SUSTAINABILITY IS THE FOUNDATION OF GREEN ARCHITECTURE

FROG ARCH was established to give an independent evaluation of products claiming to be Green. Each product reviewed in FROG ARCH has gone through a thorough evaluation based on a baseline building including the core criterion. Each Editor of FROG ARCH are LEED AP professionals and have a passion for Sustainable Design and are certifying LEED projects or have had projects certified using USGBC's LEED program.

Core Criterion:

• Energy Efficiency - This is the single most important building performance feature for our resources and being better stewards of the environment.
• Water Efficiency - In the Southwest US, the water shortage demands immediate attention. It is a high-priority, regional & National issue.
• Low-Impact Materials - The embodied energy of building materials is directly related to global energy use. Good selection of materials will extend the energy efficiency standard beyond the building walls. Consider the manufacturing processes, extraction, manufacturing, and shipping processes, recycled content, recyclability, life cycle, toxicity, and resource consumption when selecting materials. A evaluation on “Common sense” maintenance should also be considered (i.e. will the building manager truly follow instructions for maintenance).