The BE+ Women in Green Community brings together architects, designers, construction managers, and sustainability professionals to collaborate as Women in the industry.

Reach out to womeningreen@builtenvironmentplus.org with any inquiries, questions, or concerns.

    Topics & Speakers

    February 28, 2024 - Women-Owned Businesses

    At our February Roundtable, we will be showcasing women business owners from all aspects of the green community, the spark that led them to owning their own business, challenges they’ve come across and how to obtain a WBE certification in MA.

    Subject Matter Experts
    Samira Ahmadi | Founding Principal | enviENERGY Studio
    Barbra Batshalom | Founder and CEO | Sustainable Performance Institute
    Gail Browne | Co-Founder and COO | Advanced Building Analysis
    Natasha Espada | Principal | STUDIO ENÉE
    Kari Hewitt | Chief Regeneration Officer | Planning Communities
    Ale Menchaca | Founder and Principal | AIRLIT Studio
    Jenny Pinck | Founder | Pinck & Co.
    Gail Sullivan | Founder and Managing Principal | Studio G Architects

    Register for the February 28th Roundtable here.

    November 2023 - Women in Building Operations and Facilities Management: Bridging the Gap Between AEC and O+M

    Building Operations and Facilities Management is an underrepresented field in the Built Environment community; there are a lot of us involved in design and construction, but once the building is occupied, there doesn’t appear to be a lot of collaboration between the AEC community and O+M. Our hope with this roundtable is to try and bridge this gap and get a better understanding of how design and construction practices may influence professionals that are responsible for the operation of an occupied building. There is also an understanding that women are underrepresented in field of O+M, which will also be a topic of discussion. The roundtable is scheduled for Wednesday, November 15th at 12 pm EST. This event will be a virtual panel, but we are hoping to stimulate an informal discussion among all participants.

    Subject Matter Experts
    Ayni N Strang | former Senior Director Facilities Operations | Novo Nordisk
    Neetu Siddarth | Sustainability Manager, Energy & Utilities | BXP
    Stacy Crawley | VP of Property Management, Seaport | WS Development
    Pam Fiorelli, CFM | Associate Director, Facilities and Administration | Cornerstone Research

    Register for the November 15th Roundtable here.

    May 2023 - Empowered to Lead: AEC Commitments

    Women are leading many of the national AEC commitments established in response to the Carbon 2019 Summit in Chicago. The commitments represent hundreds of architecture, design, engineering, and construction firms across the country, united in a common goal. At our roundtable, we will have guest experts from each sector to guide the discussion about advancing sustainability efforts nationally while balancing careers and projects in their own firms. We will talk about how women can be empowered to lead, how we can get involved in opportunities beyond our own companies, and about the challenges in doing so.

    Subject Matter Experts
    Andrea Love, AIA, LEED Fellow | Principal, Director of Building Science | Payette
    Jennifer Taranto | Vice President of Sustainability, Global Services | STO Building Group
    Teresa C. Vangeli, PE | Director, Climate Resiliency & Sustainability | WSP

    March 2023 - JUST Label Metrics Related to Gender

    How are firms leveraging the JUST label to drive gender equity in their organizations?

    Subject Matter Experts
    DiAnn Tufts | Director of Sustainability | PCA
    Tamar Warburg | Director of Sustainability | Sasaki
    Varda Haliday | Chief People Person | Sasaki
    Christina Consigli | Senior Project Manager | Consigli Construction
    Elizabeth Allen | Sustainability Engineer | Consigli Construction

    2022

    October 2022 – Share & Tell
    A Platform for Sharing our Individual Efforts

    July 2022 – Leadership in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
    This roundtable session will engage leaders in the industry responsible for overseeing their organizations ESG initiatives including diversity, equity, and inclusion. Learn about what led them to their current roles and what unique skills have made them successful. Learn how each are advancing efforts within their own organizations and within the building sector overall. Gain advice on building a culture of equity and allyship in your organization and our industry. Join us and bring your questions!

