The Keith Sanders Award was established in 2008 to honor one person annually for their distinguished service to the USGBC-SC Chapter. The Keith Sanders Award was presented to Allen Taylor at the SC Chapter Leadership Awards ceremony in Charleston on May 13, 2010.

Allen’s commitment to sustainability is evident throughout South Carolina, from his involvement as a founding member of the SC Solar Council to his participation on the SC Office of School Facilities (OSF) committee. Involved in the Chapter since 2005, Allen has dedicated countless hours of his professional, personal and family time to the South Carolina Chapter as President-Elect, President, Board Member, and the Green Schools Advocacy team leader. During his time as President in 2007, Allen led the Chapter through tremendous growth, establishing official Policies and Procedures and the current branch structure. Allen, and his peers, dedication to sustainability led the South Carolina Chapter to the robust, 400 member organization it is today. Allen Taylor, Principal & Director of the Capital Studio in Columbia with LS3P Associates, an architecture, interior architecture and strategic visioning firm providing services nationwide from their offices in Charleston and Columbia, South Carolina and Charlotte, Raleigh and Wilmington, North Carolina. For more information on Allen and LS3P visit www.ls3p.com.



The USGBC-SC Chapter will present annual awards for leadership in green building on May 13, 2010 in Charleston, S.C. as part of Sustain SC 2010. Award winners will be announced soon!

WHERE: American Theater, 446 King Street, Downtown Charleston
WHEN: Thursday, May 13, 6:00 – 9:00 pm
TICKETS: $30/person, and can be ordered through the Sustain SC registration page

Awards will be given in the following categories: Leadership in the Public Sector, Leadership in the Private Sector, Leadership in Education, Individual Leadership and the Keith Sanders Service Award. Enjoy fellowship with green building supporters, and join us in recognizing those who are advancing environmental responsibility in South Carolina!

Welcome and Keynote address will be made by South Carolina Senator Phil P. Leventis. He will address the creation of the Green Schools Caucus, and the progress and roadblocks that still exist towards the Caucus charter legislation and status of the resolution’s ratification by the Senate.

Tickets are $30, and include hors d’oeuvres, program, and transportation to/from the event. A cash bar will be available. Transportation between the Charleston Area Convention Center/Embassy Suites Hotel and the American Theater in downtown Charleston will be provided.

Leadership Award Categories:
Leadership in the Public Sector. Awards in this category are intended to honor leadership at any level of government, including public schools and public institutions of higher education. Past Recipients: University of South Carolina, S.C. Energy Office, Mayor Keith Summey, City of North Charleston

Leadership in the Private Sector. Awards in this category are intended to honor organizations or individuals outside of the design profession who have gone beyond the scope of their daily work to help transform markets.  It is not intended as a design award, but owners may be honored for buildings that provide a model for others to follow. Past Recipients: Furman University, Craig Gaulden Davis, Upstate Forever

Leadership in Education. Awards in this category are intended to honor leadership in public or private schools at any level, and may also honor exceptional educators. Past Recipients: Clemson University, Coastal Carolina University, 7^th Grade Teachers of Georgetown Middle School

Individual Leadership. Awards in this category are intended to honor any individual who has shown exceptional leadership in the sustainability and green building arena. Past Recipients: John Knott, Sen. James Ritchie, Dennis Knight, PE, LEED AP

This year’s categories consisted of innovative projects, production builders, single-family projects, affordable housing projects, affordable developer, multifamily projects, and commitment to LEED for Homes.

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) last month named the recipients of its 2009 LEED for Homes Awards, recognizing projects, developers and home builders who have demonstrated leadership in the residential building marketplace. The awards were presented in November during the 2009 Greenbuild International Conference & Expo held in Phoenix, Ariz.

The 2009 award categories recognize innovative projects, production builders, single family projects, affordable housing projects, affordable developers, multifamily projects and an overall commitment to LEED for Homes.  The Columbia Housing Authority received the Outstanding Affordable Developer award for its Rosewood Hills project in Columbia, SC. Rosewood Hills features a diverse mix of apartments, townhomes, senior citizen housing and single family homes catering to a range of incomes.

“This year’s winners have set themselves apart for exhibiting exceptional leadership within the residential community and for their steadfast commitment to green homebuilding,” said Nate Kredich, Vice President, Residential Market Development. “These innovators will help transform the market toward more healthy, high performing homes that are regarded as some of the best in the country.”

