Board of Directors

Jonathan Morse – Chair of the Board of Directors

Worked in the building trades since 1975.  In 1976, moved to the Brattleboro area, and started working for Rich Blazej, an innovative builder in the area.  Worked for him, mostly on a solar heated condo project in Brookline.  Worked for various people until Steve Mindel and I started Mindel and Morse Builders in 1981.  

Our priorities always were (1) energy efficiency, (2) use of local materials when possible, (3) a productive and congenial workforce, and (4) high quality workmanship.  We regularly took our crew to training workshops and seminars, and often had spirited discussions at lunch, and other non-work times, about the intricacies of building science and energy efficiency.  We always tried to stay ahead of the curve of the latest information and techniques.

My emphasis has always been on energy efficiency and natural materials.  Over the years I have educated myself and my employees in cutting edge ideas, techniques, and materials in order to make our buildings as energy efficient and sustainable as possible.  I am a founding member of SEON, and in my retirement am very excited to be at the forefront of educating professionals and the public in sustainable building practices.

Gary Swindler– Vice-Chair

Gary Swindler, Vice President, brings several decades of building science and construction management background to SEON. Gary joined the Board in 2019 after over 11 years as a commercial/industrial energy consultant for the Vermont Energy Investment Corporation. Before then, Gary served in several construction management positions for both commercial and residential projects, including nearly 20 years of on-the-job field experience. Gary’s passion for high-performance building issues is surpassed only by his dedication to a 10 acre Guilford farm where he’s established a vast diversity of tree fruits and nuts, maintains a productive grape and kiwi vineyard, while encouraging a complex diversity of native, naturalized and endangered plant species to thrive.

Gary’s education includes a Master’s Degree in Building Science from Arizona State University’s College of Architecture and Environmental Design, as well as a Bachelor of International Studies and Communication from the School for International Training in Brattleboro.

Candace Pearson, Esq. – Board Member

Candace Pearson leads BuildingGreen’s consulting practice in the areas of resilient design, alternative project delivery models, and collaborative construction contracts. Candace believes that the best projects come from project teams aligned around values, and that such alignment can be reinforced by clear, artfully-crafted contracts. She has a knack for facilitating kick-off meetings and she has partnered with construction attorneys to translate learnings into contractual agreements. In 2015, she co-authored a guide on Integrated Design and Delivery funded by the Commission for Environmental Cooperation.

In addition to her consulting work, Candace serves as in-house counsel at BuildingGreen and is an adept writer and researcher. Her areas of expertise include resilient design, biophilia, and grid services. Articles with her byline have appeared in GreenSource Magazine, Arch-Daily, and the Architectural Record.

Steve Spatz – Board Member

Steve Spatz is a Residential Energy Consultant and Account Manager with VEIC specializing in both Residential New Construction and Existing Homes programs and managing the partner contractors in Efficiency Vermont’s EEN contractor network in Vermont. Previously Steve owned and operated Redbarn Design and Build Inc, a residential construction and building energy contracting company. Steve is a BPI certified Building Analyst, Envelope Professional, and Healthy Home Evaluator, as well as a Resnet certified HERS and EnergyStar rater. 

Jason Van Nest – Board Member

Jason Van Nest is a New York City-based architect, educator, and BIM/VDC consultant.

As a designer, he has led, or contributed to many award-winning buildings, including several Vermont homes (solo), the Renovation of NYC’s Pier A (with H3), and the Hillside House (with David Weiner Architects).

As an educator, he has taught upper-level studios and seminars at Yale, New York Tech (NYIT), and others. He earned tenure at NYIT in 2016. His recent studios focus on the intersection of responsible design, BIM & VDC technologies, and modular & off-site strategies. His seminars explore these areas in-depth, with a focus on is area of research and writing: how 21st C. simulation tools are slowly up-ending 20th C. representational-based design assumptions.

As a BIM/VDC consultant he works with numerous architecture and design firms, including SHoP, DS+R, Cooper Robertson Partners, HWKN, Deborah Berke Partners, CookFox, GLUCK+, and others. His consultancy foucuses on the use of advanced technology to improve architect’s & builders project delivery workflows. His recent consultancy has been working to promote architect’s building information models beyond VDC uses and directly into modular industry production models.

Van Nest is a 2008 MacDowell Fellow and a 2015 Byrdcliffe Artist in Residence Fellow. Has has served many non-profit boards, including the MacDowell’s (6 years). He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Sustainable Energy Outreach Network. He earned his Master of Architecture at Yale School of Architecture, and the Bachelor of Science in Architecture at the Georgia Institute of Technology.