ILFI's Just Label and SLO County's Family Friendly Workplace Program Promote Equity and Employee Success

Sample Just. label from ILFI

While exploring the International Living Future Institute’s (ILFI) Living Building Challenge as a green building certification option for projects, the In Balance team took a deep dive into the Just Label, which is one of the core imperatives of the certification. What is the Just Label?

While integral to LBC certification, Just also serves as a stand alone social justice “nutrition label” for participating organizations. The goals of the program include promoting transparency, elevating discussions around workplace social justice concerns, creating common language and measurement framework, and improving H.R. policies to make life better for workers.

The social justice categories included in the Just Label cover: Diversity & Inclusion, Equity, Employee Health, Employee Benefits, Stewardship, and Purchasing & Supply Chain. For each category, there are multiple indicators measured in one to four “squares” and organizations must report information on at least 16 of the 22 specific indicators to receive the label.

The four squares mark varying thresholds of achievement. For example, the levels under Gender Diversity are awarded as follows:

·       Level One: Organization has a written policy that documents commitment to a gender diverse workforce

·       Level Two: Meets Level One plus Women constitute at least 30% of the overall workforce; Women constitute at least 25% of the senior leadership team

·       Level Three: Meets Level Two plus Women constitute at least 40% of the overall workforce; Women constitute at least 30% of the senior leadership team

·       Level Four: Meets Level Three plus Women constitute at least 50% of the overall workforce; Women constitute at least 35% of the senior leadership team

Check out the ILFI Just Label website to learn more about the program!

As we were working on our own Just Label, In Balance wanted to explore other programs aligning with improving workplace policies and employee quality of life. We were thrilled to discover the San Luis Obispo County Chamber of Commerce’s Family-Friendly Workplace (FFWP) Accelerator Program. The program aims to measure how family-friendly an organization is by assessing existing policies and providing an opportunity to explore additional family-friendly policies to implement.

The assessment is broken down into 5 categories: Employer-Sponsored Child Care, Flexible Work & Scheduling, Paid & Unpaid Leave, Health Benefits & Flex Spending, and Parent Accommodations & Support. Award levels range from Bronze to Blue Diamond and are based on how many family-friendly policies are met in each category.

In Balance Green Consulting is proud to have been recognized by the SLO Chamber of Commerce on July 27th as a Diamond “Distinguished Champion” Family-Friendly Workplace through the program.

Visit the San Luis Obispo County Family-Friendly Workplaces website for more information on the program and to take the free assessment!

Both ILFI’s Just Label and San Luis Obispo (SLO) County Family-Friendly Workplaces program include policies addressing employee health care, physical health and well-being, family and medical leave, and flexible work arrangements, such as work from home. They are accessible to organizations of any size, from small firms, like In Balance Green Consulting with 6 employees, to larger organizations with thousands of employees. Both programs are excellent tools for organizations to assess current employee policies and benefits and find areas that could use improvement to create more equitable workplace environments and promote employee success.

New 2023 Requirements for HVAC Refrigerants

California has been on a path to reduce manufactured chemicals that contribute to air pollution, water pollution, ozone depletion and global warming.  One classification of chemicals used throughout the building industry that the California Air Resources Board (CARB) regulates is hydrofluorocarbons (HFC). HFCs are used as refrigerants in stationary refrigerator systems, stationary air-conditioners, chillers, and other end uses such as foam blowing agents. The most recent step in the phase down of HFCs took effect Jan 1, 2023, and more will follow in 2024, 2025 and 2026.

As architects and design professionals, we do not have direct control over a particular manufacturer, but we do have a collective interest in providing our clients with the most current industry and regulatory information, including discussion of refrigerants. By giving clients the opportunity to future-proof their development and meaningfully participate in project development, we can help reduce the building’s contribution to global warming emissions and pollution.

For some of the more common heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) end-uses, CARB has opted to regulate the refrigerants used in the manufacture of new equipment sold in California via an upper global warming potential (GWP) rating. Here’s a look at the current schedule for implementation.

Source: California Air Resources Board excerpt from California Code of Regulations, Title 17, Division 3, Chapter 1, Subchapter 10 Climate Change, Article 4 -Final Regulation Order

The acronyms are many. As a quick reference guide:

·       GWP – Global warming potential, refers to a substance’s ability to hold heat in the atmosphere and contribute to the greenhouse effect. CO2 is the baseline with a GWP of 1; all others are measured against CO2.

·       PTAC – Packaged terminal air conditioners

·       PTHP – Packaged terminal heat pumps

·       VRF – Variable refrigerant flow

Practically speaking, many of us as design professionals may not have noticed the change that took effect in January of this year, but you may begin to notice more manufacturers and supply houses advertising units with R-32 refrigerants (GWP 675) as a California-compliant option versus the common R-410a refrigerant seen throughout the room AC and PTAC industry; R-410a has a GWP of 2,087 – well outside the new limits. An added bonus is that the HVAC units with R-32 refrigerant will have higher efficiency ratings.

