In this issue:
· AIANY Re-launches Diversity Committee
· AIA AAJ Establishes Sustainable Justice Committee
· Changes in Filing Procedures at the Department of Buildings
· Foundation Teams with Brooklyn Children’s Museum
· ACE Internship: What I Learned
· Non-Profit Aims to Make Hotels More Sustainable
· Published: State of Green Business 2008

AIANY Re-launches Diversity Committee
Responding to interest from the NYC architectural community, the AIANY Diversity Committee is again in business. The committee seeks to provide meaningful programming for the Chapter, tackling topics such as community diversity, education, and business development opportunities. In 2008, the committee will be meeting on the last Thursday of every month. This month’s meeting will be held February 28 at 6:30pm at the Center for Architecture. New members are encouraged to join. Committee co-chairs will be announced in upcoming months. If you have questions about the committee feel free to contact Carolyn Sponza, AIA, LEED AP.

Professional diversity is one of the AIA’s major objectives. Over the past decades numerous resolutions, research papers, focus groups, and studies have made architects aware that their membership does not wholly represent the society for whom it designs. This year, the issue is in the spotlight even more, with Marshall E. Purnell, FAIA, taking office as the first African American president of the AIA, where he is raising diversity as a major goal.

AIA AAJ Establishes Sustainable Justice Committee
The Academy of Architecture for Justice (AAJ), a knowledge community within the AIA that focuses on the planning, design, and delivery of justice architecture, has established a Sustainable Justice Committee. Co-chaired by Susan K. Oldroyd, AIA, LEED AP, and Ken Ricci, FAIA, the purpose of the committee is to promote and support sustainability in law and justice facilities. To this end, the committee plans to publish a guide to sustainable justice design and proposes a LEED-J (LEED for Justice) rating system to the U.S. Green Building Council. For more information, please visit the committee’s website.

Changes in Filing Procedures at the Department of Buildings
There have been a number of developments at the Department of Buildings (DOB) that will affect the way you file applications:

   · PC Filing will no longer be available for use as of Feb19; a new e-filing system is up and running.
   · There are new PW1 forms.
   · Controlled Inspection forms have recently changed and have an additional sign-off at time of permit.
   · Controlled Inspections will be changing over the next year; the DOB will be implementing a system whereby a third party will have to take responsibility.

To subscribe to the DOB Newsletter, please click here.

Foundation Teams with Brooklyn Children’s Museum
By Michelle Dezember, Design Educator, Center for Architecture Foundation

The Center for Architecture Foundation is currently collaborating with the Brooklyn Children’s Museum to develop Building Brainstorm!, a 1,200-square-foot tri-lingual traveling exhibition that invites children and their caregivers to explore the built environment through hands-on investigations of building forms, features, materials, and the architectural design process.

Building Brainstorm! will be a fantasy architecture studio that presents children with design challenges to research and solve. Kids and adults will experiment with building materials and engineering problems as well as investigate light, form, structure, and organization.

The exhibition research team is currently gathering images and materials that will be used in these stations and activities, and would like to tap into the resources that AIA members might like to offer. Items currently needed:

   · Three-dimensional models of buildings (massing models, topographical models, etc.)
   · Floor plans
   · Quick sketches that show early phases of projects
   · Sample boards
   · Material samples for exteriors
   · Material samples for interiors (paints, textiles, countertops, wall paneling, flooring, etc.)

If you or any of your colleagues have the following materials available for the exhibition, please contact Michelle Dezember, Design Educator, Center for Architecture Foundation or Liza Reich Rawson, Senior Exhibition Developer, Brooklyn Children’s Museum.

ACE Internship: What I Learned
By Olivia Lau

The design and technical processes of building intrigued me throughout high school. During my senior year, after enrolling in my school’s architecture course, I decided to sign up for the ACE Mentor Program and NYC School Construction Authority (SCA) Summer Internship Program. The program provides college-bound high school students with exposure to the professional world of architecture, construction, and engineering. I had the opportunity to work as an intern alongside one of my mentors, Darris James, Assoc. AIA, senior associate at Gensler. Throughout the summer of 2006, I was a member of the Aviation Studio working on construction document sets, translating documents from French, ordering sample materials, and helping organize presentations. In addition to developing professional relationships, perhaps the biggest benefit for me was the chance to learn and use AutoCAD, which has put me steps ahead of many of my peers in studio.

In the program I learned how a project is built from design concept to engineering to construction. As the college application process loomed, I was encouraged to pursue architecture. In the end, I narrowed my search to universities with accredited architecture programs, and I am now a student at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. ACE also helped me network within the profession. As the world continues to develop, I think it is essential that these programs also grow to encourage emerging designers and builders.

The SCA is currently recruiting firms for the upcoming summer program, which runs July 7 through August 15. Interns are paid by the SCA, so there is no cost to sponsoring firms to participate. For more information about how to become an intern sponsor or to learn more about the NYC SCA Summer Internship Program, contact Ruby Saake at 718-752-5047 or by e-mail. To learn more about the ACE Mentor Program visit the website or e-mail Ed Jerman, Assistant Executive Director for the ACE Mentor Program’s Greater New York Chapter.

Olivia Lau is currently a sophomore at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Non-Profit Aims to Make Hotels More Sustainable
The Global Green Hospitality Consortium (GGHC) hopes to increase sustainability practices by providing a clearinghouse of standards, certifications, and opportunities. The recently-launched non-profit provides its members assistance with the major green standards and practices overseen by state and federal agencies and other organizations. USGBC’s LEED certification, Energy Star, and the EPA’s Green Power Partnership are just some of the programs the GGHC provides help with, along with details on rebates, grants, and tax benefits offered for green programs. The group also offers access to consortium-certified products and services, and facilitates communication between vendors and buyers. The GGHC is owned by the Global Green Energy Consortium.

Published: State of Green Business 2008
In this report, Joel Makower and the editors of GreenBiz.com answer the question: How are U.S. businesses doing in their quest to be greener and more environmentally responsible? It introduces the GreenBiz Index, a set of 20 indicators of progress, tracking resource use, emissions, and business practices of U.S. companies: carbon, materials, energy, and toxic intensity, clean-tech investments, e-waste recovery, paper use, employee commuting, and more.To download the report, please click stateofgreenbusiness2008.pdf.