The Resilient Design Collaborative (RDC)

Posted on by Delaney Ogden

The RDC encourages and assists the AEC (architectural-engineering-construction) industry in designing and building high-performance resilient facilities that save money, improve people’s lives, and ensure a sustainable future.

The RDC was conceived in late 2023 by Virginia Architect, Steve Sunderman, because it seemed that there was plenty of “talking the talk”, but not much “walking the walk” concerning resilient design strategies for new architectural projects. So, with assistance from the AIA Virginia and ARISE-US organizations, the RDC was formed to advise and assist architects, engineers, and others in identifying project hazard risks and implementing effective resilient design strategies for their actual projects. To date, this effort has been all volunteer-based.

The Problem: There is no greater blow to sustainability than destruction. Climate change is real and significantly increasing natural hazards, damaging and destroying our built environment and way of life. We cannot afford to keep designing and building the same as we did in the past.

The Solution: The AEC industry must create resilient infrastructure so our communities can be sustainable places to live, work and thrive for this and future generations.

The RDC meets via Zoom on the first Tuesday of each month from 3:00-4:00 PM Eastern time with participants nationwide sharing their sustainable and resilient performative expertise.

The RDC will make a positive impact on our communities as well as the entire planet for generations.

  • RDC VISION: All building projects are designed to create resilient and sustainable communities.
  • RDC MISSION: Work collaboratively with the building design and construction community to promote and create sustainably resilient projects that resist, absorb, recover from, or successfully adapt to manmade and natural hazards.
    • Action Plan 1: Organize a group of architects and others to meet virtually and, when needed, in person, to discuss means and methods to implement appropriate resilient design strategies for their actual projects.
    • Action Plan 2: Create a library of resilient design Case Studies for others to reference as examples to influence their project design efforts.
    • Action Plan 3: Create a network of AEC professionals nationwide to collaborate and create resilient facilities for this and future generations.

Please contact Steve Sunderman if you would like to learn more about our mission and how you too can help us advance resilient design strategies for more sustainable communities.

The COTE Corner

Posted on by Delaney Ogden

On June 26, AIA Blue Ridge hosted design professionals and elected officials for a collaborative building tour showcasing excellent sustainable design at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute in Roanoke, Virginia. The LEED Silver research institute by AECOM serves as a new model for biomedical and behavioral science as part of the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine and Research Institute.

This tour was organized in part with Virginia COTE to promote and showcase achievements in sustainable design to local and state elected officials in Virginia. If you have worked on a project that exemplifies sustainable design excellence and would like to organize a building tour please reach out to Delaney Ogden at dogden@aiava.org.

Sustainable Preservation Expert Speaks in Richmond

Posted on by cguske

Jean Carroon, FAIA, LEED AP, is a principal at Goody Clancy, a Boston-based design and planning firm.

Virginia, and especially Richmond, venerates its historic buildings. Just take a stroll down Monument Avenue or meander around the Capitol Grounds and you’ll immediately recognize that locals, and visitors alike, worship at the altar of historic preservation.  But, can our collective desire for sustainability overcome our reverence for existing architectural treasures? Do we have to make a painful choice between sustainability and history? One of the country’s leading preservation architects and author, Jean Carroon, FAIA, responds with a resounding “No!” Hear Carroon present a nuanced look at preservation and sustainability while she discusses her new book Sustainable Preservation: Greening Existing Buildings at the Virginia Center for Architecture on Thursday, March 31, 2011 from 6–7 p.m. (1 AIA/CES learning unit). A reception and book signing follow the discussion.

 Sustainable Preservation looks at the hundreds of choices that adaptive use requires architects to make— and not just for architectural icons. Carroon considers why a 1970s strip-mall supermarket might deserve similar attention. Take a look at current research assessing the environmental value of reusing buildings and the emerging technologies that make it possible — regardless of age and style. Discover ingenious ways to redeploy existing structural elements along with time-honored techniques for natural ventilation.

Jean Carroon, FAIA, LEED AP, is a principal at Goody Clancy, a Boston-based design and planning firm, where her clients have included Harvard University, Trinity Church and the General Services Administration. She has testified before the U.S, Congress on ways to reduce the carbon footprint of the national Capitol Complex. She is currently working on the renovation of over 50 historic buildings at St. Elizabeths West Campus in Washington, D.C., for a new headquarters for the Department of Homeland Security.  A member of the National Trust for Historic Preservation Sustainability Coalition, Carroon helped develop the 2009 Pocantico Proclamation on Sustainability and Historic Preservation, which asserts that historic preservationists must play a role in sustainability efforts. She holds BA and MArch degrees from the University of Oregon. Her new book, Sustainable Preservation: Greening Existing Buildings (John Wiley & Sons), was released in November 2010. 

Sustainable Preservation: Greening Existing Buildings at the Virginia Center for Architecture is presented in cooperation with the Virginia Society AIA, the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, and Sweet Briar College’s Tusculum Institute. Admission is $5; free for students and members of the Virginia Center for Architecture and the American Institute of Architects. Spaces are limited and reservations are requested. Call (804) 644-3041, ext. 100 to secure your space.

“For many years now, the Department of Historic Resources has carried the banner of sustainability through the recycling of our historic buildings and historic preservation’s focus on reinvestment in our existing communities and infrastructure,” said Kathleen S. Kilpatrick, director of the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. “We are delighted to be a sponsor of Jean Carroon’s visit to the Virginia Center for Architecture, Sweet Briar College, and other venues in Virginia to discuss her new book and the lessons of sustainable preservation,” Kilpatrick added.

The Virginia Center for Architecture is located at 2501 Monument Avenue in Richmond, Virginia’s historic Fan District. The Center is dedicated to developing the understanding of the power and importance of architecture through programs, exhibitions, and its stewardship of an historic landmark. The Center is open to the public Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m. Learn more at www.virginiaarchitecture.org.

The Virginia Society of the American Institute of Architects represents more than 2,000 Virginia architects. The Society is dedicated to advancing knowledge of the art and science of architecture among professionals and expanding awareness and appreciation of architecture among the general public. For more information, contact the Virginia Society at (804) 644-3041 or visit www.aiava.org.

The Department of Historic Resources is Virginia’s State Historic Preservation Office. The mission of the department is to foster, encourage, and support the stewardship of Virginia’s significant historic architectural, archaeological, and cultural resources.

Located on the campus of Sweet Briar College, Tusculum Institute is a historic preservation resource center, dedicated to preserving and studying the region’s historic assets within a context of environmental stewardship.