(Note that the number assigned to a refrigerant (R-410a, R-32, R-290 etc.) is related to the chemical composition of the substance and is totally unrelated to the GWP.)

As the phase out of R-410a and other high GWP refrigerants continue, keep an eye out for manufacturers advertising equipment with natural refrigerants, such as propane (R-290, GWP=4), ammonia (R-717, GWP <1), and carbon dioxide (R-744, GWP=1). To keep up on product lines and manufacturers that use natural refrigerants, subscribe to – or get your consultants to subscribe to – industry resources focusing on natural refrigerants. Hydrocarbon21.com, Ammonia21.com, and R744.com are three related sites promoting natural refrigerants and the manufacturers that use them.

Going forward, we can serve our clients well by keeping abreast of the current regulations and policy trends while pointing out opportunities to incorporate manufacturers and product lines that are striving to reduce the adverse environmental impacts of HVAC systems through the use of low and very-low GWP refrigerants.

Have questions? Reach out!

For more information about California policy, regulation, and CARB’s R4 program visit the links below:

CARB’s Website on Air-conditioning Equipment

High-GWP Refrigerants

California’s Regulatory Language

People's Self-Help Housing Earns LEED Silver

Congratulations to People’s Self-Help Housing (PSHH), which just announced that its new San Luis Obispo office was awarded LEED Silver certification. For those unfamiliar with PSHH, it is a non-profit housing organization on the Central Coast with the mission of building housing for low-income and special-needs households. It employs around 200 employees for managing applications, coordinating housing, and working with contractors to construct their housing projects.

Here at In Balance Green Consulting, we’re proud to have provided LEED certification administration, energy optimization, and commissioning services for the project. Under LEED NC v4, the office obtained LEED Silver with exemplary performance in Energy Performance and Renewable Energy generation. The project team included Murray Duncan Architects, BMA, Thomas Electric, Ashley & Vance, North Coast Engineering, and Robert Fowler LA. Planning was provided by Oasis, and the builder was People’s Self-Help Housing themselves.

“Early in design, the team at PSHH established that the building would be all-electric, with a substantial installation of renewable energy,” noted Jennifer Rennick, AIA, CEA of In Balance Green Consulting. “That approach, combined with quality daylight, efficient lighting and heat pump mechanical equipment, creates a great local example of reducing our carbon footprint.”

To help the project be all-electric, appliances such as split-system heat-pumps and a heat pump water heater (HPWH) played a key role. The HPWH used is a hybrid system, where water is heated using an integrated heat pump but can be supplemented when needed with traditional electric heating elements. This, alongside the ample daylight brought in through considerate window placement and design, helped the building save 54% more energy than a typical building of its kind. The building also received credit for exemplary energy performance. With a 115 kW PV system that covers most of the project roof, it meets 80% of its energy demand through renewable solar power.

Use of native and adapted plants and high-efficiency irrigation contribute to reducing outdoor water use by more than 70% compared to a standard landscape design. Other LEED strategies improve indoor air quality, increase occupant comfort, and support bike commutes.

PSHH, managing over 2,000 rental units across the Central Coast, aims to consistently incorporate healthy, energy-efficient strategies into their residential properties. Taking the extra steps to incorporate the LEED framework and its strategies into their San Luis Obispo office further affirms their commitment to creating sustainable buildings for the Central Coast.

Considering LEED or other certifications for your next project? Reach out!

In Balance Green Consulting Celebrates 15 years!

Andy and Jennifer in 2010 – 2 years in business, realizing they needed a website with photos!

Last month marked 15 years since Andy Pease and Jennifer Rennick established In Balance Green Consulting in San Luis Obispo. In recognition of the milestone, we took a few minutes to ask for their reflections on the origins of the firm and what brought them here.

How did you two first start working together?

Back in 2005, we were both out on our own, Jennifer doing residential architecture and energy modeling, and Andy doing commercial architecture and green building consulting. We found that our clients were interested in having a full scope of energy performance and green building, so we started collaborating on projects. We worked well together and formalized a partnership in 2008.

Where did the name come from?

We spent time brainstorming and the word “Balance” kept coming up – the balance of ecology, the work-life balance with our young families, and the balance of competing needs for a project to become reality, including budget, schedule, design and environmental goals. Our connection to “balance” was also visceral, Jennifer from rock climbing and Andy from gymnastics; balance is both meditative and empowering.

How did you grow from there?

There was a learning curve on running a business, for sure. We made classic rookie mistakes, like we would get busy and forget to keep up with marketing, then would have to ramp up again. But we had some great projects and slowly grew. We were both working in our living rooms then, but as we added staff, that gets awkward, so a few years later, we moved into office space. Like any business, we adjust our services to the changing market, most recently taking on more education and training roles, but we still have our core services for energy performance modeling, LEED and other certifications, commissioning and overall green building.

Any final reflections?

Andy and Jennifer, 2023, with Tatiana, Michelle, Soham and Grant.

We love our work and both feel so lucky to work with each other and our great team!