If Retailers really want there buildings including offices, stores, warehouses and distribution centers to be green, it will not be easy. However the payoff in consumer confidence and long term energy savings may be well worth it

Te first step in driving green building practices is to commit to it as part of an overall corporate green strategy. This means more than initiating a plan to change the type of light bulbs one uses or monitoring refrigeration.

Once your company has embraced a green strategy as part of its CSR initiatives, it is then incumbent upon you to also hold your suppliers accountable to the same standards. It is much easier to achieve LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for your projects when the suppliers you use such as developers, landscapers and property management companies are LEED educated and certified and following the same type of initiatives that you do.

LEED certification which is managed by the U.S. Green Building Council or USGBC provides independent, third-party verification that a building project meets the highest green building and performance measures. Sustainable building strategies should be considered early in the development cycle. An integrated project team will include the major stakeholders of the project such as the developer/owner, architect, engineer, landscape architect, contractor, and asset and property management staff. Implementing an integrated, systems-oriented approach to green project design, development and operations can yield synergies and improve the overall performance of a building.

USGBC?s education programs are proactively changing in response to transformations to the LEED® Rating Systems, LEED-Online and LEED certification that comprise the new LEED v3 ? as well as to changes in the Green Building Certification Institute?s (GBCI) LEED credentialing program.

It may not be easy being green, but this author thinks it?s the right thing for you to do.

We look forward to an appreciate your comments.