green building | MICHELLE CHIANG

As of February 26, 2017, I am a LEED Green Associate.

In September 2016, I came across a Community Green Scholars grant on Facebook. After some consideration, I created an account on USGBC website and managed to submit my application before the November 1, 2016 deadline. Early in November 2016, I was awarded the grant. I was on my way to take the LEED Green Associate exam. the condition was to register for the exam by November 15, 2016, and take the exam before March 1, 2017.

The grant I received included an essential document to read and access to the Eudcation@USGBC. On Christmas Day 2016, I scheduled the exam as close to the deadline as I could.

In January, I attended a webinar held by GBES that helped me understand the exam better. I also bought the book “LEED Green Associate Exam Preparation Guide, LEED v4 Edition” which included online access to flashcards and quizzes.

The day of the exam, I got to the testing center early and review some key points for 20 minutes. During the exam, I read each question throughly. I review my answers 3 times until the time was up. Overall, the exam was straight forward.

I currently don’t have any plan to take the LEED AP exam. My focus now is maintaining the LEED Green Associate credential.

I was excited to see Taipei Public Library, Beitou Branch chosen by Flavorwire as one of ‘The 25 Most Beautiful Public Libraries in the World‘. I had to visit the library in person when I was in Taiwan last month.

Taipei Public Library, Beitou Branch opened in 2006 and is the first certified green building library in Taiwan. It has a large collection dedicated to ecological conservation.

It was raining hard the day I visited. As I walked towards the building, I could see all the people in there reading quietly. It was a beautiful and peaceful view with the library standing in the rain in the wide open park.

Once I was inside, I felt surrounded by nature as the furniture and most of the interior surfaces were wood. Bookshelves were below eye-level to create the openness of the space. All the windows were open. There are tables and chairs on the balcony for reading.

(All interior photos below are from Taipei Public Library website.)