Cladding materials used in construction are critical to carbon reduction goals and loom larger as operational energy use diminishes. Architects, designers, builders and facility managers are often in the dark about environmental and especially climate change impacts as they look at exterior material choices for new construction, cyclical recladding, and overcladding. Cost and appearance are important parameters that usually drive the final choice. This session will provide tools, rules of thumb, and sources of information and will look at methodologies available to sort through climate impacts of cladding choices in North American residential and commercial markets.