Special Collections: Materials Collection at the Frances Loeb Library

Architecture 2030 is a non-profit organization offering design & planning solutions, educational tools and resources, policy analysis, and collaborations towards zero carbon in the built environment.

“Building life cycle assessment in practice” is a guide from The American Institute of Architects. It also includes the pdf download link to the Guide.

Carbon Leadership Forum aims to decarbonize the building industry and the built environment. It offers a collection of research, resources, network and initiatives.

Carbon Smart Materials Palette offers a collection of design guidance based on material specification and attributes for immediate, scalable embodied carbon reductions in the built environment. It includes materials with high-impact potential for emissions reductions, low-carbon or carbon-sequestering materials, and whole building approaches to emissions reductions.

Critical Conservation is a blog for the Master in Design Studies – Critical Conservation program of the Harvard Graduate School of Design. The blog includes information on faculty and student directory, courses, student work, news, publications, and the Critical Conservation Journal.

CCWorldWeatherGen is a software tool used for generating climate change weather files for world-wide locations ready for use in building performance simulation programs.

Energy Plus Weather Data offers downloadable weather data for more than 2100 locations worldwide. The data is searchable by region, by keyword, and through an interactive map.

Ladybug Tools is a collection of free and open source computer applications that support environmental design and education.

The BIFMA Level Product Database is a searchable database for Level-certified furniture products. Level considers human and ecosystem health, materials, energy, and social responsibility to find products that are environmentally and socially responsible.

Bullitt Center As-Built Product List is a catalogue of products used throughout the construction of the Bullitt Center, a six-story commercial office building in Seattle, Washington, opened in 2014. All products used in the building were screened for compliance with the Living Building Challenge's Red List, which represents the “worst in class” materials, chemicals, and elements known to pose serious risks to human health and the greater ecosystem.

The Cradle to Cradle Certified Products Registry includes products that have received certification in all five of C2C's quality categories, including material health, material reutilization, renewable energy and carbon management, water stewardship, and social fairness.

The Cradle to Cradle Material Health Registry includes all products that have received only the C2C Material Health Certificate, as opposed to those that have the full C2C Product Certification in all five categories.

Declare is a transparency platform and product database. It can be used to find building products with declared ingredients, source, and manufacturing locations. Products may be labeled Declared, Living Building Challenge Compliant, or Living Building Challenge Red List Free.

BuildingGreen Approved is an independent product evaluation service with product listings found on BuildingGreen's partner site, Designer Pages. It features more than 100 curated collections.

EcoScorecard is a searchable database of building products that meet certain sustainability standards. It allows users to evaluate specific products against five environmental rating system requirements and document their findings.

EPA Safer Choice Certified Products is a database of certified cleaning products, which have undergone a voluntary review of their impact on human and environmental health. The database is searchable by product or company name, product type, intended use, and whether the product contains fragrance or can be used outdoors.

EU Ecolabel is a database that identifies products and services with a reduced environmental impact throughout their life cycle, from the extraction of raw material through to production, use and disposal. EU Ecolabel focuses on everyday materials such as cleaning products and furniture more than building products.

Guide to Healthy Cleaning is a database providing safety ratings for a large body of cleaning products. The database is searchable by product categories and keywords. Each product entry includes information on rating, ingredients, and potential toxicity, etc. The website also includes collections of top-rated products in each product category.

The Health Product Declaration (HPD) Public Repository provides the most up-to-date collection of HPD-Compliant product disclosures. This database has come out of the original platform developed by SmithGroupJJR and has since become the most complete library of HPD records.

The International EPD Database includes all EPD registered within the International EPD® System. An EPD® (Environmental Product Declaration) is an independently verified and registered document that communicates transparent and comparable information about the life-cycle environmental impact of products. The EPDs in the database is searchable by specific information and by product country or category.

LBC Affordable Housing Product Compilation is a document published by the International Living Future Institute. It outlines the requirements for the Living Building Materials Petal. It includes information about range of product types, including common issues, product certifications, and applicable exceptions.

LBC Case Study Project Lists provides information on Living Building Challenge Certified projects. The projects are searchable by petal certification. Each project provides information on how they achieved the petal certification.

