Vivian Loftness, FAIA, LEEDAP, is an internationally renowned researcher, author and educator focused on environmental design and sustainability, climate and regionalism in architecture, and the integration of advanced building systems for health and productivity.  In addition to eight book chapters and over 100 journal articles, she edited the Reference Encyclopedia Sustainable Built Environments, released by Springer Publishing in 2013 to be reissued 2018.

At Carnegie Mellon University, Professor Loftness holds the Paul Mellon Chair in Architecture, is one of 35 University Professors, and served a decade as Head of the School of Architecture. With over 30 years of industry and government research funding, she is a key member of Carnegie Mellon’s leadership in sustainability research and education, and contributor to the ongoing development of the Intelligent Workplace – a living laboratory of commercial building innovations for performance.

She has served on over 25 Board of Directors, including EPA’s NACEPT, DOE’s FEMAC, and the National USGBC and AIA COTE Boards.  She has been a member of twelve National Academy of Science panels as well as the Academy’s Board on Infrastructure and the Constructed Environment, and given four Congressional testimonies on sustainable design. Her work has influenced national policy and building projects, including the Adaptable Workplace Lab at the U.S. General Services Administration and the Laboratory for Cognition at Electricity de France.

In the past five years, Vivian has been recognized as a LEED Fellow, a Senior Fellow of the Design Futures Council and the Scott Institute, and one of 13 Stars of Building Science by the Building Research Establishment in the UK. She received the Award of Distinction from AIA Pennsylvania, holds a National Educator Honor Award from the American Institute of Architecture Students, and a “Sacred Tree” Award from the US Green Building Council.  Vivian Loftness has a Bachelors of Science and a Masters of Architecture from MIT.