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The Global Ecology Center (GEC) at Stanford University is an 11,000-square-foot laboratory building designed using RMI's '10xE' whole-system thinking. By challenging conventional design assumptions and employing an interdisciplinary process, the project achieved a 72 percent reduction in electricity for HVAC and lighting compared to a 2001 California Title 24-compliant building. Key innovations include a night-sky cooling system that uses roof sprays to chill water, radiant floor cooling, and a 'cascading' ventilation system that reduces outside air needs by 20 percent. The building also reduced its concrete carbon footprint by 31 percent through the use of high-volume fly-ash concrete and decreased water usage by 33 percent. Despite challenges with standard energy-modeling software and some valve leaks, the GEC demonstrated that high efficiency can be achieved with a modest capital cost premium, resulting in operating costs approximately 56 percent lower than a comparable existing building.