The International Code Council presented the National Leadership in Sustainability and Energy Efficiency Award to Gayathri Vijayakumar during the U.S. Department of Energy’s 2023 National Energy Codes Conference in Chicago on May 3, 2023. The award recognizes outstanding contributions to the growth and enhancement of International Codes® (I-Codes) and/or public policy by advocating for the principles of the Code Council’s Sustainability Membership Council. Gayathri Vijayakumar, Principal Mechanical Engineer at Steven Winter Associates, Inc. (SWA) in Connecticut, was selected for her dedication to establishing consensus in the development of the 2024 International Energy Conservation Code® (IECC), which ultimately will help achieve global net-zero energy and decarbonization goals. As chair of the Residential Energy Services Network Standards Development Committee (SDC 300), Vijayakumar oversees and works with other voting members to amend RESNET’s technical standards for inspections, testing, and calculations. She is also an American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Building Energy Modeling professional. “In code development, success comes from persistence,” Vijayakumar said. “We need to be patient and communicate effectively. We have to have thick skin and be genuinely open to hearing opposing viewpoints. As building science consultants, we must be passionate about reducing the built environment’s impact on the natural world.” For over 17 years, Vijayakumar has been an energy conservation advocate specializing in evaluating residential and multi-family buildings with an emphasis on high-performance, energy-efficient construction, and renewable energy systems. “I am honored to receive this award, but there’s also a part of me that feels like it was more of a team effort,” said Vijayakumar. “I may have been the catalyst or mediator for certain conversations, but I worked alongside many code change proponents and committee members to accomplish these 2024 IECC revisions.” Read more on Gayathri’s recognition at https://www.iccsafe.org/building-safety-journal/bsj-perspectives/connecticuts-gayathri-vijayakumar-receives-national-leadership-in-sustainability-and-energy-efficiency-award/#
