Category: GHI Education Manager

(June 30, 2022, Grand Rapids, MI) — The GreenHome Institute (GHI) today announced its YouTube channel has reached 10,000 subscribers. The GHI channel focuses on information related to building more energy-efficient, healthy green housing.

“We consider 10,000 subscribers a significant milestone in our outreach efforts,” said JoséReyna, Executive Director in making the announcement. “More people today are thinking about the impacts of climate change and the escalating costs of heating and cooling their homes over time. We are proud that the information we provide about energy efficient and healthy homes is reaching a growing audience.”

Buildings represent 40 percent of U.S. energy consumption annually, with residences alone encompassing up to 21 percent of that figure. Sustainable homes are designed and constructed to be as energy efficient, or energy neutral, and healthy as possible.

GreenHome Institute’s YouTube videos are hosted by GHI Program Manager Brett Little, who gives housing professionals and consumers alike a behind-the-scenes look at the makings of sustainable housing, whether it’s single-family homes, multi-family or mixed-use construction, new or renovated. Little speaks with architects, builders, homeowners, tenants, energy raters and others with direct experience in energy-efficient, net-zero homes. All GHI YouTube videos are eligible for continuing education (CE) credits for builders.

“We want to thank our YouTube subscribers for signing up and encourage them and everyone interested in healthy, green homes to enjoy and share the GHI channel,” Brett Little said. “We look forward to providing more information and personal insights into healthy green homes in the months and years ahead.”

More information about Green and Healthy housing is available at https://greenhomeinstitute.org/.

The GreenHome Institute, a DBA of the Alliance for Environmental Sustainability (AES) is a 501(c)3 non-profit with a mission to empower people to make healthier and more sustainable choices in the renovation and construction of the places we live.

Grand Rapids, MI – Bradford Station is an all-new apartment complex in the Belknap Lookout Neighborhood featuring right-sized living spaces and also achieved the all-electric living badge.

“Bazzani Construction company is committed to 100% green building certification, and so GreenStar was a natural fit for us and aligned with our new goals of building to the U.N. Sustainable Development goals and net-zero carbon.” – Peter Skornia, President, Bazzani Building Company. 

GreenStar Homes requires each project to achieve items in the five pillars of Green.

Energy | Health | Materials | Water, and Place

For energy, this project went all-electric using Mitsubishi ductless cold-weather climate mini-splits, R 26 zip walls with exterior insulation and tape sealed, reduced air leakage of less than 300 CFM per unit, and building micro units reduced energy demand in the space overall. The project achieved HERS ratings of 45 and 47 per different unit types.

“Conventional wisdom is that heatpumps do not work in cold climates, and you need backup heat. We are proving that wrong here at Bradford Station. The average utility bill was $60, and the highest in winter was $90. The average energy use was 350 kWh per month, with the highest unit using 7,000 kWh in one year, with the predictions from the energy model of 5,000 kWh per month. By going all-electric and ductless, we cut costs as well on gas lines and ducts, and we can now buy renewable energy credits to go zero-carbon” – Peter Skornia, President, Bazzani Building Company.

The heatpumps come factory-charged to ensure proper refrigerant and less global warming potential from it. The runs on the hot water lines are short distances given smaller unit sizes and reduce energy and water waste.

For health, the project used the Panasonic decentral whisper comfort energy recovery ventilator (ERV), which retains lost heat from incoming fresh air, and is set to meet the ASHRAE 62.2 2010 standard. Combine this with the electric stove, this helps ensure reduced cooking emissions as well. Bathfans are energy star, and tested at 50 CFM and vented to the outdoors. GreenStar Homes requires gas leak and combustion testing because many new HVAC is found to have leaks, but that cost was avoided here by eliminating the gas line!

When it comes to materials or durability, this project features all hard flooring and surfaces, steel braided hoses on the washers, drain pans under the water heater, slab on grade construction so no basement, and a completed energy star water management checklist.

When it comes to water use the project achieve a Home Water Score of 4, which was a result of water-efficient appliances, including

Toilet 1.28 GPF

Shower 1.75 GPM

Bathroom 1.2 GPM

Kitchen aerator 1.5 GPM

Clothes Washer 4.2 IWF

Dishwasher 3.1 GPC

The project was also inspected for leaks and proper water pressure.

The last was the place and this included as a requirement avoiding the floodplain which this project was built in flood factor 1 of 10. It also has a walk score of about 50, access to public transit, high housing density per buildable land, and re-used and existing lots instead of taking up green space.

Elected to the GHI board of directors class off 22-24

Brendan Molony is a graduate of Aquinas College with a bachelor’s degree in sustainable business and for the last six years has led the sustainability program at Bronson Healthcare Group. Brendan has a passion to drive organizational and community development while taking into account the people, planet, and financial success. Focusing on waste reduction, mobility, green building design, local/healthy food, green cleaning, and smarter purchasing, Brendan has helped Bronson become one of the top 50 Green hospitals in the United States as rated by the Becker Review, while also saving the organization over $2million annually.  Brendan has served as past chair of the Michigan Health and Hospital Association’s Green Healthcare Committee, is also a founding board member of Bike Friendly Kalamazoo, and board president of the South West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum. He currently serves on the board of Community Homeworks as secretary and the Vine Neighborhood Association as vice president. When not working on sustainability issues, you can find Brendan running on trails throughout Kalamazoo.

Kay Rose, a West Michigan native, has an extensive background in professional administration and customer service in both for and non-profit sectors. After experiencing a layoff, she launched a

virtual assistant business. She brings an overall understanding of business and a passion for being environmentally conscious to the Board. She has served on the Executive Team as Secretary and now serves as President. She is excited to continue supporting GHI’s efforts to educate and encourage residents, and contractors, to explore greener building alternatives. In her spare time, she enjoys travel, exploring the outdoors, hiking, and camping.

Kaylee Swanson works as the Hazardous Materials & Waste Safety Specialist at Spectrum Health and is responsible for educating team members on how to handle hazardous materials from cradle to grave. In her previous role working for the Spectrum Health and Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital Foundation, she worked with major donors and planned events to raise funds for various programs in need.  She has a Master’s degree in Sustainable Business from Aquinas College and Bachelor’s degree in Public and Non-Profit Administration from Grand Valley State University and is passionate about living and working sustainably. When she is not working you can find her hiking, doing yoga or cooking.

Dr. Adewale Adesanya is an energy and environmental consultant with wealth of experience in the energy sector across the globe. His expertise spans researching, energy systems modeling, energy justice, energy policy analysis, and climate advocacy towards clean and renewable energy transition. Dr. Adesanya has worked extensively on clean energy systems development in the context of technology, project management, public engagement, and policy dimensions. He has about two decades industrial working and researching experience across the globe, including in the U.S., Germany, Scotland, Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya and Tuvalu in the production, oil and gas, renewable energy and public service regulatory sectors. Dr. Adesanya has worked and is still working in collaboration with utilities, stakeholders, community members, and various state energy regulators and authorities to develop pathways to renewable energy transition, net zero emission economy, and energy efficiency. Dr. Adesanya received a Ph.D. degree in Environmental and Energy Policy from Michigan Technological University, where he worked extensively on the analysis of pathways to just 100 percent renewable energy in the U.S. He holds a Master of Engineering degree in Energy and Environmental Management from Europa Universität Flensburg, Germany and a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial and Production Engineering at University of Ibadan, Nigeria. Dr. Adesanya is an associate member of Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2), one of the awardees of the prestigious 40 under 40 Energy News Network for the year 2020 and an En-ROADS Climate Ambassador.