Urban Sustainability Forum 2007- One Planet Living: Creating the greenest neighborhoods in North America

Presenter: Greg Searle

ABOUT THE EVENT: One Planet Living, a non-profit joint initiative of the global conservation network WWF-International and sustainability experts BioRegional, is an endorsement given to a select handful of the greenest neighborhoods in the world. These Zero Carbon/Zero Waste mixed- use developments integrate the highest standards in green building, renewable energy, sustainable agriculture and transportation, biodiversity regeneration, and “green lifestyles” and set the most ambitious targets for green community development yet seen in North America. The goal: reduce the ecological footprint of residents by 80% to a truly sustainable, “one planet” level. This talk will share strategies that participating developers are using to achieve ambitious targets, as well as lessons learned at the multi-award winning BedZED - the UK’s largest urban eco-village and the prototype for One Planet Living. The average BedZED resident uses 87 liters less water and 58% less electricity per day, saves 1.3 tons of carbon emissions each year through green transportation, and saves 2.7 tons of carbon emissions each year through renewable heat & energy generation on- site. Total carbon savings per resident: 5.1 tons per year.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER: Greg Searle is the Executive Director of BioRegional North America. He is responsible for catalyzing partnerships with forward-thinking local authorities and real estate developers to build ambitious One Planet Living neighborhoods in North America, with initial projects in Washington DC, California, and Montreal. Greg speaks widely on sustainable neighborhoods and ecological footprinting, recently appearing at GreenBuild and the AIA National Convention, and guest lecturing on sustainability at Ryerson University and Texas A&M. Greg has lived in London, Rome, and Boston, and previously served as a strategic consultant to clients such as the United Nations (FAO - Rome) and the World Conservation Union (IUCN - Brussels).