Materials Certificate Program

AIAU19-MAT01-S

5 Courses 5.00

Course expires on: 06/12/2025

$128

Architect$128

Member Price

$190

Non-member Price

Description

Material selection is a core service provided by architects, but that process is far from simple. The Materials Certificate Program untangles the complexities of that process in five essential courses. The key? Materials transparency. When you know everything you can about the materials you use, you’re able to make the best product decisions for projects, people, and the environment. The courses cover different types of impacts, and best practices for reducing these impacts, from industry-best instructors. Take all five courses and earn a certificate!

This series is sponsored by CertainTeed

Series expires on 6/12/2025

Learning Objectives

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Describe the potential impacts of materials on human health and the environment.

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Define life cycle assessment and identify actions to incorporate improved environmental performance in the specification of products.

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Identify tools that can help you consider human health risks and hazards when selecting materials.

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Define four categories of disclosure and optimization tools.

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Courses

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Materials: The Big Idea (Materials Series Course 1)

You wouldn’t buy a car without checking its gas mileage, so why wouldn’t you want to know what goes into your building? In this course, you’ll learn about the potential health and environmental impacts of the products that go into our buildings. You’ll also look at key drivers pushing transparency in the marketplace including client demand and green rating systems.

Course expires on 6/12/2025

This course is sponsored by CertainTeed

1.00 LU|HSW

$30

Architect$30

Member Price

$45

Non-member Price

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Environmental Impacts: Making a Difference (Materials Series Course 2)

Often material impact is evaluated while a product is serving a useful purpose in a building, but that only accounts for a portion of the product’s complete life cycle. This course unpacks the entire product life cycle along with the unique environmental impacts at each phase. You’ll learn best practices for improving the environmental performance of materials through a variety of strategies, including designing for deconstruction at the end-of-life.

This course is sponsored by CertainTeed

Course expires on 6/12/2025

1.00 LU|HSW

$30

Architect$30

Member Price

$45

Non-member Price

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Health Impacts: Connecting Building Materials, Human Health, and the Environment (Materials Series Course 3)

Dive deeper into the relationship between building materials and human health in this eye-opening course. You’ll discover the three ways substances move from the environment into our bodies. You’ll also learn about health risks—what makes certain populations more vulnerable and why health impacts can vary from person to person. Embracing the precautionary principle is one of several actions explored in this course to help you better consider human health risks when selecting materials.

This course is sponsored by CertainTeed

Course expires on 6/12/2025

1.00 LU|HSW

$30

Architect$30

Member Price

$45

Non-member Price

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Life Cycle Assessment: Tools to Reduce the Environmental Impact of Buildings (Materials Series Course 4)

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a useful tool for understanding products and whole buildings. This course simplifies the LCA process and describes its limits and opportunities for architects. You’ll also review an extended case study that reveals how one firm embraced LCA to deliver a LEED Platinum office building.

This course is sponsored by CertainTeed

Course expires on 6/12/2025

1.00 LU|HSW

$30

Architect$30

Member Price

$45

Non-member Price

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Materials & Health: Understanding the Tools (Materials Series Course 5)

There are a number of materials selection tools on the market, all designed to help you make healthier project and product decisions. But how do you choose? This course shows you how. You’ll learn about tools in the four categories—inventory, screening, assessment, and optimization—including what you can expect to find in any tool in specific category. In the last section of the course you’ll get practical advice for using the tools to make decisions, influence stakeholders, and manage risk.

This course is sponsored by CertainTeed

Course expires on 6/12/2025

1.00 LU|HSW

$30

Architect$30

Member Price

$45

Non-member Price

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Employing Passive Systems for Load Reduction | Course 5

Properly designed, a building captures existing site resources such as light, wind, and solar radiation to provide for the comfort and needs of occupants. Passive systems work in concert with site resources to manage building energy demand through design. This session will build upon the concepts introduced in Courses 3 and 4 and explore a holistic strategy for designing passive systems. The AIA+2030 Online Series is an AIA and Architecture 2030 co-production. It's based on the highly successful AIA+2030 Professional Series, which was created by AIA Seattle and Architecture 2030, with support from the City of Seattle and Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance.

