] That year, the U.S. Green Building Council launched a program to
] accredit building professionals in environmental design. Interest in
] the program, called LEED, for Leadership in Energy and Environmental
] Design, has skyrocketed. Since 2000, about 19,000 people have been
] accredited, 9,000 in the last month alone.

My dad was recently accredited as LEED instructor. He's the one that got me thinking about sustainability and energy issues, and it's one of those things that snowballs once you learn more and more about it (like info security).

The U.S. Green Building Council (http://www.usgbc.org/) and LEED are helping to establish methods by which the environmental friendliness of buildings can be measured, however this system is still in its infancy. For one, the current "Green Building" system uses points to determine just how "Green" your building is, so a silver or a gold rating doesn't necessarily mean that you don't commit gross environmental negligences.

They're on their way, however. LEED certification is more stringent than either GREEN or Energy Star (www.energystar.gov) and all help to mitigate a long-undiagnosed problem. The key idea to remember is that energy resource scarcity affects everyone who cares even remotely for the next generation[s] of people regardless of whether or not you hug trees.

RE: Smart buildings gain momentum