Hampshire College Goes 100% Solar

At Bruner/Cott, we know Hampshire College best for being home to the R.W. Kern Center, a project we completed in 2016 that was designed to meet the rigorous requirements of the Living Building Challenge. The building aims to make a lasting impression on all who enter by demonstrating Hampshire’s commitment to a sustainable future, while inspiring the next generation of leaders in environmentally conscious practices. The Kern Center is completely self-sustaining, generating its own energy, capturing its own water, and processing its own waste. Just last year, the building generated 28% more solar electricity than it used.

However, Hampshire’s commitment to going green does not stop at the Kern Center. The entire college is now running completely on solar power generated on its campus as part of its Climate Action Plan and Sustainability initiative. This initiative includes rooftop solar arrays, like the ones on the roof of the R.W. Kern Center, on structures such as the CSA Barn, the president’s house, and the canopy on top of the Chuck and Polly Longsworth Arts Center.

“There’s a major shift in the way the world makes energy,” said Hampshire College President, Jonathan Lash. “Who’s going to design new energy systems and manage that transition? It will be students like ours who were on a campus that went 100-percent solar and who studied these systems and their impacts. This makes a difference to our educational mission. This is the economy of the future.”

Congratulations to all at Hampshire College for this achievement in sustainability!

To learn more, visit the Hampshire College website.

Hampshire College Goes 100% Solar

At Bruner/Cott, we know Hampshire College best for being home to the R.W. Kern Center, a project we completed in 2016 that was designed to meet the rigorous requirements of the Living Building Challenge. The building aims to make a lasting impression on all who enter by demonstrating Hampshire’s commitment to a sustainable future, while inspiring the next generation of leaders in environmentally conscious practices. The Kern Center is completely self-sustaining, generating its own energy, capturing its own water, and processing its own waste. Just last year, the building generated 28% more solar electricity than it used.

However, Hampshire’s commitment to going green does not stop at the Kern Center. The entire college is now running completely on solar power generated on its campus as part of its Climate Action Plan and Sustainability initiative. This initiative includes rooftop solar arrays, like the ones on the roof of the R.W. Kern Center, on structures such as the CSA Barn, the president’s house, and the canopy on top of the Chuck and Polly Longsworth Arts Center.

“There’s a major shift in the way the world makes energy,” said Hampshire College President, Jonathan Lash. “Who’s going to design new energy systems and manage that transition? It will be students like ours who were on a campus that went 100-percent solar and who studied these systems and their impacts. This makes a difference to our educational mission. This is the economy of the future.”

Congratulations to all at Hampshire College for this achievement in sustainability!

To learn more, visit the Hampshire College website.

Frost Terrace Wins Unanimous City Approval

Last month, the 1791 Mass Ave/Frost Terrace project was unanimously approved by the Cambridge Board of Zoning Appeal. This development will create 40 new, long-term, completely affordable homes for families and individuals in the Porter Square neighborhood. It is transit-oriented, providing future tenants with immediate pedestrian and bicycle access to the Porter Square T and commercial district, reducing the need to own cars.

The hearing lasted 3.5 hours, with deliberations surrounding issues such as lack of parking spaces. However, the design team did receive praise for its responsiveness to the comments of the Planning Board and the project’s ability to house “40 families who otherwise wouldn’t be able to live in Cambridge.” By the end of the evening, all five board members voted in favor of the permit.

Read more about the Zoning Board Hearing.

About 1791 Mass Ave:

Bruner/Cott is working with Capstone Communities and Hope Real Estate Enterprises to transform and expand an existing run-down 19th-century home into new housing. 1791 Mass Ave will provide long-term affordable housing for families and individuals with a design that complements the existing neighborhood and historic context, incorporates environmental sustainability, and promotes alternative transportation.

Visit the project website to learn more.

 

JUST Certified Case Study: Bruner/Cott

In 2016, Bruner/Cott became the first New England company to receive the International Living Future Institute’s JUST label, a “nutrition label” for socially just and equitable organizations to disclose their operations, including how they treat their employees and where they make financial and community investments.

Having been recognized as a JUST firm for almost two full years, the International Living Future Institute featured Bruner/Cott as a certified JUST case study, reporting on how the firm has benefited from and leveraged the JUST label in that time. The case study was completed and submitted by Sara Draper, Sustainability and Engagement Strategist at Bruner/Cott, who was instrumental in our initial pursuit of the JUST label. (Thanks, Sara!)

Included in the case study are some of the lessons learned about ourselves as an organization as a result of the JUST application process, key benefits of pursuing the JUST label, and the consequential changes to organization policies and practices as a result of JUST.

To read the full case study on the International Living Future website, click here.

To view Bruner/Cott’s JUST organization profile, click here.