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Setting Fees

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Building Skin: The Importance of the Thermal Envelope | Course 4

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Why is Accessibility So Hard?

Accessible design is inherently challenging because it’s not a "settled science." Standards are constantly evolving—sometimes even in conflict with one another. This course will cut through the confusion. Our discussion/exploration will: Review compliance missteps and achievements in real-world scenarios Identify phases of the design process where various concerns are best addressed Help you create a clear plan for accessibility success Address questions, comments, and concerns from members like you Hear from accessibility experts and learn from the experiences of your peers in this clarifying course. Course expires on 4/19/2026.

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Disruptive Small Firm Practices: Innovative Models for Expanding Services

A disruptive innovation helps create a new market and value network. In this course, three professionals will demonstrate how firms can utilize these innovations to expand into more sustainable and resilient business models beyond traditional architecture. Learn how to: Utilize tools to re-conceptualize your firm's expanded services offerings Determine how expanded services integrate with your current business models Develop strategies for marketing expanded services to new and existing architectural clients Consider how expanded services augment opportunities for traditional architectural services offerings Course expires on 1/2/2026.

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$30

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Accentuate the Positive: Climate Responsive Design | Course 3

Energy efficient design embraces the climate when beneficial, and minimizes unwanted environmental conditions. In this session, we’ll explore using climate data and site characteristics to conduct climate analyses, which we can use to inform building design and lower energy loads. This will set the stage for future courses that will address specific design strategies in more detail. In this course we cover the key elements of climate analysis. We discuss climatic factors that affect both a building’s performance and occupant comfort. We also decipher the “mysterious” psychrometric chart, which allows us to consider both climate and comfort together. Finally, we explore ways in which climate affects design decisions about site and program, as well as where to look for hidden opportunities during this phase to increase efficiency. The AIA+2030 Online Series is an AIA and Architecture 2030 co-production. It's based on the highly successful AIA+2030 Professional Series, which was created by AIA Seattle and Architecture 2030, with support from the City of Seattle and Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance.

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Accessible Architecture: Designing for Success (Part 2)

To get your projects right the first time, design and accessibility should go hand-in-hand. In this 3 part course, you'll learn the best practices for accessibility covering emerging trends, everyday mistakes made by contractors and architects and the best way to prepare drawings to get it right the first time. Don't let ADA compliance issues set you back and cost you money! Find out what it takes to avoid common mistakes and design for ADA compliance to the letter of the law. In Part 2, go in depth on compliance issues regarding accessible routes, ramps, parking spaces, protruding objects, doors and clear floor space, controls, and counters. Typical design issues will be highlighted regarding convenience stores, gas stations, and other retail outlets as well as specific cases involving owner decisions which negate ADA compliance. Course expires 5/22/2025

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Business of Architecture: Finance and Risk Management for Architects

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Copy-Catting: Intellectual Property Principles and Rights

This course instructs architects and other design professionals about principles of intellectual property law as they relate to the creation, reproduction and use of original drawings, specifications and other documents. It is based on the premise that every design professional should have a solid working knowledge of intellectual property law, particularly copyright law, as it affects their work products and their use of other people’s work products. The issues have to do with compensation, professional credit and professional liability and are very important to the business of architecture. Course expires 4/19/2025

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AIA Entrepreneur Summit 2015: New Models

Within the context of business models, what are the characteristics that would make someone a successful entrepreneur? What are the obstacles for architects to break out of our traditional model? Economics plays a central role in our ability to expand services or take our practice in new directions. Our expert panel, moderated by AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, considers ways in which architects can create new sources of revenue by expanding their practices in different ways and embracing new models for doing business. Questions explored include how architects are uniquely suited to development, key measures for exploring development opportunities, and factors influencing the decision process around undertaking a new business venture. This cutting-edge discussion will inspire and enlighten you. This course expires on 4/20/2026.

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