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“We must be the change we wish to see in the world.” – Mahatma Gandhi

Lance Kirk, AIA, LEED AP, NCARB

Lance Kirk, AIA, LEED AP, NCARB, has long been driven by a passion for sustainable and environmental design. He believes that thoughtful, holistic systems are essential to creating buildings that perform better and contribute to a more resilient built environment. Since joining LGA in 1995 after graduating from UNLV’s School of Architecture, Lance has played a key role in shaping many of the firm’s most significant projects. He later earned his Master of Architecture from UNLV in 2001.

A recognized leader in sustainability, Lance founded the AIA Las Vegas Committee on the Environment (COTE) and served as its first chair. He went on to co-found the Nevada Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council, serving as its founding president.

Lance is equally committed to the community beyond his professional work. A longtime resident of the West Huntridge neighborhood, he serves as president of his neighborhood association and is actively involved in efforts to revitalize the area. Outside the office, he enjoys spending time with his two kids—often hiking, biking, and exploring the outdoors together. He’s also passionate about the idea of creating a community-based, mixed-use project in his neighborhood and, if he can find one, restoring a mid-1960s VW Microbus into a solar electric vehicle.

Favorite Project Ingredients:  (happy people-building cocktail) Always start with people in mind. After all, what are buildings without the people who engage our built environments? Then go as passive as possible! With passive strategies like orientation, daylight, solar and wind, everyone is much happier. Next, look to regional materials (concrete, steel, earth, block), and finish up with active systems as needed. It’s always best for a project to work with the desert ecosystem then for a project to work in the desert ecosystem.

Something You Didn’t Know: I have experienced over 100 Grateful Dead Shows … peace man. Now I am working on getting to 100 Widespread Panic shows. Fifty and counting …

Friends: Family, live concerts, mountain and road biking, VW Microbuses, and summer vacations to higher elevations.

Foes: Anything I am not learning from, short-view of things.