Committee on the Environment

COTE Books: A Series of Reviews & Talks

we typically review & host talks about 2-3 books per year; virtual events are hosted by local or state COTE groups

interested in being a host or suggesting a book? email Kira Gould at kiragould@kiragould.com 

18 June 2026 / 1-2pm ET - upcoming

Details and Materials for Resilient Sites: A Climate Positive Approach (Routledge/Taylor & Francis, 2025)

• Register to join (free) here

• Discount: Get 20% off the book with the code 26AEV1 at the Routledge site through June 2026. 

• Author: Meg Calkins, FCELA, FASLA, Professor of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning at North Carolina State University

• Review by Shawn Swisher, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, architect and Senior Associate at Jones Studio, in COTE news May/June 2026: coming soon

• Host: AIA Minnesota COTE

• Recording: coming after the event

24 February 2026 / 12-1pm ET - upcoming

Climate Adaptation for Architects: A Design Toolkit (Routledge/Taylor & Francis, 2025)

• links to join: AIA members / non AIA members 

• Author: Allison Anderson, FAIA

• Reviewer: Megan Recher Campos, AIA, in COTE news Jan/Feb 2026: post

• Host: AIA North Carolina COTE + AIA Triangle COTE

• Recording: https://bit.ly/COTE_BookTalk_ClimateAdaptationforArchitects

2 December 2025 / 12-1pm ET

Architectural Epidemiology: Architecture as a Mechanism for Designing a Healthier, More Sustainable and Resilient World (Hopkins Press, 2025)

• Author: Adele Houghton, FAIA 

• Reviewer: Z Smith and Theresa Mark in COTE news Nov/Dec 2025: post

• Host: AIA Philadelphia COTE (Katherine Urbaniak, Kirin Kennedy, Laura Blau)  

• Recording: https://bit.ly/COTE_BookTalk_ArchitecturalEpidemiology 

26 August 2025 / 1-2pm ET

The Sustainable Urban Design Handbook (Routledge, 2024)

• Authors: Nico Larco, AIA, and Kaarin Knudsen, AIA

• Reviewer: Tim Beatley in COTE news Jul/Aug 2025: post 

• Host: Boston Society of Architecture COTE (Amy Sheehan Latkva-Kokko)

• Recording: https://bit.ly/COTE_BookTalk_SustainableUrbanDesignHandbook 

017 April 2025 / 1-2pm ET

Going for Zero: Decarbonizing the Built Environment on the Path to Our Urban Future (Island Press, 2025)

• Author: Carl Elefante

• Reviewer: Lori Ferriss, AIA in COTE news Mar/Apr 2025: post

• Host: AIA Middle Tennessee COTE: Erica Weeks

• Recording: here 

21 January 2025

Blue Architecture: Water, Design and Environmental Futures (University of Texas Press, 2022) 

• Author: Brook Muller 

• Reviewer: Orrin Goldsby, AIA, in COTE news Jan/Feb 2025: post

• Host: AIA Seattle COTE: Michael Hellmer

• Recording: here 

06 June 2024

The Story of Upfront Carbon: How a Life of Just Enough Offers a Way Out of the Climate Crisis (New Society Publishers, 2024)

• Author: Lloyd Alter 

• Reviewer: Lisa Richmond, Hon. AIA in COTE news May/Jun 2024: post

• Host: AIA Seattle COTE

• Recording: https://bit.ly/COTE_BookTalk_TheStoryofUpfrontCarbon

28 February 2024

Experiential Design Schemas (ORO Editions, 2023)

• Authors: Gail Brager and Mark De Kay

• Reviewer: Bob Harris in COTE news Jan/Feb 2024: post

• AIA San Francisco COTE: Charlie Stott

• Recording: https://bit.ly/COTE_BookTalk_ExperientialDesignSchemas 

8 February 2024

People, Planet, Design: A Practical Guide to Realizing Architecture’s Potential (Island Press, 2023)

• Author: Corey Squire

• Reviewer: Lyndley Kent in COTE news Jan/Feb 2024: post

• Host: Island Press with AIA Oregon COTE: Elisa Rocha

• Recording: https://bit.ly/COTE_BookTalk_PeoplePlanetDesign 

12 October 2021

Visual Design in Architecture: Daylight, Vision & View (Routledge/Taylor & Francis, 2021)

• Author: Lisa Heschong

• Reviewer: Mark Rylander in COTE news Sep/Oct 2021: post

• Host: AIA East Bay COTE: Alice Sung

• Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYNmlRw-dpU 

we typically review & host talks about 2-3 books per year; virtual events are hosted by local or state COTE groups

interested in being a host or suggesting a book? email Kira Gould at kiragould@kiragould.com