Kelly A. Karmel, AIA, LEED AP
Founder and Principal Consultant
Design Balance LLC
Kelly A. Karmel, AIA, LEED AP is a sustainable design specialist and LEED consultant. She holds degrees in both architecture and civil engineering, and has been a LEED Accredited Professional since 2001. She and her firm, Design Balance LLC, have a national practice that consults on a wide variety of building types, including commercial office, K-12 and higher education, recreation, governmental and institutional projects. The firm consults on new construction, and existing building analysis, renovation and historic preservation projects.
Kelly founded Design Balance in 1996 after 16 years experience in architecture and engineering to work more closely with clients and design teams to improve the quality of buildings and reduce their environmental impact. She has a total of 29 years of experience in the design and construction fields. She promotes energy-efficient, high performance buildings that include natural light, resource-efficiency, good indoor air quality and ecologically sensitive site design. She is active with the AIA Committee on the Environment, the U.S. Green Building Council and the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. She is currently a Board member of the Montana Chapter of the USGBC. Kelly has been accepted into the Living Building Challenge Ambassador program and gives presentations to teams or firms interested in knowing more about the Living Building Challenge. She speaks and writes about the design challenges facing architects and business leaders as they integrate sustainable design into their projects and practices. Kelly has also authored several design guides on sustainable design topics, including the recently published “Guide to High Performance Buildings."
Education
- B.S. Civil Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California, 1979.
- M. Arch, University of Colorado, Denver, Colorado, 1985.
Professional Licenses and Accreditation
- Licensed Architect, Colorado 1989 – present (License # 202717).
- Licensed Civil Engineer, California 1981 -1991, and Colorado 1984 - 1999.
- LEED Accredited Professional with Specialty, June 2001.
Professional Experience
- Founder and Principal Consultant, Design Balance, January 1996 - present.
- Director, Design Technology for the Built Environment, University of Denver, January 1996 - April 1997.
- Principal and Project Architect, Klipp Colussy Jenks DuBois, Architects, P.C., Denver, Colorado, October 1985 -
October 1995.
- Project Engineer, Forell Elsesser Engineers, Inc., San Francisco, California, July 1979 - June 1982.
Professional Involvement and Recognition
- LEED Accredited Design Professional, June 2001 – present
- Member, U.S. Green Buildings Council, 2000 – present
- Board Member, Montana Chapter of the USGBC, 2009 – present
- Member, Sustainable Business Council, 2010 - present
- Living Building Challenge Ambassador, 2010 - present
- Member, American Institute of Architects, 1990 - present
- Licensed Architect, 1990- present
- Green Homes, Green Futures Award, January 2006
- Excellent Use of Renewable Energy in Buildings, Colorado Renewable Energy Society, June 2002
- Certified Habitat Steward, 1999 - present
- Certified Forest and Land Steward, 1998 - present
- Research Excellence Award, Sustainable Design Resource Guide, AIA Denver, 1998
- Chair and Editor-in-Chief, Sustainable Design Resource Guide, published periodically, regional environmentally
preferable building materials and issues, 1994 - 1998, Co-Chair 1992 - 1994
- Technical Advisory Committee for Commercial Building Energy Standard, Governor's Office of Energy Conservation,
State of Colorado, 1996 - 1997
- Secretary, Board of Directors, AIA Colorado Chapter, 1997
- Chair, AIA Denver Chapter, Committee on the Environment, 1993- 1998
- AIA Leadership Award, 1997
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