BuildingEnergy Boston 2025 Sessions
Thursday
| Session Title | Speakers | Room | Areas of Focus |
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The Materials Revolution It's time to build the movement! Bio-based or natural materials are the future, and we'll discuss the role they are playing in shaping the industry. The Bio-Based Materials Collective brings together diverse actors in the built environment to... Full Description |
Harbor 1 |
Health and Comfort Justice and Equity Material Impacts Training and Workforce Development |
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Modular Multifamily Passive House: Design, Build, and Verify LaMora Senior Living in Westchester, NY is the first completely modular Phius certified multifamily building in the world. This session presents the challenges faced relative to enclosure design, construction, and verification of this project,... Full Description |
Harbor 2 |
Enclosure and Structure Process and Practice Management |
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Slashing Upfront Embodied Carbon: How to Replicate Success Learn lessons from prize-winning submissions to MassCEC’s Embodied Carbon Challenge, as well as One Boston Wharf Road, a 17-story net zero operational carbon office building that reduced upfront embodied carbon dramatically while reaching net... Full Description |
Harbor 3 |
Enclosure and Structure Material Impacts Process and Practice Management |
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Building Momentum: Lessons from the Field of Decarbonization Retrofits in Boston Boston is becoming a hotbed of innovation for equitable approaches to retrofitting existing buildings with a focus on affordable housing. This panel will highlight the hard-earned lessons from project leaders at the bleeding edge who are hurdling... Full Description |
Marina 1 |
Enclosure and Structure Health and Comfort |
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Anti-Racism In Action Join us for a facilitated conversation around the topic of structural racism in the construction industry, using a format that NESEA's Anti Racist Action Group (ARAG) follows in its meetings. Led by experienced members of ARAG, as a group we’ll... Full Description |
Marina 3-4 |
Justice and Equity Process and Practice Management |
| Session Title | Speakers | Room | Areas of Focus |
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Beyond the Data: The Humanity of Radical, Regenerative Retrofits As practitioners, we are often so distracted by the data, payback, or whether a decision makes financial sense, that we lose sight of the real meaning of our work and why it is essential to meet zero carbon and resiliency goals. Perhaps we even... Full Description |
Harbor 1 |
Enclosure and Structure Health and Comfort Justice and Equity Process and Practice Management |
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Beyond the Building: Climate Justice and the Solidarity Economy Explore how place-based strategies rooted in solidarity and economic justice can foster equity and build resilience beyond the buildings we build and companies we run. We'll talk about the the transformative power of cooperatives, community land... Full Description |
Harbor 2 |
Finance and Incentives Justice and Equity Process and Practice Management Training and Workforce Development |
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What's Old is New Again: Renewing Historic Enclosures for Modern Performance Improving the performance of existing building stock presents challenges, but can also provide surprising opportunities. This presentation looks at exterior retrofits in academic institutions in NY and CT ranging from 70-100 years old. The three... Full Description |
Harbor 3 |
Enclosure and Structure Material Impacts Process and Practice Management |
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Roadmap to Scaling: Best Practices from CO2 Heat Pump Water Heater System Pilots The complexities of effectively implementing and operating system-level innovations makes pilots prone to failure, impeding their scalability. To increase the likelihood of pilot success, we propose a paradigm shift toward an iterative and data-... Full Description |
Marina 1 |
MEP Systems Operations and Maintenance Process and Practice Management |
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Carbon in the Landscape: A New Frontier in the Whole-Carbon Approach This session will explore how strategies from the 2023 MA Healthy Soils Action Plan (HSAP) can transform our approach to site development and expand the carbon counting boundary. We’ll look at current development practices and present some of the... Full Description |
Marina 3-4 |
Health and Comfort Operations and Maintenance Policy, Codes and Standards Process and Practice Management |
| Session Title | Speakers | Room | Areas of Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
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RESNET Standard 1550: Embodied Carbon Comes of Age Building Energy Boston 2019 launched awareness of embodied carbon as a key issue for the home building sector. The following five years marked major advances in understanding and measuring EC. The question quickly changed from "what is embodied... Full Description |
Harbor 1 |
Material Impacts Policy, Codes and Standards Training and Workforce Development |
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In the Last Analysis: An Electrified Town Garage for the 21st Century Details matter in this analysis of a challenging building type, a 9000sf Vermont town garage. First principles were applied to assess HVAC cases: two heat-pump types, two combustion fuels, with and without photovoltaics. Baseline code metal... Full Description |
Harbor 2 |
Enclosure and Structure Energy Production and Storage Material Impacts MEP Systems |
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Aggressive Continuous Commissioning: A Decade of Energy and Carbon Reduction at Liberty Mutual Tower Over the past decade, the LEED Gold-certified Liberty Mutual Tower at 157 Berkeley Street has made significant strides in energy and carbon reduction through aggressive continuous commissioning and other infrastructure upgrades, making it one of... Full Description |
