The following is a response to the article “Showing the Benefits of ‘Green’ Retrofitting” by Julie Satow, which originally appeared in the New York Times Opinion Section. The article begins by explaining how retrofitting has been around for quite some time, and although it’s proven to be beneficial both economically and environmentally, there seems to be a lack of data supporting the practice. This is why the Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation is funding a project to create a public database for all retrofitted buildings in New York. According to Gary Hattem, president of the Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation, data is one of the key aspects that building owners typically look at when trying to improve their buildings, and it’s the lack of data towards retrofitting that is keeping the practice from going mainstream. Developers also agree that the lack of a database is the main obstacle in spreading green technology throughout the country, but they are also confident that this new database will ,hopefully, remove this obstacle. 
This is really good news to hear. Knowing that progress is being made to make buildings and businesses of all kinds greener through retrofitting makes me hopeful that America is finally getting on the right track. Although I personally did not connect as much to the article, due to the fact that I do not work at a business nor do I live in a retrofitted home, there are hundreds of other people that it does connect to, which is why it’s important to keep in mind, especially for those who haven’t read the article. Technology such as this has the capability of being expanded to homes and large businesses, which relates to just about every home-owner and business worker there is. The writing of this article sound optimistic towards a big project, which is not something that’s seen too often these days. I also liked how the article was easy to read, and introduced the possibilities of savings in energy, money, and job number increase, which are three of America’s largest problems aside from environmental issues. I think it’s truly a great idea to have a public database promoting the benefits of green technology, and I hope to hear more about the success of this project in the future.
Bryre
Tree Octopus 