Working Together for Our Collective Well-being

To our friends and colleagues in the green building world,

We are now, in the most challenging sense, living in interesting times. As of today very few of us in North America are suffering from the illness caused by COVID-19, but we’re all experiencing its secondary effects: efforts to contain it that are shutting down gatherings, schools, and businesses. And, despite our best efforts now, we’re aware that widespread illness and even loss of life are increasingly likely in the near future.

My friends in Italy, who lived through war in the Balkans, say that what they’re going through now is familiar. Some readings of the trend lines suggest that we in the U.S. are following Italy’s trajectory; we’re just a couple of weeks behind. We’re at war with a virus. And, for now, we don’t have the right ammunition. So our best defense is to hide.

Meanwhile, the stock market is crashing in anticipation of the economic havoc that’s coming, either from the virus itself or from our collective evasive maneuvers. And those of us who can are stocking up on supplies in an irrational frenzy that causes the very shortages we fear.

As I sit in the comfort of my home, in the relative safety of Brattleboro, Vermont, I’m worried about the health of my family and friends, I’m worried about my life savings, and I’m worried about our little business, which is so wonderfully intertwined with many of yours.

Despite the worries, I have great confidence that we’ll get through this intact. There may well be tragedies in our lives, but we humans are remarkably resilient. It’s even conceivable that we will emerge from this disruption with newfound potential to come together and address other threats to our collective well-being: climate change, pollution, loss of habitat, and social inequities.

In the short term, we at BuildingGreen are doing all the obvious things—working from home to minimize physical contact, washing our hands well and often, avoiding unnecessary travel. We’re doing all we can to stay sane and well-rested, and to support each other as we find our own footing in the constantly changing circumstances.

We’re also working hard on all the ways we can continue to support you—the champions of the green building world. While we’d prefer, of course, to be with you in person, we can do a lot of sharing and learning from a distance, thanks to the magic of the Internet. And we’re lucky that many of our services are already online.

So please keep in touch. Please share your thoughts in the comments and contact us directly if there’s anything we can do to help you stay on track with the important work you do, despite the disruptions. And take good care of yourself and those around you.

Nadav Malin, President

BuildingGreen, Inc.