Harbor 3 |
Health and Comfort MEP Systems Operations and Maintenance Policy, Codes and Standards |
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Scaling Mass Timber Construction in Dense Urban Environments: Three Not-So-Little Projects Using mass timber construction instead of concrete and steel can greatly reduce the embodied carbon of new construction, but faces specific challenges in dense urban environments in addition to limited contractor experience and cost risk. This... Full Description |
Marina 1 |
Enclosure and Structure Health and Comfort Material Impacts Policy, Codes and Standards |
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The Curb-Cut Effect: Practical Tools for Engaging Neurodiverse Project Teams Research estimates that at least 25% of people working in the AEC industry are neurodivergent, and yet most project teams are organized with the neurotypical brain in mind. Given that high-performance project teams require a high degree of... Full Description |
Marina 3-4 |
Justice and Equity Process and Practice Management Training and Workforce Development |
| Session Title | Speakers | Room | Areas of Focus |
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Getting a Phius Project to the Phinish Line: What You Need to Know This panel will feature three construction professionals: architect, builder and rater/verifier, who have completed multiple certified Phius projects. Each professional will bring their unique perspective on what is needed to successfully... Full Description |
Harbor 1 |
Policy, Codes and Standards Process and Practice Management |
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Exterior Wall Insulation: Don’t Eat Your Sweater! Modern energy codes and requirements for high performance result in implementation of continuous exterior wall insulation. The speakers will explain the fundamental benefits of exterior insulation, walk through decade-old research on cladding... Full Description |
Harbor 2 |
Enclosure and Structure |
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A Total Carbon Analysis Conversation: Balancing Operational and Embodied Carbon When it comes to the impact of buildings on the environment, considering both operational and embodied carbon is critical. Balancing these can be a complex task, sometimes with conflicting outcomes. This session will discuss case studies... Full Description |
Harbor 3 |
Enclosure and Structure Material Impacts Policy, Codes and Standards |
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Blighted Site to Thriving Community: High-Performance Buildings for a Healthy Neighborhood An abandoned industrial site in Lawrence, MA is now home to 80 low-income families, living in Phius certified apartments near a riverway, public transportation, and shared recreational resources. This transformation includes the adaptive reuse of... Full Description |
Marina 1 |
Enclosure and Structure Energy Production and Storage Finance and Incentives Health and Comfort |
Friday
| Session Title | Speakers | Room | Areas of Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
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Scale Up/Carbon Down: A Regenerative Approach to the Housing and Climate Crises This session will lay out in detail a comprehensive plan to simultaneously solve both the regional housing shortage and the building industry’s contribution to the climate crisis. Alan Gibson, cofounder and owner of GO Logic, LLC, and Andrew... Full Description |
Harbor 1 |
Enclosure and Structure Health and Comfort Material Impacts Process and Practice Management |
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Change Agents: This Is What Community Looks Like A panel discussion with leaders of advocacy communities who embody the UN-Bruntland definition of sustainability: “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” We will hear from... Full Description |
Harbor 2 |
Justice and Equity Policy, Codes and Standards |
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Regenerative Economics for Regenerative Times Regenerative practices are emerging in design, construction, systems ecology, and economics that may be equal to the multi-faceted existential challenge of our times. Yet despite their potential, finance for regenerative projects remains elusive... Full Description |
Harbor 3 |
Finance and Incentives Justice and Equity Material Impacts Process and Practice Management |
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Working Smarter Not Harder: The Power of Teamwork in Multifamily PH Projects With Passive House (PH) certification becoming typical, or code-required, throughout the Northeast, ensuring smart and efficient project team collaboration is critical to success. This session will showcase five experts in PH certification,... Full Description |
Marina 1 |
Process and Practice Management Training and Workforce Development |
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Building Material Reuse: The Time for Circularity Is Here! The building industry is assembling a circular economy, and we need you! Participants of all roles (architects, contractors, owners, fabricators, policymakers, etc.) are invited to learn what it takes to move from circular theory into enacting... Full Description |
Marina 3-4 |
Enclosure and Structure Material Impacts Process and Practice Management |
| Session Title | Speakers | Room | Areas of Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
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Decarb Do No Harm: Applying the Hippocratic Oath to Existing Buildings Gone are the days of simple light fixture changes to save money and power. The low-hanging efficiency fruit has been harvested, and building owners, utilities and municipalities are in search of the next quick fix. But taking a standard new... Full Description |
Harbor 1 |
Health and Comfort Justice and Equity Material Impacts MEP Systems |
