For firms pursuing the AIA 2030 Commitment, your project delivery methodology can make or break success. How does a team measure its effectiveness? Does good collaboration yield better results? Is IP more than a kick-off charrette and “one-hit wonder”? Can IP be achieved in individual project teams if the overall firm culture and methodology isn’t aligned with it?
USGBC’s LEED program now recognizes the importance of integrated process with the new v4 IP credit, so more teams are paying attention to this, but will a LEED credit (again) cause more hoop-jumping without actually providing more value? 70% of a project's performance and impacts are decided in the first 10% of the process, so it's critical to get it right.
This workshop is a practical and applied look at how your firm can truly capture the value provided by institutionalizing IP – and getting the LEED credit follows naturally! Successfully implementing IP requires a clear, shared understanding of what integration means in your firm culture, how individuals in different roles participate and alignment with consultants around your project delivery objectives. Critical efforts happen beyond the project focus and require change management to help everyone feel comfortable.
This is a 100% interactive workshop where you will be guided through an exercise to deconstruct and remap your firms process, identifying along the way what organizational triggers need to be addressed so that integrative design is actually the bedrock of project management and not an elusive miracle achieved only with the most progressive clients.
You will gain strategies to help you truly embed IP into daily project management practices and participants leave with practical, actionable steps that will help you implement qualitative changes in your project delivery methodology the next day.
More about the speaker, Barbra Batshalom, Executive Director of the Sustainable Performance Institute:
Barbra Batshalom is the founder and executive director of the nonprofit Sustainable Performance Institute and past founder and president of the USGBC Affiliate in Massachusetts. She is an industry leader whose vision drives the organization's programs to transform the market from public policy to professional practice.
Her work focuses on the intersection of systems, processes and culture. With a diverse background of fine arts, social psychology and 20 years in architecture and sustainability consulting, she brings a variety of skills to her work and a unique perspective engaging the human dynamics of decision-making and creative collaboration to technical work. She's an educator, public speaker and change agent that works with a wide range of governmental, institutional and private sector organizations to help them institutionalize sustainability and achieve measurable improvements in performance and profitability.
SPI's green firm Certification is the first industry program to provide a framework for evaluating the capability of design and construction firms to deliver a consistent, high quality sustainability service and was adopted by HUD in 2011. SPI's Green Firm Boot Camp workshop program has been delivered to hundreds of firms nation-wide to help raise the bar on professional practice in the industry. Barbra teaches sustainable real estate development in Brandeis University’s International Business School. She has served on numerous boards, task forces and committees to help develop public and corporate policies for sustainability and teaches courses on change management for sustainability for professionals around the world.
Come learn about one of the largest Passive structures in the Boston area. Prior to the tour, we are having an educational session on the building with an opportunity to dig deep into the design this project. This session is scheduled immediately prior to the tour of the building and will provide architects, engineers and others with the professional insights.
Passive House: What is this concept? We'll go into a deep dive with the basic knowledge of how one can achieve this standard of construction.
Section on cost: Are these comparable in cost to non-PH buildings? The answer is they are! It has to do with sourcing and methods which is very expensive if you don’t know where to build or buy. Big knowledge base here to get it right.
Air quality: PH addresses big problems regarding micro-particle air pollution (MPP.) It’s the small stuff that is damaging to our health. Lots of studies come out from universities and colleges on this type of pollutant and how it touches on every disease you can imagine. We'll talk through the terrible health effects even tiring it to autism. PH construction has a sealed envelope with only one opening, you can keep MPP out, no other building type can do it.
Cultural Sustainability: There's a big environmental theme incorporating art and community into the design and landscape. Big efforts into the integration of food growing on site. A lot architecture encouraging exercise. There's also a transportation component, working with EV, DC power micro grids and more.
About the site:
There's a city block in South Boston which has on it an old rum distillery which has about 150 working artists. The new building is the first of two, and will be completed around Thanksgiving. It will be certified as a Passive House. The challenge of the project was how to make PH construction– which would meet certification, with 90 – 95% reduction in thermal energy requirements– easy and economical to build. This is a problem in design, sourcing, construction methods and sequencing, education of the General Contractor and subs, and strict oversight.
We're also doing lots of stuff around PV, electric vehicles, food production, indoor air quality, architecture which promotes exercise, the integration of the environmental aims with the arts community, and other things.
This is a 60,000 s.f. building, to be followed a second 90,000 which will push the technologies and concepts another step. In the end, there will be about 300 people on the site.
After months of anticipation, it is finally official: Mahesh Ramanujam is now the official CEO for USGBC – taking over from founding CEO, Rick Fedrizzi.
I have met Mahesh many times at USGBC meetings and he has always come across as a very energetic, passionate, and articulate person. He has a vision for our work. I believe he can help us work toward our mission as a Chapter here in Massachusetts.
He sees us being able to incorporate sustainabilty more and more into the built environment, using the tools USGBC has developed.
He is not patient, considering the urgency of our environmental and social challenges, and has really shaken things up at USGBC.
I look forward to working with Mahesh and his team at USGBC to build a better system to advocate for market transformation for sustainability. It is exciting to see the many tools – LEED, WELL, SITES and others in the GBCI portfolio – and to know more and more people are using them every day.
I look forward to the support of USGBC as we build our base and grow our influence in Massachusetts and our region.
The Residential Green Building Committee met on November 14th, 2016. We heard from our own Rick Ames from Next Phase Studios, on the plethora of certification types he has encountered with his projects (See attached presentation). This includes the Living Building Challenge, LEED, Net Zero Energy, Energy STAR, Passive House, and Enterprise Green Community Certification.
Rick went into depth on some of the projects he has worked on which include deep energy retrofits and changes such as the addition of solar thermal, solar PV, reassessing boiler situations, insulating the outside of building, natural ventilation, and more. Rick showed us some examples of past projects including a grocery store, hospital, college campus, and homes. One EnergySTAR rated home included a “Healthy House,” as it created a healthier living environment for a homeowner with respiratory troubles.
Rick explained his interest in the Living Building Challenge certification in particular, as it shows “buildings can be regenerative.” This certification is based on multiple performance categories that sets a high bar for environmentally sustainable buildings. It requires urban agriculture, and includes attributes such as an efficient gray water system, compost toilet, and more. It also involves equity measures such as social justice and educational requirements, along with beauty conditions.
Some of the lingering questions included how do we continue to raise the bar within the commercial and residential building space? What are some action items we can take to promote taking these next steps?
We then continued to discuss some committee business, and the exciting events we have coming up!
We have a building tour on December 1st, 2016 at the Distillery in South Boston, which has Passive House certification (register HERE). And come join us for our next Committee meeting on December 12th!
