Here is the fourth of seven excerpts from the book.
In 2000, Nathan Good, FAIA, and I became co-directors of Green Building Services in Portland, one of the first green-building consulting firms in the country. Our first hire was a young architect, Alan Scott, FAIA, LEED Fellow, who was active in the local AIA Committee on the Environment and a passionate advocate for sustainable design.
Excited by how many building types LEED could potentially certify, Nathan, Alan and I enthusiastically promoted the green building and environmental agenda to Portland’s leading architects and developers. Here’s the fourth of seven excerpts from the book.
Selling LEED to the building design & construction industry in 2000 was a real challenge.
As an industry, construction hadn’t changed much since the 1950s when A/C, steel and concrete began to dominate design.
“…Not all architects welcomed the new push for green building, especially more experienced practitioners. Like most professions, architecture is self-referential, i.e., most architects believe only licensed architects (and maybe a few well-educated journalists) had authority to comment on architectural matters. When GBS visited architecture firms to promote green building, they didn’t always receive us with open arms. Sometimes, we encountered overt hostility, much like 19th-century European missionaries sent to convert heathens in Africa. I’m sure at times we sounded like religious zealots.
At one firm where Alan had worked previously, he and I gave a late-afternoon introduction to the LEED system. During our presentation, the firm’s owner, a highly regarded, award-winning architect, peppered us with questions, asking things like, “Why should we pay attention to green things when our projects already win lots of awards?”
It was clear to us that, in his opinion, architectural merit should trump any overblown concerns about environmental impact. He added, “Anyway, who are you to tell architects how to design our buildings?”
Alan coolly responded, “Your designs may win awards, but they don’t incorporate environmental values, which are equally important. That’s why we need to work together to make them greener and to have lower operating costs, something your clients will like.”
We pointed out deficiencies in their current approach, measured not against what had come before, but against environmental concerns becoming more important with each passing year. In sessions like this, my meditation practice came to the forefront: I was willing to listen, take time to understand their viewpoints, and yet respond firmly. This proved to be the best way to win people over…”
To learn more about The Godfather of Green: An Eco-Spiritual Memoir, or to order the book, go here. In next week’s blog, I’ll share an experience during a USGBC trade mission to China in 2005.