Featuring Chef Christopher Galarza Christopher is a pioneering force in the culinary world, known for his unwavering commitment to sustainability and innovation in kitchen design. As the founder of Forward Dining Solutions LLC and co-founder of EcoChef, Chef Galarza has become a leading advocate. Read more Chef Duke Gastiger (pictured with Monica G…

Featuring Carlos Sevillano Carlos is a Senior Accessibility Consultant at SWA focusing primarily on residential projects. His key responsibilities include conducting plan reviews, field inspections, and providing technical guidance to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local regulatory and building code requirements for accessible design an…

Featuring Lois Arena, Director of High-Performance Building Solutions at Steven Winter Associates Lois possesses over 25 years of experience in the building science field and has extensive experience with new and existing buildings. Lois holds both US and International Passive House consultant certifications and is currently consulting on some of t…

Featuring Gayathri Vijayakumar Gayathri is a Principal Mechanical Engineer at Steven Winter Associates. For over 18 years, she has specialized in evaluating residential and multifamily buildings with an emphasis on high-performance construction and renewable energy systems. Early in her career, Gayathri provided technical assistance to sustainabili…

Featuring Ryan Merkin Ryan Merkin is Vice President of Business Development with BlocPower. He is an experienced leader with over 20 years in the building science and energy consulting industry. Ryan has a demonstrated history developing decarbonization projects for new builds and retrofits. He is skilled in the delivery of consulting services for …

Featuring Ellen Honigstock Ellen is the Senior Director of Education at Urban Green Council. She oversees the development of Urban Green’s Public Programs and develops the curriculum for its signature programs, including Green Professional Training (GPRO) and Crushing the Energy Code. Ellen has 28 years of experience as an architect and volunteered…

Featuring Jonsara Ruth Jonsara Ruth is Co-founder and Design Director of Healthy Materials Lab (HML) at Parsons School of Design, where she is an Associate Professor and Founding Director of the MFA Interior Design program. At HML, Jonsara brings creative leadership to the goal of improving the health of underserved communities through the transfor…

Featuring Luis Aragon, Senior Building Systems Engineer on SWA’s Building Operations, Decarbonization, and Efficiency (BODE) team Luis focuses on Passive Building commissioning as well as commissioning for energy code compliance. Luis also provides training for multifamily building operators on, ventilation, air sealing, hydronic heating and domest…

Featuring Gayathri Vijayakumar Gayathri Vijayakumar is a Principal Mechanical Engineer at Steven Winter Associates, Inc, with over 18 years of experience supporting high-performance multifamily buildings. She graduated from the Pennsylvania State University with a BS in Engineering Science and from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a MS in M…

Featuring Michelle DeCarlo Michelle M. DeCarlo, PE, LEED AP BD+C, serves as an Associate Partner at Jaros, Baum & Bolles (JB&B). Since joining the firm in 2007, she has led the HVAC design for JB&B on a variety of projects, including the new core and shell office design for 30 Hudson Yards, the commercial office redevelopment of the landmarked Moyn…

Featuring Michelle DeCarlo Michelle M. DeCarlo, PE, LEED AP BD+C, serves as an Associate Partner at Jaros, Baum & Bolles (JB&B). Since joining the firm in 2007, she has led the HVAC design for JB&B on a variety of projects, including the new core and shell office design for 30 Hudson Yards, the commercial office redevelopment of the landmarked Moyn…

Featuring Asa Foss Asa Foss joined EPA’s ENERGY STAR Residential Branch in 2020, where he’s managing ENERGY STAR NextGen, an operational decarbonization-focused new construction specification. He’s been in the residential efficiency industry since the early 2000s, including a decade at the U.S. Green Building Council where he was responsible for th…