From tours of L.A.’s top sustainable projects to captivating speakers such as cultural innovator Bjarke Ingels to an exhibition hall showcasing 500-plus exhibitors, you won’t want to miss a minute of the Greenbuild International Conference and Expo happening in early October
Written by Wendy Bowman | Photography by Greenbuild International Conference & Expo
The U.S. Greenbuilding Council is bringing the world’s largest event dedicated to sustainable building to L.A. for the first time. Set for Oct. 3-8 (with the Conference and Expo portion of the gathering taking place Oct. 5-7 at the Los Angeles Convention Center) “Greenbuild 2016: Iconic Green” unites building professionals from around the globe for a week of networking and education, plus an inside look at today’s cutting-edge equipment, products, services and technologies.
“L.A. is an eclectic city and is a great fit for Greenbuild,” says Lindsay Roberts, group director of Informa Exhibitions. “This area has a substantial amount of sustainable initiatives—from government buildings to Hollywood to beautiful green-space—and the challenges California is dealing with relative to water and drought are excellent case studies for our educational offerings.”
Attendees can expect the Conference and Expo to include three days of inspiring speakers such as award-winning photographer, explorer, author and environmental advocate Sebastian Copeland; summits on water conservation and the latest market trends transforming the green-building industry; LEED workshops; and 13 specialty product pavilions and 500-plus exhibitors (including the Greenbuild Show Home and a Net Zero Zone powered 100 percent by alternative energy collected on-site). Other activities throughout the week include the popular Green Building tours—with behind-the-scenes looks at everything from the sustainable development in the L.A. Sports and Entertainment District to adaptive reuse projects in the downtown Arts District.
Among the must-attend events? The Greenbuild Plenary & Celebration Oct. 6 at Microsoft Theater/L.A. Live—with speeches by Lt. Gov. of California Gavin Newsom, outgoing USGBC CEO Rick Fedrizzi, and renowned author and journalist Sebastian Junger, followed by an outdoor concert with Aloe Blacc and X Ambassadors at L.A. Live. Not to mention the Closing Plenary Oct. 7 showcasing noted architect Bjarke Ingels.
