Community Development Block Grants – Disaster Relief, or CDBG-DR, are allocated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to affected states and local governments to aid long-term recovery of community infrastructure following major disasters. This injection of funding is an opportunity for communities to rebuild stronger, smarter, and more resilient – and LEED offers trusted third-party verification to help validate these efforts.

By offering flexible credit-based solutions, LEED inherently addresses challenges faced by projects in withstanding and recovering from natural disasters through outcomes such as increased energy and water efficiency, rainwater capture, and onsite renewable energy, which translate into reduced needs for offsite resources to support operations. LEED is designed to be flexible in terms of its applicability as well. Regardless of where they are in their life cycle, buildings of all types can pursue LEED by choosing the type that works best for the project. This includes new and renovated buildings, neighborhood land development or redevelopment projects, single-family homes and low and midrise multifamily buildings, and cities and communities.

LEED enables higher quality of life for low and moderate income residents, by reducing energy cost burden, and improving conditions for health. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, energy costs for low-income families amount to 8.2% on average, three times higher than other income brackets. Many low-income households lack access to energy efficiency improvements and new technologies that can help reduce these expenses.