UH Mānoa building recognized as gold-standard for sustainability

The Walter Dods, Jr. RISE Center received the highest rating as set by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design by the U.S. Green Building Council, which is most widely used green-building rating system in the world and an international symbol of excellence.

Through design, construction and operations practices that improve environmental and human health, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design-certified buildings, including the Walter Dods, Jr. RISE Center, are helping to make the world more sustainable.

Walter Dods, Jr. RISE Center, located on the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa campus in Honolulu, is a unique innovation center coupled with student housing that presents a new way for makers and doers across a variety of disciplines to connect, collaborate, and innovate with an integrated living/learning community.

“Achievement of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Gold marks a significant milestone for RISE Center,” said project lead Mike Lam, senior vice president of Hunt Companies Hawaiʻi. “Creation of a sustainable facility reflects the vision of the public-private partnership team, who were committed to developing a 21st century facility with a reduced carbon footprint that offers a healthy indoor environment for the students, educators and community members who use it every day.”

By designing to a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Gold standard, the University of Hawaiʻi, UH Foundation and Hunt Companies Hawaiʻi developed a cutting-edge project that features:

• More than 30% reduction in energy consumption through the installation of LED lighting, efficient heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems and equipment, a 104-kilowatt photovoltaic system and a solar water-heating system that measures 60 square meters;
• More than 30% reduction in indoor water use due to low-flow fixtures and other water-efficient technologies;
• More than 75% of construction waste diverted from landfills through aggressive recycling and reuse; and
• Low-emission and/or non-toxic materials used throughout the design and construction process.

The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Gold certification process required a comprehensive third-party review of the project, evaluating it on nine elements including indoor environmental quality, water efficiency, sustainability of the site, transportation, energy and atmosphere, and materials and resources.

“RISE’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Gold certification demonstrates tremendous green building leadership,” said Peter Templeton, president and CEO of Green Building Council. “Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design was created to make the world a better place and revolutionize our buildings and communities by providing everyone with access to healthy, green and high performing buildings. RISE is a prime example of how the innovative work of project teams can create local solutions that contribute to making a global difference.”

Housing, entrepreneurship, innovation

The $70 million live-learn-work RISE Center opened to its first UH student-residents in August 2023 as the first new University of Hawaiʻi student housing in 15 years. The building successfully repurposed the landmark 1930s Charles Atherton House building into a state-of-the-art modern institutional facility flanked by two new six-story student residential wings. The entrepreneurship-and-innovation center is located on the corner of Metcalf Street and University Avenue at the Mānoa campus.

“This Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Gold certification underscores our commitment to environmental sustainability,” said John Han, vice president for administration and chief financial officer at UH Foundation. “RISE was designed with the intent to have a smaller environmental footprint by reducing carbon emissions, enhancing energy efficiency, and safeguarding the health and environment of the project’s surroundings.”

RISE is a collaborative learning environment that integrates an innovation-and-entrepreneurship center with housing for 374 students. Students of all disciplines can explore their passions, solve complex problems, build prototypes, test their ideas and access resources in the unique facility.

The Walter Dods, Jr. RISE Center has garnered local and national accolades since first opening, including the CoStar Group’s Redevelopment of the Year in its 2024 Impact Awards Hawaiʻi program, the Hawaiʻi section of the American Society of Civil Engineers’ Grand Overall Winner and Best Large Project at its 2024 Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement Awards and NAIOP Hawaiʻi’s 27th Annual Kukulu Hale Public/Government Project Award.

In 2019, Hunt Companies Hawaiʻi, University of Hawaiʻi and the UH Foundation entered into a public-private partnership to design, build and finance RISE—the first public-private partnership for the university. It is fully funded with private, non-taxpayer money.

Following RISE and set to open in fall 2025 is the Hale Haukani graduate students and faculty housing facility on Dole Street.