The Top 15 Social Media Influencers in the Built Environment
As pressure mounts for communities, cities, and even entire countries to decarbonize or adapt to the effects of climate change, the built environment holds a lot of untapped potential. While solar energy and electric vehicles seem to dominate news stories about how individuals should plan to incorporate more sustainability into their lives, buildings are often excluded—perhaps because they aren’t so easy to construct or retrofit with renewable energy or energy reduction capabilities.
This has been changing, as leaders have begun to understand that decarbonizing buildings is critical to our net-zero goals: commercial buildings consume 35% of electricity and emit 16% of carbon dioxide, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
Many people in the construction, commercial real estate, property management, building products, and technology fields are doing inspiring and important work in these industries to turn back the worst effects of the climate crisis. Here at Technica, we wanted to know who these influencers might be, and we have outlined our findings for you.
What is an Influencer?
Simply put, we wanted to find individuals in the industry who are doing great things and sharing compelling stories, content, and messages surrounding these efforts. We did not keep strict criteria, such as the largest number of followers on LinkedIn or Twitter, because many of these influencers understand that their audiences might be smaller and that their content needs to be more targeted.
The “Built Environment”
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the built environment touches all aspects of our lives. It encompasses “the buildings we live in, the distribution systems that provide us with water and electricity, and the roads, bridges, and transportation systems we use to get from place to place.”
Gosh, that’s a lot of places, spaces, and systems.
Here at Technica, however, we are keenly interested in how the built environment is addressing climate change. For this list, we wanted to concentrate on the people actively working to inject sustainable business practices into the design, development, construction, management, and operation of buildings.
The Role of Influencers in the Built Environment
We created this list because we felt that influencers in the built environment are often overlooked. Though we also developed a list of the Top 25 LinkedIn Influencers in Climate Tech, Mobility, and Sustainability, we wanted to create a separate list focused on this particular area.
It’s not just car buyers considering an EV or homeowners installing solar panels. The road to net zero relies on decarbonizing billions of square feet of office buildings, warehouses, shopping centers, schools, medical centers, and other property, and it’s critical that sustainability advocates and renewable energy industry folks keep an eye on who is doing what in the built environment. This is why we created this list.
Our Selection Criteria
We didn’t rely solely on raw numbers because each influencer’s “counts” differed.
Some are more popular on X than on LinkedIn almost all hold influential roles in their organizations; some have blazed the trail by hosting and producing important podcasts in this sector.
Based on our work with several companies in the built environment, we are aware of which media outlets, platforms, organizations, and companies are the ones to watch.
How to Use this List
Read their bios, click on the links, subscribe to their podcasts or newsletters, or follow them on LinkedIn or Twitter. Read the news and content they post, and like, share, forward, or comment if you feel it is compelling enough. Don’t be afraid to engage! That’s why we provided the necessary links to their content.
1. James Dice, Founder and CEO, Nexus Labs
James Dice is THE influencer, connoisseur, raconteur, and all-around spreader of information and good vibes about smart buildings. He is the founder of Nexus Labs, a community of engineers, energy managers, technology vendors, building operators, and real estate investors committed to defining and bringing to life smart buildings.
Nexus Labs offers articles, buyer’s guides, courses, whitepapers, and a paid membership for smart building professionals.
James is a sought-after speaker in the industry and maintains a presence on multiple channels. You can sign up for his 6,000+ subscriber newsletter and listen to The Nexus Podcast on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and other platforms.
Source: SBX Conference
2. Donnel Baird, CEO and Founder, BlocPower
Donnel Baird’s LinkedIn heading says it all: “Turning buildings into Teslas—Greener, healthier, + more valuable buildings to fight climate change.”
He is the founder and CEO of BlocPower, a Brooklyn-based climate technology company that retrofits buildings. These buildings are primarily in low-income neighborhoods, and BlocPower assists with providing solar panels, electric heat pumps, and other green tech to lower energy bills and reduce emissions. He regularly posts about the company’s projects on LinkedIn, including a recent solar project on New York City’s Rikers Island.
Last year, Donnel was named to the Time100 Next list and joined Federal Chief Sustainability Officer Andrew Mayock as part of a Sustainability Speaker Series through the White House Council on Environmental Quality. He spoke at this year’s TED Countdown Summit (Countdown is TED‘s only single-topic conference — and that topic is climate change.)
You can follow Donnel on X, too.
Source: LinkedIn
3. Salah Nezar, Director of Sustainability and Engineering Innovation at CBRE, Board Member of U.S. Green Building Council
Saleh Nezar is the Director of Sustainability and Engineering Innovation for commercial real estate services and investment firm CBRE. That’s a big job, as CBRE manages 2.9 billion square feet across 40+ countries. As if he is not busy enough, Salah also serves on the Board of Directors for the U.S. Green Building Council, the organization that oversees the coveted LEED certification.
