Page 4 - Green Builder Jan-Feb 2020 Issue
P. 4
EDITOR’S NOTE By Matt Power
The Inside Scoop Editor-in-Chief
Caption. Text
Why Awards Still Matter
They’re more than just a pat on the back—they steer the industry.
T’S EASY TO BECOME CYNICAL in these times spotlight on great projects that work, and let the
of information overload. Does anyone really care judges—more peers from our industry—tell us how
about awards anymore? Aren’t we all so busy and why. Non-nalists can always come back next year,
that we barely take time to look up from our putting to work what they learned from this year’s
I phones and email and bills to applaud someone selected winners.
else’s success? In other words, the whole process is designed to raise
If so, we’re losing sight of the forest in exchange the bar overall for high-performance building profes-
for studying the knots in a 2-by-4. It’s not a good way sionals. Sure, there are other perks. A winner essentially
to transfer knowledge. In fact, as Human Capital get thousands of dollars’ worth of print and online mar-
Media Vice President Mike Prokopeak points out,, the keting clout for a couple hundred bucks to enter their
Association for Talent Development has found that 80 percent of project. They also get treated like royalty at our gala awards dinner
knowledge transfer is forgotten. Worse, less than 15 percent of this in Las Vegas, and gain a little green credibility in their local market.
knowledge is ever applied on the job. However, it’s not just homes and developments we highlight with
This matters, he says, because the old model of learning things our awards. We also honor people. From the builders and architects
from a single teacher is outdated. We need peer collaboration, review themselves, to our “Sustainability Superhero” of the year, to outstand-
and advice to really excel in our elds. ing product innovations and groundbreaking green cities, we honor
One way that we can still do that is with awards programs such as and make public the hard work of dozens of sustainability leaders.
our annual Green Home of the Year Awards and Sustainability Awards. So yes, awards do still matter. In a time when getting someone’s
The nice part about these awards is that there’s really no down side for attention and holding it for a few seconds is the platinum standard
entrants. If you win, your work is showcased and applauded in print of success, awards are one of the few ways to break through the
and at our annual banquet. If you don’t win, no one is going to call chatter; to educate our peers without preaching. We need people to
out your project for poor planning, lousy workmanship or bad taste. pay closer attention to what this year’s winners are demonstrating:
The point is not to separate winners from losers, the way sports how to build more eciently, reduce the footprint of our cities, and
teams and corporations often do. Instead, our awards shine a design shelter that’s worthy of future generations. GB
CREDIT: GREEN BUILDER MEDIA
High style. Last year’s winners enjoyed fine dining, networking and VIP treatment at Green Builder’s awards banquet in Las Vegas.
2 GREEN BUILDER January/February 2020 www.greenbuildermedia.com
2 GB 0120 Editor's Note.indd 2 12/16/19 7:24 PM
