Lydia Richardson
Healthy Building Materials Specialist
Being a part of IES combines my life’s passions. From a young age, I have enjoyed working with my hands which led me to enroll in a woodworking program at my local vocational highschool. Through my enrollment in the program, I was introduced to sustainable forest harvesting topics that sparked my passion for learning about the environment, our role within it and how we keep it in optimal condition for the next generations to come. This led me to continue my educational journey at Unity Environmental University where I studied both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems and how to protect them.
As someone who utilizes building materials and went to college to focus on environmental sciences, I find a direct connection between myself and this line of work. As we realize the damaging impacts of anthropogenic climate change, there is an increasing need to take action. In an ever evolving world that needs infrastructure to sustain our population’s way of life, the best action that can be taken when either renovating or building fresh is to source eco-friendly materials that create the least amount of impact on our planet. Coordinating the research into healthy construction material choices and advocating for better ingredients helps initiate change for a better future now and for generations to come. That’s why I do this work.