Support USGBC Texas today! Join Renew Donate Sponsor
Session 1 - The Joy of Efficiency by Paul Westbrook
Discussion Scheduled Thursday, June 3 5-6:30 PM Author will be in attendance.
Join the USGBC North Texas Emerging Professionals group for the first installment of our book club series! This series will be a chance to engage with other sustainability professionals and discuss topics around career development, sustainability, & personal growth. Each session will be a lunchtime Zoom meeting with a chance to share and discuss your thoughts on the topic.
Book Summary:
“People always seem to be short of time or money-sometimes both. Efficiency is a way to get more of both. It's not a compromise; it's an optimization where everything is better. It's a way to live lighter on the planet, and to live better. It's quality versus quantity.
Efficiency rewards you similarly to the way a financial investment grows. Just as compound interest allows your money to grow over time, efficiency's benefits continue to accumulate. Efficiency has a better return with a higher guarantee than any financial investment.
Like planting a tree, the best time to start being efficient was twenty years ago; the second-best time is now.
Embracing efficiency is not difficult. It is often just a matter of replacing old, bad habits with new, better habits. To develop a new, good habit you'll have to actively work at it for a month, but then it becomes a new good habit. Develop some new good habits and you, too, will know the Joy of Efficiency.
Throughout the book, the effective path to efficiency is explained through true stories and examples. We learn best through stories instead of just formulas and data. This book may seem to ramble across topics, but read enough and you'll find the thread connecting them all. The power of efficiency-and the joy of living an efficient life-lies in those connections.”
How to Purchase the book:
Purchase paperback with Registration (limited) Purchase paperback from Amazon - Link $17.95Purchase Kindle ebook from Amazon - Link $8.99 Purchase ebook from other suppliers (Kobo, Nook, Indigo, Apple, . . ) Link $8.99
For more information contact Allison Wood, North Texas Regional Council and Emerging Professionals Committee.
Central Texas: Regional Council Meeting
For more information, email:
centraltexas@usgbctexas.org
WEBINAR: If I Knew Then What I Know Now...
Wednesday, May 26, 2021
Noon- 1:00 PM
Link provided day of presentation.
Event Flyer
About the Event
Even as sustainability becomes an increasingly important component of today's discussions and tomorrow's business operations, many are still left wondering how to begin a career within the field. Attend our Emerging Professionals virtual panel discussion to learn from young professionals in various industries on how they navigated the new job climate to secure their positions. Our panelists will be sharing their experiences working in the sustainability field and will be providing insight as to how to get one’s foot in the door. USGBC Central Texas Emerging Professionals Committee is focused on younger individuals as well as life-long-learners who are new professionals or actively pursuing employment in the green building industry and the sustainability movement.
Speakers:
Courtney Thier holds career experience in multiple different areas spanning renewable energy, environmental consulting, and consumer electronics. As the Director of Utility Programs at Elevation Home Energy Solutions, she oversees new business development efforts for the organization and is managing a cross-functional team to bring a residential smart home control program from concept to product. Before her current role, Courtney was a hybrid Product and Account Manager for Curb, an energy monitoring and management startup, managing clients and leading all engineering efforts in the smart home control and automation space.
Courtney is currently the Vice Chair of the USGBC Central TX Region and continues to stay connected with sustainable development projects throughout Austin. She holds a MS from Carnegie Mellon University in Environmental Engineering, Sustainability, and Green Design and a BS from Lehigh University in Environmental Engineering.
Panelists:
Chris Kelland was born in South Africa and found himself in the United States after accepting a scholarship offer to study chemistry and play rugby at Lindenwood University in St Charles, MO. After graduating from college in 2018, Chris immediately jumped at the opportunity to move to Austin. Where he now works as director of sustainability at Heart Water, a local bottled rainwater company (the largest rainwater CPG in the world). Chris is responsible for Heart Water’s sustainability strategy as well as for introducing programs, processes and policies that will deliver on the organization’s sustainability commitments. Chris was motivated to pursue sustainability after being exposed to the societal and environmental issues existing in South Africa due to poor resource management and unsustainable practices. Seeing Cape Town on the brink of absolute water scarcity, observing decline in biodiversity figures and witnessing the world’s plastic pollution problem firsthand was all the motivation Chris needed to throw himself into the fight.
Phoebe Romero is passionate about the intersection of climate policy and racial equity. She works at the City of Austin Office of Sustainability focusing on air quality and climate action that reduces environmental impact and improves quality of life outcomes for historically impacted communities. Formerly she was a Program Manager at CLEAResult implementing utility energy efficiency programs for large commercial and institutional organizations across Texas. Prior to CLEAResult, she was an Environmental Defense Fund Climate Corps Fellow tasked with evaluating energy and water conservation initiatives at Huston-Tillotson University.
