Issue link: https://digital.nexsitepublishing.com/i/1479050
BY SONJA O'CLAIRE BUILT GREEN PROGRAM MANAGER MBAKS A Place to Call Home Building a home has always been more than a construction project on a plot of land. It's creating a shelter from the elements, a refuge of physical and psychological safety where hopes and dreams can flourish, and a gathering space to make connections with others, raise families, and grow old. These spaces of belonging are the foundation of communities. Yet despite these myriad benefits, too many community members don't have access to homeownership, lack living-wage jobs that would make it attainable in the future, and are disproportionately exposed to higher rates of environmental pollution and Building Spaces of Belonging Introducing Built Green's Equity and Social Justice Credits the effects of climate change. In order to overcome these disparities, an equitable, just, and inclusive approach is required— one that opens the door to homeownership as well as living-wage jobs in the building trades for all communities. Built Green is the first residential certification program in the nation to establish requirements focused on how the entire homebuilding process—from development to sale—can move the needle on equity and social justice. Developers, designers, and builders can leverage their influence to create spaces of belonging in their workplaces and designs. Centering equity doesn't just help people; it provides business and growth opportunities, reduces turnover, and increases the applicant labor pool for builders. Committing to Equity and Social Justice Built Green implemented the Equity and Social Justice (ESJ) Section in its latest checklists to address disparities and remove barriers faced by marginalized populations. The ESJ credits are intended to support developers, designers, and builders in their efforts to promote equity and inclusion, one home at a time. They provide mutually beneficial actions builders can take to address workforce supply and retention, climate resiliency, accessibility, and homeownership. 50 master BUILDER | FALL 2022 COMMUNITY