WEST TAMPA - The country's economic slump might sour development, but it also might offer a silver lining for historical buildings.

Developers and investors may turn to preserving and rehabilitating older homes and buildings, said Gus Paras, president-elect of the Tampa Bay Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

"We are in a downturn in new buildings," Paras said. "It doesn't mean we have to ignore the existing buildings and historic buildings or that we can't apply new energy-saving measures to those buildings."

Paras has developed the Renew Tampa conference, which runs Friday through April 13 at the Berriman-Morgan Cigar Factory, 1403 N. Howard Ave. There will be guest speakers and presentations ranging from the technical and architectural to the pragmatic, with demonstrations on preserving and maintaining windows, wood floors, paint, doors and stained glass. For more informtion, please visit Tampa Bay Online.com.

The American Institute of Architects, London/UK chapter is pleased to announce the 2008 Excellence in Design Awards Programme. These Awards mark over ten years of the chapter’s recognition of new built projects in the UK, and are highly valued by architects because they confer recognition of trans-Atlantic efforts in design. Entries are sought from architects based in Britain, and from architects throughout the world for built projects in the UK. In past years this broad mix has resulted in winning projects from, amongst others,dRMM (DeRijke Marsh Morgan), Foster & Partners, Rick Mather, Zaha Hadid, Allford Hall Monaghan Morris, Sauerbruch Hutton, Will Alsop and David Chipperfield. For more information, please visit AIA UK.

OPUS will be a major international architecture, landscape architecture and urban design conference to be held in Stavanger Norway, June 26th – 28th 2008, as an official event of Stavanger2008 involving leading architects, scholars and artists. For more information, please visit the website.

MIT announced an online initiative in 2001 called Open-CourseWare (ocw.mit.edu),to "advance knowledge and educate students . . . to best serve the world."

Seven years and 1,800 courses later, anyone with an Internet connection can download syllabi, quizzes, and video lectures for courses ranging from aerospace engineering to world literature.

The idea of getting educated without paying tuition proved popular, prompting other universities to follow suit. There's now an OpenCourseWare Consortium (ocwconsortium.org) of schools from around the world, from Australia to Vietnam. American participants include Notre Dame, Tufts and Johns Hopkins, among others. To read more please visit the full article from inRich.com

Washington, D.C. — Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) today introduced The Complete Streets Act of 2008, which would work to promote the design of streets that are safe for all of those using the street— including motorists, bus riders, bicyclists, and pedestrians, including people with disabilities. Between 1993 and 2003, nearly 52,000 pedestrians and more than 7,400 bicyclists were killed in road accidents; studies show that the designing streets with pedestrians in mind may reduce pedestrian risk by as much as 28 percent. Harkin was joined in this effort by Senator Tom Carper (D-DE). For more information, please read the Full Article.

The Cascadia Region Green Building Council is partnering with a continuing education training network called the National Sustainable Building Advisor Program (NaSBAP) to offer more resources and professional learning opportunities as part of the newly formed Cascadia Sustainability Academy. The current Sustainable Building Advisor (SBA) program is a 9-month certification course and exam available to working professionals interested in applying sustainable concepts to building, design, development, and construction. This new partnership brings Cascadia’s wide-ranging green experience into the classroom and will expand the program with additional technical resources and energy. For more information, please visit Business Wire.

From the scores of outreach partners in both government and commercial sectors to sponsorship from major international corporations, to a rush of registrations for the education program, there's no doubt this will be a landmark event.

A review of current registrants demonstrates the predominance of decision makers that will be present - city managers, city council members, architects, procurement managers, city engineers, facilities managers, planners, to name a few. For more information, please visit Green California Summit and Expo.

Building green has been building an audience. It's in magazines, on TV, in stores.

But advocates of environmentally friendly building practices — and saving energy in this winter of high heating prices — say educating the construction industry in the new ways has been an often slow and spotty process.

"It's very difficult for us in the industry and out of the industry to have total clarity about what" the latest products and practices are, says Lyn Wilkinson, spokesperson for the Cape chapter of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry. "I know a lot and I don't feel like I know anything."

But catch-up time for the local industry may have begun. For more information, please read Cape Cod Times.

Conceived in homage to architect James Stirling, who believed that urban design is integral to the practice of architecture and a vital topic for public debate, the James Stirling Memorial Lectures on the City competition was inaugurated in November 2003 as a unique forum for the advancement of new critical perspectives on the role of urban design and urban architecture in the development of cities worldwide. The intent of this bi-annual lecture competition is to promote innovative approaches to urban phenomena, and to re-position architecture at the centre of debates on the city of the 21st century. Urban Age is seeking proposals for research projects that provoke critical as well as theoretical debate and simultaneously advance practical knowledge. The previous recipients are Teddy Cruz of San Diego (2004–2005) and Eyal Weizman of London (2006–2007). For more information please visit the online announcement.

Deadline: Submissions must be received by 28 March 2008.
Notification Applicants will be notified of the jury’s decision no later than 30 May 2008.

