Greenbuild 2011 underway

Ice sculpture as bar: SCIenergy's Greenbuild reception

Greenbuild 2011 has begun in Toronto.

The early Tuesday morning Air Canada flight from San Francisco to Toronto was packed with Greenbuild 2011 attendees and speakers, including Google executives and celebrated architect John Picard, who was busy discussing new company launches and preparing his scheduled closing remarks for the event.

Welcome receptions populated Tuesday evening, following a day of pre-conference meetings for U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) chapter representatives. A high-profile reception hosted by SCIenergy at the recently completed and groundbreaking 18 York building included several ice scupltures, one of which was the long open bar. The event doubled as a launch party for Enlighted, a Sunnyvale, Calif.-based lighting sensor company that recently closed $14 million in funding.

Sponsored this year by the Canada Green Building Council, the Greenbuild International Conference and Expo included back-to-back panels all day Wednesday, offering attendees the opportunity to learn and hear from leading industry experts covering range of topics that affect the future of green building. On the expo floor, companies such as Kohler and Johnson Controls welcomed attendees with the most visible and interactive booths. 

This year, the USGBC is streaming a variety of top speakers, including Thomas Friedman, who is set to speak Wednseday evening at the Air Canada Center. Other major speakers include Cokie Roberts and Amory Lovins.