The recent election has generated a lot of emotional energy throughout our communities. My heart is tight.
Many people are excited about change, a practical approach to government, and anticipated efficiencies in getting business done.
Many are frightened and mobilizing about statements coming from our president-elect related to racism, intolerance, antipathy to science, and general capriciousness. There are demonstrations, there is violence & aggression. There is a call to action.
I have been speaking with many of our members. The ABX conference has afforded some great interactions already. Some ask: how can we respond as a community? What is our role – how do we juggle our traditional focus on buildings with the wide range of associated concerns we have?
Word from the new actors in Washington is that major legal frameworks and federal agency support structures which affect our industry will be diminished. At a meeting last night with colleagues, we lamented how so much progress on sustainability issues seems to be getting simply thrown away. It is frustrating, saddening and angering all at the same time.
Our work may seem more urgent than ever. Many of our peer organizations are rattled, are raging, are redoubling their efforts.
Let us recall our center. Our core. Our knowing-ness of the long arc toward justice.
Let us use our fundamental beliefs in a better world as a bedrock to build upon.
Let us use our wholehearted convictions to double down on our work.
We must hit the calculations harder and develop messages that are unassailable – not just aspirational and rhetorical, but defensible against short-term thinking.
As an organization we are committed to change. Our parent organization arose as a means to disrupt the status quo. We have shifted the way architecture, engineering and construction is done.
But as one of our Directors said: “What has really changed? We’re already heading off a cliff. Now we’re just driving a little faster!”
We have not turned the course of the vehicle, as it were, of our industry. The election may affect some GSA requirements for green buildings, but what else?
We still have to pitch to clients the science of green buildings, the moral imperative of reduced GHGs and diminished toxicity, the health benefits of better buildings. As Boston's Chief of Environment & Energy, Austin Blackmon has commented: none of our daily work is significantly changed.
Let's take our core convictions, the strength of our arguments, and move forward to offer our communities the benefits of green buildings.
We aspire to drive sustainable and regenerative design, construction and operation of the built environment. We must work together to raise up our abilities and capacities to lead the industry.
No one else will do this: connect the amazing promise of sustainability to the massively scalable solution that a transformed built environment can deliver.
We are the solution we are seeking!
Let us be heartened by our organizational vision:
We envision a thriving and diverse community, creating a built environment of net positive systems of water and energy, of financial and social equity, and of ecological and human health.
Let us respond as brightness to the malevolent and inconsiderate.
Let us respond with rectifying compassion to the shifting culture around us, the emboldened misguided bigots, and the science-averse.
Let us grow our roles and bring more people into our movement. Let us grow our connections with our colleagues across the acronyms and across the aisles. Let us step back and step up as needed, and respond invigorated!
I look forward to working with you in the coming weeks and months.
Thank you for being part of our community,
Grey
[NB the photo above is from Monday night's meeting with the Living Building Collaborative, which we host. The Living Future Challenge is an inspiring message about a better future that I think we can all believe in!]
“It's going to be a wicked green conference, and we are psyched to collaborate with our friends at the Boston Society of Architects.” said Grey Lee, Executive Director of USGBC MA – the local Chapter of USGBC, based in Boston, “We are thrilled to maximize the potential of our community to manifest as a force for good: to go ALL IN for MORE GREEN BUILDINGS! It is awesome that we can come together in a great LEED Silver-certified building to connect across industry sectors to learn, network and advocate for a more sustainable and just world, through the transformation of the built environment for net positive results.”
Today, November 15, 2016, Informa Exhibitions, the US Green Building Council (USGBC), and the Boston Society of Architects/AIA (BSA) announced Greenbuild and ArchitectureBoston Expo (ABX) will be co-located for 2017. The events will take place the week of November 6-10 and both will be held at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center (BCEC) in Boston, creating one of the largest events for the building community in North America.
“Greenbuild and ABX co-located back in 2008 in Boston, both shows happening at different venues but the same week, creating significant, lasting synergies between the two events as well as holding the record for the largest attended Greenbuild to date,” said Lindsay Roberts, group director, Informa Exhibitions. “This is an incredibly positive opportunity for us to bring two very significant events together again, this time in the same facility, and allowing us to better serve the building community by offering more educational, networking, and exhibition opportunities throughout the week.”
Greenbuild annually attracts more than 18,000 attendees and more than 500 exhibiting companies with a broad audience that spans the sustainable building community. ABX draws more than 8,000 attendees and more than 400 exhibiting companies.
“ABX is the largest annual building industry event in the Northeast and it thrives because of our robust cross-industry partnerships,” said Josiah Stevenson FAIA, 2017 BSA president. “By co-locating with Greenbuild, we can ensure an even greater depth and diversity of ideas and topics presented to the full spectrum of building industry professionals.”
Specific details are currently in development and will be released as they become available. Each show will contact its exhibitors in the coming weeks to begin discussions for formal plans for the 2017 exhibit hall, which will be one comprehensive space accessible to attendees of both events.
“Greenbuild 2017 will be aptly themed, “All In,” to encompass the breadth and diversity of the sustainability and green building movement. When we come together, we are one community of professionals, advocates, and practitioners, students and teachers, designers and builders, and everything in between,” said Kate Hurst, vice president, Community Advancement, Conferences & Events, USGBC. “Partnering with a respected regional event like ABX will provide our audience with more dynamic opportunities to engage, learn, and interact with other professionals and leaders in the industry.”
More information on Greenbuild can be found at greenbuildexpo.com. The Call for Proposals and Reviewers for Greenbuild 2017 is open through January 13, 2017for those interested in speaking and/or participating in the conference program at Greenbuild.
ABX 2016 runs November 15-17 at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center in Boston. More information about ABX can be found at abexpo.com. The 2017 Call for Proposals opens in December 2017.
On Monday night, together with International Living Future Institute (ILFI) we held an awesome pre-mixer to get everyone hyped up for ABX 2016! We were honored to have Amanda Sturgeon, their CEO, come out from Seattle (as she would be at ABX this week) and share some words of wisdom with our packed room of green building leaders. It was really a rogue's gallery of who is working on the most aggressive green building design and implementation.
Thank you to the Living Building Collaborative, New England, and our colleagues who helped to organize the evening. We had some great locavore beers & ciders, huge app platters, and a ton of hot food from a local Indian restaurant. Thank you to Workbar Cambridge for hosting us in their main hall. People came from Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut and of course Washington!
Much of the night was filled with networking, sharing stories and strategies, and planning out the future of the USGBC MA Chapter for the coming months. Later on in the evening, the USGBC MA Chapter Board Chair, Shawn Hesse of emersion DESIGN, gave a thoughtful speech on how we can use recent events grow our mission and our industry further – rather than take a step back. The world needs green building more than ever. It's time for us to step up and step out even more as leaders!