With over 30 years of experience in sustainability, engineering strategies, and decarbonization on high-performance buildings and global portfolios, it was easy to find a place for Salah on our list. Salah posts on LinkedIn almost daily and recently moderated a panel at GreenBiz’s VERGE 23 conference.
Source: U.S. Green Building Council
4. Susan Uthayakumar, Chief Energy and Sustainability Officer, Prologis
Susan Uthayakumar is the Chief Energy and Sustainability Officer of Prologis, the largest owner of industrial real estate in the world, managing 1.2 billion square feet of space in 19 countries and enabling 2.8% of the world’s GDP.
As an ESG leader, Susan leads the company—and, by extension, the industry—in selecting the best practices for customer-facing sustainability and energy solutions. Her team includes people with expertise in grids, energy generation, building green and mobility projects, measuring Scope 3 emissions, and supply chain improvement.
Before joining Prologis last year, Susan spent more than 17 years at Schneider Electric, most recently as the President of the company’s Global Sustainability Business division.
A sought-after speaker, Susan recently spoke on a panel on decarbonization at the WSJ Pro Sustainable Business Forum and is a member of MIT’s Climate & Sustainability Consortium.
Source: Prologis
5. Wanda Lau, Former Editorial Director, Smart Buildings Technology, LEDS, and Architectural SSL magazines
A civil engineer by training, Wanda went on to study journalism and building technology and spent the bulk of her editorial career covering architecture. (Her Wikipedia page identifies Wanda as an “architecture critic.”)
However, since joining Smart Buildings Technology magazine nearly two years ago, Wanda has started covering the companies, technologies, and people committed to making buildings more efficient, sustainable, and in line with the complex, shifting needs of owners, managers, and occupants.
Wanda has received over 30 national and regional awards for editing, writing, and podcasting, including several Neal Awards, the highest honor in B2B journalism.
You can follow Wanda on Twitter, too.
Source: Architectural SSL
6. Charlie Cichetti, Host and Producer at Green Building Matters, CEO and Co-founder of Blue Ocean Sustainability.
CEO and Co-founder of Sustainable Investment Group, CEO at Green Building Education Services
Charlie Cichetti is influential and busy: he holds five concurrent C-suite titles and still finds the time to host and produce the popular Green Building Matters podcast. With 300 episodes in the tank, Charlie is clearly passionate about sustainability in the built environment.
His Green Building Education Services company has provided LEED exam preparation for over 150,000 real estate, architectural, design, development, and construction professionals. Charlie’s education company offers the largest U.S. Green Building Council-approved catalog of education materials in the world.
“Quite simply, I’m invested in the success of the green building industry. I believe in it, and I’m working with people and buildings around the world to create the highest level of sustainability possible,” according to LinkedIn.
Source: USGBC
7. Dr. Evan van Hook, Chief Sustainability Officer at Viridi, Former Chief Sustainability Officer at Honeywell
A career sustainability and renewable energy advocate, Dr. Evan van Hook is currently the Chief Sustainability Officer of Viridi, a provider of battery energy storage systems for commercial buildings.
From 2004 until earlier this year, Evan served as Corporate Vice President and then Chief Sustainability Officer at Honeywell, where he led the company’s more than 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and the approval of a science-based targets Initiative and carbon reduction target.
Last year, Evan was named by Constellation Research as one of the world’s 50 most influential executives in the field of ESG and also one of the American Energy Society’s 500 Global Sustainability Thought Leaders. He is also a former Assistant Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.
Source: LinkedIn
8. Jeff Hendler, CEO of Logical Buildings
Jeff Hendler is Co-Founder, President, and CEO of Logical Buildings, a smart building technology software developer, IoT (Internet of Things), and DER (distribution energy resources) systems integrator.
Logical Buildings helps large multifamily and commercial properties reduce energy usage and expenditures, thereby improving overall building operations and fault detection, increasing net operating income and net asset value for the property owner. The company currently serves more than 60 million square feet of multifamily and mixed-use properties across the U.S.
Jeff is a sought-after thought leader on the topic of building efficiency, including serving as a source for a recent New York Times article on building decarbonization and as a guest on the CleanTechies podcast.
Source: LinkedIn
9. Kent Peterson Chair, Task Force on Building Decarbonization, American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), Owner and COO of P2S, Inc.
Kent Peterson is the owner and COO of engineering and consulting firm P2S Inc. and also serves as the Chair of the Task Force on Building Decarbonization for the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). ASHRAE is the world’s largest technical organization dedicated to advancing human well-being through sustainable technology for the built environment.
With members comprising building services engineers, architects, mechanical contractors, building owners, and equipment manufacturers’ employees, ASHRAE assumes a critical role in energy efficiency, indoor air quality, and sustainable development, especially given the resource-intensive systems in buildings.
Kent has a big job and holds a lot of influence: ASHRAE’s position is that by 2030, the global built environment must halve its 2015 GHG emissions.
Not a recent entrant in sustainability for the built environment, Kent has over 35 years of design experience in high-performance buildings, energy-efficient central plants, and innovative control strategies.
