Drinks, food and conversations were plentiful at the Houston Young Design Professionals Happy Hour this past Wednesday. This collaborative event saw hundreds of young professionals across the industry come together for an evening of fun and networking. This event, held at the Irish Cowboy, was a collaborative event between the young professional groups across Houston, allowing the various groups to come together and meet people from other parts of the industry. Among the hosting groups were the AIA Young Architects Forum, AGC Construction Leadership Council, American Society of Landscape Architects, American Planning Association, Young Engineers in ASHRAE, and rdAGENTS, American Society of Interior Designers, and the Illuminating Engineering Society EP's. It was a great event and all are looking forward to the next one in the fall.

This past August, the IES National Conference was held in Portland, Oregon. The national conference serves as a gathering of the IES committees and as an opportunity to run the general business of the national organization. Workshops, tradeshows, informational talks, networking and awards ceremonies are all part of the conference. At this year's event, five members of the board of directors made their way to the conference to represent the Houston Chapter on committees, in the District Level Check-In, at the Leadership Forum, and at the Emerging Professional Workshop. All of those who attended had an extremely enjoyable time meeting lighting professionals from across the globe and learning what is to come in design and lighting best practices. 

Leadership Forum
A one day event prior to the start of the main conference, two of our directors attended to gather ideas on how to continue our success as a chapter, but also ways to improve and provide better programs and opportunities to the Houston lighting community. Focused both on internal functioning and work engaging the community, many of the ideas are currently moving towards implementation.

District 4 Check-In
Serving as a meeting between the chapters in our district and the district and regional leadership, our president worked to discuss how our chapter is doing, our plans for the coming year, and to learn what is going on in the district at large. As part of the role of the district governance as the conduit between the local chapters and the national organization, plans for the discussed to allow for greater collaboration between the sections and the national organization that will help make some of the behind the scenes items easier and more efficient. 

Emerging Professional Workshop
The EP Workshop was an opportunity to meet with young professionals starting out their careers across the country and have special talks and events geared to this part of life. As part of the program, the EP's were taken on tours of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of Oregon's Energy Studies of Buildings Laboratory; both of which served as an opportunity to see the work that people are doing both at the University and Governmental levels to test and apply lighting theories to make buildings, lighting and energy safer and more resource conscientious. To round out the workshop, networking and an inspirational round table focused on developing the EP involvement in local chapters took place. As part of that work, the local chapter has a renewed focus on engaging young professionals in the Houston region and providing both social and educational opportunities for them.  

Paper Sessions and Workshops
Serving as the educational portion of the conference, numerous professionals provided presentations on their research in various areas of the lighting field. Topics ranged from the impact light plays on travel, the ability to generate accurate models for tree influence on lighting and shading calculations, and the antioxidant properties of produce grown under tuneable lighting. But overwhelmingly, two topics rose to the top in number of presentations...those being the role of lighting in healthcare and the Internet of Things (IOT). In regards to the health care aspect, circadian rhythm was the topic of choice as researchers and presenters worked to both dispel myths, but also show what impact lighting is playing on our lives. This looks to be a topic that will continue to gain prominence as a greater focus from researchers and the IES continues development throughout the coming years.    

IES Awards Ceremony
Recognizing the leaders and best of the lighting design world, as well as players who have served the community with their expertise and guidance for years past, the Awards Ceremony was an evening to behold. The lighting designs that were recognized that evening can only be described as inspired, and hearing the stories behind the designs only served to reinforce their beauty. 

In an effort to get more new people to attend our monthly meetings, we are offering a special discount to first time meeting attendees. On the Event Page, there will be an option for the first time attendee to select that will allow them to attend the meeting for FREE. The intent is to get people to the meeting and excited about the lunch and learn so they will keep returning. Please let those in your office know about this opportunity for our September or October meetings.

For those who are past the "first time attendee" status, we would like to remind you that there is a member discount for every meeting. Check out the "Become A Member" Tab at the top for more information and a link to the National IES Website to become a member today. 

The IES Houston Chapter is pleased to announce the 2017-2018 Officers and Board of Managers.

President: Carrie Cavins
Vice President: Jared Gunlock
Secretary: Jaren Fort
Treasurer: Jason Feit

Past President: Mark Beebe
Board Member: Trenton Schaaf
Board Member: David Nesmith
Board Member: Manny Moran
Board Member: Christopher Wells

The new team began their work last month and are currently working hard on the development of the programs for this season and planning for educational opportunities. We all are looking forward to the year ahead with the chapter and can't wait to see everyone at our September lunch meeting.

As always, we welcome any input or suggestions on topics, events or education that you would like to see throughout the year. Drop us a line.

View and download the PDF handout for our February meeting with Mark Lien.

This year's IES Houston Expo was held in City Centre. The day was full of valuable learning and networking. See a few pictures from the day of the event.