New Rating System,Envisions Sustainable Infrastructure
envision™ Sustainability Rating System
Envision™ is the product of a joint collaboration between the Zofnass Program for Sustainable Infrastructure at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design and the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure.
Introduction
Envision™ provides a holistic framework for evaluating and rating the community, environmental, and economic benefits of all types and sizes of infrastructure projects.
The Envision™ Rating System evaluates, grades, and gives recognition to infrastructure projects that use transformational, collaborative approaches to assess the sustainability indicators over the course of the project’s life cycle.
Who Can Use Envision™
Envision™ can be used by infrastructure owners, design teams, community groups, environmental organizations, constructors, regulators, and policy makers.
- Meet sustainability goals.
- Be publicly recognized for high levels of achievement in sustainability.
- Help communities and project teams to collaborate and discuss, “Are we doing the right project?” and, “Are we doing the project right”.
- Make decisions about the investment of scarce resources.
- Include community priorities in civil infrastructure projects.
The Envision™ tools help the design team:
- Assess costs and benefits over the project lifecycle.
- Evaluate environmental benefits.
- Use outcome-based objectives.
- Reach higher levels of sustainability achievement.
Projects Envision™ Can Be Used On
Envision™ has assessment tools that can be used for infrastructure projects of all types, sizes, complexities, and locations.
The Assessment Tools
- Stage 1 — Self-assessment checklist.
- A self-assessment checklist and educational tool that helps familiarize people involved in infrastructure projects with the sustainability aspects of the project.
- Available Spring 2012.
- Stage 2 — Third-party, objective rating verification. Public recognition.
- Allows the owner or project team to submit the project for recognition.
- Includes a guidance manual and scoring system.
- Requires someone trained in the use of the Envision™ rating system to be an integral part of the project team to document sustainability achievements.
- An independent, third-party Verifier will validate the project team’s assessment.
- Stage 2, preconstruction, available January 2012. Construction and Operations and Maintenance phases available in mid-2012.
- Stage 3 — Tool for complex or multi-stage projects. Available after 2012.
- Stage 4 — Optimization support tool. Available after 2012.
The People
- ISI Sustainability Professional
- Someone who is trained in the use of the Envision™ rating system and is credentialed by ISI.
- An integral part of a project team who guides the team in achieving higher levels of sustainability, documents project sustainability accomplishments, and submits the project for recognition.
- Verifier
- An independent, third-party that works with the ISI SP to validate their assessment of a project.
Envision™ Credits and Scoring Module
The Envision™ Stage 2 Rating Tool is made up of 60 credits divided into five sections: Quality of Life, Leadership, Resource Allocation, Natural World, and Climate and Risk.
Each Envision™ credit is described in a 2-page write-up that includes the intent, metric, levels of achievement, description, an explanation of how to advance to a higher achievement level, evaluation criteria and documentation, sources, and related credits.
A Few Ways to Get Involved
- Education and Professional Credentialing
- Take the ISI SP course to learn how to use the rating system and apply for project recognition.
- Apply to become an ISI Sustainability Professional and help guide project teams through the Envision™ Stage 2 rating tool.
- ISI Membership
- Join as a Charter or Sustaining Member for in-depth involvement in ISI.
- Other memberships available for trade and professional associations, public sector agencies, and academics.
- Members pricing on ISI training materials, meetings, certification application fees, publications, and other products and services.
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