Every year before our Living Future unConference (April 30 – May 3 in Seattle) we host several workshops and summits for the folks who can’t quite get enough of the excitement, community, and inspiration that the conference fosters. These workshops cover a wide range of subjects, from Living Buildings and Biophilic Design to multicultural workforces and equitable supply chains, and can be purchased independently of a conference pass. We’ve picked out five that sound especially exciting this year—we hope to see you at some (or all, we won’t judge) of them!

Breaking News! Living Building Challenge 4.0 Summit

Be the first to hear, learn, and engage with LBC 4.0! This workshop provides the first opportunity for a deep-dive into the new Living Building Challenge 4.0 program, which offers new opportunities for catalyzing change in the market. Learn what’s new, ask questions, and dialogue with others on the new standard of what good looks like.

LBC 4.0 provides a framework for bringing us closer to a Living Future. Be one of the first to hear, learn, and engage! Please bring your thinking caps, ideas for projects to discuss, and join us.

New: We just opened up a second LBC 4.0 workshop due to overwhelming response! Snag your seat soon.

Your Supply Chain: Taking Action for Human Rights

Have you identified human rights hotspots in your products or corporate supply chain? Are you looking for the know-how, tools, and solutions to help identify, assess, and manage human rights impacts of your company’s operations? Human Rights Due Diligence has been identified as the essential first step in social responsibility, and Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA) provides a systemic and systematic approach that allows you to consider the social impacts of the entire supply chain and life cycle.

In this shoulder session, learn how to apply S-LCA in the context of a social responsibility program and understand how it relates to recent Living Product and Just requirements.

Biophilic Design Summit

Connecting a building to the climate, culture, and ecology can transform a project, as well as the people involved. ILFI has created a Biophilic Design toolkit to help teams create Living Buildings and Living Communities that thrive through their connection to the natural world.

ILFI CEO Amanda Sturgeon and Biophilic Design team will lead this inspiring summit, where you’ll practice how to align key values to inspire and lead teams to deliver a Biophilic Design project.

The Water Summit: Collaboration & Abundance

So you think you have a grasp on the Water Petal? Dive in deeper with leaders from the front lines of alternative water systems design, resiliency planning, nutrient recovery and on-site operations. This year the summit will feature four emerging topics of discussion in the field of regenerative water system design:

  1. Nutrient recovery in on-site systems
  2. Streamlining operations and maintenance of on-site systems
  3. Resiliency of on-site systems in the face of increasing natural disasters, especially for those that are most vulnerable
  4. Handprinting as a compliant and equitable pathway to achieving the Water Petal

Attendees will leave the Summit equipped with new tools, new partnerships, and new understandings of the role Net Positive Water systems play in designing a Living Future.

Recruiting and Retaining a Multicultural Workforce

Becoming a multicultural organization that honors the diverse staff and clients it serves involves a process of developing the cultural competence of those who work within the business or organization. As organizations grow in their cultural competency, we gain insight and understanding of diverse needs and perspectives. As a result, we are able to advocate for change and take action to create a safe, welcoming and inclusive environment that draws people to our organizations. This is a foundational step in diversifying organizations.

In this workshop, participants will learn strategies for creating an equitable process that brings in more diverse candidates and ways to retain them once they are hired.

Want to keep looking? We have many more pre-conference workshops for you to check out—you can see the full list here. All pre-conference events can be purchased independently of a full conference pass.

Written By

ILFI Staff

The International Living Future Institute’s mission is to lead the transformation toward a civilization that is socially just, culturally rich, and ecologically restorative.