Jean Hensen, an associate at San Francisco-based Chong Architecture, has received the 2004 Leadership Award from The International Interior Design Association, Northern California Chapter.

Hensen is currently engaged in developing a master plan and emergency services department replacement plan for Kaiser Permanente in San Rafael. She also acted as "green design" consultant and lead interior designer for Kaiser's Vallejo campus and worked with renowned designer William McDonough to develop concepts for the Kaiser Template Hospital.

She also has served on the Kaiser Permanente Green Building Committee and was green design consultant to the University of New Mexico Children's Hospital and Critical Care Pavilion. She is president-elect of the IIDA's Northern California Chapter.

"Kaiser Permanente is developing sustainability standards nationwide and greening up specifications for hospitals and medical office buildings," Hensen said. "With facilities in nine states, the organization is such a large consumer that it has a huge influence on manufacturers who make upholstery, flooring, wall coverings and furniture. And those materials can have a real effect on people's health. It just doesn't make sense to furnish a healing environment with products full of PVC and other unhealthy chemicals."

Hensen has been a passionate advocate for sustainability, educating her profession by co-providing sustainable and healthcare oriented programs for the IIDA, AIA's Committee on the Environment (COTE) and ADPSR (Architects, Designers and Planners for Social Responsibility) She has spoken at the CleanMed and NeoCon conferences, where she presented "Healthy Furniture, Finishes and Textiles in Healthcare and Beyond."

"We can make a difference in the world with our work," she said. "I am driven to persuade others of the importance of sustainability and health for the future of our culture and other cultures."

Chong Partners Architecture has assembled a team of LEED certified design professionals who help clients to attain their sustainability goals. The firm was founded in San Francisco in 1976 by Gordon H. Chong, FAIA, who served as national president of the American Institute of Architects in 2002.

For more information, visit www.chongpartners.com or contact Penelope Benda at (415) 946-6175.

Del Nordby, President

Nordby's Preconstruction Team Now LEEDAccredited

Del Nordby, Kathleen Mooberry and Noelle Passalacqua of Santa Rosa-based NordbyConstruction recently passed the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design exam.

Nordby is president and Mooberry and Passalacqua are preconstruction managers.