As the building industry struggles with the need to build sustainably in the midst of a serious recession, there is a way forward, according to a top green building consultant, who claims that green-building professionals can make sustainability pay for itself.

Jerry Yudelson, a green building consultant and author of 10 green building books, says designers and contractors can capitalize on the need to maintain existing building budgets while making their green building projects more cost-effective.

Developers, building owners, universities, local governments and others are seeking sustainable and high-performance features for their buildings at no additional cost. This means builders and service providers must deliver cost-conscious, integrated design and services, or what Yedelson calls “frugal green.”

In his most recent book, “Green Building Through Integrated Design,” Yudelson talks about the many ways design teams are approaching the problem of cost-management on green projects, and the key lesson is that it’s all about “cost transfer” — taking money out of the unnecessary part of the budget (which usually means overdesigned mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems) and putting it into more green features, products and systems.”

The second big innovation is to look for all the costs in a project that can be reduced by adopting green building measures. One example: a project team in Boston found that by reducing water use through specifying water-conserving fixtures, they could reduce the size of the required water meter for a new building, which saved them enough money (from charges by the local water utility) to more than pay for the extra cost of all the efficient toilets, urinals and other fixtures. The bottom line: frugal green offers considerable energy reductions and environmental benefits at no additional cost.

“It’s all about challenging the status quo of conventional design that says you can’t build high-performance projects on a conventional budget. All my research says you can in fact do this.”

The business case for commercial green buildings is simple: If your next project is not a green building, one that’s certified by a national third-party rating system, it will be functionally outdated the day it’s completed and very likely to under perform the market as time passes.

“Sustainable is here to stay,” said Jerry Lea of Houston-based Hines, a strong proponent and developer of ENERGY STAR and LEED buildings. “I think the definition of ‘Class A’ buildings very soon will include sustainable design and probably LEED certification.”

Richard Cook, a prominent architect in New York City, says, “In five years, it will be clear that buildings not reaching the highest standard of sustainability will become obsolete.”

Do you have the sustainability skills to keep you career moving forward during these difficult times. If not perhaps you should think about being more “frugal green.”

Thanks and good luck.