Many builders and remodelers are going green with the help of NAHBGreen. The suite of services was unveiled in February 2008 to provide a comprehensive set of educational resources, advocacy tools, a credible green standard, and referrals to a national green home certification system by the NAHB Research Center, a qualified and independent third party. Collectively, these offerings help home builders anywhere build green.

While some of the impetus to build green is being dictated by policy makers, increased consumer awareness is also driving the growth in this sector, making green a self-fulfilling prophecy — the more consumers are exposed to the benefits of green homes, the more demand we will see. Accordingly, NAHBGreen helps prepare the industry for the increasing interest in sustainable construction by educating and credentialing building professionals, developing measurements for green building, and advocating at the national level for credible, voluntary, and market-sensitive green building initiatives.

NAHBGreen includes:

Education about Green Building

NAHB educates its members and the home building industry as a whole about green building practices. The Certified Green Professional (CGP) and Master Certified Green Professional (MCGP) are designations available to help home building professionals demonstrate their expertise in green building. Additionally, extensive green building educational and networking opportunities are available through such venues as the National Green Building Conference & Expo, the International Builders’ Show, and other industry-sponsored events.

Each year, NAHB honors excellence in green residential design, construction practices, and outstanding green advocacy efforts at the National Green Building Awards.

The National Green Building Standard

The foremost green rating system for residential construction in the United States, the ICC 700 National Green Building Standard can be used for rating new and remodeled single- and multifamily buildings as well as residential subdivisions. It is the first and only such residential green rating system to have earned the approval of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

Green Building Advocacy

NAHB actively promotes viable, credible, market-driven, and voluntary green building initiatives at the federal level and is likewise poised to assist state and local home building associations with such advocacy efforts.

Local Home Building Association Initiatives

Green Building happens at the local level and local Home Building Associations are key contributors to the growth of green. Many of these local associations have partnered with the NAHB Research Center to promote genuine green construction using certification to the National Green Building Standard.