Google's unoffical motto is don't be evil.  And they seem to be living up to that goal.  Google has made an another $94 million investment solar.  This time to build four solar farms near Sacramento, Calif., in a project expected to provide 13,000 homes with power.

The project marks Google's first larger scale investment in the U.S. involving solar PV power plants that generate energy for the grid. Earlier this year, it helped install solar PV panels on some 10,000 rooftops in partnership with Solar City. See Video.

Center for Green Schools at U.S. Green Building Council Releases "Best of Green Schools 2011" List Recognizing Leadership in Creating Sustainable Learning Environments 

From net-zero schools to game-changing policies, 
recipients recognized for efforts to green U.S. school infrastructure

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Dec. 12, 2011) -The U.S. Green Building Council's Center for Green Schools, working in conjunction with its founding sponsor, United Technologies Corp., today released its inaugural Best of Green Schools 2011 list recognizing school administrators and government leaders in 10 categories for their efforts to create sustainable learning environments.

Proven environmental credentials are fast becoming a prerequisite for materials evaluation and selection.  Replacing the seemingly endless flow of unfettered Greenwashing claims saturating the marketplace. 

A movement has begun to formalize a process of evaluating the environmental benefits and cost of Green building materials. Many European nations are closing in on requiring Environmental Product Declarations (EPD), a universal system of evaluation based on third-party comparison of data across pre-established categories, and the notion is also gaining traction in the U.S.

The ABC Green Home is maybe the greenest home in America.  It will be LEED certified, it meets 5 other major Green certifications, and obtains the holy grail of energy efficieny - Net Zero.  But what makes the ABC Green Home worth learning about is that its truely affordable.

Discover the hottest trends and tech in green building materials. Join Green Building Pro as we take you Toronto for Green Build the largest Green Building expo in the world. Watch all 3 videos and stay up to date with the newest breakthroughs in Green Building for 2011-2012. This video  show cases innovations in green and recycled matierals. Click Read More to see video.

Green Building is a growth economy because it offers greater efficiency of energy and materials. But green also requires innovative skills and knowledge. With the right training there are new jobs and opportunities available. Are you prepared to make the most of your career?

Abe’s Comments:
Propaganda for young people to get into green collar jobs. Nicely done, feel good video. Is it a bit overly optimistic or powerfully creating the future, You tell me. What are your comments?

Confused about LEED certifications and accreditations? This videos lays it all out; from the different types of LEED buildings to the path for getting your own LEED accreditation.

Abe’s Comments:
Unlike most videos about LEED this one doesn’t suck. It’s professionally done and is fun to watch.   Are you LEED accredited? If not, what’s stopping you? Serious - write down your excuse in the comment box.

Check out the latest innovations in Green Building for 2011-2012.  Green Building Pro takes you to Green Build Toronto to discover the future of Green Building.  You'll see advancements in ultra efficient lighting that go beyond LED.  There is a seek peak of Dirtt a modular interior system that reduce costs, time, and waste and look gorgeous.  

Click Read More to see the video.

New climate change studies released in the last 3 years effectively end the debate on Global Warming.  Why?  Because the findings are much worse and more sever than anything scientists had priviously modeled.   Author Eric Corey Freed explains what we have learned about climate change in the last 3 years and why building green is not enough.

In spite of the doom and gloom that surrounds home and commercial building these days, this year's PCBC show at the Moscone Center in downtown San Francisco was an energetic look at the products and technologies that are poised to shape the future of Green Building.  It was clear that, although the old West Coast Green show had been compressed into a salon inside of PCBC, there was an optimistic outlook on sustainable building and design and a belief that various forces (legislation, desire, economic incentive) are impacting our industry, resulting in a proliferation of new ideas that will help shape the future of green design.
In this video, you'll see some of the companies and products that we loved, and maybe one or two things that we didn't.  If you went and you think we missed something that was too cool to pass on, let us know and we'll dig it up for all to see in another segment.
And as always, thanks for Building Green!