The LBC Materials Petal Database collects information about building materials by CSI Division. It includes a Regional Materials Map with a radius tool to facilitate product selection within LBC limits. The database seeks to collect vetted products, helpful diagrams, and research from the architecture community to build a resource for all firms seeking to create buildings free of Red List chemicals.

Mindful Materials is a database providing design industry professionals with the opportunity to research information on a wide range of products. The product information on the site has been uploaded voluntarily by manufacturers and includes disclosure documents and certifications such as Cradle to Cradle, Health Product Declarations, and Declare labels.

NAF, ULEF & NAUF Company List is a list of manufacturers offering composite wood products with “no added formaldehyde” (NAF), ultra-low emitting formaldehyde (ULEF), and/or CARB Phase 2 certified emission levels as part of their product mix.

Nordic Swan Ecolabel certifies a wide range of products and services that meet certain environmental standards. Their site includes a database of Ecolabeled products ranging from building materials to cleaning services.

The OEKO-TEX® Buying Guide is a searchable database for OEKO-TEX® labelled products. the Database supports full-text search, and product search by certifications & services, product level, product type, product class, usage, materials, location, and appendix.

Origin is a collection of material databases on certified building materials. Origin connects directly to data providers, capturing digitized material information. The database is searchable by brand, certification program, and many other building material criteria.

Sustainable Minds Transparency Catalog is a database searchable by brand for a wide range of products with certifications and disclosure documents such as Environmental Product Declarations and Declare labels. The database also has information on requirements for the different certification systems.

UL SPOT is a database offering sustainability information on a large body of products. It is searchable by product type, manufacturer, and credit eligibility for credits toward building certifications such as LEED, BREEAM, CHPS, Green Globes, and WELL.

Architecture 2030 is a non-profit organization offering design & planning solutions, educational tools and resources, policy analysis, and collaborations towards zero carbon in the built environment.

Carbon Smart Materials Palette offers a collection of design guidance based on material specification and attributes for immediate, scalable embodied carbon reductions in the built environment. It includes materials with high-impact potential for emissions reductions, low-carbon or carbon-sequestering materials, and whole building approaches to emissions reductions.

International Energy Agency works with governments and industry, and offering data and statistics analysis, training, innovation, and international cooperation.

Project Drawdown® is a non-profit organization aiming to help reduce the global greenhouse gas levels. It includes analysis of a collection of existing climate solutions and Project Drawdown®'s programs of research, education, community engagement, and collaborative partnerships.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration offers data collections, analysis, and reports on energy sources and usage information.

Architecture 2030 is a non-profit organization offering design & planning solutions, educational tools and resources, policy analysis, and collaborations towards zero carbon in the built environment.

Breathing Buildings is a provider of controlled hybrid ventilation systems, offering low energy ventilation products, design and installation services, and informational resources on hybrid ventilation.

Carbon Smart Materials Palette offers a collection of design guidance based on material specification and attributes for immediate, scalable embodied carbon reductions in the built environment. It includes materials with high-impact potential for emissions reductions, low-carbon or carbon-sequestering materials, and whole building approaches to emissions reductions.

The Engineering Computation Laboratory offers a collection of resources on engineering computation and building science. It includes free and open source software, curriculum workbook, and publications.

Global Footprint Network is an international nonprofit organization. The organization offers metrics, actionable insights, and tools to manage world natural resources, through customized ecological footprint calculators, detailed footprint data, sustainability campaigns, and sustainability assessments.

International Energy Agency works with governments and industry, and offering data and statistics analysis, training, innovation, and international cooperation.

Materialflows.net is an online analysis portal for national material flow data, visualizations and analyses. Data and visualizations cover more than 200 countries, the time period of 1970 to 2017, and more than 300 different materials aggregated into 13 categories of material flows.

Mineral Resources Data System offers an interactive map for viewing a collection of mineral resource reports worldwide.

Our World in Data is an online publication that offers articles on global problems with a focus on interactive data visualizations. The data centered articles are organized by topics and are open access and open source.

Resource Watch is a data platform offering datasets and visualizations for global resources.

Sustainable Energy Without the Hot Air is an online free and open-source book written by David MacKay titled "Sustainable Energy - Without the Hot Air".

