USGBC Announces 2006 Leadership Awards

As part of the 2006 Greenbuild conference in Denver, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) announced the winners of its annual Leadership Awards. The awards, given in five categories, were presented to “select companies and individuals with exceptional vision, leadership, and commitment to the evolution of green building design and construction.”

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Robert Fox, principal of Cook + Fox Architects, received an award in the Community category for his longstanding commitment to the green building movement. Fox directed the team that created the residential and commercial guidelines for the Battery Park City Authority in New York City, New York (see

EBN

Vol. 11, No. 6).

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Greg E. Franta, FAIA, of the Rocky Mountain Institute, was recognized in the Education category. Franta has spent 30 years developing environmental resources and educating the building industry about sustainability as head of the ENSAR Group and as a LEED^® faculty member for USGBC (see

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Vol. 14, No. 9). Also recognized in the Education category was the

Alliance for a Sustainable Colorado

(ASC), led by president John Powers. Founded in 2004 as a nonprofit, ASC works to advance environmental, economic, and social sustainability in Colorado by working with individuals, nonprofit organizations, businesses, and government.

• In the Advocacy category,

Maria Atkinson, global head of sustainability at Lend Lease, was recognized for her work bringing sustainability and green building to the company’s agendas and operations. Also recognized in the Advocacy category was the

California Department of General Services (DGS), led by director Ron Joseph. A leader in bringing green building to California, DGS requires LEED certification for all of its building projects and has built over two million square feet (200,000 m²) of LEED-certified public building space so far.

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Gary Saulson, director of corporate real estate at PNC Financial Services Group, was awarded a LEED award for his advancement of the LEED Rating System. Saulson has led PNC’s efforts to build 100 LEED-certified bank branches by 2007. Also recognized with a LEED award was

Liberty Property Trust (LPT), with Jim Lutz, senior vice president of development, accepting the award. LPT currently has three LEED-certified projects, including the LEED-Platinum One Crescent Drive building in Philadelphia, with more than 20 buildings pursuing certification.

• The Organizational Excellence award was presented to

HOK and was accepted by Mary Ann Lazarus, AIA, Bill Odell, FAIA, and Sandra Mendler, AIA. HOK was the first large design firm to join USGBC and has been an active participant in the development of the LEED Rating System and the Greenbuild conferences.

– Allyson Wendt

For more information:

U.S. Green Building Council

Washington, D.C.

202-828-7422

www.usgbc.org