council and the New Buildings Institute announced recently that they signed in Seattle a memorandum of understanding to work together to advance the cause of constructing net-zero energy buildings. The document defines how that cooperation will work to improve building professionals’ capabilities to deliver net-zero energy and zero-emissions projects, as well as projects optimized for energy grid interactions. These efforts are also intended to increase the number of completed zero-energy, zero-emissions and LEED Zero-certified buildings.

The document also aims to extend adoption of stretch energy codes around the United States, improve code compliance and enforcement, and enhance social equity, public health and resilience. Finally, the two entities also want to communicate those achievements and goals through various educational, social media and other platforms.

“USGBC and NBI missions are closely aligned, which is reflected in our collective efforts to advance zero-energy buildings and support grid integration over the past five years,” USGBC President and CEO Mahesh Ramanujam stated in a press release. “We believe that net zero is a powerful target that will move the entire industry forward.”

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Prior to the Great Recession, Portland was the “shining hill that everyone wanted to be” when it comes to sustainability and green building, according to New Buildings Institute project manager and architect Webly Bowles. But that has changed, she said.

“People were coming here to see how we were doing things,” she said. “And now we’re just falling back into the status quo. So we want to inspire our design community to get back to that.”

The inaugural Sustainable Building Week, planned for this fall, was born out of organizers’ desire to restore Portland’s reputation as a green industry leader. And with construction booming here and the rest of the country, Bowles said, the need to further emphasize sustainability became even clearer. So she and like-minded Portland design professionals put their heads together and came up with a series of educational events.

Starting Oct. 8, panel discussions, lectures, building tours, design slams (challenges), open houses and more will take place in Portland – all in the name of promoting green building practices in the local market. These events will be hosted by a wide range of design professionals and professional organizations, including the International Living Future Institute (ILFI), the U.S. Green Building Council, the AIA (American Institute of Architects) Portland Committee on the Environment, the Northwest EcoBuilding Guild, Portland State University and many others.

“I am one of those people who came here searching for sustainability,” said Reilly Loveland, a project manager with the New Buildings Institute.

Loveland came to Portland after working in Seattle and Los Angeles. Seattle actually provides a model for Portland to follow, she said.

“In LA it never felt coordinated and wasn’t hitting home,” she said. “In Portland it’s really institutionalized, but the actual execution in terms of buildings is kind of lacking. We’re passionate and invigorated here, so we thought why not bring everyone together to have a positive event and really push that.”

Terry Campbell is the director of business development for Sustainable Northwest Wood and the chairman of the International Living Future Institute’s Portland Collaborative. He played a big role in organizing the first Sustainable Building Week.

“We’re called a collaborative, yet when I took over as chair I found we didn’t collaborate with other professional organizations,” he said. “Portland’s been usurped in the ILFI realm, and for me the term collaborative meant we needed to start reaching across and building bigger momentum. In 2000 through about 2005 it was easy, it was new and it was innovative. That’s not the case anymore.”

The ILFI Portland Collaborative will present an Oct. 9 workshop geared to guide builders through the various areas of the public process through which all projects must pass. In other words, the workshop will touch on everything from legislation that affects the industry to permitting, public outreach and navigation of the local bureaucracy.

“We’re going to basically have a teach-in where we spend 45 minutes getting people connected to various things,” Campbell said.

Another unique event will be a green building slam presented by the Northwest EcoBuilding Guild on Oct. 12. This will feature 10 separate presentations, each just 10 minutes in length. They will spotlight 10 different innovative green building projects.

Sustainable Building Week is so new that organizers are still fleshing out the complete lineup.

“We’re really excited about this,” Bowles said.

To check out a lineup of events and venues, visit .

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