The U.S. Energy Information Administration offers data collections, analysis, and reports on energy sources and usage information.

U.S. Geological Survey offers maps, data, and publications on geological science.

Worldmapper Maps offers a collection of world maps called cartograms, where territories are resized on each map according to the subject of interest. The data visualizations are created by Worldmapper and searchable by data categories or regions.

“10 steps to reducing embodied carbon” is a guide from the American Institute of Architects, authored by Larry Strain, FAIA.

Athena Sustainable Materials Institute is a membership-based research collaborative bringing life cycle assessment to the construction sector. The institute offers Life Cycle Assessment data, software, contract research, advocacy and education, etc.

“Building life cycle assessment in practice” is a guide from The American Institute of Architects. It also includes the pdf download link to the Guide.

Building Transparency is an Embodied Carbon in Construction Calculator (EC3) tool, a free and easy to use tool that allows benchmarking, assessment, and reductions in embodied carbon, focused on the upfront supply chain emissions of construction materials.

Carbon Leadership Forum aims to decarbonize the building industry and the built environment. It offers a collection of research, resources, network and initiatives.

Database of Embodied Quantity Outputs is an interactive online database of embodied Quantity outputs (deQo), providing data about the Global Warming Potential of buildings (GWP, measured in kgCO2e/m2 and obtained by multiplying the two key variables). A framework is offered to create an interactive, growing online database allowing architects, engineers and researchers to input and compare their projects.

Economic Input-Output Life Cycle Assessment is an online Life Cycle Assessment tool using Economic Input-Output Life Cycle Assessment (EIO-LCA) method, which estimates the materials and energy resources required for, and the environmental emissions resulting from, activities in our economy.

Embodied Carbon Benchmark - Data Visualization is a research project from Carbon Leadership Forum. It reports the embodied carbon per unit area for over 1,000 buildings included in the Embodied Carbon Benchmark Study.

Environmental Building Declarations is a subsection of the Athena Sustainable Materials Institute's publications. It offers literature documents on Environmental Building Declarations, a summary report of comprehensive environmental impact data for a building, declaring life cycle impacts according to a standardized format.

eTool is a software and consulting business offering Life Cycle Assessment software, eToolLCD™, and engineer consultant service for Life Cycle Assessment of building and infrastructure.

The International EPD® System is a global system of Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) that verifies and registers EPDs and maintain a public library of EPDs and Product Category Rules (PCRs).

LCAtextbook.com hosts Life Cycle Assessment, a free book written by a small and established team of LCA professionals. It includes links to the book, previous drafts of the book used in undergraduate and graduate courses, lecture notes and notes for teachers, etc.

GaBi Software is a product sustainability solution for Life Cycle Assessment. It includes GaBi Life Cycle Assessment databases, Gabi software download, and related resources and information.

From the Center for Sustainable Design Strategies at the Pratt Institute, review entries that provide an in-depth chart of each material explaining its entire life cycle: from Raw Materials, to Processing, to Distribution and Use, ending in Disposal. Also included are the impacts each has on Resources, Human Health and the Environment along every step of the way. The types of each material are also explained, as well as tips on what to look for in each material to minimize it’s environmental impact.

Tally is a Life Cycle Assessment software tool allowing architects and engineers working in Revit® software to quantify the environmental impact of building materials for whole building analysis as well as comparative analyses of design options.

The Urban Bioloop is a publication exploring the possibilities of a closed-loop system that repurposes organic waste for construction. It explains a methodology through which this could be achieved and describes case studies of successful closed-loop systems.

The Green Science Policy Institute is dedicated to educating and building partnerships among scientists, regulators, businesses, and public interest groups to develop innovative solutions for reducing harmful chemicals in products. The website includes a list of projects by topics; various resources and publications on material products for consumers, manufacturers, press, etc.; and the Institute's blogposts, events, etc.

Healthier Model-Making Materials is a material collection curated by Healthy Materials Lab at the Parsons School of Design. It includes a list of Healthier Model-Making Materials, a Spec Guidance on selecting model-making materials, and links to other relevant material collections by Healthy Materials Lab.

