Profile | Kirk Teske, AIA
The founding chair of the U.S. Green Building Council’s North Texas chapter, Kirk Teske, propelled green issues into the forefront of local architectural dialogue. As the Chief Sustainability Officer at HKS Architects, Kirk leads the DesignGreen studio, delivering energy-efficient design to an expansive list of clients and promoting internal sustainability education efforts. In his new role as president of the Dallas chapter of the AIA, Kirk brings knowledge, leadership, and a passion for sustainability.
You obviously have a strong commitment to sustainability. Where did this passion originate? I worked for an architect when I was in the 10th grade. This was in 1977 and the architect was Mickey Eager in Longview, TX. He was doing green design before green was cool. Passive design was popular in the late 1970s, of course. That’s when Ed Mazria’s The Passive Solar Energy Book came out. That book and the work I did with Eager really got me interested.
What is your role as president of the AIA? I am working with the AIA Dallas staff to implement the chapter’s new strategic plan. That is my primary goal. Ensuring that members get value out of their membership is a strong focus for me. We want to help improve their relevancy to the profession and make them better, more productive architects.
Is there anything else people should know about you? I will tell you that unlike some of my colleagues, I have a passion for sustainability, but I don’t necessarily have extremely liberal political viewpoints. I get aggravated that the topics of sustainability and environmentalism get polarized politically. I think we should all be working together to promote cleaner air and less dependency on foreign fuels. Whether you believe in climate change or not, you have to know that our oil dependency is causing political unrest around the world. ■
The strategic plan is a significant undertaking. Besides this effort, is there one issue you’d like to address during your term? If not for the strategic plan, then I would focus on establishing an eco-district in Dallas and still might if there’s a big enough volunteer base. It’s really important for the city and a valuable contribution to the city from the AIA. What does an eco-district entail? We would identify a district in the city and focus on trying various strategies (like bike lane systems) in that district to test it and see if it would work for larger districts. It might mean getting all the building owners to track their energy and water consumption and monitor their progress.
SELSO GARCIA, ASSOC. AIA 36
SPRING 2013
Interview by Jenny Thomason with Corgan Associates Inc. and Audrey Maxwell, Assoc. AIA, of Michael Malone Architects.
LEARN MORE! What did kirk do last year to prepare for his AIA Dallas presidency? What fuels his passion for sustainability? What will the strategic plan bring to AIA Dallas members? Read the full interview in an online exclusive available at www.tiny.cc/teske-profile or by scanning the QR code here.