Alyson Laura interviews Charlie Cichetti

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Charlie</span> <span style= "font-weight: 400;">is proud to be one of the leaders in the green building industry. Today,</span> <strong>Alyson Laura interviews Charlie Cichetti</strong><span style="font-weight: 400;">.  They are long-time friends and colleagues. She's a sustainability maven excited to put him in the hotseat and find out what green building means and how it matters to Charlie.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">“You’re a risk taker, you started a business in an emerging industry.” - Alyson Laura</span></em></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Calculated risk...the industry was still strong even during the recession.” - Charlie Cichetti</span></em></p> <h2><span style="font-weight: 400;">Charlie and Alyson’s Backstory</span></h2> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Charlie and Allison’s friendship began in the early 2000’s soon after college at Georgia Tech. Go Jackets!</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">At that time, there was not the opportunity to obtain a degree in sustainability. LEED wasn’t eve taught in the School of Architecture where Alyson was enrolled. Those early programs whether construction or architecture did not expose students to LEED since it was still in its infancy.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">“LEED, we need to teach people, help them pass exams so they can navigate this crazy market of what is going on right now in the industry.” - Charlie Cichetti</span></em></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Charlies says his attendance at GT was natural from his upbringing in the mountains of GA and coming from a small town. Hie family encouraged sustainability. His mom is from OR where the early adoption of recycling programs got its start. His start in sustainability has its roots in the resourcefulness of his parent.</span></p> <h2><span style="font-weight: 400;">Focusing on LEED</span></h2> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Upon graduation, Charlie worked fo