An EBie Awaits You: Submissions Open for 2013 Existing Buildings Award

Urban Green's EBies recognize professionals who work behind the scenes to make existing buildings perform sustainably.
Image: Urban Green

2/19/13 Update: Urban Green has posted a new EBie scorecard demonstrating how entries will be scored—worth checking out, with the submission deadline close on our heels!

The EBie Awards—the "Oscars of sustainable building"—will be announced by Urban Green, a chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council, in New York City on June 19, 2013, so now is the time to throw your name in the hat.

In case you didn't tune in for the first EBie Awards, here's a rundown from the EBie website on what it's all about:

The EBie Awards™ are a nationwide juried competition for people working in Existing Buildings who have made great strides in improving environmental performance but whose accomplishments may otherwise go unheralded.

Who are these unsung heroes? The EBies™ recognize significant increased environmental performance in existing buildings among building operators, facilities managers, owners, engineers, retro-commissioning agents and other professionals who conceived and implemented the work. Focus areas include energy, water, operations, materials use, lighting and tenant engagement.

Urban Green hopes you'll take the EBie awards seriously—after all, do the Emmys or the Tonies require data from EPA’s Portfolio Manager to accompany all submissions? But it also is putting on a fun celebration that brings to the forefront the kind of work that has to be done by someone to bring our existing building stock in line with energy and environmental standards like LEED-EBOM—work that is tough, dirty, slogging, slow, and thankless.

The sense of fun that Urban Green brings to it shines through in the categories in which they recognize winners:

• THE ALL-ROUNDER
• THE SMOOTH OPERATOR
• THE REFORMED GAS GUZZLER
• SHINE A LIGHT ON ME
• THE REFORMED DRINKER
• IT TAKES A VILLAGE
• VERDANT BRAINIAC

If you're wondering if you have what it takes, you can see the submission criteria, and the blessedly concise submission form, on the EBie website. Just remember—get your submission in by February 26th!

For a look at the fun that the 2012 finalists had on the green carpet, check out these photos.