U.S. Green Building Council Names New Leader

Washington, DC, Apr. 12--Rick Fedrizzi, founder and president of Green-Think, Inc., and the founding chairman of the U.S. Green Building Council, has been named acting president and chief executive officer of the Council, replacing Christine Ervin, the Council's first president and CEO. The change is part of the organization's planned transition to a management team based in the organization's Washington, D.C. headquarters. Ervin announced plans to step down from the leadership post effective April 30 to remain in Oregon. "While I have relished the Board's flexibility in this cross-country arrangement, it is time for full-time leadership in Washington, D.C. as we move into the next phase of our growth and development," said Ervin, who lives in Portland. "Rick is the perfect person to take that on." "Under Christine's leadership, the USGBC and LEED have become major forces in the transformation of our industry," said Fedrizzi, who had recruited Ervin for the CEO position in 1999. "With the support of the Council's exceptional staff, she helped us translate our original vision into the national and international force we are today." "Christine paved the way for new thinking about environmental leadership," said USGBC Chairman Jim Hartzfeld, vice president, sustainable strategy, Interface Floorcoverings. "She helped forge the path-breaking work we have underway, and we're very confident that Rick will provide that kind of leadership going forward," continued Kevin Hydes, USGBC's vice-chairman and president of Keen Engineering. Fedrizzi's appointment occurs as the Council's board is moving into the next cycle of its three-year strategic plan. Implementation of that plan will focus on five key strategies that are designed to continue to build the staff infrastructure of the rapidly growing organization, enhance and expand its ground-breaking LEED programs into all phases of building, further develop local chapter programs, and broaden financial development. Fedrizzi's background demonstrates he is up to the task. A native of Syracuse, NY, he served as in-house environmental consultant with Carrier Corporation for more than 25 years, helping to lead that organization to its iconic status as an innovator in green building, before founding Green-Think. He currently serves as principal of the Global Environment & Technology Foundation and member of the Board of Directors of the New York Indoor Environmental Quality Center.