Top LEED Experts Come Together in Unique Forum

Valerie Walsh Among “Guest Experts” on LEEDuser Forum


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Brattleboro, VT (March 15, 2010)—Valerie Walsh, a consultant with LEED Management Services, is one of several recognized LEED experts you’ll find on the Forum at LEEDuser.com, the most popular venue for LEED project teams to discuss LEED credits they are attempting. Having experts such as Walsh participate regularly in the Forum has made it one of the many tools at LEEDuser that is helping guide both expert and novice project teams through the LEED process.

LEEDuser, which BuildingGreen, LLC launched in 2009, is a credit-by-credit guide to achieving certification through the LEED rating system. “Our guidance on LEED credits is a unique resource,” said Tristan Roberts, LEEDuser product manager, “but we couldn’t have put it together without our guest experts, who reviewed all of the guidance and added tips based on their experience.”

Another component of LEEDuser is the Forum, where LEED project teams can discuss specific experiences and share both tips and frustrations. A key ingredient in the Forum, which receives dozens of posts every day, has been the presence of “LEEDuser guest experts.” Many forum topics have designated guest experts who monitor postings and share tips from their years of experience on LEED project teams, drafting LEED credits, and working as official reviewers for LEED project submissions. “Our guest experts have been on the front lines of LEED for years,” explained Roberts, “and they are generous in sharing the knowledge they’ve gathered.”

One member of LEEDuser’s guest expert corps is Valerie Walsh, LEED AP, a sustainable design and construction consultant and LEED specialist based in Boulder, Colorado. Walsh has written how-to guides on LEED certification, and her direct project expertise includes multiple LEED rating systems, including LEED-NC, LEED-CI, LEED-CS, LEED-EBOM, and LEED for Retail. Walsh is particularly knowledgeable about LEED’s construction waste management credits, for which she is LEEDuser’s guest expert.

“The fact that the guest experts are willing to share their knowledge and answer questions on the LEEDuser Forum really demonstrates the commitment of the LEEDuser community, and the LEED community in general, to greening our design and construction practices,” said Roberts.

In addition to LEED Management Services, firms represented among the guest experts include YRG sustainability, KEMA Services, Fore Solutions, Anshen + Allen, CTG Energetics, AECOM, Viridian, Clanton & Associates, The Green Engineer, 7group, Ecoworks Studio, Geiler & Associates, Sustainaissance International, and BuildingGreen.
LEEDuser is available by membership at www.LEEDuser.com. The LEEDuser forum is free for both members and non-members to read and post, and is found at www.LEEDuser.com/discuss.

About LEEDuser

LEEDuser.com provides comprehensive credit-by-credit guidance for teams working on LEED certification. Included are clear descriptions of credit requirements, tips to streamline LEED submissions, online calculators, and online user forums related to specific credits. LEEDuser facilitates LEED certification for projects using the five LEED 2009 rating systems: New Construction, Core & Shell, Schools, Commercial Interiors, and Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance. BuildingGreen has created LEEDuser with the support of the U.S. Green Building Council and with the help the consultants at YRG Sustainability and a host of other LEED experts and topic-area specialists. The creators of LEEDuser have experience on hundreds of design teams for LEED-certified buildings, as LEED trainers, and as LEED certification reviewers. For more information, visit www.LEEDuser.com.

About BuildingGreen


BuildingGreen, LLC, has provided the building industry with quality information on sustainable design and construction since its founding in 1985. Publications of the Brattleboro, Vermont company include Environmental Building News (launched in 1992 as the first North American publication focused on green building), GreenSpec (a print and online directory of green building products), and LEEDuser. For information, visit www.BuildingGreen.com or call 802-257-7300.

About LEED Management Services

LEED Management Services (LMS) offers complete sustainable design and construction consulting services serving both the public and private sectors. LMS specializes in the practical application and education of the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED program, as well as full LEED project management services from pre-design through post-occupancy. For information, visit www.leedmanagement.com.


###