Feature: Green Living: Finding a Green Architect
November 1, 2006
The U.S. Green Building Council has a professional accreditation program for
building professionals (mainly architects and engineers), which requires them to demonstrate a
knowledge of green building design and techniques. To find professionals in your area, use the LEED
(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) AP directory on the website: www.usgbc.org.
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is the premier national
organization representing licensed architects. Although it does not have a separate compendium of those who
specialize in environmentally friendly design, it is possible to find a
green
architect in your vicinity on the AIA web-site, which provides links to individual practices and their philiosophies: www.aia.org.
Some prominent architects who have garnered attention for their work in
environmental design include the following:
William McDonough
William McDonough + Partners
Charlottesville,
Va.
434.979.1111
www.mcdonoughpartners.com
A pioneer of second-generation green design, McDonough heads an
internationally recognized firm that practices what it terms “ecologically, socially and economically intelligent”
architecture. Time magazine recognized him as a “Hero for the Planet” in 1999. His book Cradle
to Cradle, Remaking the Way We Make Things (North Point Press, 2002) is a manifesto on
sustainability.
The Miller Hull Partnership
Seattle, Wash.
206.682.6837
www.millerhull.com
The firm received the
prestigious AIA Architecture Firm Award in 2003 for producing distinguished architecture for at least 10 years. Known for a regional modernist style, the
firm seeks to respond to “climate and environmental demands.”
Rick Joy
Tucson, Ariz.
520.624.1442
www.rickjoy.com
Joy won a 2004 National
Design Award from the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum for architecture. The museum noted how his “efficient and environmentally sensitive
architecture can emerge as a by-product from the timeless qualities that are associated with great
architecture.”
Lake/Flato
San Antonio, Texas
210.227.3335
www.lakeflato.com
In its own words, the
company creates architecture that is “tactile and modern, environmentally responsible and authentic, artful and crafted.” Among its most recent awards:
the prestigious AIA Architecture Firm Award in 2004.
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