For this issue of Contemporary Stone & Tile Design, we have a focus on residential design, and achieving LEED status using natural stone. We had the chance to talk to Stephanie Vierra, who is the president of Vierra Design & Education Services, LLC, who specializes in research, project management and educational programs on sustainability and whole building design, and she is a LEED-Accredited Professional with the USGBC. She was able to tell us about the importance that natural stone plays in going for LEED certification on a project. Her interview begins on page 28.
Going along with Vierra’s interview, we talked to Jim Heib, the CEO of the Natural Stone Institute about their campaign, Use Natural Stone. He discussed with us what the objectives are of the campaign and also how it has recently taken off with the architect and design communities. On page 22, we wrote about a house that was designed to be net-zero energy, sustainable and uses regional limestone. That project also falls under our other category for this issue, residential design.