Commercial, Energy Efficiency, Solar - October 28, 2019
Georgia Tech dedicates sustainable, living building on campus
The Georgia Institute of Technology on Oct. 24 dedicated its newest building on campus, a regenerative facility that is changing the landscape for sustainable building practices.
Each year, the “living” building will generate more on-site electricity than it consumes and collect and harvest more water than it uses. It is the first academic and research building in the Southeast designed to be certified as a living building by the International Living Future Institute.
Georgia Tech received funding for the project from the Kendeda Fund, which included $25 million to design and build a regenerative building on campus despite the heat and humidity of the location. An additional $5 million will support programming activities once the building is certified.
“The Kendeda Building is an incredible and beautiful example of sustainable design, integration with nature, human inclusion and well-being,” Georgia Tech President Ángel Cabrera said in a statement. It is the most sustainable building of its kind in the Southeast. Thanks to our partnership with the Kendeda Fund, it will inspire architects, civil engineers, business and policy leaders for generations to come.”
The building supplies energy to itself through a rooftop of solar panels. Additionally, it features a rainwater-to-drinking-water system, the first of its kind in a commercial building in the Southeast.
“Once you learn how to build and operate a living building, you can’t unlearn it,” Shan Arora, director of The Kendeda Building. “Through this process, we’re creating the local supply chain, the workforce, and the best practices for other buildings in the region to use living building elements.”
The next steps for The Kendeda Building include earning its Living Building Challenge 3.1 certification by proving its self-sufficiency and connection to the growth of its community, as well as getting the on-site water treatment system certified by state environmental regulators.
The Kendeda Building will host several events in the fall and then open fully in the spring for classes.
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