Loyola Magazine

Loyola's first LEED-certified building features living wall

An Ever-Green Wall
Several students sitting at tables in front of the living green wall inside the Fernandez Center
Photo credits: Howard Korn
We are to treat creation as the creator would, not from our own selfish consumption but for the good of all creation.

—Rev. Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, S.J.

The living wall is one of the most striking features in the Miguel B. Fernandez Family Center for Innovation and Collaborative Learning, which opened in fall 2021 on Loyola’s Evergreen campus.

Located in the Green and Grey Café on the first floor of the Fernandez Center, the living wall improves air quality and reduces noise inside the building, all while improving a sense of wellbeing.

The Fernandez Center received the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council—a highly esteemed designation for environmentally sustainable buildings—notably becoming the first LEED-certified building on campus.

As the most important large-scale academic renovation on Loyola’s campus in a decade, the Fernandez Center sets a new standard for the academic community to innovate, teach, learn, engage, and collaborate through active learning classrooms, the Forbes Idea Lab, the Rizzo Career Center, and other collaborative spaces.

See more on Loyola’s dedication to sustainability.