Goodbye, Green Buildings

This audio was created using Microsoft Azure Speech Services

I’ve been a self-proclaimed green buildings dork since 2006, when I lived in one of the most sustainable cities in the US—Seattle—and learned the joys of efficient public transportation and working in a green building. I was also first introduced to LEED for the first time that summer, yet it wasn’t until 2008 that I was brave enough to take (and pass!) the LEED AP exam.

One can say that I’ve been very fortunate to attend several Greenbuild events—starting with Boston in 2008. In the midst of thousands of like-minded “greendividuals,” I realized that I was among my people! There, and during later events in Phoenix, Chicago, and Toronto, I came to the conclusion that not only would I uphold these sustainability guidelines to the best of my ability in my professional life, but in my personal life, as well.

Inspired, I joined the local chapter of the USGBC, where I have been involved in our social media efforts and planning our monthly happy hours. If you haven’t yet become involved in a local organization like this, I highly recommend it—each time I am around my fellow green building enthusiasts, I am inspired!

And almost perchance, my role at Schneider Electric evolved into a member of our global Green Buildings Solutions team. For almost three years now, I’ve had the incredible opportunity to work with a dynamic team that is helping to shape the green buildings culture around the world—not only within our company, but externally, as well. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting many of our customers, who are striving to positively affect their own triple bottom line results for people, planet, and profit.

Recently, I accepted a new role within Schneider Electric, and it is with great regret that I move away from the green buildings realm. As I reflected on my last few years as a passionate advocate for green buildings, I realized that I don’t have to leave my passion behind—I’ll just have to express it in new ways. So, now, I’m going to be the greenest internal communications person I can be—and remember all of the wonderful experiences I’ve had in the last few years. Here is my cheesy last line—I’m going to work to be the change I want to see in the world.