The National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC) is offering a series of three informative and educational webinars examining future weather patterns, ways climate change affects the built environment, and cutting-edge innovations in solar glass. These Sustainability Sessions are free and begin this September leading up to the Fall Virtual Membership Meeting in October. This series features experts working with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), George Mason University (GMU), and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).  

Beginning on Tuesday, Sept. 15 at 2 p.m. EDT, the first session is titled “Future Weather Files,” where Tom Di Liberto, a climatologist with NOAA’s Climate Program Office’s Communication team, gives an in-depth look at weather patterns and changing climate zones, and discusses what scientific models predict from now until 2100.   

The second session in this series is Tuesday, Sept. 22 at 2 p.m. EDT with George Mason University’s Director of Sustainability Greg Farley sharing the school’s “Path to Net-Zero by 2050 or Sooner!” In 2007, GMU signed the American College and University President’s Climate Commitment to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 and then created the school’s Office of Sustainability. Farley reviews the plan to meet this ambitious goal and how the campus already is reducing its carbon footprint, including guidelines for new construction and building retrofits.  

The final session of the series, “Envisioning the Solar Glass Revolution,” is on Tuesday, Sept. 29 at 2 p.m. EDT, with Lance Wheeler, Ph.D., who leads research at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Wheeler will share his invention of the world’s first thermochromic photovoltaic window. Additionally, the session covers energy insights, state-of-the-art and cutting-edge innovations in PV technology and its use in windows. 

Attendees can earn American Institute of Architects (AIA) and US Green Building Council (USGBC) continuing education credits for these sessions. Learn more about the Sustainability Sessions and register here.