Murray Levi, AIA, was the first presenter on Saturday. Murray, the Vice President and General Manager of LiRo Architect is also the education chair for The United States Green Building Council of NYC. He spoke about the LEED rating system and ways to track your energy consumption and keep your home green.

Ellen Honigstock, Architect PC, represented the USGBC alongside Murray. Ellen is a LEED for Homes advocate. She spoke of Regreen, a program developed by USGBC and The American Society of Interior Designers. She also presented us with very informative handouts, which can be downloaded as PDF files on her blog.

Murray and Ellen mentioned the importance of indoor air quality and touched upon sick building syndrome. They recommended the book “How To Grow Fresh Air” and stressed the importance of growing native plants indoors to support clean air.

Also recommended was the book “400 Uses for Vinegar” as cleaning with toxic chemicals was unpopular with them.