What One Stimulus Buck Could Do

Can this architect's "14x" plan simultaneously slash CO2, create millions of jobs, and save local government?

—By Michael Mechanic

Fri May 29, 2009 9:45 AM PST

Okay, quick: Which portion of the US economy consumes the most energy?

Nope. It’s not transportation. Not manufacturing either. The correct answer is the building sector, which guzzles about three-quarters of the nation's electricity and half of our overall energy—and is responsible for almost half of America's carbon emissions.