...I almost wanna go back to school!!!

A new advanced degree program that puts a green spin on architectural design will be offered at Yale University next fall. The four-year joint degree program will focus on sustainable and restorative environmental design, which seeks to minimize adverse effects on the natural environment and human health and enhance the beneficial contact between people and nature in buildings. “Much of current design and development, especially in urban areas, has fostered environmental degradation, excessive waste, pollution and unsustainable resource use, while at the same time separating, if not alienating, people from the natural environment,” said Stephen Kellert, the Tweedy Ordway Professor of Social Ecology at the environment school. Students in the 126-credit program will take 90 course credits at the architecture school and 36 credits at the environment school, and upon graduation will receive master's degrees in architecture and environmental management.

“Schools of the environment are recognizing that they must also strive to be schools of sustainable development, and schools of architecture are recognizing that they need to address the biological and biophilic dimension of sustainable design,” said Kellert. “Consequently, students of the environment and of architecture are increasingly seeking to integrate and combine the knowledge and skills of these currently separate and independent disciplines, so that they may someday shape built environments that will sustain people and the planet. Can I get an amen?" (OK, he didn't say that last part).

I never really thought of The Yayo as cutting edge eco, but I have high hopes... Sure they don't have an Ambasz or a Yeang on the Archi faculty, but it's Yale, they can hire.... Besides they do have Gustav "Gus" Speth as the dean of the eco school(!)

That is pretty heavy. I gotta say, I've had the pleasure of being in Mr. Speth's company (with his pal, Maurice Strong, I mean those two are amazing!) and he is a unique person in this field! You don't even need to take a course just being near him you get it by osmosis! From 1993 to 1999, "Dean Speth" served as administrator of the United Nations Development Programme and chair of the UN Development Group. Prior to that, he was founder and president of WRI the World Resources Institute; professor of law at Georgetown University; chairman of the U.S. Council on Environmental Quality; and senior attorney and cofounder, Natural Resources Defense Council. With Gus in on it, I have high hopes for the school of architecture's new Green Building progarm at Yale! Yay!