Health Product Declaration Collaborative (HPDC) is a non-profit, member organization dedicated to the development of the HPD Open Standard. The HPD Open Standard, a voluntary, stakeholder consensus standard, has become established as the leading industry standard for reporting building product content and associated health information.

Healthy Building Network (HBN) is a team of researchers, engineers, scientists, building experts, and educators. HBN is dedicated to defining healthy building practices that increase transparency in the building products industry, reduce human exposures to hazardous chemicals, and create market incentives for healthier innovations in manufacturing. The website includes HBN'S research, data tools, education resources, reports, blogposts, and information on involvement and donation.

Healthy Materials Lab is a design research lab at Parsons School of Design dedicated to a world in which people’s health is placed at the center of all design decisions. It offers resources on building materials and health, including online educational courses, material collections, tools and guides, and research/demonstration/education projects.

Trace Material is a podcast project by Healthy Materials Lab at Parsons School of Design. It explores the convergence of our lives and the lives of the materials that surround us.

Warner Babcock Institute for Green Chemistry is dedicated to development of environmentally friendly, and sustainable technological solutions for business and industry. Website includes general information on the institute, projects and services provided by the institute, and information on the approach of "green chemistry".

Global Footprint Network is an international nonprofit organization. The organization offers metrics, actionable insights, and tools to manage world natural resources, through customized ecological footprint calculators, detailed footprint data, sustainability campaigns, and sustainability assessments.

International Energy Agency works with governments and industry, and offering data and statistics analysis, training, innovation, and international cooperation.

Materialflows.net is an online analysis portal for national material flow data, visualizations and analyses. Data and visualizations cover more than 200 countries, the time period of 1970 to 2017, and more than 300 different materials aggregated into 13 categories of material flows.

Mineral Resources Data System offers an interactive map for viewing a collection of mineral resource reports worldwide.

Our World in Data is an online publication that offers articles on global problems with a focus on interactive data visualizations. The data centered articles are organized by topics and are open access and open source.

Resource Watch is a data platform offering datasets and visualizations for global resources.

Sustainable Energy Without the Hot Air is an online free and open-source book written by David MacKay titled "Sustainable Energy - Without the Hot Air".

The U.S. Energy Information Administration offers data collections, analysis, and reports on energy sources and usage information.

U.S. Geological Survey offers maps, data, and publications on geological science.

Worldmapper Maps offers a collection of world maps called cartograms, where territories are resized on each map according to the subject of interest. The data visualizations are created by Worldmapper and searchable by data categories or regions.

BCC research offers market research reports, technical publications, and in-depth industry analysis. Subjects covered include advanced materials, transportation, biotechnology, chemicals, energy, engineering, environment, food & beverage, fuel cell & battery technologies, healthcare, information technology, instrumentation & sensors, manufacturing, membrane & separation technology, nanotechnology, pharmaceuticals, plastics, safety & security, and semiconductor manufacturing.

Critical Conservation is a blog for the Master in Design Studies – Critical Conservation program of the Harvard Graduate School of Design. The blog includes information on faculty and student directory, courses, student work, news, publications, and the Critical Conservation Journal.

IBISWorld offers research reports on industries in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and China. Global industry reports for selected industries are also available. Reports cover drivers of the industry, industry risk, market data and segments, competitors, and industry performance.

Mintel reports offers market and consumer research across multiple International markets and US categories. Each study provides a synthesis of both primary and secondary data and analysis.

Plunkett research online offers industry and company information, including public and private companies. Includes market research and industry trends, industry statistics, company profiles, and downloadable tables.

A research guide assisting researcher to find information on specific companies, industries, and economic markets, compiled by Harvard Law School Library.

HarvardKey or Harvard Business School email account required for certain resources and tools. HBS Entrepreneurship Toolkit is a collection of resources and tools to assist with starting and running new ventures, selected by librarians of Harvard Baker Library.

A multidisciplinary database, with searchable author abstracts, covering the journal literature of the sciences, social sciences, and arts. It indexes major journals in these disciplines. The search interface at this web site provides access to Science Citation Index, Social Sciences Citation Index and Arts & Humanities Citation Index, as well as BIOSIS, CAB Abstracts, and Zoological Record.