Sustainability
We ask “How can we have the most impact?”
Our flexible approach treats building performance like a puzzle, always evolving. Through education and advocacy, we continuously improve, making sustainability tangible for our clients. We challenge the status quo to create environmentally conscious architecture that builds a credible narrative of financial success.
Carbon-Smart Design
Embodied and operational carbon reduction
The built environment is a major contributor to carbon emissions that are escalating the climate crisis. We are examining how we can reduce our impact on carbon emissions on several fronts. Mass timber building structures are a key way to reduce embodied carbon while also providing a biophilic connection. Passive House building principles, as seen in Solis, yield lower energy costs and improved indoor air quality, making it resilient against wildfire smoke events.
Stormwater
Our region is defined by its relationship to water.
Home to a network of freshwater lakes and rivers mixing with ocean waters, this brackish environment is rich with life. As cities grew, stormwater began picking up toxins and debris, needing treatment before reaching our lakes. Through projects from high-rises to bioswales, we develop strategies to slow and clean stormwater, preventing overflow and protecting aquatic ecosystems.
Biophilic Design
When designing a built environment, connecting the user to the natural world is paramount to an individual’s health and happiness. The benefits of creating these connections are significant, well-studied, and documented. Access to natural light, exterior views, and connection to greenery all work together to create a better experience within our spaces.
Leadership
Rachael Meyer PLA, LFA, GRP, LEED® AP
Landscape Architecture Principal, Director of Sustainability
Rachael oversees the firm’s sustainability initiatives with a focus on health and wellness, carbon reduction and innovative stormwater strategies.
“An architecture firm promoting a landscape architect to serve in this role underscores our commitment to integrated design. We feel this is essential for crafting both indoor and outdoor spaces that contribute to the health and well-being of the urban environment and its users.”
A dedicated team of sustainability-focused leaders emerged from the AIA 2030 Commitment, where firms track and report projects, benchmark progress, draft sustainability plans, and improve office operations.
Emily Evenson
Senior Associate
Jen Primm
Senior Communications Coordinator
Sarah Rable
Interior Designer
Tanya Kataria
Associate
Organizations
Our designs cover the sustainable design certification spectrum including LEED, Living Building Challenge Petal Certification, Evergreen Sustainable Development Standards, and Passive House to name just a few. But certification is not the end game.
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It isn’t enough that we design sustainable spaces. We want to inhabit them, experience them, learn from them.
We call Watershed home. A Living Building Certified project, Watershed is the next progression in our sustainability journey.
We started with The Terry Thomas, a passively-cooled, LEED Gold building where we spent twelve years learning how to happily co-exist without air conditioning (hint: capture the breezes through design).
Watershed is more energy-efficient than the Terry Thomas. It is equipped with air-conditioning and offers changing views of Seattle’s water and tree-covered hills, along with honey from rooftop beehives. Most importantly, it provides us with a space to explore new strategies and continue this educational journey.
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