Our Mission

An independent non-profit organization, our mission at USGBC-LA is to leverage the built environment as the entry point to transform Southern California into a more sustainable region for all through equitable and inclusive access to knowledge, technology, resources, and networking.

On our journey to accomplish our mission we…

1. Inspire leadership in our community to become forward-thinking advocates in the built environment by:

• Developing emerging professionals, building connections among existing industry leaders, and bringing in new changemakers that represent the diversity of the greater Los Angeles region
• Delivering thought-leadership programs by convening subject matter experts to engage in direct dialogue and share knowledge
• Promoting sustainability tools, policies, and certification frameworks that support diversity and leadership
• Mobilizing our membership through our branches and committees to strengthen engagement and support community initiatives
• Utilizing our platform in innovative ways to support transformative projects and people in the community 
• Celebrating community, corporate, and building industry leadership to inspire and accelerate scaled market transformation

2. Empower the market through education to expand sustainability in the built environment and beyond by:

• Engaging membership and the general public through educational programming for all sectors and space types
• Developing and deploying specialized trainings and workshops through targeted events
• Initiating collaborative projects to identify and address our region’s most critical issues and knowledge gaps
• Educating members through interactive tools, whitepapers, online resources, and technology
• Delivering programs to educate the public and build a diverse talent pipeline for the green economy

3. Serve as the “connective tissue” to build and enhance mutually beneficial collaborations across diverse stakeholder groups and address systemic community challenges by:

• Engaging communities, organizations, and market sectors who have not historically been connected to sustainability (including unions and social equity advocates)
• Leveraging strategic partnerships to build a stable financial foundation to support and expand programs and services
• Providing an inclusive environment where all communities can participate in the sustainability conversation and are empowered to effect change
• Collaborating with national and regional green building organizations to expand sustainability policies in California

4. Advocate progressive policy agendas to drive rapid market transformation to address the urgent challenges of climate change and environmental justice by:

• Expanding activism and grass-roots support of social, equitable, and economic changes to support green building
• Supporting and aligning with annual statewide and regional legislative priorities that push the urgency of climate action
• Advancing the intersectionality of environmental justice, public health, and equity into policies, programs, and implementation strategies
• Galvanizing members to be advocacy champions for organizational priorities

Accountability and transparency are incredibly important to us here at USGBC-LA.

For more information please visit our organization page at GuideStar.