This paper addresses opportunities available for meeting sustainability objectives in building construction by using the conceptual alignments of Open Building and LEED™ Rating. These two systems utilize hierarchical, scalar categorizations to structure issues of design as a set of nested constructs and function as methodologies for affecting both problem definition and the management of strategic design process.
Each system addresses the distribution of control in the design decision−making process as a positioning of decisions in space and time. Establishing the correlation of the two systems can facilitate the conversation among all participants involved in the origination, construction, use, and management of buildings−and their systems−as they seek to assure the sustainability of what they design, build, and use.
