VA COTE Building Tour: Sadler Center at the College of William and Mary

Join AIAVA COTE and USGBC for our 2026 building tour series! We wish to celebrate exciting and innovative sustainable building design around the Commonwealth. Each month we will focus on a project in one of the five AIA Virginia component areas that has achieved LEED or other sustainable certification. Tours will provide AIA and USGC CEU’s for participants.

The addition to the Sadler Center at the College of William and Mary realizes the College’s vision for a “Student Life Neighborhood” at the heart of campus, consolidating 11 student affairs departments into a single, high-performance building for students and staff. The design process and building itself aimed to foster ownership and agency among students, truly creating a “student building.” Sustainable design elements such as an overhang shade system along the addition’s southwestern-exposed curtain wall, low-flow plumbing fixtures, and radiant ceilings for heating and cooling create a healthy and comfortable interior environment for occupants that also further the College’s goals for longevity and developing a bright future for their students.

1 AIA LU | HSW
1 GBCI LU 

AIA Member: $15
USGBC Member: $15
Non-Member: $30
Students: FREE

Register Here>>
*Registration closes at 3:00pm on 2/19.

Designing for LEED v5: What Architects Need to Know Now

Join AIA Virginia for a webinar about LEED v5 on  Tuesday, August 19 from 12:00-1:00pm EST.

LEED v5 is bringing a bold shift in priorities and design teams need to be ready. This AIA-approved CE webinar, led by a practicing LEED consultant, will walk you through the most significant updates in LEED v5 compared to LEED v4, and what they mean for architects.

We’ll cover:

  • Key credit changes and new emphasis areas (including decarbonization, equity, and performance)
  • How these updates impact early design decisions, materials selection, and MEP coordination
  • A side-by-side comparison of LEED v4 and v5 scorecards for a real building
  • Tips to align design team sustainability goals with LEED v5 requirements

Whether you’re new to LEED or an experienced user, you’ll leave this session with practical strategies to navigate LEED v5 and use it as a tool for meaningful, measurable impact.

1 AIA LU | HSW

AIA Member – $15
Non-member – $20
Students – FREE

Register Here

USGBC Virginia Leadership Awards and LEED Workshop

Posted on by cguske

Join your fellow sustainability advocates at the USGBC Virginia Leadership Awards to celebrate Virginia building owners, designers and construction professionals who achieved LEED certification!

Date and Time: Thursday, May 2, 2019

      LEED Workshop – 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm
      Awards Ceremony – 5:30 pm-8:00 pm

Event Venue: Institute for Contemporary Art, Virginia Commonwealth University, 601 West Broad Street, Richmond, VA

Event Cost:

  • Workshop: Member Rate-$25.00
  • Workshop: General-$35.00
  • Workshop: Student-$10.00
  • Reception: Member Rate-$35.00
  • Reception: General-$45.00
  • Reception: Student-$10.00
  • Full Day: Member-$45.00
  • Full Day: General-$65.00
  • Full Day: Student-$20.00
  • Early Bird: Reception (Members Only)-$25.00
  • Early Bird: Full Day (Members Only)-$40.00

LEED-certified spaces use less energy and water, save money for families, businesses and taxpayers, reduce carbon emissions and create a healthier environment for occupants and the community at large. Virginia is proud to be one of the largest users per capita of LEED in the U.S.

LEED v4.1 workshop

Join us for a 2 hour workshop immediately preceding the Awards Ceremony for an in-depth review of updates to LEED under version 4.1. This workshop will be facilitated by Corey Enck, VP, LEED Technical Development with USGBC and will be worth 2 LEED specific professional credits. Discounted tickets are available for those who wish to attend both the workshop and the Awards Ceremony.

Schedule of Events:

3:30-5:30pm: LEED v4.1 Workshop (see below for more information)

5:30-6:00pm: Networking Reception and People’s Choice Award voting

6:00pm: Awards Ceremony

  • USGBC Virginia Leadership Awards: Innovative Design, New Construction; Innovative Design, Interiors; Building Performance; Virginia Environments; Community Champion; and Green Building Legacy Award
  • USGBC Virginia Green Leader Awards: Organization and Volunteer
  • Connect the Dots Green Schools Challenge Awards
  • People’s Choice Award – selected by attendees at the ceremony!

7:00-8:00 pm: Networking Reception resumes

Check it out and register at  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/usgbc-virginia-2019-leadership-awards-tickets-58101026735

LEED Earth Offers Free Certification to Projects in New Markets

Posted on by cguske

In an effort to accelerate sustainable development around the world, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) announced a new campaign offering free LEED certification to the first projects to certify in the over 100 countries where LEED has yet to take root.

Coined “LEED Earth,” the campaign aims to bring LEED certification into new markets. All building types are welcome to participate across the suite of LEED rating systems, including: new construction, commercial interiors, existing buildings, core & shell structures, new homes and neighborhood developments.

“LEED is a global language and can become a catalyst for incremental change toward a sustainable future. USGBC is committed to bringing LEED to every country in the world while continuing to foster innovation and achievement in existing global markets,” said Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO and Founding Chair, USGBC. “Buildings are the single greatest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions of any sector, and the least costly way to alleviate the environmental stresses of our changing planet. LEED is the tool to get the job done.”

With LEED projects in 140 countries and territories, 1.5 million square feet of construction space earn LEED certification each day, the equivalent of nearly four Empire State Buildings a week. LEED v4, the next iteration of the LEED green building rating system, is set to launch at the end of 2013. The newest version of LEED will have a strong emphasis on building performance.

To participate in the program and register a project, email LEEDEarth@usgbc.org. For the campaign’s rules and regulations, click here.

USGBC Postpones LEED 2012; Changes Name to LEED v4

Posted on by cguske

In response to overwhelming feedback from various stakeholders, the United State Green Building Council (USGBC) has announced that it is postponing the release of LEED 2013 until June 2013.

The USGBC will now refer to this version as LEED v4 and will use the additional time to address concerns from the marketplace and deliver on the infrastructural improvements to the LEED program already underway, including the development of forms, documentation, education and LEED Online.  The organization will also open a fifth public comment period which will run Oct. 2–Dec. 10, 2012. Read more>>

LEED Comment Period Open Until March 20

Posted on by cguske

The LEED 2012 third public comment period is now open from March 1-20, 2012 which marks the start of the LEED 2012 program delivery process. This third draft of the rating system is focused on providing a globally applicable, simple-to-use, technically advanced system. Members of the public can comment on any substantive changes made since the second public comment period, which ran from August 1 through September 14, 2011. Once the comment period process concludes, LEED 2012 will be balloted in June and launch in November.

Important Dates

  • March 1-20: Third Public Comment period is open
  • April 2-May 1: LEED 2012 Ballot Opt-In Period for members in good standing
  • June 1-30: LEED 2012 Ballot Voting Period

Find out more or to submit your comments here>>