SUSTAINABILITY FULLY REALIZED Changing the way we think about GREEN BUILDING By Jenifer Christenson, executive director Built Green Canada So what’s sustainability? Technically, it’s the process of using without depleting and/or destroying, and in full function, it has four pillars in which it works: environ- ment, society, finance, and culture. Landmark Group of Builders is a rare builder who engages all four. Landmark has taken a firm stance on green building. The company’s product development manager, Dave Turnbull, chairs the Built Green Canada board of directors and often speaks on behalf of sustainable building. If you haven’t heard of Built Green, it’s a national, industry-dri- ven organization with programs focusing on seven areas of green building: energy efficiency; materials and meth- ods; indoor air quality; ventilation; waste management; water management; and business practices. Every Land- mark home is the trademarked Built Green Gold certified or better, and as one of the largest Built Green builders in Alberta, they make a substantial contribution to sus- tainable building across the province and are raising the bar across the country. Landmark says that the biggest challenges around green building are the misconceptions: too many con- sumers believe that green homes are ugly and difficult to maintain, that beauty is forfeited for environmental 16 – Summer 2014 — The Canadian Design and Construction Report stewardship. Strange, really, considering that sustainabil- ity has little to do with appearance, and that one of the most overlooked factors of a sustainably built home is durability. The Built Green program encourages the use of a va- riety of durable features, from engineered lumber that resists warping to extremely durable exterior features, such as 30-year shingles—many of the products Built Green suggests through its product catalogue are made from recycled material, repurposed to be beautiful, use- ful, and environmentally friendly. And moreover, renova- tions are taxing on the homeowner and the environment: between energy consumed during the process and wasted materials—and therefore added stress to waste deposit sites— producing a home that will soon need renovations is something sustainable programs strive to prevent—another reason durability is emphasized in green building programs. Environmental leaders like Landmark do more than build; they promote sustainability. Landmark has done a fantastic job of this, while also fulfilling the social pillar of sustainability—something they’ve been doing for years through the Full House Lottery. The University of Alberta and Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundations put on this charitable lottery, with the help of local businesses