Wisconsin Real Estate Program Offers Trendsetting Green Real Estate Courses

The enthusiasm for green buildings among real estate professionals, public officials, and environmental activists is palpable.  With voices rising in the national discussion on the urgency of global warming and other environmental issues, both businesses and homeowners are learning what it means to be "sustainable and green." The more they learn, the more they are demanding buildings that are thoughtfully designed and energy-efficient. 

Green issues and sustainability are clearly important, not just for the environment, but also for professionals who want to be on the cutting edge in the real estate profession. As exciting new technologies, products, and scientific breakthroughs emerge, staying educated on the hows – as well as the whys – will become increasingly important. To ensure that our students are on the cutting edge of the green building trend, the Wisconsin Real Estate Program is leading the pack by offering some of the most innovative green curriculum in the country. 

During the current academic year, three courses focusing on green and sustainable real estate issues were offered at both the graduate and undergraduate level, and several others cover green concepts in their curriculum.  Courses are taught by Senior Lecturer Emeritus Rod Matthews and Senior Lecturer Tom Landgraf.  Planning is also underway for a new conference focusing on green/sustainable development to be held in Madison in the fall of 2008. The conference will be sponsored by the Grasskamp Center for Real Estate and aims to educate real estate professionals on the latest issues surrounding the green development “tsunami”--  how to do it, the benefits, and trends for the future.

In Matthews’ undergraduate course on Green Real Estate taught last fall, he used a macro approach to present issues of real estate and sustainability. The curriculum was complemented by presentations from professionals who are leaders in green real estate.   For example, Dave Cieslewicz, mayor of Madison, was a guest lecturer for Matthews’ course. Cieslewicz said that a top priority for the local government is to transform Madison into a model green city. To accomplish this goal, city officials are aiming to make all new government buildings LEED certified and to restructure the zoning code to encourage more urban development and less sprawl.

Cieslewicz emphasizes that courses like the one Matthews is teaching are vital to aspiring real estate professionals: “Green issues and sustainability are very important, not just for the environment, but for their careers. Green building is the trend of the future. And for UW students to be educated in that [green issues and sustainability], puts them at the forefront of the field.”

Matthews says UW-Madison courses focusing on green topics directly align with the values of the late Professor James A. Graaskamp, the late and legendary UW-Madison real estate professor for whom the Graaskamp Center for Real Estate is named.  “The concept of integrating social and environmental issues into the curriculum are consistent with Graaskamp’s vision of real estate, to look at issues beyond brick and mortar to the society, energy, and issues at large,” explains Matthews.  He also believes the greatest benefit of green building to create “a better world.”

Tom Landgraf is also clearly enthusiastic about the curriculum “going green.”  He is teaching two new green real estate courses, one for undergraduates and one for MBA students, as well as a Residential Development which emphasizes green real estate issues.  All his courses explore different facets of green real estate through hands-on projects, guest speakers, and field trips. 

MBA students in Landgraf’s Green/Sustainable Real Estate Development course had the unique opportunity to influence public policy through a collaborative project with the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA).  For their main course project, they were faced with the challenge of creating a feasibility point scoring system, which included new green standards for administering building tax credits.

With the new point scoring system, Wisconsin will have an effective system of incentives for builders who plan to incorporate green features in their buildings.  The builders who accumulate the most points will be propelled further along the very competitive tax-credit process.  According to MBA student Michael Scott, “Through this experience, we learned about local and national resources that are available to make housing development projects more sustainable, as well as affordable.  We also learned about the other state systems that were being employed to capture the same (and different) environmental improvements that Wisconsin is trying achieve."

In Landgraf’s Residential Development course, students toured “Lucky,” Madison’s first Green Built Certified multifamily complex.  The site visit reinforced many topics and themes that are embedded in Landgraf's curriculum. In particular, they heard how the builders are implementing green features into their structure. According to the developer, "energy efficiency is a huge priority."  During the spring semester, students will meet with the developer, tour the site (still under construction) and delve more deeply into the green development aspects of Lucky’s Central Park Apartments.  Becoming knowledgeable about green real estate through real-life experiences, Landgraf believes, will help the up-and-coming real estate professionals in many facets of their careers. 

On a broader level, the Wisconsin School of Business recently garnered national attention for integrating social and environmental issues into its MBA offerings.  According to the Aspen Institute’s 2007-2008 edition of Beyond Grey Pinstripes, the business school was ranked 33rd in the world, and 24th in the U.S. The Beyond Grey Pinstripes ranking measures how well MBA programs equip students with an understanding of the social, environmental and economic perspectives required for business success in a competitive global economy. It is the only global ranking that evaluates MBA programs for their efforts to prepare students for the new business realities demanding social and environmental stewardship.

“This recognition helps us attract students that are interested not only in business, but in the role that business can play in shaping our future,” explains Michael Knetter, dean of the Wisconsin School of Business.  “We are committed to educating tomorrow's leaders on how to maximize economic performance while minimizing the environmental impact and contributing to lasting social change.”