Green Scene East To Meet Wednesday

Green Scene East—a forum launched last month to exchange ideas about green building and connect with others in the industry—is slated to meet again on Wednesday, March 11, at 6:30 p.m. at the Southampton Publick House.

At the meeting, Water Mill Building Supply will showcase energy-efficient products. There will be a cash bar with hors d’oeuvres.

The group was the brainchild of the Long Island Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council, which has an East End committee made up of professionals in the sustainable building community.

Held the second Wednesday of each month, Green Scene East is primarily geared toward networking and allows for “great discussions of experts in different green building groups,” said committee chairman Frank Dalene, whose Bridgehampton-based building company, Telemark, which also conducts energy audits, sponsored the first meeting.

There are also presentations on issues and topics in sustainable building given by experts representing a broad range of fields related to green practices.

Attendees at last month’s meeting included Bill Chaleff, a Water Mill architect and longtime advocate of sustainable planning and design. There were also representatives from a local Sherwin-Williams paint store and Water Mill Building Supply, the latter of which is sponsoring the March meeting and discussing some of its work in environmental sustainability.

Mr. Dalene has dedicated himself to environmental protection and green building—he founded the not-for-profit Hamptons Green Alliance, which educates people in the building trades about sustainable building and maintenance practices. He is also on the executive board of the Peconic Institute, which promotes research and development for a sustainable region; and he chairs the Energy Sustainability Committee in East Hampton as well as the U.S. Green Building Council’s Long Island chapter.

This newest venture is an opportunity to invite a wide audience that blends everyone from the industry expert to the inquisitive novice. “It’s really exciting for anyone that’s involved in anything green,” said Mr. Dalene, adding that those who are simply interested in sustainability are “welcome to come; we all have something to share with each other.”