Have you submitted an abstract yet for your video presentation at the #VirtualSummit2019? This year’s theme is:

“Cooling a Warming Planet with Living Architecture”

And the Call for Videos for the 2019 Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit is due on May 31!

Learn what we’re looking for and how to do it here.

#VirtualSummit2019 Advisory Board

We’ve put together an awesome #VirtualSummit2019 Advisory Board, below, who will review all the written and video abstracts to determine our speakers this year.

Representing three continents and four countries, meet everyone below and discover just a little about what makes us tick:

MATTHEW DILLON
GREEN ROOFS AUSTRALASIA (GRA) President, World Green Infrastructure Network (WGIN) Vice President, Verdant Solutions AUS Principal

Sydney, Australia. Matthew Dillon is President of GREEN ROOFS AUSTRALASIA (GRA), Vice President of the World Green Infrastructure Network (WGIN), and architect and principal of Verdant Solutions AUS. GRA was formed in 2006 & works closely with government, companies and other associations to foster urban regeneration, renewal and Building Integrated Vegetation systems for the built environment which will provide social, environmental and economical benefits through healthier, natural ecosystem services.

Matthew supports a transition from the dominance of urban GREY infrastructure towards the incorporation of GREEN infrastructure in order to improve urban environments through biophilia and mitigate the impacts of climate variability. Through his company Verdant Solutions AUS, Matthew works as a green roof consultant and provides green infrastructure consultancy for residential, commercial and industrial architectural design in Australasia.

Matthew Dillon and Green Roofs Australasia has participated in all of the Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summits as an Association Partner and individually twice.  His Virtual Summit videos include: 2013: Urban Green in Australia; and 2011: GreenRoofs in Australasia.

DUSTY GEDGE
European Federation of Green Roof Associations (EFB) President & Livingroofs.org Founder

London, UK. Dusty Gedge is the current President of the European Federation of Green Roof Associations (EFB) and Founder of Livingroofs.org. Dusty is a recognised authority, designer, consultant and public speaker on green roofs. He has worked on GI (Green Infrastructure) Projects in the UK for the last 17 years. Some of these are recognised as seminal projects, especially in London, as well as advising virtually on projects across the world through his consultancy firm Green Roof Consultancy (GRC).

Dusty sets up and organises conferences and workshops on GI including the World Green Roof Congress. He is also a green roof trainer running workshops, seminars, and training days throughout the world and is co-author of an online training manual – greenrooftraining.

Dusty has worked on local policy in London on GI and sits on the EU’s Green Infrastructure and Ecosystem Services Working Group as well as advises on a number of guidelines and codes of practices on green roofs and walls in the UK and Europe. He has been a TV presenter on a number of UK shows and makes his own Green Infrastructure and Green Roof and Nature Videos. As an inspiring public speaker he speaks engagingly on green roofs, green infrastructure, nature, wildlife and biodiversity. And, he is one of the ‘fathers’ of the IHDC, Integrated Habitats Design Contest.

Dusty has been a birdwatcher since he fell out of his baby chair at aged two. His interest in birds, bugs, and butterflies led to his green roof career. Dusty is also an avid nature photographer and social networker posting on Twitter, Facebook (where he runs a number of pages), and G+.

Dusty Gedge has also been extremely active here, having participated in all Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summits so far as an Association Partner with Livingroofs.org and individually.  His Virtual Summit videos include: 2017: Green Roofs and Walls – a View from London; 2015: “Biosolar Roofs” with Nathalie Baumann; 2015: Small Scale Green Roofs with John Little; 2013 Keynote Address Reflections of a Green Roof Campaigner; and the 2011: Panel Session “Biodiversity and Greenroofs” with Christine Thuring (Moderator), Nathalie Baumann, Gary Grant, and Dusty Gedge.

ELIZABETH HART MORRIS, CDT, GRP
Henry Company Director of Vegetated Roofing Assemblies & Green Roof Info Think-tank (GRiT) President

Portland, OR, USA. Elizabeth Hart Morris, CDT, GRP is the Director of Vegetated Roofing Assemblies at Henry Company. For more than 10 years Elizabeth has been changing the “nature” of commercial roofing through green roof project management, roof recycling, and advocacy.

Elizabeth is a founding member and President of the Green Roof info Think-tank (GRiT), a nonprofit of nearly 500 members dedicated to creating urban resiliency in the Pacific Northwest through the use of on-structure vegetation, working closely with the City of Portland and Portland State University, to provide education, tours, and annual ecoroof symposia. She received her B.S. in Sustainable Development from Appalachian State University, with a concentration in bio-remediation – the use of plants and microbes to clean polluted air, water and soil.

Elizabeth is the GRP Chair on the Board of Directors for Green Roofs for Healthy Cities, and is the Treasurer of the Intergenerational Outreach Choirs. She is an accredited Green Roof Professional through GRHC and a certified Construction Documents Technologist through the Construction Specifications Institute.

Elizabeth Hart Morris has presented a couple of times with us – her Virtual Summit videos are 2017: Extended Lifecycle Green Roofs – Avoiding Failure of Roofing and Vegetation; and 2015: A Higher Purpose – Benefits to Human Health and Education through Green Roofing.

JOANNE RODRIGUEZ, CSI, CDT, LEED AP
GreenStructure Founder & Multi-disciplinary Environmental Consultant

Bolingbrook, IL, USA. Joanne Rodriguez has two decades of experience working within the building products and construction communities, with an emphasis on sustainable building impacts and high performance building envelope assemblies. In 2017 she fully launched GreenStructure–a multi-disciplinary environmental consulting firm founded in 2012, housing over 20 years of experience in the built environment. With expertise in strategic sustainability and resiliency planning, she has coupled her highly technical background with the emerging trends in ecosystems and risk mitigation to become a green infrastructure asset specialist. GreenStructure has experience in zero-landfill and waste diversion programming, energy efficiency audits, and sustainable roof and building envelope solutions.

