California Land Use Blog

I am pleased to announce that I recently qualified for certification as a LEED Certified Professional and to use the designation "LEED-AP".

After nearly 30 years as a lawyer and planner, the last thing I really needed was more letters after my name - M.C.R.P (Master of City & Regional Planning), J.D. (Juris Doctor), A.I.C.P (American Institute of Certified Planners) and now LEED-AP to boot.  The reason I joined the United States Green Building Council (USGBC), took the extra courses and studied for the exam is not to add to the alphabet soup, but to underscore my long-standing commitment to energy-efficient and environmentally-conscious design.

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On an internet networking site for planners, a young planner asked whether the private sector values the AICP (American Institute of Certified Planners) credential.  Here is my reply:

When I trained in the joint degree program at Rutgers (M.C.R.P. / J.D.) almost 30 years ago, I became a Charter member of APA, when ASPO merged with AIP.  New Jersey was the only state with a license for planners, the with the unfortunate initials, "P.P." Since much of my subsequent work experience was as a lawyer, it took a sojourn away from law before I had the planning practice experience necessary to apply for the AICP credential.

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