The faculty of the Institute of Green Professionals in cooperation with the BIM Education Co-op and the Carter Center in Real Estate, School of Business and Economics at the College of Charleston are asking for your ideas on how to popularize the integration of sustainable development professionals.  For the best idea, as determined by our faculty and co-sponsors, we will name the study/research/project after you or your company.

For example, if your family name is “Brooks,” the study/research/project could be named: “The Brooks Project on the Integration of Sustainable Development Stakeholders”  — or whatever is an appropriate naming of the study consistent with your idea and your name.  Additionally, you will be listed as a contributor to the project and links to you and your firm will be provided.

What do we mean by the “integration of sustainable development professionals”?

If you are not already familiar with BIM (Building Information Modeling) and Integrated Project Delivery (IPD), and maybe even if you are, take a quick look at the first blog entitled “Architect as Sustainable Development Leader“.   What we are really asking is:  How do we get every stakeholder truly integrated in a project that has a sustainability characteristic(s)?

Is it by advertsing?    By education?
Is it the Architect that must take the lead?  If so when?
Is BIM the unifier?  If so, how to we get everyone sufficiently literate in BIM?
If not by IPD, then what and how?
Do we need all specialty professional organizations to agree and cooperate?

There is a huge untapped market potential (read as “money for you”) for the integrated input of all stakeholders in the process – architecture, engineering, land-use planning, landscape architecture, accounting, real property valuation, law, facilities management, construction, and owners/investors.  And of course, there are proven development cost savings with this integration.

The best idea will be the seed for the project, further research, the education plan, promulgation of the strategy or whatever is needed to make it happen.

Post your idea at the following link on the The Institute of Green Professionals Blog.   Be sure to scroll down to the comments section.
Submit your ideas, no later than Friday May 15th, 2009, or if you want to keep it confidential for now, send the editor, Grant Austin,  an email at GrantAustin_AT_instituteofgreenprofessionals_DOT_org.

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Author: Tracey de Morsella (323 Articles)

Tracey de Morsella started her career working as an editor for US Technology Magazine. She used that experience to launch Delaware Valley Network, a publication for professionals in the Greater Philadelphia area. Years later, she used the contacts and resources she acquired to work in executive search specializing in technical and diversity recruitment. She has conducted recruitment training seminars for Wachovia Bank, the Department of Interior and the US Postal Service. During this time, she also created a diversity portal called The Multicultural Advantage and published the Diversity Recruitment Advertising Toolkit, a directory of recruiting resources for human resources professionals. Her career and recruitment articles have appeared in numerous publications and web portals including Woman Engineer Magazine, Monster.com, About.com Job Search Channel, Workplace Diversity Magazine, Society for Human Resource Management web site, NSBE Engineering Magazine, HR.com, and Human Resource Consultants Association Newsletter. Her work with technology professionals drew her to pursuing training and work in web development, which led to a stint at Merrill Lynch as an Intranet Manager. In March, she decided to combine her technical and career management expertise with her passion for the environment, and with her husband, launched The Green Economy Post, a blog providing green career information and covering the impact of the environment, sustainable building, cleantech and renewable energy on the US economy. Her sustainability articles have appeared on Industrial Maintenance & Plant Operation, Chem.Info,FastCompany and CleanTechies.