Internationally- recognized authority on green building, smart growth and sustainability, Sim Van der Ryn shares his vision for creating more sustainable societies from 4-5:40 p.m. on May 9 in the Environmental Technology Center as part of the 2007 SSU Energy lecture series.
The lecture will be webcast in real time at http://drav.csumb.edu/r22386929.
Van der Ryn is a visionary, author, educator, public leader, and internationally-distinguished pioneer in ecological design. For more than 40 years, he has been at the forefront of integrating ecological principles into the built environment, creating multi-scale solutions driven by nature's intelligence.
He served as California's first energy-conscious State Architect, authored seven influential books, and won numerous honors and awards for his leadership and innovation in architecture and planning.
Van der Ryn's collaborative approach and meta- disciplinary accomplishments help show the way to an evolving planetary era that values both the integrity of ecological systems and the quality of life.
A recent New York Times profile writes, "Long before sustainability became the buzzword du jour, there was Sim Van der Ryn, the intrepid pioneer on the eco-frontier". The 70-year-old architect is part of a generation of visionaries who are more interested in the long term value of their work than in self promotion.
Van der Ryn says "we are engaged in an Ecological Revolution, every bit as profound as the preceding Industrial Revolution." While addressing an assembly of architects, Sim states, "The worst thing you can do is keep making no changes. That's where the risk lies."
Van der Ryn has also written several cutting edge books about sustainable planning and design including Design for Life (2006) Ecological Design (1996) with Stuart Cowan, and Sustainable Communities (1986) with Peter Calthorpe.
The Environmental Technology Center is located in the northwest corner of the campus adjacent to Parking Lot A on campus. Parking is $2.50.
For more information, contact Armando Navarro, Assistant Director, Environmental Technology Center, (707) 664-2577.
