For more than 30 years, Richard Piacentini has pushed the boundaries of sustainability and is widely recognized as a leading authority on how cultural institutions can drive meaningful climate action in their communities.  

Since 1994, as President and CEO of the Pittsburgh-based Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, Piacentini has served as the visionary architect of the Conservatory’s sustainability journey and was an early adopter of net-zero strategies.  

Notable accomplishments under Piacentini’s leadership include the construction of three zero-energy buildings: the Center for Sustainable Landscapes, the only building in the world to achieve Living Building Challenge™, LEED® Platinum, WELL™ Platinum, SITES™ Platinum, 3-Star Fitwel, and BREEAM Outstanding In-Use certifications; the transformation of Pittsburgh’s former public works buildings into the Living Building Challenge, and LEED® and WELL™ Platinum Exhibit Staging Center; and the Nature Lab for children’s programs. Other initiatives include the launch of a groundbreaking three-phase decarbonization plan to transition the entire Phipps campus to net-zero, and the creation of the Climate Toolkit (climatetoolkit.org) to assist museums, gardens, zoos, and other cultural institutions to address climate change. 

A highly respected thought leader, Piacentini has received numerous honors from organizations including the International Living Future Institute, U.S. Green Building Council, American Public Gardens Association, Carnegie Science Center, and Green Building Alliance. He has also served as Chair and Secretary of the Board of the International Living Future Institute and as President and Treasurer of the American Public Gardens Association. 

Piacentini has a deep interest in the vital connections between people, plants, health, and planet. A frequent speaker on sustainability leadership, architecture, and net-zero strategies, he delivered a TEDxPointParkUniversity talk in 2020 titled “What We Can Learn from an Old Glasshouse.” As a GNFZ Advisor, he will help guide strategies on net-zero energy, water, and waste for cultural institutions and how they can serve as incubators for climate action in the communities they serve.