Henderson Engineers, a national building systems design firm, welcomes Brian Alessi, AIA, LEED AP, BD+C, as its new sustainability director. Alessi brings 20 years of experience in sustainable design to the role, including over 400 LEED certified projects, zero net energy projects, and residential and commercial passive house developments. He will be at the helm of Henderson’s long-running efforts to design buildings that are healthy, sustainable, and resilient. Alessi will also lead efforts to support Henderson’s sustainability-focused clients on their path to net zero.

“Brian is an invaluable addition to our technical leadership team as we continue to push ourselves to expand our services to meet our climate goals,” said Dustin Schafer, chief technical officer at Henderson. “We’re committed to delivering work that is good for people and good for the planet. Brian is a longtime advocate of this approach. His holistic design process and multidisciplinary approach will help ensure we remain at the forefront of implementing innovative, cost-effective sustainability strategies for our clients.”

Henderson’s design process aligns with standards set forth by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and each project is analyzed for its potential environmental impact, including CO₂ emissions, landfill waste, and water and energy consumption. Henderson has more than 125 LEED-Accredited professionals on staff and the firm has completed more than 500 LEED projects, including the Golden 1 Center and practice facility in Sacramento, Calif., which was the first LEED Platinum and entirely solar-powered arena in the world.

“I collaborated with Henderson in the past as a consultant and appreciated how receptive the company is to adopting sustainable solutions,” said Alessi. “I believe sustainability is a beautiful blend of design, equity, and social good, and my role is to ensure the building systems we create nurture our environment now and for future generations. I’m excited to bring this vision and my expertise to the Henderson team.”

Henderson’s experts help clients consider the environmental impact of design through services such as energy modeling, carbon consulting, envelope analysis, sustainability master planning, LEED^® & WELL^® consulting, and more.

“Our approach to high-performance sustainable design is a blend of pragmatism and idealism,” said Schafer, who previously served as Henderson’s sustainability director. “We believe that climate change is a real and pressing issue, and that the building design and construction industry has a big role to play in being a part of the solution. We’ve developed processes that allow our clients to envision and be successful on their path to net zero. It’s important for us to help create change in the industry and to continue to improve the way we design and build for increased sustainability.”

Previously, Alessi served as the director of energy and sustainability at TK1SC, an engineering consulting firm in Irvine, Calif. His role involved spearheading the integration of sustainability measures such as companywide carbon neutrality and waste elimination programs into the company’s mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and structural design practices.

Alessi is a certified passive housing consultant with a master’s degree in architecture from the New School of Architecture and Design in San Diego. He is a member of both the Los Angeles and California chapters of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), where he sits on environmental committees advocating for healthy, sustainable, and equitable designs across the state. He is also vice chair of the Building Decarbonization Committee at USGBC-LA, which advances education, policy, and programs toward building decarbonization in the L.A. region. Earlier in his career, he taught sustainable facilities management at Villanova University in Villanova, Penn.

Henderson’s sustainability efforts extend to charitable giving through the Henderson Foundation, its philanthropic arm. The foundation provides direct grants to organizations that support environmental justice, sustainability, and ecological efforts nationwide.