LEED Professional Credentials by the Numbers
Image courtesy of author.
This Fall, I had the honor and pleasure of leading a professional cohort through a series of structured online study sessions as they prepared to take a credentialing exam to become LEED Green Associates. In anticipation of a final in-person examination preparatory session at this year's Greenbuild International Conference and Expo in Philadelphia, I wanted to offer the cohort a perspective regarding the market's uptake of green building accreditations—particularly, LEED professional credentials. The following is a summary of what I intend to share with them, which I hope may serve to motivate readers here to pursue green building credentials.
In their latest Firm Survey Report, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported that 59 percent of architecture firms have at least one member on their payroll with a specialty sustainability or resilience credential. This is important as architects are often in leadership positions on building design teams. The business rationale for holding a green building credential in this position is simple: such a credential reflects to teammates, clients, and the public that a professional holds the core competencies - or in the case of certain credentials, an acutely specialized knowledge base - with regard to the sustainable design and construction. As such, a credentialed professional may function to provide guidance and/or leadership on building project teams pursuant to sustainability objectives.
Since the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) first introduced the LEED Accredited Professional (LEED AP) credential in 2001, a groundswell of interest and support for green building credentials has expanded the LEED professional credential while other designations have emerged in response to market demands to allow design and construction professionals to differentiate specific types of green building expertise.
LEED Professional Credentials
Today, USGBC offers the following basic structure regarding their LEED professional credentials (by the way, try not to conflate these terms: people are accredited and buildings are certified):
LEED Green Associate (LEED GA): This is a foundational professional credential that signifies core competency in green building principles. Anyone can earn this credential (even students).
LEED AP with specialty: This is an advanced professional credential signifying expertise in both green building as well as a specific variation of the LEED rating system. The current specialties are:
- LEED AP Building Design + Construction (LEED AP BD+C)
- LEED AP Operations + Maintenance (LEED AP O+M)
- LEED AP Interior Design + Construction (LEED AP ID+C)
- LEED AP Neighborhood Development (LEED AP ND)
- LEED AP Homes
The market update of LEED professional credentials has been significant. According to the latest figures from USGBC, there are:
- More than 205,000 LEED professional credential holders around the world;
- More than 40,000 LEED Accredited Professionals with a specialty;
- More than 129,000 LEED Accredited Professionals without a specialty (note USGBC did not introduce LEED AP credentials with specializations until 2009);
- More than 36,000 LEED Green Associates.
Comparing the Uptake of LEED Professional Credentials to Other Popular Accreditations
To provide a frame of reference by which to contextualize the market uptake of LEED professional credentials, consider the following:
- Earlier this year, the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) reported that there were over 25,000 WELL APs and/or WELL Faculty worldwide.
- The latest figures from Active Design Advisors, Inc., attest to more than 4,500 Fitwel Ambassadors.
- In 2023, the International Living Future Institute (ILFI) acknowledged there are over 1,000 Living Future Accredited (LFA) professionals,
- In 2021, the Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI) reported that there are over 500 SITES APs.
Breakdown of LEED-related Credentials
USGBC's public directory of green building professionals offers an opportunity to ascertain a general proportionality of how many people hold each LEED credential. As of this writing, the directory exhibits roughly 128,000 unique credentials across more than 93,900 individuals, meaning that over 26 percent of all LEED credentials are attributed to professionals who already have at least one such credential.
The figure below offers a breakdown of LEED-related credentials by percentage. Among other observations:
- Over half of all LEED credentials are either LEED GA or LEED AP BD+C.
- There are more LEED APs without speciality than LEED APs with speciality, though eventually LEED APs with speciality will constitute the majority as the other credential is no longer available.
- There are over four times more LEED AP BD+C credentials earned than all other LEED AP specialty credentials combined.
- There are more LEED Green Raters than LEED Fellows.
- Roughly a quarter of LEED Fellows are emeritus status.
Figure: LEED professional credentials by percentage using data from the USGBC's public directory of accredited professionals (accessed October 23, 2024). Figure by Daniel Overbey. |
Whether your green building credential is helping meet market demands or you are strategically investing yourself toward offering a unique standing in the spectrum of sustainability professionals, earning a green building credential is a great way to demonstrate expertise in a competitive service landscape.