AIA Continental Europe
Athens, Greece

With organizing partner Ecoweek, the participation of the British Council, the Embassies of Sweden and Denmark, One Planet Living, the American School of Classical Studies, Archi-World, The Community Solution, Earthome Productions, the expected participation of Google, the participation and support of the Technical Chamber of Greece (TEE) and the participation of the International Union of Architects International Work Program Architecture and Renewable Energy Sources (UIA-ARES), this international architectural conference will have a message delivered by architects, internationally acclaimed keynote speakers and world-acclaimed documentaries; a message that comes forward from the ‘green’ buildings’ exhibition during the conference and the ‘green’ initiatives at the Zappeion; a message that will be revealed in the guided tours within the rich historic context of Athens.

Among the distinguished speakers are: ‘green skyscrapers’ architect Ken Yeang, ‘landscape healer’ landscape designer Julie Bargmann of DIRT Studio in Charlottesville, Virginia, Greek architect Alexandros Tombazis, and ‘BedZed London zero-emissions development’ director Benjamin Gill of BioRegional.

Early registration ends 29 February 2008

A coalition of eight architecture, landscape architecture, and design organizations are pushing to create a new National Academy of Environmental Design. As a new part of the National Academies, the National Academy of Environmental Design would focus on the built environment, and how buildings and cities could produce less waste, consume less energy, and contribute to healthier living and work spaces. To read the full article, please visit ya-edu.com.

The American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) has proclaimed April 2008 as National Landscape Architecture Month. ASLA chapters across the country will celebrate with public outreach activities to help school-aged children and educators "Discover Careers in Landscape Architecture," the theme for 2008. The month encompasses Earth Day on April 22 and the birthday of Frederick Law Olmsted on April 26, who founded the American landscape architecture profession. For more information read the full article in Reed|ACP Construction Data.

In our first visit to the East Coast in almost nine years - and our first to Boston in 16 years - the AIA will host its convention in one of the most dynamic cities in America. And what a perfect place to immerse yourself in this year's theme, We the People, which will explore the power of architecture on behalf of all people and society. It's the right topic for a growing profession that has been challenged to engage the public in designing a more sustainable world. For more information about the convention, please visit the 2008 Convention website.

Learn about virtual art tours. How would this development affect your partnering for continuing education programs?

Greening the Heartland website for the 2008 conference is now live. The conference will be held in St. Louis, Missouri June 22-24, 2008.

Meanwhile, the conference steering committee has announced its "Call for Presenters." You can download the application by visiting the web site and clicking on "presenters." The deadline for presenter submissions is December 21, 2007. If you are a presenter, or are looking for a presenter, please visit National A/E/C Speakers Registry.

ASHRAE has received accreditation for its education program from the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES). For more information, please visit Facility Blog or ASHRAE Learning Institute

Grace McNamara, president of Grace McNamara Inc. (GMI) and Stacey Tiveron, CEO of TODL.com (Trade Only Design Library) announce the debut of the Green Design Pavilion, the newest destination at the International Window Coverings EXPO (IWCE), held March 26–29, 2008, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, GA. For more information, please visit windowcoveringexpo.com.

The American Council of Engineering Companies

The American Institute of Architects

The American Society of Interior Designers

The Association of Architecture School Librarians

The Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture

The Association of General Contractors

The Construction Specifications Institute

The International Interior Design Association

The National Architectural Accrediting Board, Inc.

The U.S. Green Building Council

Great News! The Construction Specifications Institute is launching
a Registered Provider Program to ensure that you have fast, easy
access to continuing education content of the highest caliber. For more information, please visit CSI.

Mark your Calendars! Together, the AIA Cornerstone Partners and AIA/CES National are collaborating to offer a one time only Marketing Symposium. This two day event, June 5 & 6, 2007 will feature John Jantsch, author of Duct Tape Marketing – The World’s Most Practical Small Business Marketing Guide. On Tuesday, June 5th Mr. Jantsch will discuss “How to Create and Operate an Education Based Marketing System: Building conversations in place of campaigns” This symposium will teach marketers how to blend the latest technology, personal marketing strategies and new media to consistently generate high quality leads, nurture a logical guided sales approach and build stronger client relationships.

The book is given a 5 star rating on Amazon.com
On Wednesday, June 6th Thom Lowther, Senior Director of the AIA/ CES Program will bridge the marketing tips offered by Mr. Jantsch with AIA/CES guidelines and blended marketing approaches to the architectural educational settings that Cornerstone Partners and CES Passport Providers face regularly. Details will become available.

Address questions about the program to Thom Lowther.

Duct Tape Marketing Registration

Podcasting - broadcasting via Internet audio files to a subscription audience - is becoming a popular and effective tool for distance learning, customer relations, community building, and specialty news and information. The technology is inexpensive and widely accessible, but where do you begin? If you are considering adding podcasting to your firm, department, or compaign, the PodcastCEU's website can help you learn about podcasting and find the resources you need.

The Language Connection is a Project that Ron Blank & Associates has undertaken that provides Continuing Education to Design Professionals. Courses are offered for free and are available in different languages. These courses provide Health Safety & Welfare credits.

La conexión de idiomas

La conexión de idiomas es un proyecto de Ron Blank & Associates que ofrece cursos de educación continua para profesionales. Los cursos son gratis y se ofrecen en diferentes idiomas. Estos cursos proporcionan el Bienestar y Seguridad de Salud.