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The Environmental Nature Center’s state-of-the-art learning facility that opened in spring 2008 was the first Platinum LEED certified building in Orange County. The award is the highest designation available to buildings that demonstrate energy efficiency and sustainability. All construction on the new Nature Preschool will meet or exceed the sustainable building guidelines incorporated into the existing LEED Platinum certified ENC facility.
It is our goal to achieve certification through the Living Building Challenge. The Living Building Challenge is a philosophy, advocacy tool and certification program that addresses development at all scales. It is comprised of seven building performance areas: Site, Water, Energy, Health, Materials, Equity and Beauty. These are subdivided into a total of twenty Imperatives, each of which focuses on a specific sphere of influence. The purpose of the Living Building Challenge is straightforward – it defines the most advanced measure of sustainability in the built environment possible today and acts to diminish the gap between current limits and ideal solutions. The Living Building Challenge provides a framework for design, construction and the symbiotic relationship between people and all aspects of the built environment.