On February 17, 2010, David Maurer AIA LEED-AP, President of TightLines Designs served on a panel discussion and presentation at the annual Duke Conference on Sustainable Business and Social Impact. The conference is a day-long event at the Fuqua School of Business that aims to educate and inspire students and Triangle-area professionals on rapidly evolving opportunities to create positive and sustainable change. The conference brought together national speakers from public, private and social sectors to discuss the issues most relevant to creating environmental and social impact. Attendees had the opportunity to explore topics through a mix of keynote addresses, thought-provoking panels and networking sessions. Panel sessions will explore a variety of topics and industries but will be organized into four tracks, including Marketing, Finance, Strategy and Entrepreneurship. To learn more about the conference and view the schedule of sessions, visit http://www.dukembanetimpact.org/sbsi/schedule.php.
Maurer was invited to be one of four panelists serving on an Entrepreneurship session entitled ‘Blueprints for Change: Designing and Engineering Social Impact.’ The session was designed to the address the fact that Technology and Design are leading areas for innovation and entrepreneurship, and to explore what happens when the talent of some of the best design thinkers, architects and engineers is harnessed and applied to the social and environmental crises we face today. Panelists discussed what it means to be an entrepreneur creating environmental and social value through innovative technologies as well as the key challenges and opportunities that exist in the field. The companies represented by the panelists are making a difference in health, housing, transportation and beyond.
David Maurer, AIA LEED-AP, is the founding principal of TightLines Designs, an architecture firm based in Raleigh, NC specializing in the design of small, energy efficient, healthy, and sustainable single family homes. The firm also provides consulting services regarding conservation based community design, green architecture, and historic revitalization. Maurer founded TightLines Designs in response to the growing demand for quality small home designs and for the opportunity to create an educational platform for environmentally sensitive construction techniques through the distribution of construction drawings and specifications. TightLines Designs has grown into one of the most recognized firms of NC, whose community oriented, sustainable, and historically appealing home designs are now being constructed mainly by local and national non-profits such as Self-Help, Habitat affiliates, and community development corporations to meet the needs of affordable housing, urban revitalization, downsizing retirees, and first-time homebuyers. An alumnus of Virginia Tech with a bachelors in Architecture and of the University of Washington with a masters degree in Architecture, Maurer is a LEED Accredited Professional and a member of the North Carolina Board of Architecture, American Institute of Architects, National Council of Architectural Registration Boards, Preservation North Carolina, National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the North Carolina Housing Coalition. He is also a regular feature at several leading conferences where he lectures on topics relating to affordable housing and sustainable designs.