Greetings! My name is Kindy Kruller and I am excited to be a part of this wonderful project. I work at a non-profit, community and economic development group called the LEED Council. We are not the USGBC-LEED, but the Local Economic and Employment Development Council. My role at the LEED Council is the Associate Director of Environmental Initiatives. My background is in Urban Planning & Policy and I am dedicated to sustainable planning. The LEED Council has been around in the Near North part of Chicago for 25 years, focusing on Industrial Retention and Job Training. Five years ago, the LEED Council expanded their programming to include Environment Initiatives and Sustainable Development. We managed the Clean Air Counts program, an emission reduction program, and now our programming has expanded into a variety of partnerships and business services. We founded the Chicagoland Green Collar Jobs Initiative, collaborate with the Delta Institute on green building consulting, and publish sustainable business guides, the first is the Recycling Guide for Commercial and Industrial Businesses.

The history and expertise of the LEED Council makes us uniquely posed to work on sustainable issues in the Chicago community. We created the first PMD (Planned Manufacturing District) in the City of Chicago and have worked extensively on Land Use issues focusing on retention of jobs. We also have broad experience in job and skills training, expanding our services in 2008 to offer computer training. The LEED Council has established a variety of partnerships for our Sustainable Development work including the Delta Institute, Logan Square Neighborhood Association, Wilbur Wright College and others. These partnerships are important since we can share knowledge and resources, while focusing on new ideas and emerging programs. We are also working with the City of Chicago Dept. of Planning and Development, City of Chicago Dept of Environment, and Ald. Flores on developing the city’s first Green PMD.

My goal for the blog column is to connect people or organizations to the programs that both the LEED Council and our partners are working on. I also want to present case studies and examples of how the programs at the LEED Council focus on sustainability; not just environmental sustainability but also economic and community sustainability. Please feel free to contact me directly with questions or comments at kindykruller@gmail.com.

Wishing you Green Holiday Cheer and a Sustainable New Year!