She has a BA in Political Science and Latin American studies from Brown University and a joint Professional Science Master's in Environmental Management and Sustainable Development from St. Edward’s University and Université Catholique de l'Ouest.
Natalie Regennitter graduated from The University of Texas at Austin in 2018 with a degree in Sustainability Studies with a focus on Natural Resource Management. As a college senior, she was the Advocacy Intern for USGBC Texas where she helped prepare for State Advocacy Day, among other duties. Currently, she works for the City of Austin as a Business Process Specialist for Austin Resource Recovery on the Zero Waste Policy and Program Development team. While she is not at work, Natalie enjoys exploring the Green Belt and Lady Bird Lake, community trash clean-ups, and trying out different coffee shops around town.
Green Building Bike Ride: EaDo and Second Ward
Eastwood Park
5000 Harrisburg Blvd.
Houston, TX, 77011 Saturday, June 5, 2021
9:00 - 11:00 AM
Register soon, capacity is limited!
NEW DATE for our second green building-themed bike ride!
We'll be exploring some existing and future sustainability projects in EaDo and Second Ward with a brief local coffee shop break in the middle.
This ride is co-hosted by CoHousing Houston.
Bring your own bike or check out a BCycle from the bikeshare station at Eastwood Park.
Helmets are required for the ride as well as CDC Pandemic prevention measures.
LEED GREEN ASSOCIATE EXAM PREP COURSE
Saturday, June 12th, 2021 Gensler HoustonVirtual Training 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM Free Class Class Flyer Coming Soon
About this Event
For more than 15 years, Gensler has welcomed in thousands of clients, college students, community leaders, building owners and designers to take its free LEED Green Associate Exam Prep Course.
Conveniently scheduled on a Saturday morning, the four hour class is administered by Gensler employees who are passionate about sustainability in practice and have previously achieved their LEED GA credentials. The course is open to anyone in the community who is planning to take the LEED Green Associate Version 4 exam and is interested in attaining basic knowledge of green design, construction and operations.
From this course, you will learn how to address fundamental principles of green building, attain a basic knowledge of LEED rating systems and will receive recommended study material to aid in passing the exam. Feel free to also bring any general or specific questions regarding the exam you may have.
Gensler’s LEED GA prep course is offered five times annually, with an additional BD+C and ID+C course option offered during the year also. There is no class attendance limit and anyone 18 or older is able to register for the course. Four AIA Continuing Education Credits are available for session attendees.
Gulf Coast: Regional Council Meeting
gulfcoast@usgbctexas,org
Green Schools Conference June 28-29, 2021 Virtual Conference Register Here
The Green Schools Conference will provide an unmatched opportunity for green school leaders to convene to share new ideas and strategies for advancing environmental and sustainability literacy and transforming schools into healthier, more sustainable places to learn.
It will be a great education and engagement opportunity for teachers, parents, students, school and district staff, educational leaders, building industry professionals, non-profit partners and others who are passionate about the future of green schools throughout the country and around the world.
GSC is presented by the Center for Green Schools at the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), in partnership with the Green Schools National Network (GSNN).
Collaboration and innovation are necessary ingredients to transform schools into healthier, more sustainable places to learn, work and play. Leaders and advocates come together each year to work toward making visible, measurable and lasting progress toward the three pillars of green schools: environmental impact, health impact and environmental and sustainability literacy.
The Green Schools Conference will be held virtually on June 28-29, 2021. Early bird rates are applicable through May 14, 2021.
Group Rates: A special discount of 10% off your order is available for groups of 5 or more from a single company, school, district or organization. Contact us for details.
Attending the Green Schools Conference is an investment that will benefit not only you, but your school, district or company. The materials below offer a greater understanding of GSC and how to communicate the value it provides. Please feel free to customize and use them to request approval to attend the conference.
For questions regarding the GSC Program, please email: program@greenschoolsconference.org
Saturday, August 14th, 2021 Gensler HoustonVirtual Training 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM Free Class Class Flyer Coming Soon
2021 USGBC TEXAS ENERGY SUMMIT THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2021 Norris Conference Center at City Centre 816 Town and Country Blvd #210 Houston, TX 770247:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Saturday, October 23rd, 2021 Gensler HoustonVirtual Training 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM Free Class Class Flyer Coming Soon
Saturday, December 11th, 2021 Gensler HoustonVirtual Training 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM Free Class Class Flyer Coming Soon
USGBC Texas Chapter is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. 1801 Royal Lane, Suite 400, Dallas, TX 75229
Contact us at chapter@usgbctexas.org or at 214-571-9244
