Gail Borthwick

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Gail Borthwick

Gail Borthwick AIA, LEED AP

As a Senior Architect at AS+GG, Gail Borthwick has extensive experience in green and high-performance design, participating in several national organizations devoted to sustainability. 

Gail has also been executive board member for the Illinois Chapter USGBC (US Green Building Council).

In 2011, Gail received her masters degree at University of Edinburgh in conjunction with the Architecture and Urban Design studio in the program The City, which explores the relationships between architecture, urban design, ethnological studies, culture and economics.  Her dissertation focused on the Barbican Estate in the City of London.
Since joining AS+GG in 2007, Gail has contributed to the design and sustainability consultation of several major projects in Chicago, Vancouver, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and most recently led the Chicago Central Loop Area DeCarbonization Plan project and its accompanying published book.

Prior to AS+GG Gail served as a sustainable design consultant and project architect on various large commercial projects at Perkins + Will in Chicago.

Other previous work experience includes stays at Chicago firms Farr Associates and Frye Gillan Molinaro, as well as  intern positions in Toronto and London. Gail has also held teaching positions at the School of the Art Institute, Harrington College of Design and is currently teaching at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. She is an experienced and engaging presenter and has presented at conferences internationally.

In her former career Gail was a business analyst with a large financial institution in Canada. This diverse background  gives her insight into the financial world beyond her architectural training.

Education

Master of Science in The City, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland, 2011
Bachelor of Environmental Studies, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, 2000
Bachelor of Architecture, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, 2000

Affiliations

American Institute of Architects
Ontario Association of Architects
LEED Accredited Professional
U.S. Green Building Council, Board of Directors
USGBC, member of Educational Committee
USGBC, member of Public Relations Committee
National Council of Architectural Registration Boards
Whole System Integration Process National Committee
Adjunct Faculty, Harrington School of Design
National Committee National Council of Architectural Registration Boards
Lambda Alpha International – Society for the Advancement of Land Economics

Presentations + Publications

Living Futures Conference, Portland, OR, 2012
Lecture, IIT Stuart School of Business, “The Chicago DeCarbonization Plan,” Chicago, Illinois, October 2011
National Science Foundation, Architecture and Engineering of Sustainable Buildings, Istanbul, Turkey, 2011
British Council’s Transatlantic 2020 Conference, Chicago, Illinois, 2010
Greening the Heartland Conference, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 2010
Mayor’s Green Ribbon Committee, Chicago, Illinois, 2010
Acknowledgement in The Integrative Design Guide to Green Building, 2009
GreenBuild USGBC Conference, Phoenix, Arizona, 2009
Building Green Chicago Conference, 2009

Awards

2012 AIA Design Excellence, SustainABILITY Award, Chicago Central Area Decarbonization Plan
2012 American Architecture Foundation, Sustainable Cities Design Academy Award, Chicago Central Area DeCarbonization Plan
2011 American Architecture Award, Chicago Central Area DeCarbonization Award
2010 R+D Award for Sustainability, Architect Magazine, Chicago DeCarbonization Plan
2010 WAN Awards, Urban Design, Chicago Central Area DeCarbonization Pla 
2010 International Architecture Award, Vancouver Residential Complex

Major projects at Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture:

Chicago Central Area Decarbonization Plan
Commission from the City of Chicago for a complete “Energy Master Plan” that assesses and looks at innovative solutions for the carbon performance of the downtown area Loop using a holistic urban design approach. Chicago, Illinois

Willis Tower Greening Project + Hotel
Integration of sustainable systems to reduce energy consumption at the former Sears tower and design for highly sustainable, 50-story five-star hotel to be built on the south side of Willis Tower plaza. The hotel will draw net zero energy from the power grid. Chicago, Illinois

Vancouver Residential Complex
Luxury low-rise residential complex with eco-footprint of “one” and annex building for neighboring church. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Masdar HQ Development
Positive Energy building (generating more energy than it consumes) in zero-carbon, zero-waste city outside of Abu Dhabi. Project includes office, retail, transit circulation and incorporates landscaped green space. Masdar City at Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

Park Gate
Ensemble of six mid-rise office buildings linked with canopies, enclosing a central garden space. Dubai, United Arab Emirates


Major projects at Perkins + Will:

Perkins + Will Offices
60,000 sf renovation of 2 floors of landmark building in downtown Chicago. LEED-CI  Platinum Certification. 2007, Chicago, Illinois

Bank Of America Headquarters
34-story, commercial office tower with connecting wintergarden and hotel. LEED-NC  Gold Certification. 2007, Charlotte, North Carolina

United States Coast Guard Headquarters
Concept design for GSA project. 2007, Washington, D.C.

The Haworth Center International Headquarters
450,000 sf new construction and renovations of corporate offices. LEED-NC Gold Certification. 2007, Holland, Michigan

Haworth Showrooms
LEED consulting and documentation for 15,000 sf interior build out of new showroom spaces. Multiple Locations. All LEED-CI Gold Certification.  2006, Santa Monica, California; Dallas, Texas; Washington, D.C.


Major projects at Farr Associates:

Kresge Headquarters
Embedded into the landscape, the building has retaining walls of gabion baskets filled with assorted old paving and foundation rubble from the site, mixed with crushed Michigan blue granite. 400 geothermal wells are concealed beneath the parking lot. Together, these and other details dramatically reduce the building's environmental impact, but at no cost to its visual impact. LEED Platinum awarded. 2004, Troy, Michigan

Communist Party Headquarters of Illinois
8,000 sf retrofit of existing building and storefront to community center. 2004, Chicago, Illinois

Farr Associates Offices
3,200 sf design build out in historic Monadnock building. LEED-CI Silver Certification. 2003, Chicago, Illinois

Dunelands Village Housing
Hope VI new housing development. 2003, Gary, Indiana

Gail Borthwick on…

…design
I'm drawn to design because there is something very challenging about creating a design solution, yet it's therapeutic for me at the same time.

…where she finds inspiration
In natural forms—they generally are the simplest and most logical design solutions.

…her favorite "moment" in architecture
When a project is complete and realized—when you see the end users inhabiting the space and it's more than they had ever imagined.

…her favorite city architecturally
Edinburgh. It's my original home, and I believe the architecture of that city strongly influenced my thoughts on architecture and urban design.

…her favorite thing about a collaborative design process
The dynamics of one idea that bounces around amongst team members and forces a better solution—how one person's idea or interpretation connects to the next person's.

…her biggest accomplishment at AS+GG
Winning the Masdar competition—that literally brought me to tears.

…what she'd be if she weren't an architect
Richer—financially!

…what she's doing when she's not designing
Sleeping.