USGBC Honors Green Building Leaders

The Organizational Excellence Award was presented this year to HOK and was accepted by Mary Ann Lazarus, Senior Vice President. Sustainable design is a core value for HOK, and is integral to every aspect of the firm's work and operations. HOK was the first large design firm to join USGBC, and HOK's sustainable leaders helped USGBC develop the first LEED rating system. The firm has continued to be an active partner in USGBC, providing leadership in the LEED program and sponsoring and participating in Greenbuild and other USGBC activities.

The partnership reached a new level this past year when HOK sustainable design principals assumed leadership roles in the Gulf Coast Reconstruction charrettes at Greenbuild 2005 and the production of the resulting New Orleans Principles and other reports. HOK was also the first firm to reach 100 LEED Accredited Professionals and today boasts more than 430 on staff, including much of the firm's leadership. All new salaried hires are now expected to become accredited within six months, with the long-term goal to have 100% of design professionals accredited. HOK has adopted a policy to apply LEED to every project and has fully integrated LEED into "The HOK Guidebook to Sustainable Design." More...

LEED Rating System (US)

About - Features- Accreditation - Resources - JoinU.S. Green Building Council
Non-profit organization dedicated to sustainable building design and construction. Developers of the LEED building rating system. The council is a community of more than 10,000 organizations from every sector of the building industry united by a common purpose: to transform the building marketplace to sustainability.

LEED-certified buildings:
· are leading the transformation of the built environment
· are built as designed and perform as expected.
· have lower operating costs and increased asset value
· are healthy and comfortable for their occupants
· reduce waste sent to landfills· conserve energy and water
· reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions
· qualify for tax rebates, zoning allowances, and other incentives in hundreds of cities
· demonstrate an owner's commitment to environmental stewardship and social responsibility

To earn certification, a building project must meet certain prerequisites and performance benchmarks ("credits") within each category. Projects are awarded Certified, Silver, Gold, or platinum certification depending on the number of credits they achieve. USGBC will fully rebate certification fees for any project awarded LEED platinum certification.