plant a tree for Humanity

I recently enjoyed an interesting lunch with Dr. Jonathan Hochberg. Jonathan is Associate Director for the Executive MBA Program at the University of Texas at Dallas. Jonathan and his 6-year old son have established a non-profit called Trees for Humanity.

The mission of Trees for Humanity is to teach children the importance of planting trees as a way to help the environment. But Jonathan's vision goes beyond that......he is interested not only in planting trees but anything that will make our planet a better place for our children and children's children. Right now they are focusing on elementary schools in Texas but plans are in place to expand their program nationally as well as globally.

Trees for Humanity is currently sponsored by Whole Foods Market, Microsoft, Deloitte, Starwood Hotels, and Renner Tree Farms. They are interested in grants, donations, and/or corporate partnerships to acquire trees (saplings), soil, and shovels, as well as suggestions for contacting/organizing the Governors of states to get them on-board to support this intiative in their public schools.

It was a delight to visit with Jonathan. I am looking forward to meeting his son, Gabriel, and hope to be able to contribute my time to Trees for Humanity. If you want to help, please contact Jonathan at drjhoch@yahoo.com.

I took the photo (above) at Custer State Park, South Dakota, August 2008.

Dallas green building standard

In April 2008 the City of Dallas adopted a green building standard and established the long-term goal for Dallas to be Carbon Neutral by 2030. A more short-term goal is to achieve a 7% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 levels by 2012.

The city council established mandatory measures to take place in two phases:

Phase One - Mandatory Measures effective October 1, 2009

Projects less than 50,000 (residential & commercial) must use 15% less energy and 20% less water than current Dallas code standards.

Builders must prove that the 15% requirement has been met, using the following standards for compliance:

• Energy Star
• Green Built North Texas
• LEED for Homes, or
• Approved equivalent standard

Builders must also meet at least 4 of six water reduction requirements to meet the water reduction requirements. Roofs must also become more energy-efficient on buildings less than 50,000 sq ft.

Phase Two - Mandatory Measures effective October 1, 2011

All new Dallas construction must be certifiable under LEED for Homes standards established by the USGBC (US Green Building Council), or similar standards i.e. Green Built North Texas.

Further details available at http://www.greendallas.net/green_standard.html.