Material choices made during design can affect occupant exposure, emissions, supply chains, and ecosystem conditions throughout a product’s lifecycle. Architects are often expected to consider these impacts without a consistent process for identifying potential risks in commonly specified materials.

This foundational course introduces a practical approach for identifying potential human and environmental risks using the AIA Materials Pledge impact categories. You will learn how to use ingredient transparency, disclosure about material contents, and product documentation to compare products, consider lifecycle impacts, and inform specification decisions.

After completing this course, you will be able to screen materials for potential lifecycle impacts and support specification decisions that align with project goals for improved human and environmental outcomes.

Efforts to advance materials with lower human and environmental impacts often encounter technical, procedural, or organizational barriers during project delivery. Concerns about cost, performance, liability, or documentation can limit consistent adoption across teams and project types.

This course explores practical strategies for overcoming these challenges and supporting the use of lower-impact materials in architectural practice. You’ll learn how to incorporate material impact criteria into project specifications and quality assurance processes, and how to apply verification strategies during construction administration. You’ll also examine the ethical, legal, and insurance considerations related to material selection, along with the role of policy and regulation in shaping building material markets.

After completing this course, you’ll be able to support consistent implementation of lower-impact materials and identify opportunities to engage in policy and advocacy efforts.

Many firms set goals to reduce holistic material impacts but lack a consistent framework for applying those priorities across projects or tracking progress over time. Without defined roles, evaluation methods, and documentation practices, material commitments can be difficult to implement in daily workflows.

This course prepares you to develop a firm-specific Materials Action Plan aligned with the impact categories referenced in the AIA Materials Pledge. You’ll learn how to translate strategic materials priorities into project- and product-level goals supported by clear metrics, baselines, and evaluation methods. You’ll also explore team roles, governance structures, and reporting practices that strengthen accountability in materials decision-making.

After completing this course, you’ll be able to create a draft Materials Action Plan that supports coordination across teams and guides ongoing evaluation and refinement within your firm.

Material impact goals established during design can shift during procurement without consistent documentation and follow-through. Substitutions, incomplete disclosure, or unclear evaluation criteria may result in installed materials that differ from those originally specified.

This course prepares architects to work effectively with manufacturers, contractors, and project teams to maintain alignment between design intent and installed materials. You will learn how to request ingredient transparency and disclosure material contents, evaluate supplier documentation, and review submittals for consistency with project criteria.

After completing this course, you will be able to manage substitutions and apply procurement practices that support project goals related to human and environmental impacts throughout the construction process.

Material performance is shaped across extraction, manufacturing, use, and end-of-life pathways. Architects are increasingly expected to understand how these lifecycle stages influence human health, ecosystems, and climate outcomes when selecting building materials. This course introduces practical lifecycle thinking for evaluating and comparing building products using established documentation. You’ll learn how to interpret lifecycle assessment (LCA) results and use Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), Health Product Declarations (HPDs), and ingredient transparency documentation to evaluate measurable impacts. You’ll also explore how different carbon types—embodied, operational, avoided, and sequestered—affect material decisions and broader project goals.

After completing this course, you’ll be able to assess lifecycle tradeoffs, compare material options more confidently, and apply design strategies that support reuse, material durability, and reduced environmental impact.