Green Building

Green Building and its principles aim to minimize as much as possible the impact of buildings on the environment. Designers of green buildings seek to use modern knowledge and technologies in order to create a sustainable environment, which provides the needs of the contemporary generation, without harming the existence and needs of future generations. The key to green building is architecture which is considerate of the users' needs and welfare, integrated in design that addresses environmental conditions and strives to consume resources intelligently.

Following the growing global green building trend, several rating systems were developed (such as the American LEED) in order to measure and rate the level of environmentalism and sustainability of buildings. These ratings, which are in fact voluntary standards for green building, address a wide spectrum of issues and green elements, including: energy efficiency, bio-climatic planning, water saving, water recycling, runoff management, use of recycled materials, recycling construction waste, quality of interiors, etc.  A higher rating constitutes a formal and independent reference, that preservation of the environment was a top priority in the design and construction of the building.