Source: LinkedIn
10. Michael Green, Founder and Principal, Architect AIBC, AIA, AAA, FRAIC, Michael Green Architecture
Michael Green is the Founder and Principal of Michael Green Architecture (MGA), a Canadian-based multi-disciplinary architecture and interior design firm using timber to create buildings – but not like the ones we know today.
With concrete, steel, and masonry being the top three carbon generators in the world of built environments, Michael and his team have turned their focus to plant-based architecture in the form of timber. MGA uses solely wood to build its structures, using only steel or concrete as a secondary material, moving the industry forward in sustainability and nature-based construction.
Michael also serves as a government policy advisor on mass timber design and is the co-author of the first and second editions of ‘The Case for Tall Wood Buildings’ and ‘Tall Wood Buildings: Design, Construction and Performance.’
MGA is the recipient of 5 Governor General Medals in Architecture, 2 Royal Architectural Institute of Canada Innovation Awards, ten global wood design awards, two global interior design awards and last year’s American Institute of Architects Innovation Award and several Architizer Awards, including Best Firm in North America in 2020.
Source: Nuvo Magazine
11. Oliver Lang, Co-founder and CEO, Intelligent City
Oliver Lang is the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Intelligent City, a Vancouver-based company that constructs sustainable, mass timber urban housing.
The current housing industry has been slow to innovate and accommodate today’s climate goals. To address this need, Oliver and his team focus on design for urban housing and cultural projects, technology development, off-site prefabrication automation, mass timber construction, and carbon net zero building technology.
Additionally, Oliver has been the principal and co-founder of LWPAC, a Governor General’s Medal-winning architecture practice in Vancouver since 1999. Oliver was previously the Acting Chair and Member of the Urban Design Panel for the City of Vancouver, a Masterclass at The Berlage Institute, and a Visiting Professor at the University of Pennsylvania and Universidad Técnica Federico Santa Maria.
Source: Intelligent City
12. Lindsay Baker, Chief Executive Officer, International Living Future Institute
In a world of purposeful living, Lindsey Baker is a person to watch. As Chief Executive Officer of the International Living Future Institute (ILFI), Lindsey has goals for the world to be ecologically restorative, socially just, and culturally rich.
The International Living Future Institute is an environmental NGO whose collective of architects, engineers, manufacturers, builders, business leaders, and other stakeholders are committed to creating regenerative buildings and products.
Lindsey has over 20 years of experience in the building sector. Before ILFI, she co-founded Comfy, a smart buildings start-up, and earlier in her career, Lindsay served as the first Global Head of Sustainability and Impact at WeWork and was a former member of Google’s Green Team.
She was also a recent guest on Technica CEO Lisa Ann Pinkerton’s Earthlings 2.0 podcast.
Source: GreenBiz
13. Ari Matusiak, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Rewiring America
Ari Matusiak is the CEO of Rewiring America, an electrification nonprofit focused on electrifying homes, businesses, and communities. He is also the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Purpose Venture Group, a social impact incubator building ventures to address climate and economic inequality.
Ari served in the Obama White House as Special Assistant to the President and Director of Private Sector Engagement and was Chief Strategy Officer at Renovate America, a residential renewable energy and financing platform in the U.S.
As an advisor to several technology companies, Ari is also focused on mentorship and fostering entrepreneurship. Ari co-founded Young Invincibles, an organization that focuses on higher education, jobs and the economy, health care and entrepreneurship for young Americans.
Source: Rewiring America
14. Nicholas Bagatelos, President, Net Zero Envelope
Nicholas Bagatelos is the President of Net Zero Envelope, a company that designs net-zero embodied carbon windows that reduce energy consumption in buildings. Nicholas’ goal is to create sustainable products for the built environment that reduce energy loss and carbon pollution.
Before Net Zero Envelope, Nicholas co-founded LuxWall, Inc. and was the owner of Bagatelos Architectural Glass Systems Inc. for almost 25 years. A LinkedIn influencer in the built environment, with over 21,000 followers, Nicholas recently spoke at Facades+ and was a guest on the All Things Facades podcast.
Source: Facades+
15. Patrick Sisson. Writer and Editor
Patrick Sisson is a Los Angeles-based freelance writer, editor, and reporter who covers urbanism, housing, real estate, and transportation. In his writing, Patrick focuses on design, the environment, and technology.
Before his freelance career, Patrick was a senior reporter at Curbed, where he wrote about architecture, design and urbanism. Some of his favorite works include “Fixing the American Commute” and “Balcony Seats to the City.”
Patrick’s work has appeared in Bloomberg, CityLab, New York Times, Marker, Bisnow, Commercial Observer, Eater, Curbed, Vox, Motherboard, The Chicago Reader, The Chicago Tribune, Playboy, Wax Poetics, Stop Smiling, Pitchfork, Nothing Major, and Chicago Magazine.
Source: LinkedIn
