What Is a LEED Accredited Professional?

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To begin with, you may be asking yourself, what is LEED? LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, and it is a green building rating system. It offers a set standard for environmentally sustainable construction and design for all buildings, and the standard was developed by the US Green Building Council.

So what does this mean to you as the building professional?

LEED began in 1998, and since that point, it has governed more than 14,000 projects in the United States and 30 other countries, encompassing over 1.062 billion ft.² of development. This clearly signifies that LEED is becoming more important to building owners and is therefore becoming an essential standard for professionals in the building industry.

In order to become a LEED Accredited Professional (LEED AP), there are LEED training opportunities that not only prepare you with the technical knowledge necessary to design, construct, and operate sustainable buildings, but also provide the knowledge necessary to prepare professionals to pass the LEED Accredited Professional exam. Interested individuals can receive this distinguished credential by passing two LEED exams. The first exam is called the LEED Green Associate exam, which tests a person’s knowledge in fundamental, non-technical, areas of green building practices. The second exam is a specialty exam that a person gets to choose, depending on which LEED specialty best suits their career goals.

The LEED Accredited Professional (LEED AP) exam has the following five different specialties:

Operations and Maintenance

• Homes
• Building Design and Construction
• Interior Design and Construction
• Neighborhood Development

A person must choose which specialty to become accredited under, such as LEED AP: Operations and Maintenance. Once a person passes that specialty exam, he or she becomes an official LEED Accredited Professional, and their credential will officially read as, “LEED AP: Operations and Maintenance” or “LEED AP: Building Design and Construction”, all depending on which specialty exam the person chooses to take.

Why should you become a LEED Accredited Professional?

Take into account the demand for LEED Accredited Professionals in the current building workforce; this trend will only continue to grow as more and more building professionals require workers well-versed in green building standards. Architects, engineers, facility managers, real estate professionals, interior designers, construction managers, and government officials all rely upon LEED to create and promote sustainability in building environments.

Furthermore, state and local governments all over the United States are now utilizing LEED for publicly funded building projects, including many federal agencies that are implementing LEED initiatives for their building projects. Some of these agencies include the Departments of Agriculture, Defense, Energy, and State. LEED projects are likewise furthering development globally as green standards begin to spread internationally, so LEED Exam has become important no matter where you may live.

As a building professional, it is clear to see that receiving the proper LEED training to earn the LEED AP credential is important for your future to remain competitive in the building design, construction, or other various associated industries. In fact, the USGBC has signed onto The 2030 Challenge which sets targets to reduce fossil fuel use for all new buildings and major renovations every 10 years, with the overarching goal to eventually have carbon-neutral buildings by 2030. With this in mind, it is clear to see that all building standards will soon streamline to become more energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable, so start your LEED Exam Prep today!

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