Holley Henderson is the founder of H2 Ecodesign which has led over 4 million square feet of successful green building certifications worldwide including several firsts in China and Thailand. She has served in a variety of leadership positions for the National U.S. Green Building Council's (USGBC) LEED Steering, Market, and Education Committees.

Holley is author of the book “Becoming a Green Building Professional.” A frequently sought speaker on sustainable design issues, Holley provides engaging presentations and trainings for numerous annual meetings, conferences, companies, professional associations, and universities.

The Early Days with Holley  

Holley grew up in Birmingham, Alabama.  She went to Auburn University School of Architecture. After college, Holley lived in Atlanta for about 20 years, and she is now back in Birmingham to be closer to family. Holley spent 10 years in the convention market sector where she could scale and increase the magnitude of projects, which was her specialty.

“I feel so blessed to have had the experience of working at TVS. It is a pretty large firm. It still is a pretty large firm, but at the time There were about 200 people in Atlanta,  and it was a magnificent foundation for early education and best practices in the field and had a great infrastructure. Some of my best friends and mentors are still from there.” - Holley Henderson

Sustainability Minded

Holley’s interest in sustainability started in college at Auburn. She had her early epiphany with an environmental biology teacher who was a big influence and then it evolved during her 10 years in the convention market sector as she observed the waste. She knew there had to be a better way.  That was part of the catalyst of moving into the environmental realm.

“I also heard Ray Anderson speak about overhead transparencies. That is when it all kind of came together for me.” - Holley Henderson

Transition From Architecture Firms

Holley worked for Interface for a short time and discovered that they did indeed walk the walk and were very true to form. She saw some really remarkable things there and considered her time there as her transition from an architecture firm to her own company.

“I had no history in my own family of anyone owning their own company.  It was a foreign concept to me really. When you come from the architectural interior design it’s a fantastic background and has a billable mentality which has been very helpful in my business.” - Holley Henderson

Proudest Achievements

Holley discusses that one of her proudest achievements is learning to be a better listener which is still an evolving process and secondly, she loves the education side of what she does. Holley’s most rewarding project was working with Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta to create an Ipod walking tour.

“The more I can help others to understand good stewardship of our planet, efficiencies, and taking the next step in their journey... all of those things are really exciting to me.” - Holley Henderson

Book Recommendations

Becoming a Green Professional by Holley Henderson

Emotional Agility by Susan David

Tim Ferriss Podcast

Tune into this podcast to listen to the rest of Holley Henderson’s amazing journey in this podcast hosted by Charlie.

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