The U.S. Dept. of Energy’s Jeffrey M. Baker, the visionary
behind the nation’s newest symbol for sustainability, loves to
recount the tale of the dreaded Kobayashi Maru test. For Baker,
the fictional test from the “Star Trek” series is an allegory
that became a guidepost during his 15-year crusade to develop a
replicable model for the design and construction of affordable,
ultra-green buildings. As Baker tells it, Capt. James T. Kirk
had failed the leadership training exercise twice as a cadet.
Since Kirk knew the test, a simulated rescue mission, was rigged
for failure, he secretly reprogrammed the simulator to give him
at least a fair shot at victory. When Kirk took the test, he
managed to rescue the disabled Kobayashi Maru, a distressed
freighter stuck in the enemy’s neutral zone, and destroy all the
enemy warships. While he had bent the rules, he became the first
cadet to pass the test, thanks to his determination and outside-
the-box thinking. Like his fictional hero, Baker never gave up
on his green-buil