Ellenzweig Participates in Embodied Carbon Reduction Challenge
Embodied carbon—the carbon emissions associated with construction materials—accounts for approximately half of a building’s total emissions. As the construction industry strives to mitigate its environmental impacts, understanding and reducing embodied carbon is essential to meeting climate goals. At Ellenzweig, we specialize in analyzing and implementing effective strategies to minimize embodied carbon in our projects.
As part of our commitment to advancing sustainable design, Ellenzweig participated in the first-in-the-nation Embodied Carbon Reduction Challenge sponsored by Built Environment Plus (BE+) and the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) from March 2023 to May 2024. This initiative brought together industry professionals to explore innovative strategies to “Reduce Upfront Carbon of Buildings.”
Our submission showcased Massachusetts Maritime Academy’s new 36,000 square foot STEM classroom and laboratory building, where we implemented thoughtful decarbonization strategies that include benchmarking, space right-sizing, and low carbon materials specifications. Ellenzweig’s presentation board highlighted several “smart materials” specifications strategies applicable to all project types, including performance-based concrete, low carbon structural steel, and gypsum sheathing board with a Global Warming Potential (GWP) limit. These strategies are projected to achieve a 16% reduction in embodied carbon for the project.
Competitions are essential for promoting and sharing methods for reducing embodied carbon in the building industry. This experience reinforced the importance of informed design decisions, early interdisciplinary collaboration, and data-driven approaches—principles that will continue to guide our efforts in future projects. Led by Ellenzweig Associate Tina Binazir, CPHC, and the Massachusetts Maritime Academy design team, our case study contributes to the ongoing progress toward a carbon-free future.