Hootman’s role within the USGBC is yet another hallmark of the sustainable design director. Many architects who championed green design early on in their firms often played significant roles in the development of the USGBC’s local chapters, as well as the national organization. For example, Ritchie has served for the past five years on the materials and resources technical advisory group for the USGBC’s LEED program. Another well-trod track for architects who have advocated green issues in their firms is the AIA’s COTE, which exists as one of the AIA’s “knowledge communities” with branches in the many local chapters.
Sandy Mendler, AIA, a sustainable principal in HOK’s San Francisco office, exemplifies both this persona of the early adopter and the USGBC advocate. Her interest in sustainability dates back to when she joined HOK in the early 1990s, when she helped develop the firm’s sustainable-materials database and went on to write with her colleague William Odell what became the HOK Guide to Sustainable Design, originally published in 2000. In those days, Mendler says, her work was motivated by a need to define sustainable design for the firm, since LEED wasn’t established and there were few guides for understanding the emerging green market. Mendler, a member of the USGBC’s national board of directors, currently spends most of her time leading project design, with only part of her job given to research and advocacy for sustainable issues. “I think a lot of people find themselves in the role of director of sustainable design out of their desire to raise the issue, but didn’t intend to find themselves not doing projects anymore,” Mendler says.
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