LEED v4 Core Concepts and Themes

Question 1

Closed system

Answer 1

A system in which materials and resources are reused or recycled

Question 2

Cradle to cradle

Answer 2

A term applied to a product if a new use can be applied to it after the end of its first useful life, diverting it from a landfill

Question 3

Cradle to grave

Answer 3

A term applied to a product if its lifetime is limited to one application or use, ending in a landfill

Question 4

Downstream activity

Answer 4

An activity related to the processing of materials all the way through to the delivery of the final product to the end user

Question 5

Embodied energy

Answer 5

The total amount of energy used to extract materials and manufacture, transport, install and use a product across its life cycle

Question 6

Feedback loop

Answer 6

The section of a system that allows for feedback and self-correct and adjusts its operation according to differences between the actual output and the desired output

Question 7

Integrative process

Answer 7

A design process in which multidisciplinary teams collaborate to meet sustainable design objectives from the inception of a project to its completion

Question 8

Integrative process phases

Answer 8

1. Discovery
2. Design and construction
3. Occupancy, operations, performance feedback

Question 9

Iterative process

Answer 9

A process used in design that involves conducting research, sharing data, reviving feedback and refining the design repeatedly until all of a project’s sustainable goals are met

Question 10

Iterative process cycle

Answer 10

1. Research
2. Analysis
3. Meeting

Question 11

Leverage point

Answer 11

A point in a system in which a small change can yield large results

Question 12

Life-cycle assessment (LCA)

Answer 12

An assessment of the environmental impacts associated with a material or product throughout its life cycle

Question 13

Life cycle costing (LCC)

Answer 13

An analytic tool used to determine the most cost-effective option among competing alternatives based on the costs of the options throughout their life cycles

Question 14

Negative feedback loop

Answer 14

A section of a system in which the system self-corrects and stays within a particular set of parameters

Question 15

Open system

Answer 15

A system in which materials and resources are continually brought in from the outside, consumed and then removed from the system as waste

Question 16

Positive feedback loop

Answer 16

A section of a system in which the output of the system is applied to the input, resulting in constant increases

Question 17

Prius effect

Answer 17

The effect of changed behavior as a result of making information about a subject more visible and available

Question 18

Regenerative building

Answer 18

A closed system that uses only as much water and energy as it can produce

Question 19

LEED v4 impact categories (7)

Answer 19

1. Reverse contribution to global climate change
2. Enhance individual human health and well-being
3. Protect and restore water resources
4. Protect, enhance and restore biodiversity and ecosystem services
5. Promote sustainable and regenerative material resources cycles
6. Build a greener economy
7. Enhance social equity, environmental justice and community quality of life

Question 20

Triple bottom line

Answer 20

A concept that involves the social, environmental and economic dimensions of an organization in its decision making so that the bottom line for all parties can be increased