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Grid-Interactive Solutions for Sustainable Electrification As large-scale electrification and decarbonization accelerate, it's critical to mitigate the impacts of increased demand to the grid. This session will explore the role of grid-interactivity measures in new construction or major renovation... Full Description |
Harbor 2 |
Energy Production and Storage MEP Systems Operations and Maintenance |
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Just Do This! Proven Details and Strategies for Simple High Performance Homes Come learn from a? ?Design/Build company that has been building market rate high performance and PHIUS certified homes in RI for over 10 years. Our experience has proven that high performance building doesnt have to be complicated. Lets make it... Full Description |
Harbor 3 |
Enclosure and Structure Health and Comfort Material Impacts MEP Systems |
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Historic Buildings, Modern Solutions: Decarbonization Strategies for Multifamily Landmarks This session explores the decarbonization strategies of two landmark build-ings. Harlem River Houses, a public housing preservation project with lowrise walk-ups, is decentralizing its heating system and installing new heat pumps for heating and... Full Description |
Marina 1 |
Enclosure and Structure Health and Comfort Material Impacts MEP Systems |
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Breaking the Design Bubble: Community Engagement and Youth Empowerment The design profession has responded creatively and urgently to climate impacts, but there is more! We must ensure that design responses are socially equitable and tap into the immense knowledge and creativity that communities hold. In addition,... Full Description |
Marina 3-4 |
Justice and Equity Process and Practice Management |
| Session Title | Speakers | Room | Areas of Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
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Refrigerants: Rethinking their Role in Electrification This panel will analyze the impacts of the EPA's Technology Transitions Program, including the phasedown of HFCs and the adoption of A2L refrigerants, which present new challenges for design teams and building owners. Panelists will explore the... Full Description |
Harbor 1 |
MEP Systems Operations and Maintenance Policy, Codes and Standards |
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Moving the Needle on ADU Policy and Production ADUs can help us take advantage of existing infrastructure and developed land in order to build bigger, faster momentum in increasing availability of resilient housing stock. Join us as we explore exciting developments in ADU and density policies... Full Description |
Harbor 2 |
Enclosure and Structure Finance and Incentives Policy, Codes and Standards Process and Practice Management |
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Addressing Thermal Bridges that Arise During Construction Catching and solving thermal bridges in the building envelope that arise during construction can truly be the determining factor between whether the finished building meets the intended designed performance or not. All too often we see a thermal... Full Description |
Harbor 3 |
Enclosure and Structure |
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Open Source: Sharing Climate Knowledge for Speed, Scale and Inclusion This year’s conference challenges us to think about how to build the movement by reaching beyond our traditional networks and silos. We have no time to spare to implement some of the biggest paradigm shifts of modern society. Join us to explore... Full Description |
Marina 1 |
Justice and Equity Material Impacts Process and Practice Management Training and Workforce Development |
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Moving Beyond: Leveraging Moral Imagination to Accelerate Systems Change Expanding leadership skills and perspectives is vital to breaking through “business as usual” mindsets and enacting industry-wide change. Using an interactive moral imagination exercise, we guide participants to reflect and experience the Inner... Full Description |
Marina 3-4 |
Justice and Equity Process and Practice Management Training and Workforce Development |
| Session Title | Speakers | Room | Areas of Focus |
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Low-Carbon Envelopes: Insights from Moisture Data in Biogenic Material Walls It is no longer sufficient to provide high-performance envelopes without considering their broader embodied impacts. Thankfully, data helps confirm the durability of enclosures using low-carbon and biogenic materials. This session examines two... Full Description |
Harbor 1 |
Enclosure and Structure Health and Comfort Material Impacts |
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Three Routes to Work: Recruiting, Retaining and Upskilling Our Workforce Is there a one size fits all workforce development strategy for the built environment? NO! We will present three distinct approaches to workforce development that represent different needs and goals of the industry. Here’s a sneak peek: we’ll... Full Description |
Harbor 2 |
Justice and Equity Training and Workforce Development |
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Creating Harmony: Overcoming Challenges in Passive House Multifamily Design The Passive House building is the song; the design team is the band. Cold Spring Apartments, a New York affordable housing project, exemplifies this symphony of collaboration. For many team members this is their first Passive House project, with... Full Description |
Harbor 3 |
Enclosure and Structure Material Impacts MEP Systems |
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Scaling Embodied Carbon Through Building Codes This presentation will provide an overview of strategies to introduce and enhance embodied carbon provisions in major model codes and standards. The presentation will look at code adoption at the state and local levels to start to form a picture... Full Description |
Marina 1 |
Material Impacts Policy, Codes and Standards |
