In January, our firm had the pleasure of hosting Leif Ullman of fischerAppelt relations, our partner agency in Germany. And most recently, Fleur Madden-Topley of Red PR Group, our Australian partner, joined Frause as part of her exchange tour in the U.S.

These opportunities have been made possible via our role in the Public Relations Organisation International (PROI). The international network of independent agencies offers an exchange program that supports team members to learn from other firms. Having partners from around the world join our team – attending meetings, learning about clients and projects, and sharing business knowledge – has been a tremendous opportunity for Frause. It has also given us a chance to strengthen our international relationships.

Leif’s time at Frause was spent soaking up our knowledge, work and practice related to sustainability. He was fortunate to be in town during the opening of the Bertschi Science Wing – Washington’s first building constructed to meet the Living Building Challenge. He was able to get an inside look at the U.S.’s green building programs and our work on promoting the construction portion of the project. To help share the knowledge with the rest of fischerAppelt and its partners, Frause was invited to contribute an article to their quarterly newsletter, CleanTech Radar.

Be sure to check out page 4 for the story: CleanTech Radar

-Nicole Phelan

When the old way of doing things is no longer cutting it there is a need for innovation. This is a good thing, as challenging the norm often spurs creativity. The built environment is facing such a shift as the traditional development process is losing steam. The green building evolution has quickly taken over the industry and projects are promptly adapting. So what’s on the horizon now?

The Mountain – Copenhagen

Talk about a cool project, The Mountain not only is very sustainable from an environmental perspective, it also looks like an amazing place to live. Danish architects Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) were the masters behind this apartment project that defies typical building styles yet manages to incorporate all of the necessities, including parking.

BIG's The Mountain, Copenhagen

Oberlin College

Beyond creative design techniques for new developments is the move to develop entire communities. Frause had the fortune of working with David Orr when he was visiting Seattle to speak at the Built Green Conference earlier this year. His keynote covered the Oberlin Project – a community that when complete, will generate its own energy (enough to supply the town), waste management, water treatment and food sources. The project is on track to receive LEED certification for the entire community.

The Seven Peaks of Azerbaijan

An entire desert island in Asia, Zira is being developed into a resort and entertainment city and in the process will create an entirely new eco-system. Modeled after the most prominent mountains in Azerbaijan, this project was also dreamt up by BIG.  Work begins this summer.

-Nicole Phelan

During a recent panel discussion at the local chapter of the Society for Marketing Professional Services, a question was raised about the marketability of LEED-, Built Green-, and Green Globes-certification.  The attendee wanted to know whether the media — or, most importantly, clients and partners — believed there’s still value in attaining these certifications for developed buildings.

LEED and related certifications are still extremely important, as they reflect a deep appreciation for creating buildings that are friendlier to the environment, conserve natural resources, and create positive living and working atmospheres for residents, tenants and others. Those all represent tremendous opportunities to position your firms and projects in a positive light.

But, as you’ll see from one of my comments in a Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce wrap up on the event (http://blog.djc.com/news/ae/12010394.html), I suggested there’s a need for architectural, engineering and construction firms — and any others working the built environment, for that matter — to think beyond the granular details that constitute a project’s certification. It’s the why, not what, that matters most here.

Rather than focusing solely on the very fact that a project achieved a hard-earned certification, today’s marketers should engage all their audiences on why their green projects provide greater value to their communities through things like:

 -          Proximity to mass-transit nodes (cars off the street, street-level vitality with bikers and pedestrians, reduced environmental impact)

-          Non-duplication of goods and services (unique street-level retail helps local shop-owners to survive and thrive, attracts visitors to the entire neighborhood)

-          Diversity of product (more-affordable workforce housing attracts environmentally minded “creative class” residents, the future leaders of our urban communities)

 -Richard Kendall