After that, Jim Jones of Skanska took the mic to echo Shawn's statements on us needing to engage with the broader community of practitioners, especially the building operator crowd. He has been working on an intitiative linking us with YouthBuild to develop a new track for them – beyond the construction trades and into trainings for high-tech building operating systems.
Finally, Amanda Sturgeon of ILFI closed off the night, discussing how ILFI and the work we are doing in New England as the Living Building Collaborative, is challenging what it means to be working on sustainability in our built environment, and what Living Buildings can do to really propel the industry forward. Let's look forward to doing more with ILFI and the various Living Challenges and the component criteria systems organized as “petals.” Stay tuned for our “PetalPalooza” this summer!
Oh how time flies! ABX 2016 – the Northeast's largest architecture expo – is coming to Boston tomorrow morning bright and early. There's a lot going on now (Monday morning) through Thursday afternoon, so open up your calendar now!
Tonight is our Pre-Mixer with ILFI's CEO Amanda Sturgeon. We'll be discussing the Living Building Challenge, share stories, network, and eat & drink. Come to Cambridge from 530-730 tonight to join the fun! Registration.
Wednesday night we're holding a party with the Quebec government's office here in Boston. Learn how climate change causes architects and developers to think of new strategies to combat the natural world. Register and learn more.
This is going to be a really fun week, and we hope to see you here!
Augusta Williams Researcher Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
C21: How Green Building Make Your Clients Smarter: Green Buildings have measurable positive effects on brain function. The ability to provide data on how design impacts occupant productivity is key to moving client towards valuing and advocating for green building features. This presentation will share the key findings from the Harvard Cognitive Function study and will review outcomes of the industry transforming research where cognitive function scores were better in green building conditions compared to the conventional building conditions across multiple functional domains, including crisis response, strategy, and focused activity level. On average, cognitive scores were 101 percent higher in enhanced green building conditions. CO2, VOCs, and ventilation rate all had significant, independent impacts on cognitive function. Because this study was designed to reflect indoor environments encountered by large numbers of people every day, these findings have far ranging implications for worker productivity, student learning, and safety.
Thursday, November 17th, 2016
10:00AM – 11:30AM
Room 107A
Dana Anderson has an architectural design practice committed to Net Zero Energy Building design by using Passive House design standards. His net zero designs are innovative, sustainable and socially responsible and become the foundation of the built environment and our culture. He explores a spirit of curiosity and learning toward solving everyday problems and addressing community goals. He pursues an architecture that is thoughtful, practical and economical, emphasizing context and a client’s aspirations.
Dana has many years of experience designing single homes, multi-family apartment complexes, and student residence halls for Colleges and Universities. He is a LEED AP and has been involved in the USGBC for many years and a passionate contributor to the Residential Green Building Committee for over two years. The RGBC is contributing to the future of green housing in Massachusetts by emphasizing Net Zero Energy, renewable energy sources, and Passive House design standards.
Below, Dana provides a closer look into Net Zero Energy design and why it should be valued.
The next Wave: Net Zero Energy buildings are raising the bar with technology, innovation, and environmental culture.
Since ancient times, people have designed buildings for their local climate, taking advantage of natural daylight, prevailing winds, regional materials, unique planning and aesthetic characteristics, and, common construction techniques. Today, net zero Design is based on these same principals, but is combined with enhanced energy conservation techniques – super insulation, advanced air tight products, state of the art mechanical systems, energy performance design tools, and renewable energy systems.
Net zero design yields long-term durable, comfortable, environmentally sound buildings. Advances in computer technologies are transforming our building industry with new design and analysis tools by greatly improving the ability to predict building energy performance. As these tools continue to be refined and their use become more commonplace, net zero design will emerge as a logical approach to building design in the 21st Century.
Incorporating energy efficiency, renewable energy, and sustainable green design features into building design will become the top priority for architects and engineers. A net zero designed building reduces both resource depletion and the adverse environmental impacts of pollution generated by energy production; it is considered to be the cornerstone of future sustainable design requirements.
A Net Zero Energy building design is not the result of applying one or more isolated technologies. Rather, it is an integrated whole-building process that requires advocacy and action on the part of the design team throughout the entire project. Moreover, net zero design does not necessarily have to result in increased construction costs. Indeed, one of the key approaches to Net Zero Energy design is to invest in the building’s form and enclosure (e.g., windows, walls) so that the heating, cooling, and lighting loads are reduced, and in turn, smaller, less costly heating, ventilating, and air conditioning systems are required.
A Net Zero Energy design process begins when the occupant’s requirements are assessed and a project budget is established. A proposed building is carefully sited and its programmed spaces are arranged to reduce energy use for heating, cooling, and lighting. Its heating and cooling loads are minimized by designing standard building elements— windows, walls, and roofs—so that they control, collect, and store the sun’s energy to optimum advantage. Finally, by incorporating building-integrated photovoltaics into the facility, some conventional building envelope materials can be replaced by energy-producing technologies. For example, photovoltaics can be integrated into window, wall, or roof assemblies, and spandrel glass, skylights, and roof become both part of the building skin and a source of power generation.
By designing Net Zero Energy buildings, it is important to appreciate that the underlying purpose of the building is neither to save—nor use—energy. Rather, the building is to serve the occupants and their activities. An understanding of building occupancy and activities leads to designs that not only save energy and reduce costs, but improve occupant comfort. As such, net zero designs will be a vital contribution toward healthy environments while reducing global warming.
Annie is widely regarded within the marketplace as an expert in third-party verification and sustainable program development. She previously held positions like Vice President of Certification Services at GreenCircle Certified, LLC until starting her own independent organization in 2017. She sits as a technical advisor to: the US Green Building Council’s Materials and Resources TAG, the International Living Future Institute (ILFI), Clean Production Action and the GreenScreen Program, the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council, the ASTM E 60 Committee, and the Collaborative for High Performing Schools National Technical Committee.
LAUREN HILDEBRAND
Sustainability Director, Steven Winter Associates
Lauren Hildebrand is a Sustainability Director at SWA. Her work focuses on sustainable and high performance residential and commercial building design, construction, renovation, and operation. Ms. Hildebrand’s expertise includes: sustainable design integration; indoor air quality and energy performance testing; and implementing project certification for both commercial and residential programs, such as LEED®, ENERGY STAR®, NYSERDA, NJ Clean Energy, and Enterprise Green Communities. Awards presented to her clients include the 2013 USGBC NJ Urban Green Project Award. Ms. Hildebrand works as a LEED® for Homes Green Rater and verifies implementation of the LEED® for Homes criteria. She is an integral part of the initial strategic planning sessions and workshops with builders, architects, and homeowners based on the LEED for Homes program. She also partners with and implements criteria for Enterprise Green Communities (EGCC), NYSERDA’s Multi-Family Performance Program, and the ENERGY STAR® Multi-Family High-Rise Program Certification. Ms. Hildebrand also has experience with a variety of commercial and mixed use projects, including LEED® for New Construction, Commercial Interior, Core and Shell, and Schools. In addition to her project experience and program guidance, Ms. Hildebrand manages classroom training and curriculum development for architects, owners, developers and building management staff on green and high performance building design strategies, cost effective building system operation, and energy-saving maintenance practices.
