About

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is committed to transforming the way our buildings, homes and communities are designed, constructed and operated through LEED — the top third-party verification system for sustainable structures around the world. Every day USGBC is helping advance spaces that are better for the environment and healthier for us to live, work and play in. Through our community network, continuous collaboration with industry experts and market research publications, USGBC remains a key driving force in the green building sector.

Launched in 2000, LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is the world's most widely used green building rating system. Developed by USGBC, the rating system was designed to guide green buildings for all sectors and stages of development.

Originally created as a green building rating system for commercial projects, USGBC launched the LEED program for homes in 2008. LEED certification for residential addresses the specific needs of residential projects built to be efficient and sustainable. Every LEED-certified home is a healthy, resource efficient and cost effective place to live. LEED has become recognized as the national benchmark of performance for green building and has rapidly gained recognition among the public at large. LEED is designed to serve the residential construction industry. Homebuilders using LEED will be able to differentiate their homes as representing the highest quality of green homes on the market. Furthermore, LEED certification will make it easy for homebuyers to readily identify high-quality green homes.