Home / Conference

Lecture Topic: What if every act of design and construction made the world a better place?

Presenter: Jason F. McLennan

Date: Friday, October 14
Location: SLO Vet's Hall (801 Grand Avenue, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401)
Sponsored by: Alma Rosa Winery & Vineyards, Green Building Pages, Habitat Studio Architecture, San Luis Sustainability Group, American Institute of Architects (SLO Chapter), County of San Luis Obispo
SLO Green Build, Solarponics

Event Details:

• Reception: 6pm - 7:30pm
• Lecture: 7:30pm - 8:30pm
• Book Signing: 8:30pm - 9pm

Cost:

• Reception and lecture free for Total Immersion Pass Holders
• Reception and lecture $45 (benefit for California Central Coast Chapter U.S. Green Building Council and Central Coast Bioneers)
• Lecture only $20 (C4 Members: $15)
• Students: $4

Lecture Description:
This is the question posed by the Living Building Challenge, brainchild of Jason F. McLennan, international thought leader in the green architecture movement. McLennan is the kickoff keynote speaker Friday night, October 14, the first day of the 2011 Central Coast Bioneers conference, where he will discuss concepts from his fascinating new book, “Zugunruhe,” and share powerful examples of ‘Living Buildings’ emerging around the US and Canada – forever changing the landscape of green architecture. Jason McLennan was a featured plenary speaker at Bioneers in Marin in 2009. We are fortunate to be able to bring him here to the Central Coast. You will never look at a building in the same way again.

Zugunruhe
Just prior to periods of great migration, certain species display agitation and restlessness - a phenomenon referred to by scientists as ‘zugunruhe’. McLennan identifies a similar pattern emerging among people yearning for a sustainable future. McLennan's new book is a catalyst for anyone interested in exploring a deeper, more meaningful connection to the environmental movement.

“Zugunruhe is a work of creative genius that draws us into an engaging journey of self-discovery, brings the biggest and most frightening issues of our time up close, and invites our engagement,” notes David Korten, “It will leave you envisioning human possibilities you never previously imagined.” Profound, personal and practical, McLennan’s narrative reminds us that individual efforts ripple outward and can lead to revolutionary change for the betterment of people and planet. 

The Living Building Challenge
The concept of Living Buildings was first introduced in 2006, and quickly gained recognition as the world’s most revolutionary approach to green building. Founded in 2009 by the Cascadia Region Green Building Council, the International Living Future Institute is a non-governmental organization dedicated to the creation of Living Buildings, sites and communities in countries around the world. The Living Building Challenge has quickly become the most advanced and stringent green building rating system in the world. Most green building certification programs have focused on individual buildings, but the new Living Building Challenge program is more comprehensive and expansive, including small in-home remodels, community or campus-wide initiatives, and infrastructure projects, including bridges, roads and parks. There are approximately 100 projects pursuing certification under the Living Building Challenge throughout North American, and several more registered in other countries, with more emerging each week.

Following his lecture, Mr. McLennan will sign two of his books, Zugunruhe and The Philosophy of Sustainable Design.

Biography
Considered one of the most influential individuals in the green building movement today, Jason F. McLennan’s work has made a strong impact on the shape and direction of green building in the United States and Canada and he is a much sought after presenter and consultant on a wide variety of green building and sustainability topics around the world.

McLennan serves as the CEO of the International Living Future Institute – a leading NGO that focuses on the transformation to a world that is socially just, culturally rich and ecologically restorative. Under the Living Future Umbrella, Jason operates the Cascadia Green Building Council, the Pacific Northwest’s leading organization in the field of green building and sustainable development, The Natural Step USA and Ecotone Publishing.

Jason is the founder and creator of the Living Building Challenge, widely considered the world’s most progressive and stringent green building program. His work in the sustainable design field has been published or reviewed in dozens of journals, magazines conference proceedings and books including Time Magazine, National Geographic, The New York Times, Architecture, Architectural Record, Dwell, Plenty, Metropolis, NY Times, The Globe and Mail, The World and I, Ecostructure, Greensource, Arcade and Environmental Design and Construction Magazine. He is the author of four books; The Philosophy of Sustainable Design, The Dumb Architect’s Guide to Glazing Selection, The Ecological Engineer and Zugunruhe. The Philosophy of Sustainable Design has been used as a textbook in over seventy universities and colleges and is distributed widely throughout Europe, North America and Asia.

Lecture sponsored by: