 Communities
by Design Team Completes SDAT in Virginia Beach
The Communities by Design team recently completed a Sustainable Design
Assessment Team (SDAT) report in Virginia Beach, Va. Over the course
of the three-day visit, the team worked with community members, city
officials and staff, and local stakeholders to address a wide range
of issues, from the preservation of local agriculture to the creation
of a more sustainable regional transit and transportation system. 
Mithun Carbon Calculator Tracks Construction Emissions
Seattle architecture firm Mithun has developed a free online building
carbon calculator tool that quickly lets architects estimate the
amount of carbon the construction of a building will release. Unlike
most carbon calculators that focus on how much carbon a building
will put into the atmosphere over its entire lifespan, Mithun’s
tool (created with the help of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower
Center at the University of Texas) estimates the embodied carbon
emissions of a project.
 Antoine Predock Talks Design at the AIA Ohio Valley Region Convention
Antoine Predock, FAIA, was the design speaker at the 2009 AIA Ohio
Valley Region Convention October 1–3. Members from AIA Kentucky,
AIA Ohio, and AIA Indiana gathered for the AIA Ohio Valley Region
Convention in Covington, Ky., at the Northern Kentucky Convention
Center.
AAH Foundation Sponsors Hospital Design Study
The AIA Academy of Architecture for Health Knowledge Community is participating in a study of inpatient charting station designs at hospitals across the nation. The Hospital Workplace Research Group (HWRG)—funded by the Academy of Architecture for Health Foundation—has invited 6,800 architects nationwide to participate in this study.
The HWRG team is lead by Clark/Kjos Architects of Portland, Ore,
and firm principal Tom Clark, AIA.
DOE Invites Proposals for Building Retrofit Program
The U.S. Department of Energy has released a funding opportunity
announcement (FOA) looking to invest in innovative programs to
perform energy-efficient retrofits on large numbers of existing
buildings. As much as $453 million in Energy Efficiency and Conservation
Block Grant money was approved by Congress as a part of the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for two programs: a Retrofit
Ramp-up Program, for which $390 million is available to state and
local governments and nonprofits eligible for Block Grants, and
a General Innovation Fund, with $64 million available to entities
not eligible for Block Grants.
 AIA Minnesota Celebrates 75 by Looking Forward
For 75 consecutive years, AIA Minnesota has held successful conventions,
which continues this coming week, November 10–13 at the Minneapolis
Convention Center. More than 1,500 people will be on hand to attend
the programs and exhibit hall. AIA President-elect George H. Miller,
FAIA, will give a special presentation, “2010 and Beyond,” highlighting
directions of the future from the 2010–2015 AIA Strategic Plan,
including collaboration, inclusiveness, service, excellence, and
the determination that design matters.
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