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Our Built Environment

Protected: The Ultimate Green-Washing: The False Promise of LEED Certification

Greg Wilson
August 24, 2026
Builders, developers and politicians have all avidly pursued LEED certification of major buildings and housing over the past several decades. Meant to be the pinnacle of “green” construction standards, LEED demands not just energy-efficiency but the pursuit of many nakedly ideological goals like public transit use and even social equity. And its effects go far beyond virtue-signalling and woke positioning. As this investigation by engineer Greg Wilson reveals, not only does LEED certification drive up construction costs and make housing affordability even more problematic, but buildings constructed to display its contradictory desires often consume more energy than traditional ones. Wilson calls for a return to sanity and a true form of sustainability: buildings that work well and will last for centuries.
Our Built Environment

Protected: The Ultimate Green-Washing: The False Promise of LEED Certification

Greg Wilson
August 24, 2026
Builders, developers and politicians have all avidly pursued LEED certification of major buildings and housing over the past several decades. Meant to be the pinnacle of “green” construction standards, LEED demands not just energy-efficiency but the pursuit of many nakedly ideological goals like public transit use and even social equity. And its effects go far beyond virtue-signalling and woke positioning. As this investigation by engineer Greg Wilson reveals, not only does LEED certification drive up construction costs and make housing affordability even more problematic, but buildings constructed to display its contradictory desires often consume more energy than traditional ones. Wilson calls for a return to sanity and a true form of sustainability: buildings that work well and will last for centuries.
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