MICHAEL GRYNIUK
PE | Associate, LeMessurier
Michael Gryniuk, PE is a Structural Engineer at LeMessurier in Boston. As the leader of LeMessurier’s Sustainability practice, he is responsible for strategy, project consulting, and education for LeMessurier. He is currently on the Steering Committee of Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) Sustainability Committee of ASCE and currently serves as Chair of the Structural Engineers (SE 2050) Commitment Program Working Group whose aim to establish a national commitment program for structural engineers for the purpose of achieving net zero embodied carbon in structural systems by 2050. Mike taught for many years at the Boston Architectural College. His current projects include the 2 million square foot Hub on Causeway development as well as upcoming developments of Kenmore Square. Mike has also led several other projects for institutions including Boston College, Holy Cross, RISD and UNH. Mike attended Syracuse University and Tufts University.
ANNE PECK
Vice President, AEW’s Architecture & Engineering group
As Vice President in AEW’s Architecture & Engineering group, Ms. Peck is responsible for physical property inspections, engineering and mechanical system evaluations and environmental audits on potential investments for all commercial property types. She is also responsible for the review and analysis of energy audits and LEED gap analysis with respect to acquisitions, and oversees the scope and results of third-party due diligence reports on property acquisitions. For development projects, Ms. Peck is responsible for the evaluation of construction documents to assess the constructability and recommend sustainable products and practices. She is responsible for overseeing the construction of new development projects from AEW’s initial involvement through closeout and warranty completions. Ms. Peck assists asset managers with large capital improvement projects or physical problems at various properties. In addition, Ms. Peck Co-Chairs AEW’s Sustainability Committee and provides guidance and assistance with most sustainability initiatives with the objective of reducing operating costs, improving indoor air quality and decreasing greenhouse gas emissions. She sits on the GRESB Real Estate Benchmark Committee in North America and assists with all sustainability reporting for AEW. Ms. Peck is a licensed Massachusetts Construction Supervisor with LEED AP Certification, and passed her FE exam towards a mechanical engineer/registered professional engineering license.
ANDREA ALAOWNIS
Interior Designer, Jacobs, Boston
Andrea Alaownis is an Interior Designer with the Jacobs, Boston, MA office. After graduating from Radford University, she has concentrated on commercial projects through all phases of design and construction. As a WELL Accredited Professional, she participated in assisting the Jacobs Boston office to achieve WELL V1 Gold, Fitwel 3 Stars, and LEED V4 Gold certifications and continues to educate the design community and clients on wellness through design.
KIMBERLY LEWIS
Senior Vice President, Market Transformation and Development U.S. Green Building Council
As Senior Vice President for Market Transformation and Development in North America, Kimberly Lewis knows better than anyone that market transformation begins with community. Kimberly is laser focused on diversity, inclusion, equity and advancing transparency and excellence. By honing our community’s focus on collaborative impact, Kimberly incorporates people‐centric strategies to provide the organization and movement with a strong foundation of stakeholder based support.
Kimberly’s efforts encourage innovation in the market and challenge all of our community members to go above and beyond what was possible yesterday, to define the built environment of tomorrow. Kimberly knows that when we celebrate our leaders and advocate for growth across sectors, regions, and programs, taking care to bring our best to underserved populations and communities, we achieve real and lasting market transformation of the highest order.
To this end, Kimberly directs all of USGBC’s local communities, volunteers, and emerging professionals around the world, delivering on the USGBC mission to improve the quality of life for all through more sustainable cities and communities worldwide.
Kimberly was the founder of the Greenbuild International Conference & Expo, which is now globally represented in five international markets. She has served on the advisory boards of Starwood Hotels, Marriott International Hotels and the convention and visitors bureaus in New Orleans, Atlanta, and Denver. She is a member of the International Association of Exhibitions and Events (IAEE), the Green Meeting Industry Council (GMIC) and the Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA), where she has served on the CSR task force.
Kimberly serves on the board of directors for Groundswell and is the former chair of the board of trustees of the Green Building Foundation. Committed to healthy communities and equitable access to green buildings regardless of income level, Kimberly has been recognized with numerous awards. In April 2011, Kimberly received prestigious recognition as the White House Champion of Change for Clean Energy. She was also named Glamour Magazine 70th Anniversary 70 Women Leaders to Know in Sustainability. Most recently Kimberly was recognized with GB&D Magazine’s 2018 Women in Sustainability Leadership Award.
JIM STANISLASKI
AIA LEED AP BD+C | Senior Associate, Gensler Boston
Jim Stanislaski, AIA LEED AP BD+C is an Architect at Gensler in Boston. As co-leader of Gensler’s northeast region Design Resilience practice, he is responsible for strategy, project consulting, and education for over 1,000 staff in four offices. He is currently a Director on the Board of USGBC MA and a member of the Architecture Boston Magazine Editorial Board. Jim is a former President of AIA MA and has served on two National Academies research panels for renewable energy and energy efficiency at airports. As a past co-chair of the Boston Society of Architects Committee on the Environment (BSA/COTE), Jim led the AIA 2030 Professional Series at the BSA, serving to educate local designers on strategies to achieve net positive energy goals for buildings. Jim has also testified before state and city government committees to advocate for environmental legislation and regulation. Jim started his career as a US Air Force officer and attended Syracuse University.
CARLIE BULLOCK-JONES
LEED Fellow, WELL AP | Founder and Principal, Ecoworks Studio
Carlie Bullock-Jones, LEED Fellow, WELL AP, is the founder and managing Principal of Ecoworks Studio and has dedicated her entire career to bringing about a greener, healthier built environment. As a nationally known expert in sustainability, Carlie has facilitated on numerous award-winning projects. With a passion for green sports, Carlie has spearheaded LEED certification efforts for several stadiums, arenas, and training facilities for the NFL, NHL, NBA, MLS and higher education projects. Most notably, Carlie was the LEED consultant for the new home of the Atlanta Falcons, Mercedes-Benz stadium, which achieved the highest LEED Platinum score of any sports facility in the world.
