An ICAST Employee Gets a Great Life Experience.
Monti Griffin, an ICAST construction laborer from Missouri, recently flew to New Mexico to help with green rehab projects there. This is notable for Monti because it was the first time he has left Missouri, as well as the first time he has flown on a plane. Monti has been with ICAST since 2019 after being hired out of the YouthBuild program that ICAST partners with in St. Louis. The YouthBuild organization assists low-income youth learn construction skills to help build affordable housing, which aligns with the ICAST mission. Our Green Construction Careers (GC2) program partners with organizations like YouthBuild to provide workforce training for marginalized groups. Monti had been with YouthBuild off and on since he joined in 2014 at age 18. He has been a great addition to our team, and has recently expressed that “Signing up with Youthbuild and ICAST were the best decisions of my life.”
Building Sustainable Castles in the Sky.
Nearly 40% of UK greenhouse gas emissions, to use a figure architects love to bandy, are caused by the built environment. It’s an arresting figure. It suggests that the design of buildings and the planning of cities can do much to counter climate crisis.
Architecture tends to attract people who want to change the world for the better. And what could matter more than the prevention of environmental and societal collapse? So what would architecture look like if all involved put climate at the centre of their concerns? Would there be no more concrete, given the material has been fingered as particularly destructive? Or an end to towers clad in panels that have to be replaced every 30 years? Or much less building altogether?
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This is What Energy Resilience Could Look Like.
ICAST new employees
ICAST is pleased to announce it has hired Greg Elsea as our new Finance Manager. Greg had been working as a contractor with ICAST since December but was recently made a full-time employee. He has a 40-year-long career leading accounting departments in the construction industry. Greg is an alumnus of the University of Northern Colorado, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting. He feels strongly about being proactive in making a better place for tomorrow, which is a major reason why he chose to work at ICAST. Welcome to the team, Greg!