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Presidents Viewpoint

I am proud to be an architect and I am equally proud to be a member of the American Institute of Architects but never so proud as when our state board of directors decided to donate $30,000 to architects affected by Hurricane Katrina. The board did so after a brief report from RK Stewart, FAIA, national president for 2007. The funds are split between the Displaced Architects Fund and the fund for the purchase of lost equipment. Our thoughts and prayers extend to all people in distress as the result of this disaster and I know each of us will do whatever we are able to help them. The national web site lists additional ways to assist aside from the two cited above.

Congratulations to our own Russ Davidson, AIA who was elected to serve as our state association’s president for 2007. Russ has served as president of our chapter and as state treasurer. I look forward to his leadership and I know our chapter will assist him to the best of our ability during his tenure. A heartfelt thanks for your service, Russ.

The state’s convention alluded to above, was held in Syracuse from September 15 th through the 17 th. By all accounts the number of architects attending was a new record for the state. The theme of the convention was ecological design which seems to be something that we’ve been talking about for the last thirty years. In any event, the forces of inertia seem to have been overcome and the way has become clearer for architects to design with beauty, budget and btus in balance. Maybe gasoline at $4 per gallon will, finally, put an end to sprawl. There are many tools out there, many of them free, to assist architects in ecologically sensitive design. If architects are to remain as the leaders in building design, we must become sensitive, and more important, conversant and comfortable with these technologies. Happy learning!

Adolph M. Orlando, AIA

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