When issues of sustainability reach their desks, mayors should look to AIA members for guidance, AIA Vice President Clark Manus, FAIA, told the U.S. Conference of Mayors Sustainable Development Task Force at the conference’s 77th annual meeting in Providence, R.I., in mid-June.

The emphasis at this year’s gathering of the nation’s mayors was on sustainability and economic recovery, and Manus, who will be the Institute’s president in 2011, touched on both with his presentation, "Evolving Green Building Policies in Sustainable Communities." The session focused on innovative sustainability best practices, as demonstrated in the Local Leaders in Sustainability research and other AIA efforts.

Front, from left to right: Mayors Brenda Lawrence (Southfield, Mich.) and Marty Blum (Santa Barbara, Calif.). Back row: Matthew Stark, director of policy and legislative affairs, City of Providence, R.I.; Mayor David Pope (Oak Park, Ill.); and Clark Manus, FAIA. All three mayors are co-chairs of the Sustainable Development Task Force. Photo courtesy of the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

“The mayors were very receptive to the AIA message on sustainability, and this presentation helped reinforce the value of the architectural profession in designing livable, sustainable communities,” Manus says.

He also had the opportunity to attend the Mayors Institute on City Design breakfast, an innovative program run by the National Endowment for the Arts, The American Architectural Foundation, and the U.S. Conference of Mayors. The Mayors Institute seeks to transform mayors’ outlook on design by encouraging them at the symposiums to take on the mantel of “chief urban designer” of their cities. More than 750 mayors have taken part since this program was begun 20 years ago, spearheaded by Mayor Riley of Charleston, S.C.

In other action at the Mayor’s Institute Conference, the Energy and Environment Standing Committees debated and passed resolutions concerning green affordable housing, infrastructure, cap and trade, green building codes, and the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Funding. All resolutions passed the Energy Committee and full Business Committee, with healthy debate concerning the affects of cap and trade on certain communities.

“All politics is local, and this has been exhibited clearly to me over the years through my own practice and civic engagement in San Francisco,” Manus observes. “We look forward to continuing to work with the U.S. Conference of Mayors to pursue our shared sustainability goals.”