As a LEED Faculty mentor for the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), and the first external WELL Faculty for the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI), Carlie is a highly sought-after speaker and writer for national events and publications. She has been extensively involved in the development of LEED standards over the years, serving as a Subject Matter Expert for USGBC and GBCI, assisting in course curriculum, exam development and reference guide creation. In 2012, Carlie was inducted by USGBC as a LEED Fellow, one of 77 in the world at that time. Carlie is also one of the first WELL Accredited Professionals on the planet, demonstrating expertise and extensive knowledge of human health and wellness in the built environment. As an early adopter of the WELL Building Standard, Carlie facilitated WELL certification efforts for the 27th, 37th and 100th WELL certified projects in the world (Silver, Gold and Platinum respectively). Most recently, Carlie was the recipient of the 2018 Inaugural IWBI WELL Leadership Recognition Award.
KOMAL KOTWAL
AIA, LEED AP BD+C, WELL AP
Komal Kotwal is a Sustainable Design Leader and Project Manager at HOK with over 13 years of experience. Komal has led sustainable design and LEED Certification efforts for over 2M square feet including 1+M sf. of LEED Platinum projects and two Net-Zero projects. With the intent of bringing the human connection to sustainability, Komal currently focuses on intentional design to address human behavior and foster physical, mental, and emotional health. As a WELL AP, Komal is one of HOK’s leads in promoting and practicing health and wellness in architecture. Komal has served on the AIA Houston Chapter’s Board of Directors, Texas USGBC Regional Council and on USGBC’s Greenbuild Program Committee among others. A strong advocate for equity and inclusivity, Komal serves on HOK’s firm-wide Diversity Advisory Council and is a recent addition to HOK’s Management Board.
Speaking Engagements
TSA Convention 2016: Design for Healthy & Livable Communities
Gulf Coast Green Conference 2015: Integrating LEED ND Communities
CSI Chapter Annual Meeting 2014 : 2030 Commitment and how to get there
American Society of Indian Engineers ( ASIE) 2016: Getting to LEED Platinum
University of Houston, 2018: Staying Ahead of the Commercial Energy Code
Texas A&M University, 2016: Integrating Sustainability: A path to Net-zero
ANITA SNADER
LEED AP BD+C | Environmental Sustainability Manager, Armstrong World Industries
Anita Snader is the Environmental Sustainability Manager of Armstrong World Industries in Lancaster, PA. She manages the sustainability strategy for Armstrong Ceiling and Wall Solutions, and serves as an internal environmental advocate, and environmental spokesperson. She is a LEED accredited professional, and well versed in the LEED rating systems and USGBC initiatives. As co-chair of Armstrong’s LEED EB team, she led the corporation to a LEED EB Platinum for their Headquarters building in Lancaster, PA in June 2007, and served on the team obtaining LEED EB recertification in 2014.
Recently, Anita has led Armstrong in a new initiative focusing on the Health and Wellbeing of occupants called Better Spaces. She drives the material health and transparency efforts, and created and manages Armstrong’s commitment through our SUSTAIN™ portfolio of high performance ceiling systems.
Anita joined Armstrong in 1997. Her experience is in Marketing, Research, Product Development and Customer Satisfaction both in the consumer goods, hospitality, building products and advertising industries. Her passion centers in developing strategies for reducing our impact on the environment through product and process innovation, and is always looking at opportunities to share knowledge and innovation with others.
Speaking Engagements: • Mindful Materials Series (2018 – NYC, Chicago)
• USGBC Central PA – 2017 – Green Con – Healthier Buildings
• USGBC GreenBuild – 2016 – Los Angeles, CA – LEEDv4 and Material transparency
• Living Future – Seattle 2016 – Declare and Living Building Challenge
• Costa Rica Green Building Congress – May 2015 – Materials and LEEDv4
• Canada Green Building Conference – June 2015 – Panel on Material Transparency
• USGBC GreenBuild – 2014 New Orleans, PA – two sessions
• State of Green Business – 2011
• PA Green Growth Partnerships, Pittsburgh, PA 2009
• PennTap, Green Workshop, Harrisburg, PA 2008
• Central PA USGBC Chapter Construction Waste Workshop, 2008
• LEED for Existing Building Workshop, Lancaster, PA, November 2007
• NeoCon East, Green Building Workshop, Baltimore, MD, October 2007
• ICA International Conference – Madrid- Acoustics and Green Building, September 2007
• ASHRAE ‘007 Conference – Long Beach, CA – Acoustics and Green Building, May 2007
• GreenBuild 2006 – Got LCA?, November 2006
• Local Green Building Council of PA –LEED for Schools Workshop, October 2006
• Various Recycling Summits throughout the nation
• Customer and sales presentations each month
Tune in:
Listen to a podcast interview with Anita Snader here.
DR. JOSEPH ALLEN
Assistant Professor of Exposure Science | Director of the Healthy Buildings program
Dr. Allen researches community and occupational exposures and health risks related to a broad range of chemical, biological, physical and radiological stressors. In particular, he focuses on the built environment, emissions from building materials and consumer products, and building system performance, each of which has the potential for both positive and negative impacts on human health, well-being and productivity. He is the Director of the Healthy Buildings program at the Harvard Chan School of Public Health and faculty director of the Harvard Sensors for Health research group. Dr. Allen teaches a class on the Impact of Buildings on Human Health, and is the faculty advisor for a new initiative out of Harvard’s Office for Sustainability – the Harvard Healthier Building Materials Academy.
HEATHER HENRIKSEN
Managing Director, Harvard University Office for Sustainability
Heather Henriksen has served as Harvard University’s chief sustainability officer since 2008, advising the President and senior leadership on strategy and building an organizational change enterprise. Heather leads the Office for Sustainability which oversees the implementation of the Harvard’s comprehensive Sustainability Plan (co-created with faculty and students in 2014) and the University’s ambitious new Climate Action Plan (to be fossil fuel-free by 2050 and fossil fuel-neutral by 2026) which builds upon the 2016 achievement of Harvard’s initial science-based climate goal.
The Office for Sustainability has expanded a multi-disciplinary living laboratory research program that partners with faculty and students to use the campus as a test bed for piloting and sharing innovative solutions to real-world sustainability challenges. A nationally recognized leader in healthier building materials, Heather is leading an effort with faculty within Harvard to translate research into practice related to heath in the built environment including a focus on addressing the use of chemicals of concern in common building products. Through this work, Harvard is partnering with business and non-profit leaders as they strive to transform the marketplace for a healthier built environment. Heather also advises courses throughout Harvard College and the professional graduate schools and speaks nationally and internationally on sustainability.
Heather is on the Board of Directors of the Health Product Declaration Collaborative. Heather serves as Advisory Committee Co-chair of the International Sustainable Campus Network (ISCN), and she is a member of Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2). Heather holds a Master in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School.
