The National Building Museum will recognize several Visionaries in Sustainability for their leadership, commitment, and achievements in green building and design, workforce development, and business practices during the Museum’s annual gala on June 4, 2009.
The Honor Award was established by the Museum in 1986 to salute those who have significantly improved the built environment. Typically, the award is given only to one honoree or organization. However, the Museum’s selection committee determined that a sustainable built environment can only be achieved through a diverse community, and expanded its selection to include elected officials, associations, business leaders, and private advocates.
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and its president S. Richard Fedrizzi were recently announced as the Museum’s honorees.
Founded in 1993, USGBC is transforming the way buildings and communities are designed, built and operated. Its LEED® program is the most widely used green building certification program in the nation. USGBC is also working internationally to establish common green building practices with governments throughout Europe, Asia, and Australia. The nonprofit association is composed of more than 19,000 organizations from across the building industry that are working to ensure that structures are environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and work. In the United States alone, there are more than 2,500 LEED-certified structures.
“We founded the USGBC with the radical idea that our built environment should nurture instead of harm, restore instead of consume, and save money instead of waste it,” notes Fedrizzi, president, CEO and founding chair, USGBC. “Little did we know at the time that the green building revolution we envisioned would become a cornerstone of the economic recovery effort, creating millions of green jobs and saving energy and money in the process. The National Building Museum has long been an inspiration to us for all their work to advance how buildings can better serve people, and we’re deeply honored by this award.”
Chase Rynd, executive director and president of the National Building Museum states that USGBC will be honored for “their unparalleled leadership for 15 years in the promotion of sustainable building practices; their exceptional achievement in establishing and integrating green building standards; and their demonstration of the environmental, social, and economic value of green building.”
The National Building Museum will announce additional Honor Award recipients in the weeks leading up to the June 4 gala, to be held in the Museum’s historic Great Hall. Fedrizzi will accept the prize during the ceremony and present his vision about the future of green building.
For additional event information, contact Tasha Passarelle, [email protected], or (202) 272-2448, ext. 3112.
The National Building Museum, created by an act of Congress in 1980, is a private, nonprofit institution that examines and interprets achievements in building through exhibitions, programs, and publications. Public inquiries: call (202) 272-2448 or visit www.nbm.org.