    Featured Leaders:
    Tiffany Cogell  | Chief Business Officer, Studio 26 Associates (Facilitator)
    Ann Peck | Vice President, Directory of ESG+R, TA Realty
    Amy Hattan | Corporate Responsibility Officer, Thornton Tomasetti
    Tareca Choi | Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Manager, Layton Construction Company

    May 2022 – Looking Ahead and Hot Topics

    March 2022 – Owners and Real Estate Developers
    This roundtable session will include leaders from the real estate development sector and higher education responsible for overseeing their organizations ESG initiatives, sustainable design, and green building certification projects. Learn about what led them to their current roles and what unique skills have made them successful. Learn how each are advancing sustainability efforts within their own organizations and within the building sector overall. Gain advice on working most effectively with developers and clients on your projects. Join us and bring your questions!

    Featured Leaders:
    Jenny Whitson | Director, Sustainability & ESG at IQHQ
    Heather Henriksen | Managing Director, Office for Sustainability at Harvard University
    Neetu Singh Siddarth | Sustainability Manager at Boston Properties
    Randa Ghattas | Senior Sustainability Project Manager at MIT

    2021

    November 2021 – Construction Leaders
    Of all people working construction, women comprise only 10.3 percent. This roundtable session will include women from Boston area construction companies including a Passive House specialist,  a sustainability manager, and project managers.  Learn what led them to work in this industry including how they moved into their current roles, what challenges they may face and what unique skills have made them successful.

    Join us for this lively conversation and bring your questions!

    Sustainable Leaders:

    Kate Starr | Project Manager at Commodore Builders

    Alex Testa | Project Manager at Siena Construction Company

    Caroline Murray | SPD Senior Project Manager / Sustainability Manager at Turner Construction & SourceBlue Manager, Architectural Products

    Moderator:

    Jenn Taranto | Director of Sustainability, Global Services at STO Building Group

    August 2021 – Building Performance Leaders
    This roundtable session will include three building performance leaders including a founding principal of a woman-owned energy analysis and sustainable design consulting firm, a building performance analyst with experience working at both an engineering firm and currently a local sustainable design consulting firm, and a technical principal in a sustainability practice within one of the world’s leading engineering firms. Learn about what led them to their current technical roles and what unique skills have made them successful. Gain some advice if you are interested in pursuing energy analysis work, and learn how to most effectively work with analysts on your current projects. Join us and bring your questions!

    Sustainable Leaders:

    Samira Ahmadi | Founding Principal of enviENERGY Studio LLC

    Jasmine Abdollahi | Building Performance Analyst at The Green Engineer

    Joelle Jahn, Associate | Technical Principal at WSP USA

    May 2021 – Sustainability Directors, Coordinator, Manager
    This roundtable session we have three sustainable design practice leaders representing a small, medium and large-size design firm joining us to share about their roles and how they integrate sustainable design into their practices. If you are interested in learning about sustainable design topics and practices that are gaining the most ground in their firms currently, getting advice on how to establish a role or how to be a sustainability champion in your firm, getting firm leadership on board and how to implement strategies, join us and bring your questions!

    Sustainable Leaders:

    Kate Bubriski | Director of Sustainability & Building Performance at Arrowstreet

    Alison Nash | Architect and Sustainability Practice Leader at DiMella Shaffer

    Kristen Fritsch | Sustainability Coordinator at Elkus Manfredi Architects

    Community Stewards

    National Grid

    Community Leadership

    Elizabeth Venuti

    Elizabeth Venuti

    Co-Chair

    Senior Building Performance Consultant, enviENERGY Studio

    Mary Beth  Bigelow

    Mary Beth Bigelow

    Co-Chair

    Preconstruction Manager ‑ Arch Energy, Consigli Construction

    Sandhya Iyer

    Sandhya Iyer

    Board Liaison

    Economic Development Director, Town of Lexington

    Jennifer Taranto

    Jennifer Taranto

    Board Liaison

    Vice President of Sustainability at STO Building Group

    Kristen Fritsch

    Kristen Fritsch

    Board Liaison

    Senior Associate, Sustainability Coordinator at Elkus Manfredi Architects

    Resources:

    Women in Green Event Miro Boards

      Event Recordings: