River Bend Farm's Architecture Team Wins State Environmental Ally Award

Pictured (left to right): Chris Briley (Briburn), Phil Kaplan (Kaplan Thompson), Todd Richardson (Richardson & Associates), Ryan Kanteres (Scott Simons)

On January 31, the Maine Environmental Education Association (MEEA) held its annual awards night at Gisland Farm Audubon Center in Falmouth, Maine. MEEA's 2018 Environmental Ally Award was presented to “The Ecology of Architecture" collaborative, which is made up of four of Maine's top architecture and landscape design firms who are working together to build the state’s most sustainable residential environmental learning center for The Ecology School at River Bend Farm.

Breaking the normal structure of a single firm "owning” a project, these firms (Kaplan Thompson Architects, Scott Simons Architects, Briburn, and https://www.richardsonassociates.com/) funneled their expertise together to design a Dining Commons, Dormitory, and landscape that exceed most green building standards and model sustainable living at the highest level. Phil Kaplan (Kaplan Thompson), Ryan Kanteres (Scott Simons), Chris Briley (Briburn), and Todd Richardson (Richardson & Associates) were all at the event to accept the award from Olivia Griest, MEEA Executive Director. Speaking about the project, Chris Briley said, "Here is our opportunity to have a project where nature isn't giving way to concrete but instead we can focus on being part of the system."