The Committee on the Environment (COTE®) is an AIA Knowledge Community working for architects, allied professionals, and the public to achieve climate action and climate justice through design. We believe that design excellence is the foundation of a healthy, sustainable, and equitable future. Our work promotes design strategies that empower all AIA members to realize the best social and environmental outcomes with the clients and the communities they serve.Enjoy our latest on COTE news (and follow us on X and LinkedIn). To learn about the Framework for Design Excellence (formerly the COTE Top Ten Measures), click here.Check out COTE's history and timeline. Starting a local COTE or sustainability group and need some guidance? Check out the AIA COTE Network Resources here.A big thank you to our 2024 sponsors: Founding sponsors: Building GreenPremier sponsors: Sherwin-Williams, StantecSustaining sponsors: GAF Roofing, Milliken, Andersen Windows, BlueScope BuildingsGreen sponsors: EPIC MetalsAllied sponsors: TLC Engineering, Sierra Pacific Windows
This report and proposal are the result of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Committee on the Environment (COTE) Ecological Literacy in Architecture Education (ELAE) project. A planning grant from the Tides Foundation’s Kendeda Sustainability Fund set the project in motion. The goal was to assess the state of ecological literacy and the teaching of sustainable design in architecture education as part of a proposal for a large-scale, long-term effort, led by the AIA COTE, to inject ecological literacy and sustainability principles into architecture education in the United States. The education-focused effort would be concerned largely with schools of architecture, as well as other venues where students and practicing architects might learn about ecology and design. This is the report.