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  • 2013
  • Chapter
  • Constructing Green: The Social Structures of Sustainability

Beyond Platinum: Making the Case for Titanium Buildings

By: Jock Herron, Amy C. Edmondson and Robert G. Eccles
  • Format:Print
  • | Pages:24
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Abstract

Buildings are the nation's greatest energy consumers. Forty percent of all our energy is used for heating, cooling, lighting, and powering machines and devices in buildings. And despite decades of investment in green construction technologies, residential and commercial buildings remain stubbornly energy inefficient. This book looks beyond the technological and material aspects of green construction to examine the cultural, social, and organizational shift that sustainable building requires, examining the fundamental challenge to centuries-long traditions in design and construction that green building represents. The contributors consider the changes associated with green building through a sociological and organizational lens. They discuss shifts in professional expertise created by new social concerns about green building, including evolving boundaries of professional jurisdictions; changing industry strategies and structures, including the roles of ownership, supply firms, and market niches; new operational, organizational, and cultural arrangements, including the mainstreaming of environmental concerns; narratives and frames that influence the perception of green building; and future directions for the theory and practice of sustainable construction. The essays offer uniquely multidisciplinary insights into the transformative potential of green building and the obstacles that must be overcome to make it the norm.

Keywords

Buildings and Facilities; Energy; Attitudes; Environmental Sustainability; Construction Industry; Green Technology Industry; United States

Citation

Herron, Jock, Amy C. Edmondson, and Robert G. Eccles. "Beyond Platinum: Making the Case for Titanium Buildings." Chap. 4 in Constructing Green: The Social Structures of Sustainability, by Rebecca L. Henn and Andrew J. Hoffman, 77–100. MIT Press, 2013.
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About The Author

Amy C. Edmondson

Technology and Operations Management
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More from the Authors
  • Rethink Your Employee Value Proposition: Offer Your People More Than Just Flexibility By: Mark Mortensen and Amy C. Edmondson
  • Executive Decision-Making at Zola By: Amy C. Edmondson and Michael Roberto
  • Building a Mishap-Free U.S. Navy By: Amy C. Edmondson, Herman B. Leonard, Michael W. Toffel and Michael Norris
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