b'GOING GREEN least one GRP on the project team andPROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENTheadquartersandtrainingfacilityin would invest $500 million in green roofsCOMMITTEE MEMBERS Langley, B.C. The courses will involve on schools in disadvantaged communi- James Klassen, Roofing Contractorsacombinationofhands-ontechnical ties throughout the United States. ManyAssociation of British Columbia trainingandclassroom-basedlearning. jurisdictionshavedecidedtomakeSteven Peck, GRP, Healthandsafetycertificationwillbe green roofs mandatory on new build- Green Roofs for Healthy Cities pre-requisites for these courses, as will ings, including Toronto, New York City,Rohan Lilauwala, GRP, basic green roof knowledge, attainable Portland and San Francisco. Dozens ofGreen Roofs for Healthy Cities through taking the first GRP course. It additional jurisdictions provide financialis our medium-term goal at GRHC to and or regulatory incentives for greenDr. Karen Liu, replicate these training courses in other roofs.WhywasteallofthisuseableNext Level Stormwater Management locations across North America. space in our communities? Elizabeth Hart-Morris, GRP, Henry Staytunedformoredetailsaswe The GRP accreditation program andRon Schwenger, GRP, Architek moveclosertoachievingaconsensus exam, thanks largely to the COVID-19Christian Mahlstedt, on the content of these courses, which pandemic,cannowbetakenentirelyGinkgo Sustainability shouldprovidepolicymakersand onlineattheLivingArchitectureJon Crumrine, GRP, building owners with a greater degree Academy,GRHCsonlinetrainingVaughn Environmental of confidence in green roofs, knowing portal(livingarchitectureacademy.com).that those working on projects have an TheGRPaccreditationprogramhasRandy Sharp, GRP, understanding of best practices and the beenhighlysuccessfulatpromotingLandscape Architect skills to implement and care for them best practices, and thus limiting poten- Chris Kann, over the long term.tial failures due to inappropriate design,Carlisle Construction Materials Steven W. Peck, GRP, Honorary ASLA, installation and maintenance. A properlyJohn Robinson, GRP, Sika Sarnafil has been working to develop the green roofand designed and maintained green roof willDaniel Roehr, wall industry for 23 years and is the founder actuallyextendthelifeofthewater- University of British Columbia and president ofGreen Roofs for Healthy proofing beneath it and help communi- Walt Pinder, NATS Nursery Cities (greenroofs.org). Learning more about ties manage stormwater, support biodi- GRP professional development and other versity, improve air quality and provideonline training at the Living Architecture ahostofotherbenefits.TheGRPWhileCOVID-19hasdefinitelyAcademy (livingarchitectureacademy.com),program has protected the now multi- slowed us down, our new goal is to pilotand stay up-to-date with the latest in thebillion-dollar annual green roof industrythe Installation and Maintenance traininggreen roofand wall industry with thefrom much of the chaos that typicallycourses, each of which will be one dayLiving Architecture Monitor magazine characterizesthebuildingindustry.long, in the spring of 2022 at RCABC(livingarchitecturemonitor.com).Yet much more needs to be done, and thereisademandforhands-onskills training, which the GRP program doesnot provide. OurpartnershipwiththeRCABC todevelopthreeadditionalhands-on trainingcoursesiskeytocompleting theprofessionaltrainingjourneythat wefirstbeganin2003.Together,we are seeking to complete the curriculum forthreeadditionalaccreditations: GreenRoofInstallationProfessional; Green Roof Maintenance Professional;WITH BEACONandGreenRoofQualityAssurance Professional.Aftersigningamemo-randum of understanding, GRHC and RCABCstaffhaveassembledateam of experts to work through the devel-opmentofthesenewcourses,which will complete the GRP program. Weve12510 82 Avenue, Surrey, BC V3W 3E8been meeting for more than a year to314 Totom Avenue, Kelowna, BC V1X 5C2work through many of the details of thebeacon-canada.comnew training courses. www.rcabc.org l29'