Welcome to HomeFree
A national initiative supporting affordable housing leaders who are improving human health by using less toxic building materials.
Latest News
HBN Welcomes Two New Staff in Fall 2020
HBN is thrilled to announce two new staff additions to our team! We'd like to introduce Austin Wiebe, our new Senior Director of Communications and Marketing, and Nsilo Berry, Health Impact Researcher.
Read MoreSolutions for Safer Turf
HBN has released new research on the human and environmental hazards surrounding natural and artificial turf solutions. Our Hazard Spectrum compares various options and their related hazards in an easy to read format.
Read MoreTogether, We Can Eliminate Disease Linked to Chemical Exposures
2020 has been a year like no other. The COVID-19 pandemic and uprisings for racial justice have disrupted lives, communities and business as usual around the world. It has shown that our work is more important than ever. As we reflect on our past 20 years and look forward to...
Read MoreSelecting the Wrong Drywall Could Introduce Mercury into the Environment
While one drywall board may look very much like another, some are made with naturally occurring gypsum, while others are made from gypsum manufactured from treated waste generated at coal-fired power plants and can introduce mercury into the environment during manufacturing. This article includes details of HBN’s recently updated analysis...
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DonateFeatured User
Ruchi Shah
Senior Sustainability Manager, Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation
Ruchi is a Senior Sustainability Manager at Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation (TNDC), one of the largest multifamily affordable housing developers in San Francisco. She leads sustainability in the built-environment initiatives for a portfolio of over 50 buildings (circa 3.5 Million Sq. ft and 5000 units). Under her leadership, TNDC has reduced portfolio-wide energy and water usage by over 20 % as part of the National Better Buildings Challenge and announced the planning of a portfolio-wide carbon and waste reduction strategy in 2019.
Ruchi has over 8 years of experience in sustainability across real estate and consulting sectors, helping companies reduce operating costs and manage climate risks. Ruchi is a LEED Green Associate, a Fitwel Ambassador, and holds a Master’s in Sustainability from the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn), and a Bachelor’s in Biotechnology from Mumbai, India.
As a HomeFree Champion, Ruchi leads demonstration projects to identify healthier flooring, insulation, and air-sealant solutions that meet cost and performance criteria for affordable housing projects. With support from the HBN research team, Ruchi developed a practical materials guidance resource that will help her design team and architects specify healthier materials across TNDC’s low-income multifamily project portfolio. Together, TNDC and HomeFree are exploring opportunities for making this resource available to the HomeFree user community.