Pittsburgh Architects in Action: Who’s Taking Action for Climate and How You Can Get Involved
While this week’s U.N. Climate Summit in New York and the Global Climate Strike turned the world spotlight on climate action, AIA National released a Climate Action statement citing the unique position of architects to help solve the ill effects of climate change. The statement begins by announcing the ratification of the AIA Resolution for Urgent and Sustained Climate Action, proposed in June of this year.
How have Pittsburgh architects contributed to climate action initiatives, both far away and close to home? Here’s a list of five highlights from the past month.
- Pittsburgh was named a U.N. Center of Excellence for High Performance Building, honoring Pittsburgh’s commitment to best practices in sustainable building design and performance.
- Member Laura Nettleton received the Michelle Madoff Award of Environmental Excellence from the Group Against Smog and Pollution (GASP) for her work as an architect fighting to improve the environment.
- Member Vivian Loftness, FAIA was asked to join the AIA National Board for 2020. She has spent the past 30 years expertly integrating sustainability with building design.
- All designs submitted to Design Pittsburgh 2019 were required to include a statement of sustainability to be considered for an award.
- Architects from Bohlin Cywinski Jackson and other local firms attended the Pittsburgh Climate Strike on Friday, demonstrating the commitment of architects to combating climate change. “As natural problem solvers, architects can leverage the power of design to make strategic change toward a more sustainable future,” said Patricia Culley, AIA, who participated in the event.
What and how we build today will shape our city and region for decades to come. Architects’ knowledge and skills can help address challenges like climate, sustainability and equity in greater Pittsburgh and the efforts and leadership of AIA members in these areas are not going unnoticed.
What can you do to get involved?
Join the AIA Committee on the Environment (COTE) – contact info@aiapgh.org to get connected.
- Attend the COTE Seminar Series running from October through spring 2020 with a wide array of offerings, from Deconstruction & Reuse, Building Performance Modeling and AIA COTE Top Ten Toolkit training. The Series starts on October 23rd with How to Use the New C-PACE Funding to further sustainable design in new and existing buildings. For more info contact info@aiapgh.org.
- Attend the City Council Hearing on Tuesday, October 1, 1:30pm to learn about Mayor Peduto’s ordinance requiring new city-owned buildings to be built at net-zero energy. At least three architects are scheduled to speak.
- Attend the Deconstruction & Reuse Conference, on October 28-30 at Phipps Conservatory to hear about how to best reuse building materials in your projects.
- Attend the EcoDistricts Summit on November 4-5 to learn how community, equity and climate change resilience intersect in neighborhood and urban sustainability agendas.
Camille Jonlin, AIA Pittsburgh | September 26, 2019