In the ever-evolving green building sector, founders face the dual challenge of integrating cutting-edge sustainable technologies while addressing pressing social justice issues.  These challenges are very familiar to Charley Stevenson in his position as principal at Integrated Eco Strategy, a North Adams-based green building materials consultancy. MFN recently sat down with Charley for a wide-ranging discussion on the intersection of green building and social equity that explored the complexities of affordable housing, environmental sustainability, and ethical considerations in building materials. Charley’s insights provide invaluable guidance for founders striving to balance high-performance goals with affordability and social responsibility. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for driving meaningful change and fostering a more inclusive, sustainable future in the green building industry.

Charley and his team at Integrated Eco Strategy “facilitate all aspects of sustainable and regenerative building design, renovation, and construction for clients nationwide. We manage environmental aspects of projects ranging from 1,000 to 500,000 or more square feet.”

While emphasizing the need for affordable housing developers to consider alternative materials that can achieve higher performance goals without significant price premiums, Charley also addressed the complexities that social considerations can present for building projects.

Charley noted that experts from both the green building and affordable housing sectors are engaging in meaningful dialogue. “There’s a lot of cross-pollination in the market,” he said. “Understanding how social justice intersects with green building has evolved from an intuitive, ‘yeah, they must be connected,’ to a more rational understanding that these two things lean on one another. How do we really draw from strengths in both communities to work better in the future?”

Charley referenced a recent high-profile railway accident as an example of where these two worlds concretely intersect. In February 2023, a freight train derailed and spilled toxic chemicals in East Palestine, Ohio. The chemicals were to have been used in a range of industrial applications, including for construction materials.

The accident highlighted the fact that when it comes to building materials, most of the impacts – health and justice impacts – happen upstream. “You don’t want to live near a factory that makes those precursor materials, you don’t want to live near a railroad track where that car could tip off the rails. So, that’s an example of how the choices a project team makes have ethical implications outside of the building itself.”

Similarly, Charley noted the trade-offs associated with embedding green technology in building projects. “There’s a big push toward building automation, smart buildings, or self-regulating buildings,” he said” Overly technical buildings are fragile. If everything depends on the internet working, it’s all great until somebody trips on the router. So, [we’re] moving away from active systems to more passive systems. We try to lead with the question, 

‘How can you achieve the desired performance characteristics with the smallest system possible, with the least control possible?’”

For Integrated Eco Strategy, these types of evolving dynamics shape their conversations with affordable housing developers. “We’re trying to find a way to get this information into the hands of affordable housing developers so they can make easy, low-cost decisions,” Charley said. “Better buildings aren’t typically more expensive; it’s about picking this, not that, rather than replacing a typical commodity product with an esoteric, imported, expensive product. We’re really trying to help people find alternatives where they can achieve these higher performance goals without significant – or, ideally, without any – price premium.”

More of Charley’s discussion about his work at Integrated Eco Strategy can be found here.

Are you working to find community and opportunity as a Massachusetts startup founder? Join MFN and get access to experts, networking opportunities, and connections within the statewide entrepreneur ecosystem.