The Foreign Service Journal, April 2014

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | APRIL 2014 35 The Finnish embassy in Washington, D.C., is a green building that was ahead of its time. Here is the story of this sustainability pioneer. BY EM I L I A HONKASAAR I FOCUS M any diplomatic missions around the world are concerned about energy efficiency today, but what does it mean for one to “go green”? As the first diplomatic mission in Washington, D.C., to gain the prestigious U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification, in 2010, the Embassy of Finland prides itself as a leader in the field of sustainability. Taking its cue from a culture embedded in a love for the wilderness, Finnish architecture has a history of simple design that exists harmoniously with its natural surroundings. When architects Mikko Heikkinen and Markku Komonen were design- ing the new embassy building in the early 1990s, they chose to draw on this tradition. Emilia Honkasaari is the communications coordinator for the Embassy of Finland in Washington, D.C. Finns Take the LEED INGREEN EMBASSY DESIGN Much of the architecture’s effectiveness derives from subtle integration of the building and the landscape. Wrapped in a grid of copper sunscreens (and seasonally wrapped in greenery), the building instantly established a powerful and progressive pres- ence for Finland in Washington, D.C., on its completion in 1994. Two decades ago, issues of energy efficiency were not as widely considered as they are today. However, by favoring local GREENING EMBASSIES Jussi Tiainen