While our country has been watching national environmental protection erode, the AIA NJ COTE Committee has been culling their resources to create a powerhouse, one-day conference filled with industry experts, award winning architects, sustainable sponsors and continuing education.
This event is nothing new for committee chair and past president, Jason Kliwinski, AIA, LEED Fellow, but this year it may mean more than ever before.
While we have limited control over the legislative requirements pertaining to the environment, nothing is holding back architects from educating themselves on best practices that can be incorporated into all of our projects, making responsible design an office standard, and beyond that, an industry standard, with AIA Architects leading the path toward a more sustainable future for the whole planet, supported on the backs of healthy buildings, responsible manufacturing and green construction practice driven by the smart choices built into the designs of an educated, environmentally savvy AIA.
This year’s conference looked at sustainability from a different perspective, with the primary program focus on sustaining the health of the people who use our buildings. Wellness considered and built into the building, by design.
Held on June 22, 2017, at the USGBC LEED Platinum Watershed Center in Hopewell, NJ designed by Michael Farewell, FAIA, attendees were treated to an absolutely perfect day, as we stepped into summer. Farewell led two tours, inside and out, explaining the history of the site, the basis for many of the design decisions and how the building works, from day-to-day, as well as through the seasons. Michael was also the morning keynote speaker, presenting Two Rivers Run Through It: The Stony Brook Millstone Environmental Center.
For members interested in attaining USGBC Well Building Accreditation, a five-hour training seminar was taught by Lia Nielson of Simply Sustainable LLC and the Green Building Center, to assist attendees in preparing to take the Well Building certification exam.
Two other tracts included 8 courses associated with either Safety or Welfare:
· Climate Reality – Effects and Solutions taught by Jason Kliwinski, AIA, LEED Fellow/ Faculty
· Resilient Design in a Changing Environment presented by Tom Dallessio, AICP/PP/FRSA and Illya Azaroff, AIA
· The A/E Role in Creating Good Indoor Environmental Quality, speaker Jason Kliwinski, AIA, LEED Fellow/ Faculty
· Selecting and Specifying Healthy Materials in the Age of Product Transparency with Mark Jane Augustine
· Meeting the new Energy Code ASHARE 90.1 & IRC 2015 with Bill Amann, PE, DCEP, LEED Fellow
· Commissioning the Architects Role to Ensure Optimal Performance presented by Kirk Tucker
· Show your Client the Money: Aligning Available Grants & Incentives with Project Goals by Gary Magiera and Tiffany Rolfing and Tectonics of High-Performance Design presented by David Gibson, AIA.