Green development is a broader discipline than green building, encompassing several things for sustainable living. More and more people are beginning to understand its cost benefits, inbuilt values and the satisfaction of contributing to the environment.

Green development consists of three basic categories—
(1) Response to the environment
(2) Efficient use of available resources
(3) Sensitivity to the needs of the community and bonding of the cultural links.

Green development projects consider land use, site planning and building design in a sustainable manner paramount in the overall planning process.
The following guidelines help in successfully completing green development projects.
(1)Complete System Thinking: This is a process in which all the systems are interconnected and the solutions that address multiple problems at the same time are sought.
(2)Upfront Design: Green development projects generally require higher investment of money and time as compared to normal projects. But such investments can be recovered quickly by avoiding later stage expenses such as litigation, redesign and stalled construction.
(3)Requirements of the End User: It aims at understanding the needs and wishes of the end user thoroughly and incorporating them. It is a vital part of green design and development and aims at achieving all the financial, social and environmental objectives at the least cost.
(4)Involvement of the People: Since all the projects are for the people, they should be involved actively and make them feel that they are part of the thinking process. People should be allowed to contribute fully and community bonding will increase dramatically.
There are several sources of funding for green development projects and financial aspects should not be a deterrent for them.
Silting development correctly makes a big impact on the overall process and costs. Brownfield development, a complex one can be undertaken to reuse the abandoned areas and also improve the living conditions of the people in their vicinity. Infill development is an effective tool in containing sprawl which is becoming a wasteful expenditure and also contains the expansion of the inner cities. Sprawl development is taking a heavy toll on the existing infrastructure and funding sources, causing more hardship than gains.
Eco industrial parks can contribute significantly in reducing the waste, recycle the resources and reuse them again and again as all the businesses located there are useful to one another.
Deconstruction should be taken to recycle the materials rather than reconstruction as it benefits the environment better and economically well also.
Community issues like school crowding, traffic congestion, pedestrian safety and open spaces should be accorded top most priority as they are often relegated to the background to accommodate economic issues.
Energy efficient design and practices, usage of renewable resources, recycling of used products suitably can bring down the cost enough to complete the green development project within the budgetary estimates and avoid transgressing on the natural resources indiscriminately.
With the above guidelines and practices, we can complete green development projects all round us and live in a harmonious environment in tune with nature.

I watched this on Charlie Rose last night. Brad Pitt was interviewed and he talked about his efforts in rebuilding New Orleans using sustainable methods and products, all from the ground up. If you missed the program you can find out more on Make It Right. We can do it one community at a time.

To watch December 17th’s conversation with Charlie Rose and Brad Pitt tune in here:

Couple of professionals we have worked with in the past and highly recommend in the New Orleans area for Real Estate are Jeff Melancon and for your architectural needs, Rick Smith

They are crawfish experts as well!

Green Communities are an effective answer to the rampant industrialization and pollution pervading our society. Indiscriminate development, usage of frugal resources coupled with severe environmental degradation will make life unsustainable in the long run. The answer for this manmade calamity is “Green Communities” in which communities plan, implement and reach the goal of sustainable living, making life easy for the future generations. Green Communities cannot be built in a day and requires precision planning to reach the stated objectives.

We shall now discuss the various stages involved in building Green Communities.

(1)Assessment of the community we live in: A realistic assessment of your community gives its values, availability of natural and manmade resources, the exact economic status of the community, infrastructural facilities present and their capacity, the cohesiveness of social, economic and environmental issues and lastly the comparative standing with other communities.

(2)Directions the community is taking: It gives the direction in which we are heading without intervention. We can gauge the utilizations of available resources, change in demographics, land use patterns and industrial activities. How are the external forces affecting us? Only by meticulous planning can we overcome the obstacles. The next stage begs the question, “Where do we really want to be?”

(3)Our future can be determined by planning and plotting the obstacles to be surmounted to reach the desired objective encompassing everything from economy to environment. Once the goals are set, you can start working towards them unflinchingly. The community as a whole can train its guns towards common goals with the visualization acting as a starting point and base.

(4)After the visualization, forward action plans are to be put in place to translate dreams into reality. Action plans should include the goals, issues, concerns and responsibilities to reach the strategic objective. Priority should be accorded to urgent action and time frames for all other activities. Financial implications and needed resources are to be worked out before hand, so as not to lose focus during implementation.

(5)Tools required for implementation: Since the goal is for all, the entire community should be involved, so that the ultimate aim can be reached. Self introspection helps in improving laid out plans and the involvement of all keeps the spirit high. Small tasks with high success rates should be attempted first so that the smell of success sets the ball rolling faster. The very first step of success helps you in overcoming the tougher challenges that lie ahead.

Environment plans tackle watershed, well and storm water management and water conservation techniques.

Land use plans cover urban planning, traffic environment, greenery and site preservation.

Civic participation plans encourage volunteers for river monitoring, waste recycling and surveys.

Pollution prevention plans act at measurement and mitigation of pollution and recycling of existing resources to the extent possible.

Public facilities plans envisage drinking water, septic systems, wastewater treatment, landfills and material recovery.

Energy conservation plans deal with consumption and conservation of energy, alternative sources of energy.

Health plans monitor lead content, indoor and outdoor air quality, toxic materials and public health.

Natural disaster plans account for disaster management techniques and survival.

Financial grants are available to non profit organizations in their endeavor to help people to build green homes.

With the above stages involved in planning and implementation, you can build a “GREEN COMMUNITY,” paving the way for a healthy, livable and sustainable future.