SFI Supports National Green Building Certification for Habitat for Humanity Homes

WASHINGTON, Nov. 7, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Housing Endowment has announced 10 of the 25 Habitat for Humanity homes will be certified to the ANSI/ICC 700-2008 National Green Building Standard thanks to a community grant from Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI®) Inc.

"Several Habitat for Humanity affiliates and other builders of affordable homes across the country have already seen the inherent value of having their homes Green Certified by the NAHB Research Center, and the SFI grant will allow us to expand the benefits even further," Michael Luzier, President and CEO of the NAHB Research Center, said today.

The NAHB Research Center will receive funds through the National Housing Endowment to certify 25 Habitat for Humanity homes, including the following affiliates:

• Habitat for Humanity Quad Cities, Bettendorf, IA
• Habitat for Humanity Bay-Waveland Area, Bay Saint Louis, MS
• Habitat for Humanity of New Castle County, Wilmington, DE
• Chatham Habitat for Humanity, Pittsboro, NC
• Lexington Habitat for Humanity, Lexington, KY
• Habitat for Humanity – Grand Traverse Region, Traverse City, MI
• Habitat for Humanity of Greater Greensboro, Greensboro, NC
• Habitat for Humanity of Northwest Metro Atlanta, Smyrna, GA
• Palouse Habitat for Humanity, Moscow, ID
• Habitat for Humanity of Southeastern Connecticut, New London, CT

Luzier said green certification needs to be accessible for homes in all price ranges. "That's why our certification is more affordable and not as time consuming as other national certifications while delivering the same third-party credibility and rigor," he said. "There is also an NAHB members' discount for Habitat for Humanity affiliates."

"At SFI, we care about our communities and the environment, and we are proud to support this important endeavour," said Kathy Abusow, President and CEO of the independent SFI forest certification program. "The National Green Building Standard recognizes wood from all credible third-party forest certification standards, including SFI, making it easier for builders to build with North American wood."

"Habitat welcomes this initiative because we build sustainably to take better care of our environment, our homeowners and our volunteers," said Matt Clark, National Director, Construction Technologies, for Habitat for Humanity International. "We want to reduce each home's monthly and life cycle costs, and increase efficiency and durability while providing healthy environments. Working with partners like the NAHB Research Center and SFI helps us improve the quality of our homes and the building process."

Habitat for Humanity affiliates that want to be considered under the program should contact the NAHB Research Center at www.nahbgreen.org/ContactUs. Homes must not have been previously registered with the Research Center for certification, and construction must start this year and be completed by April 30, 2012.

The NAHB-Habitat initiative is funded through an SFI community grant, part of the SFI Conservation and Community Partnerships Grant Program. To date, SFI Inc. has committed more than $1 million for grants to help build knowledge, support landowner outreach, strengthen global supply chains, and deliver countless benefits in forests and communities across the United States and Canada. Partner contributions will leverage additional resources, raising the total value of the projects to $4.2 million.

About the National Housing Endowment
The National Housing Endowment (www.nationalhousingendowment.org), the philanthropic arm of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to helping the housing industry develop more effective approaches to home building, enhancing education and training for future generations of leaders in residential construction and increasing the body of knowledge on housing issues.

About the NAHB Research Center
The NAHB Research Center (www.nahbrc.com), located in Upper Marlboro, Md., is an engineering and consulting firm that promotes innovation in housing technology to improve the quality, durability, affordability, and environmental performance of homes and home building products. Created nearly 50 years ago as an independent subsidiary of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), the NAHB Research Center's numerous testing and certification services, including certification of homes and products under the National Green Building Certification Program (www.nahbgreen.org/certification), are internationally recognized as marks of product quality and performance.

About SFI Inc.
SFI Inc. (www.sfiprogram.org) is an independent non-profit charitable organization, and is solely responsible for maintaining, overseeing and improving the internationally recognized Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) program. Across North America, more than 190 million acres/ 78 million hectares are certified to the SFI forest management standard, making it the largest single forest standard in the world. SFI chain-of-custody certification tells buyers the percentage of fiber from certified forests, certified sourcing and/or post-consumer recycled content. The SFI program's unique fiber sourcing requirements promote responsible forest management on all suppliers' lands. SFI Inc. is governed by a three-chamber board of directors representing environmental, social and economic sectors equally.

About Habitat for Humanity
Habitat for Humanity (www.habitat.org) is a non-profit, ecumenical Christian housing ministry that seeks to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness from the world and to make decent shelter a matter of conscience and action. It invites people of all backgrounds, races and religions to build houses together in partnership with families in need. Since 1976, it has built more than 400,000 decent, affordable houses and served more than two million people around the world.

SOURCE SFI Inc.