May 2, 2009


It took awhile, but I passed the LEED AP test last thursday, so I can now officially call myself a LEED Accredited Professional. What does this mean?

1) I can add it to my business card, except for the fact that we just got issued new business cards with the company logo change, so it probably won't get changed unless I get title promotion or I run out of cards. Both a long way off.
2) I can work on LEED projects in the office, along with the other dozen or so LEED AP's already working in the firm.
3) It adds marketing appeal to my resume, and I can say I was officially working sustainably since I was 24.
4) With my LEED AP card, I get a 10% discount at Whole Foods. No, not really. There isn't even a LEED AP card. They mail you a certificate.
5) As a LEED AP, if I work on a LEED project, the project gets to add a point if there's no other LEED AP's already working on it.
6) One of my inital reasons to get accredited was to stay ahead of the curve of my peers, to keep myself abreast of the current trends in architecture. By the time I took the test, a large percentage of my graduating class were already LEED AP. I suppose, ultimately, that its a good thing.

That's about it. There were other advantages to the accrediation, such as it serves as a good course the relationships between client, architect, contractor, and consultant. Its also a general course in "sustainab;e" design for a variety of different fields- you have to study stormwater management (civil enginnering), lighting, building automation systems, landscaping, plumbing, finish materials, basically every aspect of designing and building a building.

I studied for about six weeks, a little bit at a time at first, steadily ramping up the intensity until the very end. I read the book, make a spreadsheet of all the credits, made flashcards, and took numerous practice exams. Saori helped me a lot in this as she was constantly studying as well, and we got to argue and quiz each other on LEED minutae, of which there are thousands. Incidently, Saori passed the test as well.

The other incentive to take the test is that they just changed over to LEED 3.0, which involves TWO tests to reach the LEED AP level, and is supposed to be a lot harder, so there was a big rush as the opportunity to take the test ends in May. At any rate, I'm glad to have it over with.

Medium is the message