LAUREN M. WALLACE
Principal & Director of Certifications and Consulting, Epsten Group, Inc.
Lauren M. Wallace is a Principal and the Director of Certifications and Consulting at Epsten Group, Inc., where she has helped facilitate sustainability and wellness measures for thousands of projects around the globe. Ms. Wallace is a USGBC and WELL Faculty member, WELL AP, LFA, LEED AP BD+C, LEED Project Reviewer, BREEAM USA In-Use Assessor, Fitwel Ambassador, Parksmart Advisor, and TRUE Advisor. With a background in Architecture, Ms. Wallace has more than ten years of experience in sustainability. She speaks regularly to audiences with varying expertise about implementing change in the building industry, focusing on technical information and application.
BECCA RUSHIN
Vice President of Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility, Jamestown
Becca Rushin is the Vice President of Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility at Jamestown where she leads ESG initiatives through the Jamestown Green program and the Jamestown Charitable Foundation. Prior to joining Jamestown in 2012, Ms. Rushin worked as a local government consultant for Clark Patterson Lee, where she served as Community Development Coordinator and Sustainability Commission Staff Liaison for the City of Dunwoody. She is a Certified Energy Manager (CEM) and holds a LEED AP O+M credential. Ms. Rushin is an active volunteer with the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and Environmental Policy from Sewanee: the University of the South and a Master of Science in Sustainable Development: Environmental Policy and Management from Utrecht University.
JODI SMITS ANDERSON
Director of Sustainability Programs, DASNY | LEED AP BD+C
Jodi Smits Anderson is the Director of Sustainability Programs for DASNY, an architect, LEED AP BD+C, AIA member, lifetime member of NESEA, past regional and national U.S. Green Building Council committee member, wife, mom, hiker, kayaker, knitter, and storyteller. She has spoken at the ILFI unconference in Seattle, WA, at the NACUBO conference in Austin, TX, at the first Wellness in Design conference in San Diego, CA, and several times each at Greenbuild, NESEA’s Building Energy Boston, and the NYS Green Building Conference, and has been a guest teacher at SUNY ESF, RPI, Ithaca College, NYU, Cornell, and SUNY Albany. She is a NY Energy Code trainer, the 2018 recipient of the Green Building Advocate award, and has assisted in research and writing for Project Drawdown, which cites the 100 market-proven ways we already have in our toolkit to reduce CO2 in our atmosphere. She has a featured article appearing in the Journal of Green Building’s V14 N3 in July of 2019, on Excellence in Building Envelopes, and is currently working on a ZNE renovation to an existing residence hall, a project intended to change how we do renovation projects in New York state. Jodi’s goal is to understand and incorporate informed sustainable practices into design, construction, and living, and to share whatever she has learned and learn still more from whomever will talk with her.
JIM NEWMAN
Founder and Principal, Linnean Solutions | LEED AP, O+M; EcoDistrict AP
Jim is the Founder and Principal at Linnean Solutions, a mission-driven firm that helps local governments, organizations, and communities reach sustainability and resilience goals. Jim’s twenty years of experience includes carbon mitigation planning and life cycle assessment; sustainability and resilience building certification; climate action and adaptation planning for municipalities, agencies, and organizations; resilience analysis, policy, and design standard development; EcoDistrict planning and management; and stakeholder engagement processes to strengthen communities. As a Living Environments in Natural, Social, and Economic Systems (LENSES) Facilitator and Trainer, Jim regularly leads community planning workshops, and trains others in becoming effective facilitators.
Previous to Linnean, Jim worked with BuildingGreen as the Director of Strategy, where he led the development and introduction of most of BuildingGreen’s online products including LEEDuser.com, BuildingGreen Suite, and the High Performance Buildings Database. Jim is a founding board member of the Resilient Design Institute, and a key author of several influential resilience reports and tools—including the Building Resilience in Boston report and
the Enterprise Community Partners’ Ready to Respond: Strategies for Multifamily Building Resilience manual. He is a member of the RELi/USGBC Steering Committee, where he has worked to bring a social equity lens to the development of the new certification standard for resilient buildings.
JULIE JANISKI
Associate Principal, BuroHappold Engineering
Julie Janiski leads integrated teams of engineers, designers, analysts, and subject-matter experts at BuroHappold Engineering for projects with ambitious goals related to design innovation, building performance, and the health, wellbeing and experience of building occupants and community. Julie’s recent work includes: Cornell Tech’s new Verizon Executive Education Center with Snohetta; Glenstone Museum with Thomas Phifer and Partners, St. Ann’s Warehouse theatre in Brookyln with Marvel Architects; a number of U.S. Embassy projects internationally for the U.S. State Department; a new corporate headquarters campus in Baltimore for Under Armour; an integrated “roadmap” plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80% by the year 2050 (80×50) for the City of New York; and The House at Cornell Tech – a residential high-rise in New York City which is certified Passive House. Julie also teaches at Columbia University’s GSAPP in the first-year core studio, and has been a guest critic/lecturer at other universities including MIT, Tulane, and NYU.
SARA NEFF
Senior Vice President, Sustainability at Kilroy Realty Corporation
Sara Neff is Senior Vice President, Sustainability at Kilroy Realty Corporation. Sara took Kilroy from having no sustainability program to being named the #1 publicly traded real estate company on sustainability in North America by GRESB, and under her leadership the company recently committed to becoming the first carbon neutral real estate company in North America by the end of 2020.
At Kilroy, she oversees all sustainability initiatives such as solar and battery deal-making, the implementation of energy and water efficiency initiatives throughout the existing and development portfolios, the integration of sustainability standards into annual financial reports, the launch of the Kilroy Innovation Lab, and the award-winning green leasing program. She holds a BS from Stanford and an MBA from Columbia Business School.
TRISTAN ROBERTS
Co-Founder, Facilitator at The Laurentia Project | LEED AP BD+C, LFA
Tristan Roberts is responsible for leading staff support for HPDC’s Technical Committee, education programs, and the evolution of the HPD Open Standard. Mr. Roberts is a leader in the advancement of green building practices. Prior to joining HPDC in May 2018, he was part of BuildingGreen, Inc. for eleven years, where he most recently served as Chief Strategy Officer, moderating and leading the community development of LEEDuser forum which supports over 10,000 users. He is the author of hundreds of articles and in-depth reports on building industry trends and technologies, and is a frequent speaker and educator in the areas of green building and sustainable design. His objective stance and focus on practical tools has earned him the trust of a wide spectrum of stakeholders in the industry, including architects, sustainability professionals, manufacturers, and nonprofit groups. Mr. Roberts has taught sustainability and building science at the Boston Architectural College.
