This year’s Architecture Boston Expo (ABX) will take place virtually over December 2nd and 3rd.

Join Arielle Scher from HGA’s Boston office for a panel discussion on how
Millennials Make a Sustainable Mark on the AEC Industry.

Speakers: Arielle Scher (HGA), Alexander Zink (Payette Associates), Barbra Batshalom (Sustainable Performance Institute), Benjamin Silverman (City of Boston Environment Department) Meredith Elbaum (Built Environment Plus)

Date: Thursday, December 3, 2020

Time: 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM ET

About Arielle Scher

Arielle Scher, Associate AIA
Design Coordinator

Arielle Scher is a designer at HGA Architects in Boston, where she works with university clients in the Science + Technology practice group. She developed interest in sustainability, urban design, and environmental justice while studying at Tulane University, where she earned a Master and Bachelor of Architecture. Arielle was inspired by her public interest design work with the Small Center for Collaborative Design in New Orleans. Her thesis titled “Seamless Urban Topographies” explored New Orleans’s complicated relationship with its infrastructure for water management. The project was exhibited and received the Lupo Award for Excellence in Metropolitan Design.

Millennials Make a Sustainable Mark on the AEC Industry.

Millennials came of age during times of change and turmoil in the 2000s with 9/11 and the Great Recession. Yet we were taught that in our lifetimes, Global Climate Change would be a far more serious and devastating crisis. We were told that humans needed to make serious and dramatic changes by key milestone dates. 2020 was one of these milestones, and now millennials have arrived in the AEC workforce. However, upon emerging into the profession, we have been disappointed by the slow progress toward creating a sustainable built environment.

As emerging professionals, Arielle Scher and Alex Zink became interested in learning from the experiences of peers and industry leaders as to how they have advanced sustainable objectives forward. They have invited three experts with unique experiences advocating for sustainable agendas to join them for a panel discussion: Barbra Batshalom, Benjamin Silverman, and Meredith Elbaum.

Barbra has worked since the beginning of the sustainability movement in the 1990s to advance the industry forward; she works as consultant, advising clients and architects on how to think more sustainably as well as negotiate and collaborate better. Ben works for the City of Boston helping the city benchmark, audit, and set building emissions performance standards to meet aggressive Carbon Neutral targets; his role also includes reviewing Boston’s green zoning requirements. Meredith is an architect and currently works as the executive director of Built Environment Plus (USGBC Massachusetts Chapter), where she drives the sustainability of the built environment by providing education, building the community of practitioners, developing tools and research, and expanding advocacy initiatives.

The diverse panel will begin the live presentation by sharing stories of their role in advancing sustainability in the AEC industry. After this short intro, the bulk of the time will be spent in Zoom break out groups where panelists and attendees will share successes and challenges in advocating for sustainable agendas. The main objective of the workshop is for attendees to meet and connect with like-minded AEC professionals and inspire the next generation of leadership to shepherd in a more sustainable future.

To learn more about ABX 2020 or register, visit ABX 2020.