Donna Leban’s design practice is about European style and sensibility. Donna studied architecture at Carnegie-Mellon University during the first major oil crises of the late 1970’s through the early 1980’s. There she received both a Bachelor of Architecture Degree and a Master of Science in Architecture while a Research Associate at CMU’s Advanced Building Studies Program. “Sustainable design” has been an integral part of Donna’s design vocabulary and practice ever since.
As a licensed architect and an NCQLP certified lighting designer, and owner of Light/Space/Design of South Burlington, Vermont, Donna focuses on bringing the best “green” lighting and daylighting practices to commercial and residential clients. She also coaches designers and lighting manufacturers in embracing sustainability through design that minimizes the input of finite resources.
Donna has worked as a project architect at large firms such as The Hillier Group in Princeton, NJ and smaller firms in western PA. Through involvement in energy efficiency programs at Green Mountain Power and Efficiency Vermont, she sees a greater need for sustainable design commitment by designers and better designed energy efficient products from manufacturers. Ms. Leban sees optimizing technological solutions with design as a source of new revenues for architects and designers, and an opportunity for new leadership.
She has also recently completed work on a professional guidebook to Lighting Retrofit and Relighting, published by Wiley in late 2010.