TIM CONWAY
Vice President of Sustainable Development, Shaw
As a flooring industry expert, Tim Conway is focused on the positive affects that sustainable flooring products have on our buildings, and more importantly, the people that occupy and live in the spaces we design. Tim has worked closely with Bill McDonough and the internal team at Shaw for the past twelve years developing and maintaining Shaw’s Cradle to Cradle certifications, HPDs and EPDs. His unique role at Shaw enables him to drive the communication between clients’ requirements and the product development team at Shaw. He has presented at GreenBuild, Living Future, and Design Future Council and has been an integral part in the development of healthy carpet specifications for clients all over the world. Tim is passionate about collaborating with clients to develop flooring specifications that are safe throughout a product’s entire supply chain, from raw material chemical building blocks to end of life replication. He has a unique ability to translate complex systems like Cradle to Cradle and HPDs into simple stories that empower change and deliver buildings that have positive intent for the future of our people and our planet.
BILL WALSH
Founder and President, Board of the Healthy Building Network
Bill Walsh is the Founder and President of the Board of the Healthy Building Network (HBN). Since 2000 HBN has been defining the leading edge of healthy building practices that increase transparency in the building products industry, reduce human exposures to chemicals in building materials, and create market incentives for healthier innovations in manufacturing. He has been Visiting Professor at Parsons The New School for Design, is a Fellow of the Lowell Center for Sustainable Production at the University of Massachusetts, and a founding board member of the Health Product Declaration (HPD) Collaborative. Bill and HBN have been awarded the Design for Humanity Award by the American Society of Interior Designers (2019); WEACT for Environmental Justice Leadership Award (2018); Healthy Schools Network Hero (2013); US Green Building Council’s Leadership In Advocacy Award (2012). Previously he served as a national campaign director at Greenpeace USA, and held staff attorney positions with the US Public Interest Research Group and the Institute for Public Representation at Georgetown University Law Center. He holds a J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law and LLM in Public Interest Advocacy from Georgetown University.
BRENT TRENGA
Building Technology Director, Kingspan North America
Brent has truly run the construction industry gamut serving in various roles including Architect, Construction Manager, Developer and even project owner, allowing him to fully understand the sustainability ecosystem. As Building Technology Director for Kingspan North America, Brent is committed to reducing the environmental impact of business operations, products and services through continuous improvement and environmental transparency.
JENNIFER TARANTO
LEED® AP ID+C, BD+C, USGBC Faculty, WELL® AP, WELL Faculty and Fitwel Ambassador Structure Tone, Director of Sustainability
Jennifer Taranto ensures the principals of sustainability, wellbeing, and Lean construction are incorporated into client projects and everyday work practices throughout the STO Building Group.
Jenn is a passionate advocate for reducing environmental impact of the built environment and enabling organizations to improve people’s health and wellbeing while reducing the construction and operating costs of facilities. She gets involved in the early stages of client projects to define the needs and the overall sustainability goals in order to create an internal road map to team success.
Jennifer brings more than eighteen years of experience in the commercial real estate and construction industry, and joined Structure Tone in 2001. Her previous roles included superintendent and project manager prior to becoming Structure Tone’s Director of Sustainability in 2008.
As a founder of the USGBC Massachusetts Chapter and the former Chair of the Chapter’s Board of Directors she is recognized as a leader in the sustainable built environment. She has lectured at Wentworth Institute of Technology and Boston University and spoken at Labs21 Conference (I2SL), Delaware Valley Green Building Council’s Sustainability Symposium, Living Futures and Greenbuild. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Construction Engineering from North Carolina State University.
Jennifer has a Bacon number of 2.
LEIGH STRINGER
Workplace Strategy Expert and Researcher, EYP
Leigh Stringer is a workplace strategy expert and researcher whose work has been covered recently by BBC News, The Globe and Mail, Fortune, CNN and Good Morning America. She works for EYP, an architecture and engineering firm. She is the author of two best-selling books, The Green Workplace and The Healthy Workplace. Leigh is currently collaborating with Harvard University’s School of Public Health on a new Health and Human Performance Index and the Center for Active Design in New York on their Fitwel building certification program to create new tools, connect like minds and blur the boundaries across industries in order to advance our improve our well-being at work. Leigh is on the board of directors of a new non-profit, Global Women for Wellbeing, an organization that aims to give women a voice to create better health and wellbeing for themselves, their businesses, and their communities.
CHARLEY STEVENSON
Principal, Integrated Ecostrategy
Charley Stevenson has been delving deeper and deeper into healthier building materials since beginning work on his first Living Building Challenge project in 2011. With the team at IES, he has developed process and software to integrate better materials selections into all project types and to transform the market as quickly and easily as possible. The Red2Green platform has reduced Red List research and documentation effort by a factor of three while building up a library of over 10,000 products screened for compliance.
PETER SMITH
Senior Vice President, International WELL Building Institute
Peter is engaged with leading organizations and institutions seeking to transform their real estate portfolios to enhance health and business metrics. As Senior Vice President at IWBI, he leads a team driving the global growth and adoption of the WELL Building Standard, the first performance-based building standard to exclusively focus on human health. Peter is also an active speaker and educator, promoting health in the built environment through industry events and technical workshops. Previously, Peter served as Vice President of Delos Solutions, a team of consultants and subject matter experts incorporating health and wellness strategies into the pioneering WELL Certification projects. Working closely with Delos Labs, an internal research group, he identified best-in-class design solutions, products and technologies to improve the built environment and optimize for human health, well-being and environmentally sustainability. Peter has an extensive background in building science and energy efficiency. Prior to joining Delos and IWBI, he worked as a Sustainability Consultant at Steven Winter Associates, an industry leading green building consulting firm. Focusing on affordable housing in the greater New York City area, Peter worked with multifamily developers to implement sustainable design principles and energy efficiency measures into new construction projects and validate high-performance building criteria. Peter holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a Bachelor’s degree from Colgate University in Environmental Economics. He also maintains accreditations for WELL AP™ and WELL Faculty™.
JASON JEWHURST
Principal, Bruner/Cott
Jason’s passion for reconnecting with the natural environment informs all of his work as a specialist in sustainable and high-performance building design. With a strong technical background in building systems, technology, and sustainability, Jason is driven by a deep respect for craftsmanship and the art of making and by the possibilities created by merging tested traditions of construction with new fabrication technologies and material production. He leads design teams to explore possibilities inspired by a shared set of values and goals to create high-performance contemporary architecture that is beautiful and inspiring. He is a recipient of a 2017 Living Hero Award.
