In 1993 David Gottfried (with Rick Fedrizzi and Mike Italiano) founded the nonprofit U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and was the mastermind behind the LEED® green building rating system, now in use worldwide. Ten years later David founded the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC), now with GBCs in 100 countries across the globe. It serves as a united nations of GBCs, helping incubate new GBCs and sharing best GBC practices, rating systems, data and new models for collaborative acceleration of global transformation.
David founded Regenerative Ventures (RV), the Regenerative Network‘s parent company, in 2005 to accelerate green building market opportunities in the private sector and help end disruptive building technologies. RV has assisted over 100 leading global and venture capital backed start-up companies and also incubated its own “Regen” start-ups, including RegenNetwork (RN). The firm has served as the green strategic consultant for many of the world’s top organizations and developments.
RV’s client list reads like a who’s who of the best organizations in the world, including firms like Apple, Genentech, DreamWorks, Starbucks, UTC, Yahoo, Stanford University, China Merchants Group, State of California, City of San Diego, City of Santa Monica, State of Montana, USGBC, SOM, Thomas Properties Group, Brookfield, Alameda County Waste Authority, SDG&E, SCE, Armstrong, Sloan, Toshiba, Haworth, Office Depot, Colliers.
In 2009, David founded the RegenNetwork to bring together his portfolio of global green building manufacturing clients with his growing group of disruptive technology start-ups. The Network quickly expanded to include hand-selected exclusive leading green product manufacturers and service providers. RN helps advance emerging products, systems and technologies (game-changers) that offer enhanced financial returns, while accelerating global transformation.
One can say that David Gottfried literally wrote the book on green building with his 2014 work Explosive Green, One Man’s Journey to Green the World’s Largest Industry. This paradigm-shifting book tells the twenty-year story of the global green building movement, through the eyes of David Gottfried, the man who helped start it all. Explosion Green reveals the inner workings of the building industry as it comes to grips with the imperative for environmentally friendly practices. It describes how the industry has evolved, and how this evolution has helped fight climate change and prevent further damage to the environment while creating a multibillion-dollar industry. Filled with his unique insight and self-deprecating humor, Gottfried’s riveting memoir demonstrates how one person can start a global movement.