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I'm an interior design student working on a project that is to incorporate green contemporary products, and find it difficult to locate contemporary green furniture. Why is this and what are the attributes of green furniture?

Penny Bonda -- Interior Design, 5/22/2006 12:00:00 AM

To properly answer that question, I need to understand whether your project is residential or commercial. The green product offerings on the commercial side have been easier to find since the introduction of USGBC’s LEED for Commercial Interiors (LEED-CI) rating system. Manufacturers in the contract market have been diligently improving their products or introducing new ones that will potentially contribute to LEED point totals. For example, low emitting products with renewable or recycled content are becoming more readily available.

A residential rating system won’t be available for some time; however, the material attributes from LEED-CI can serve as a useful guide for selecting green furniture and other building products. Check it out at the LEED-CI section of the USGBC website.

You may also want to look at an article I wrote in May 2005 for the Green Zone on furniture designer Jill Salisbury and her company, el Furniture. I believe that Salisbury’s approach offers exceptional guidance on what constitutes green furniture. Another source for organic contemporary furnishings is Environment Furniture, Inc.