For more information on the recipients, http://www.usgbc.org/Docs/News/LEED%20for%20Homes%20Awards%202009.pdf

The USGBC SC Chapter, Upstate Branch presented its Annual Environmental Stewardship Awards on December 17 at Zen in West end Greenville, which just received an AIA Design Award for building reuse.  These Awards recognize outstanding individuals and organizations that have shown vision, leadership and commitment to the advancement of green building and Environmental Stewardship in the upstate.

The Organizational Environmental Stewardship Award was presented to Hubbell Lighting and the Individual Environmental Stewardship Award was presented to Brad Wyche.

Hubbell Lighting, a leading manufacturer of energy-efficient lighting demonstrated its dedication to green building when it built its $41 million USGBC LEED Silver certified headquarters in Greenville.  Hubbell Lighting LEED They challenged McMillan Pazdan Smith Architects to design a four-story; 185,000 SF building facility that was as easy on the environment as it was to view from its majestic hilltop location overlooking Interstate 85.

Hubbell Lighting embraces its responsibility of stewardship and continually strives to reduce its environmental impact in its products and services in several key areas: Carbon Footprint Reduction, Materials and Production, Eco-Efficiency, Recycling, Health, Comfort and Convenience, Training, Hubbell Lighting Solutions Center, Community, Professional Involvement, Economic Development and Partnerships. See Hubbell Stewardship

Brad Wyche founded Upstate Forever, who has just received certification of its LEED Platinum Headquarters (Upstate Forever Office, Existing Building Renovation).  Wyche has personally made over 250 speeches and presentations on a wide variety of topics, many related to green building and design.  He hosted a conference in 2001 on “Green Development:  New Directions in Land Use and Design” and supported the recently approved Greenville County Comprehensive Plan that encourages smart growth.

In 2007, Wyche was appointed by Governor Sanford to serve on the SC Climate, Energy and Commerce Advisory Committee, which released a report in July, 2008 with a comprehensive set of policy recommendations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and address energy and climate change issues in South Carolina.  See Climate, Energy and Commerce Advisory Committee Report.

Wyche received an Honorary Doctorate from Furman University in 2006 for his work in sustainable development and environmental conservation.  See Furman Awards Honorary Degree

Dan Gerst was also honored with a Distinguished Service Award for his work as Communications Chair in supporting the Chapter in selecting a more user friendly email system – Constant Contact, for publishing about 20 USGBC-SC Chapter articles on the Swamp Fox Innovation Network and for arranging an NPR radio interview with the USGBC-SC Chapter, Sustain SC 2009 Conference Chair.

Judges were sustainability professionals who had played a major role in the USGBC formation.  Heather Hardman, the Upstate Branch Chair, said the judges were impressed with the caliber of green building and sustainability in the Upstate and had very favorable comments about all nominees.

The South Carolina Chapter recently won the U.S. Green Building Council Award of Excellence in the small chapter education category.  The South Carolina Chapter offers a wide variety of quality education offerings but what made the South Carolina Chapter stand out was their state wide conference – Sustain SC.  This was the first year that the South Carolina Chapter held Sustain SC, and even during these difficult economic times, the chapter was able to make the conference a large success.   Sustain SC had over 300 attendees, 2 keynote speakers, 14 educational sessions, 2 LEED building tours, 1 half day workshop, and a sold-out exhibit hall.  The conference ran for two days with education programs taking place both days.  In order to reach out to new communities and encourage a more diverse turnout the South Carolina Chapter gave conference discounts to all public sector employees, students, and volunteers. A variety of ticket types were offered to encourage attendance. The conference facility (Carolina First Center) has a strong sustainability policy and worked with the SC Chapter to achieve USGBC’s green meeting standards.

The 2009 Sustain SC organizing committee was proud to have set a precedent for strong educational offerings in the first year of this new Chapter program. Among all of the conference elements, respondents to the post-conference survey were most satisfied with the “Quality of Keynote Speakers,”  followed closely by the “Overall quality of educational session presentations.”

Only seven Chapters (out of 80) received the Award of Excellence this year. The South Carolina Chapter has won an Award of Excellence for four consecutive years in the categories of Education, Organizational Excellence and Advocacy.