On Saturday November 8th, three teens from the Task Force traveled with Tracy to the newly renovated California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco to learn more about the sustainable design aspects of the building. Diana Meckfessel, a professional counselor and mentor who is on the Task Force has a friend who is a docent there, and specializes in giving tours about sustainability. With her connection, we were able to get an “insider’s look” at what earned this building a LEED Platinum standing.
Being able to understand what the LEED program is is important to the Task Force because our goal is to create a LEED Gold Teen Center. Going on the tour illustrated to me how LEED actually looks in a building instead of just seeing it as a set of theoretical criteria written on piece of paper.
Our docent started by giving us some history on the architecture of the Academy, and then we got to the fun part. For me, the highlight of the tour was going up to the roof, which is entirely green. There, our docent explained the structural components of the building that were able to hold such an expansive roof that is entirely covered with shrubbery. Even though it was a cloudy morning, the roof offered picturesque views of the Golden Gate Park landscape. Observing the roof made me start thinking about how the Task Force could possibly design a green roof as well.
Going on field trips like this is especially interesting because it takes what we’re learning about in our weekly meetings out into the “real world” and shows how programs such as LEED are actually implemented in buildings.
To see the amazing rooftop garden at the California Academy of Sciences click here.
To find out what LEED stands for and for more information on LEED Certification click here.
