Environmental Consulting Blog

Planner Earns LEED AP ND Certification from US Green Building Council

One of Rincon Consultants' urban planners has become among the first professionals in the nation to achieve a new certification for expertise in sustainable neighborhood development. Stephen Svete, Principal, recently passed exams developed by the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Green Building Certification Institute certifying them as LEED AP ND (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Accredited Professional in Neighborhood Development). Mr. Svete will join the firm’s three other LEED AP professionals.

The exam tests knowledge based on the USGBC’s LEED Rating Systems. LEED was created by the USGBC as a voluntary, consensus-based, and quantifiable rating system for green building and development. LEED has become the most widely recognized green building rating system in the world. When a project is LEED Certified, it means that a significant amount of sustainability practices went into its process, design, and construction. If an environmental professional becomes LEED Accredited, this demonstrates that they are an expert on one or more LEED Green Building Rating Systems and can participate in evaluating building and development projects for certifications within their area of expertise. The first exam for the neighborhood development accreditation was administered in May of this year.

"Our environmental sciences and planning consulting firm has been focusing on the changing legislative and business shift to more sustainable practices,” says Michael Gialketsis, Principal at Rincon. "We are proud of the leadership Steve has demonstrated in our industry by being among the first in the nation to achieve the LEED AP ND certification.”

About U.S. Green Building Council

The Washington, D.C.-based U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is a 501 c3 non-profit organization committed to a prosperous and sustainable future for our nation through cost-efficient and energy-saving green buildings. With a community comprising 78 local affiliates, more than 18,000 member companies and organizations, and more than 140,000 LEED Professional Credential holders, USGBC is the driving force of an industry that is projected to contribute $554 billion to the U.S. gross domestic product from 2009-2013. USGBC leads an unlikely diverse constituency of builders and environmentalists, corporations and nonprofit organizations, elected officials and concerned citizens, and teachers and students. Buildings in the United States are responsible for 39% of CO2 emissions, 40% of energy consumption, 13% water consumption and 15% of GDP per year, making green building a source of significant economic and environmental opportunity. Greater building efficiency can meet 85% of future U.S. demand for energy, and a national commitment to green building has the potential to generate 2.5 million American jobs.

About LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)

The LEED Professional Credentials were developed to encourage green building professionals to maintain and advance their knowledge and expertise. A LEED Professional Credential provides employers, policymakers, and other stakeholders with assurances of an individual’s current level of competence and is the mark of the most qualified, educated, and influential green building professionals in the marketplace. All the LEED Professional Credentials require adherence to the LEED Professional Disciplinary and Exam Appeals Policy and require ongoing credential maintenance requirements either through continuing education and practical experience or through biennial retesting. Starting in 2009, newly credentialed individuals must maintain their credential on a two-year cycles; if not, they expire.

For more information about the Green Building Certification Institute and the LEED certification exam and the Green Building Certification Institute, please visit www.gbci.org.