Joanne has a Bachelor of Arts, English, from Capital University, Columbus, Ohio; is a Construction Documents Technologist (CDT); and a LEED Accredited Professional (LEED AP).

At Tremco, she was responsible for the development of sales and marketing platforms focused on sustainability in the built environment. She was responsible for the implementation of programs like Roof Recycling and Zero Landfill. She has worked with architects and engineers across the country in the development of specifications and drawings that meet the highest technical standards.

She is on the EPA’s Environmentally Preferred Purchasing Pilot Panel for Paints/Coatings, helping to develop the technical framework of how the Federal Government will purchase materials now and in the future. She was part of the USGBC WaterBuild Advisory Group for GreenBuild 2017 and a speaker at the International Roofing Expo in 2017 and 2019. Joanne has participated as a moderator and in design charrettes for CitiesAlive. Her vast experience working across many stakeholders has proven to be beneficial in addressing complex issues related to material use, health related impacts, durability and life-cycle impacts.

Joanne Rodriguez was a Keynote at the 2017 Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit; her Keynote Address video is Roofing BMP’s for Low-Impact Development Projects.

JURE ŠUMI, MSc
Knauf Insulation Business Development Director Green Solutions

Ljubljana, Slovenia. Jure Šumi, Msc has been involved in international market & business development for the past 20 years holding senior positions in the area of building and construction in well-established multinational companies. Currently Jure holds the position of Business Development Director at Knauf Insulation where he is leading the global business unit Green Solutions focusing on green aspects of urban infrastructure including Vegetated Building Envelope, Sustainable (water-saving) Landscaping and Horticulture. He holds a Master of Science from the University of Maribor (Univerza v Mariboru), Slovenia.

Jure has been actively involved in several international research teams investigating real performance of urban green infrastructure for the past 8 years, especially green roofs and green walls. His expertise lays in the area of green roof customisation for best storm-water management and optimised energy efficiency. He co-holds several patents in the area of vegetated concepts and systems and their application in urban environment.

He is a regular guest speaker at international events related to green urban infrastructure and has been actively influencing EU’s green infrastructure policies as an advocacy representative of WGIN (World Green Infrastructure Network) on the EU level.

Although Jure Šumi is hardly new to the world of greenroofing, this is the first time he’s contributed to the Virtual Summit – welcome!

MARY ANN UHLMANN, PDC, GRP
Urban Horticulture Consulting President and Founder & Green Infrastructure Consultant

Marietta, GA, USA. Mary Ann Uhlmann, GRP is an Environmental Horticulturist and President and Founder of Urban Horticulture Consulting. Mary Ann is also a Certified Sustainable Landscape Professional, accredited Green Roof Professional, Certified Permaculture Designer and Biophilic Design Expert. As a Green Infrastructure Consultant, Mary Ann brings more than 15 years of experience in the construction and maintenance of vegetated green roofs and living walls.

In 2007, Mary Ann joined Tremco Incorporated as their first horticultural subject matter expert in their newly formed Sustainable Technologies Group. In 2015 she formed Urban Horticulture Consulting, offering green infrastructure planning, training and asset management. She is a passionate advocate for both Green Infrastructure and Biophilic Design education.

Mary Ann Uhlmann was a Keynote at the 2013 Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit; see her video Green Infrastructure Design and the Biophilic Effect.

LINDA S. VELAZQUEZ, ASLA, GRP, LEED AP
Greenroofs.com Founder/Publisher & Sky Gardens Design Consultant

Alpharetta, GA, USA. Linda S. Velazquez is founder and publisher/editor of Greenroofs.com (1999) and is the host of the Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit: Connecting the Planet + Living Architecture ~ People, Projects & Design. She travels, writes, and reports extensively about greenroofs and living architecture, including the annual “Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof and Greenwall Design” since 2007. She holds a Bachelor’s of Landscape Architecture from the University of Georgia (2000, cum laude) and an Associate of Arts in Business Administration (1982) from Miami Dade Community College. Linda is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), a Green Roof Professional (GRP), and a LEED AP (Accredited Professional).

We produce the Greenroofs.com Projects Database; Greenroofs.com Directory; and the biennial Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit, expanding the growing community of living architecture professionals and creating a global social media experience for learning and networking via the power of the Internet (2019, 2017, 2015, 2013, and 2011).

Linda is also principal of Sky Gardens Design (2004), a greenroof design and consulting firm.

My Virtual Summit videos (not including promos) are 2017: Top 10 Green Infrastructure Eco-Agents in a Climate-Changing World; The Greenroofs.com 2014 Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof & Greenwall Design + a Look into 2015; 2012 Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof & Greenwall Design + Look into 2013 with Haven Kiers, and the 2011 Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof & Greenwall Design with Haven Kiers.

Thank you to the #VirtualSummit2019 Advisory Board

It’s our pleasure to work together to create a stimulating, educational, and fun #VirtualSummit2019!

We hope YOU participate in the #VirtualSummit2019 by attending, connecting with our Sponsors, Partners, and Exhibitors, and submitting your own video to share with our international audience!

Love the Earth, Plant a Roof or Wall – and Submit Your Abstract before May 31st!

Linda S. Velazquez, ASLA, LEED AP, GRP
Greenroofs.com Publisher & Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summits Host