Two Members Elected to Coalition Board
Activities
Two Members Elected to Coalition Board
The Green Builder® Coalition recently held elections to fill two seats whose terms had expired. The Charter Members nominated and elected Bill Roth and Drew Brandt to the Board. They succeed Craig Conner and Maria Kingery. Roth and Brandt join current Board members Bill Lazar and Tim O’Brien, who were elected in 2015. Kim Shanahan will remain involved with the Board in the Ex-Officio role.
Bill Roth has been a licensed General Contractor since 1998. He specializes in small, energy efficient homes under 2,000 sq. ft. He also provides 3D CAD drafting and design services, with an emphasis on sustainable design practices. Roth has won numerous homebuilding awards, is a former President of the Santa Fe Area Homebuilders Association and is a Co-Founder of the WERS Development Group. His green building training includes a Tree and Natural Resource Preservation certificate (included Construction Site Damage Prevention), Home Innovation Research Labs Green Verifier, RESNET HERS Rater and Energy Star for Homes 3.0 Training. Finally, as a short film maker, his animated films have been shown in over 25 different film festivals around the United States.
Drew Brandt is responsible for product management, product marketing, new product development, business development, marketing communications, channel marketing, sustainability, lobbying, and technical marketing for CertainTeed’s Insulation Group. He has 25 years of sales, marketing, and new product development experience. He has been granted 5 innovative building product patents. He has worked in his current capacity at CertainTeed for the last 14 years, in roles of increasing responsibility. Prior to joining CertainTeed, Drew held positions in sales and marketing with PPG Industries, Gardner Denver and Lafarge. Brandt holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with concentrations in Marketing and Management Science from Drexel University.
“I know the current Board members and I are eager to start working with the new Board members, and we have a couple of meetings already scheduled to help get them up to speed,” said Executive Director Mike Collignon. “I also wanted to take this opportunity to thank Craig Conner and Maria Kingery for their time on the Board. They were elected (with Kim Shanahan) in 2013 and were involved with a number of decisions that have affected the trajectory of the organization.”
Roth and Brandt’s Board terms will expire in October 2019.
WERS Update
The residential industry’s only performance-based water efficiency program continues to gain awareness and momentum. As we near the end of the year, there are two significant updates to pass along:
June 4-6, 2017 at the Santa Fe Convention Center in Santa Fe, NM
We’re happy to announce a number of confirmed educational sessions:
- How to Build to Net Zero Water
- Alternative Water Treatment Options
- WERS 101
- Comparison of Residential Water Efficiency Programs
- Stormwater Harvesting in Western States
- Regulatory & Technical Barriers to Adoption for Water Reuse
- Plants for a Changing Climate
- Implementing Water Efficiency Through Incentives, Tax Credits & Rebates
- Greywater System Basics
- Water Use: What’s Legal, What’s Not
10’ x 10’ exhibit booths are available starting at just $499! Sponsorships start as low as $500. For more information, please contact Mike Collignon.
The overarching theme of the event will be how to sustain the building/development industry in western states with declining water resources, even as the next decade experiences surging growth from retiring Baby Boomers. The first day (Sunday) will have a Green Expo at the Convention Center, with local experts doing seminars in the break-out rooms. Three educational tracks, targeting Builders/Developers/Architects, Policymakers, and Water Conservation Experts, will span three days. There will be three sessions in each track on Sunday afternoon, followed by a full slate on Monday & Tuesday. Keynote speakers will open Monday & Tuesday’s proceedings. Pre-conference courses, including QWEL training, ARCSA AP training and WERS Verifier training, are scheduled.
Hosts of the event will be the Santa Fe Green Chamber of Commerce (lead host), Green Builder® Coalition, City of Santa Fe, and the Santa Fe Area Home Builders Association. Santa Fe Community College is the official education sponsor, and Green Builder® Media is the national media sponsor.
WERS Educational Sessions at Industry Conferences
Here is the list of upcoming WERS conference sessions:
- 2017 National Home Performance Conference (formerly known as ACI) – March 20, 2017 in Nashville, TN
- WaterCon 2017 – March 22, 2017 in Springfield, IL
Finally, a big thank you to the National Ground Water Association and the Irrigation Association for allowing Doug Pushard of Harvest H2O to present on the WERS Program at their conferences this past week. The WERS Development Group appreciates the opportunity to speak to your respective groups.
As I Am…
Chris Sudano
Periodically, we sit down with a green building professional to gain a personal insight into their motivations, inspirations and experiences. This issue, we feature Chris Sudano, Licensed Home Inspector.
The Torch: What motivated you to enter the sustainability industry?
Chris Sudano: My Father is Principal and President of a Home Inspection Company that performs 4,000 inspections per year throughout NY and CT, and I have been involved with the business for many years. As a Licensed Home Inspector, Licensed Septic Contractor, PSMA Certified Septic Inspector, and Principal of Onsite Environmental Experts, I have seen countless cases/homes that are in need of major improvements. When I look at my nieces and nephews, or think about my future children and the coming generations, it makes me want to be a contributor and key player, or just make some difference in their lives and our lives.
TT: Describe your first green project. Did you encounter any hurdles on that first project? (If yes, how did you overcome them?)
CS: I have mainly been performing Septic Inspections since the recent launch of Onsite Environmental Experts, and I am now aware of the saying “We don’t know what we don’t see”. A very high percentage of septic systems in the US are currently failing because of the age of the system and the issues and conditions underground, BUT I truly believe it is primarily due to all the products, cleansers and soaps that are destroying systems more each day.
TT: What building product or technique do you think will be the next “game changer”?
CS: Anything that can help solve the nation’s underground infrastructure problems.
TT: Who inspires you the most?
CS: My Father and Mother inspired me most. They have been there for me every day, traveling all over the US for my baseball games and still, as a grown man, behind me no matter what. They have taught me right from wrong and how to be a good person, and part of it was to make a difference, even by a simple act or by doing something you think won’t have any impact or effect on others.
TT: If you had it to do over again, what profession would you choose?
CS: I would have been a Civil or Environmental Engineer, but I would still own my own company because I know that I enjoy each day already and I still have a long way to go.
TT: What do you enjoy the most when you’re not at work?
CS: Spending time with my wife Nicole and our 3 dogs, Marv, Morris (aka “Mo Mo”), and Lexi. I also enjoy reading or researching industry news and blogs and spending time with my family.
TT: What’s the most important piece of advice you’d like to pass along to others?
CS: Do what makes YOU happy and do not judge a book by its cover. Almost everything I perceived or thought when I was younger was so, so wrong. Don’t judge, work hard and if you don’t enjoy it, move on. Life’s too short not to be happy.
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