BLAKE JACKSON
Architect, Associate, and Sustainability Design Leader, Stantec Architecture and Engineering
Blake Jackson is an architect, Associate, and Sustainability Design Leader with Stantec Architecture and Engineering in Boston, Massachusetts. His work focuses on the nexus between sustainability, wellness, and resiliency, and he has over fifteen years’ experience in planning, retail, hospitality, labs, healthcare, commercial, higher-education, and multifamily projects. Blake is a prolific author and speaker on his three main areas of focus, is an adjunct faculty at the Boston Architectural College and at Mount Ida College, and he currently serves as the Vice President for Advocacy for the Boston Society of Architects. He was named a national top “40 Under 40” built environment professional by Building Design and Construction Magazine in 2015.
ANNE HARNEY
FAIA, LEED Fellow, Long Green Specs
Anne Hicks Harney has over 30 years of experience, focusing on high quality design imbued with a solid technical and sustainable foundation. Formed in 2016, Long Green Specs provides sustainability focused construction specifications and building science material expertise to Architectural firms across the country. She is a member of the AIA COTE Advisory Group. She was a founding co-chair of the Baltimore – Building Enclosure Council, chair of the AIA Materials Knowledge Working Group, and a member of the USGBC Materials & Resources Technical Advisory Group. In 2016, Ms. Harney was awarded fellowship by the AIA and became a LEED Fellow.
Speaking Engagements
Living Future unconference 2019 – Using the AIA COTE Toolkit to Elevate Every Project –
Living Future unconference 2019 – Entering the material pool – deep end jump or shallow slide?
2019 AIA Women’s Leadership Summit – Go Forth and Prosper, While Changing the World
Greenbuild 2018: Chicago IL, November 2018 – Closing the Transparency Loop: Collaboration in Action
AIA Conference on Architecture 2018, New York NY: Holding Ourselves to Higher Standards – Healthy Materials Every Time
BRENT EHRLICH
Products & Materials Specialist, BuildingGreen
Brent is the products & materials specialist at BuildingGreen, where he has been researching and writing about green building products, materials, and their health and environmental impacts for more than a decade. He brings a nuanced understanding of materials, their constituents, and lifecycles to his work as a consultant and speaker and leads a team of editors that selects products for the company’s BuildingGreen Approved database and annual Top 10 Products Award.
Speaking Engagements
• Annual BuildingGreen’s Top 10 Products award at Greenbuild (8 years as presenter)
• Northeast Sustainable Energy Association: NESEA 2014: The Forest and the Trees
• NESEA 2011: Materials Track Chair + Cool New Products presentation
MATT EDLEN
Director of Acquisitions and Development
Matt Edlen oversees acquisitions and development in the Midwest and East Coast for Gerding Edlen’s various investment funds. Matt is responsible for sourcing, negotiating and executing on investment opportunities across key urban markets within those regions.
Prior to his role in acquisitions, Matt was focused on the development and management of the firms internal multifamily marketing and sales platform. His efforts have helped the firm invest over $1 billion worth of real estate across the country in cities such as Seattle, Los Angeles, Portland, San Francisco, Boston, and Chicago.
Matt currently serves as national chair of the board for Design Museum Foundation and as a board member for Boston’s NOAH (Neighborhood of Affordable Housing), and The Oregon Sports Authority. He has also served as board member and chair of the site selection committee for PHAME Academy, board member and co-chair of the Arts Connector Program of Business for Culture and the Arts, and alumni board member of Young People’s Theater Project. Matt earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Loyola University of Chicago.
MIKHAIL DAVIS
Director of Restorative Enterprise, Interface
Mikhail Davis is Director of Restorative Enterprise at Interface, a world-leading modular flooring company with a fully integrated collection of hard and soft flooring. Interface’s mission, Climate Take Back™, invites industry to commit to making a profit in a way that is restorative to the planet and creates a climate fit for life. Mikhail is responsible for advancing Interface’s mission in the Americas by building internal leadership capacity, facilitating strategic alignment of efforts, and creating external partnerships that shift the marketplace toward sustainability. He leads Interface’s product transparency efforts in the Americas and was lead author and editor of Interface’s Radical Industrialists column at GreenBiz.com for two years.
An expert in sustainable materials and NGO collaborations, he represents Interface in many organizations focused on sustainability innovation, closed-loop systems, recycling, and chemicals of concern, including serving as 2016-18 Chair of the US Green Building Council’s Technical Advisory Group on Materials and Resources (MR TAG), Co-Chair of the Materials Working Group of BizNGO and Program Advisor to the Next Generation Bio-based and Sustainable Chemicals Summit.
STEVEN BURKE
Sustainability Manager, Consigli Construction Company
Steven is a Sustainability Manager at Consigli Construction Co., Inc., an 800+ person construction firm based in Massachusetts. His position involves management of company sustainability processes and sustainable construction projects at Consigli. He has a Master of Science in Sustainability Management from Columbia University, and has delivered many presentations on how to integrate health and wellness into the design and construction of the built environment.
Global Head of Sustainability, Superior Essex
Sustainability Director, Steven Winter Associates
PE | Associate, LeMessurier
Vice President, AEW’s Architecture & Engineering group
Interior Designer, Jacobs, Boston
Senior Vice President, Market Transformation and Development U.S. Green Building Council
AIA LEED AP BD+C | Senior Associate, Gensler Boston 
LEED Fellow, WELL AP | Founder and Principal, Ecoworks Studio
AIA, LEED AP BD+C, WELL AP
LEED AP BD+C | Environmental Sustainability Manager, Armstrong World Industries
Assistant Professor of Exposure Science | Director of the Healthy Buildings program
Managing Director, Harvard University Office for Sustainability
Principal & Director of Certifications and Consulting, Epsten Group, Inc.
Vice President of Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility, Jamestown
Director of Sustainability Programs, DASNY | LEED AP BD+C
Associate Principal, BuroHappold Engineering
Senior Vice President, Sustainability at Kilroy Realty Corporation
Co-Founder, Facilitator at The Laurentia Project | LEED AP BD+C, LFA
Vice President of Sustainable Development, Shaw
Founder and President, Board of the Healthy Building Network
Building Technology Director, Kingspan North America
LEED® AP ID+C, BD+C, USGBC Faculty, WELL® AP, WELL Faculty and Fitwel Ambassador
Workplace Strategy Expert and Researcher, EYP
Principal, Integrated Ecostrategy
Senior Vice President, International WELL Building Institute
Principal, Bruner/Cott
Architect, Associate, and Sustainability Design Leader, Stantec Architecture and Engineering
FAIA, LEED Fellow, Long Green Specs
Products & Materials Specialist, BuildingGreen
Director of Acquisitions and Development
Director of Restorative Enterprise, Interface
Sustainability Manager, Consigli Construction Company