BASF announced that it is hosting its first High Performance Buildings for Education Summit on Sept. 16, 2009 at 7 World Trade Center, the first commercial office building in New York to receive the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification. BASF is convening a panel of speakers to provide attending school administrators, architects, construction companies, general contractors and sustainable design experts, an overview of what it takes to construct or retrofit educational buildings to make the learning environment more energy-efficient, healthy, safe, and productive.

While the development of high performance buildings for education has been underway for more than 10 years, the timing to move forward with long-term investment in school infrastructure is ripe given the large federal economic stimulus plan, which is providing schools with $90 billion.

“BASF understands that students and educators experience multiple benefits when they are in structures that are high performing,” said Jack Armstrong, leader construction markets for BASF in North America. “BASF Construction Solutions deliver energy efficiency, increased speed of construction and increased durability, while also surpassing mandates and lowering total cost of ownership. The more energy-efficient schools become, the more money becomes available to enhance curriculum, teachers' salaries and other resources. In fact, while traditional schools spend approximately $150 in energy costs per student, new high performance schools spend approximately $85 per student. It's a winning combination from an environmental, educational and economic standpoint.”

At the event, four experts will address the financial return on investment of sustainable design and architecture, as well as the health and performance benefits of high performance schools. A school district superintendent from Neptune Township, N.J., will also share his real world experience building high performance schools in his district. The speakers include:

Rob Watson: CEO, EcoTech International & Founder of the LEED Green Building Rating system of the U.S. Green Building Council; “Learning to Build from Nature”

Vivian Loftness FAIA, LEED AP: University Professor, School of Architecture, Carnegie Mellon & Co-chair, National Academy of Sciences Committee on Green Schools; “Greening our Nation's Schools for Health and Performance”

David Mooij: Superintendent of Schools, Neptune Township, New Jersey; “A Living Textbook: Neptune's Green Schools”

Kris Kolluri: CEO, New Jersey Schools Development Authority; “Building the Financial Case for High Performance Schools”

The event begins at 9 a.m. EDT and ends at 12:45 p.m. EDT. Doors open at 8:15 a.m. EDT. Pre-registration is required for the event. To register for this event, please go to:www.events.basf.com/2009hpbe/