Green

Can you guess how many LEED APs there are?

Go ahead, take a guess. 10,000? Way low. 50,000? You're still off by an order of magnitude. 100,000? Getting close. Give up? OK, it's 185,071. Here's the latest breakdown from the USGBC: LEED Professionals LEED APs with specialty – 64,405 LEED APs without specialty – 89,411 LEED Green Associates – 31,255 Total LEED Professionals – 185,071
April 28, 2013

Go ahead, take a guess. 10,000? Way low. 50,000? You're still off by an order of magnitude.

100,000? Getting close.

Give up? OK, it's 185,071. Here's the latest breakdown from the USGBC:

LEED Professionals 
LEED APs with specialty –  64,405
LEED APs without specialty – 89,411
LEED Green Associates – 31,255
Total LEED Professionals – 185,071

But it doesn't stop there. Since some people hold multiple LEED AP specialities - the same person may be LEED AP ND and LEED AP O+M, for example - the number of LEED professional "credentials held" is even bigger: 196,537.

Again, the latest from USGBC:


LEED Green Associate – 31,254
LEED AP BD+C – 66,313
LEED AP Homes – 608
LEED AP ID+C – 5,558
LEED AP ND – 431
LEED AP O+M – 2,962
LEED APs without specialty – 89,411
Total LEED Credentials Held – 196,537

Of course, the LEED AP credential we like best is LEED AP BD+C. So nice of the USGBC to name it after the acronym for Building Design+Construction, right down to the use of the plus sign instead of an ampersand. Thank you, USGBC, we appreciate the publicity.

About the Author

Rob Cassidy

Robert Cassidy is Executive Editor of Building Design+Construction and the Editor of Multifamily Design+Construction. A city planner, he is the author of several books, including “Livable Cities,” and was a co-founder of the Friends of the Chicago River.

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