Manager, Materials (Program Development)

Company Description

The International Living Future Institute is a non-profit organization whose mission is to catalyze the transformation toward communities that are culturally rich, socially just and ecologically restorative. ILFI’s flagship program is the Living Building Challenge, the world’s most ambitious and holistic performance standard for resilient, healthy, and green buildings. ILFI offers other certifications, transparency labels, education, and events that enable organizations and individuals to communicate their commitment to a healthier world. 

We believe that the building industry can shift dramatically far faster and more radically than many assume. We also believe that the industry can and should address ecological impact, social impact, health impact and cultural impact as intersecting issues. Living Buildings are beacons for change, data points for skeptics, inspirational stories for young people, and test beds for innovation. We seek to affect change in the building industry by envisioning a Living Future and showing it’s possible to embody that future in practice and policy.

Job Description

STATUS: Full-time, exempt
REPORTS TO: Senior Manager, Materials 
LOCATION: Remote, within the United States

 
The International Living Future Institute (ILFI) seeks an experienced program manager with expertise in lifecycle assessment (LCA), knowledge of global ESG initiatives, and experience with evaluating the environmental footprint of products across their entire value chain. In this role, the Manager of Materials - Program Development will support the creation and maintenance of a label program focused on measuring, reducing, and ultimately overcoming the environmental impacts of building products, in the pursuit of regenerative manufacturing outcomes. 

Developing and managing requirements and evolving the reach, rigor, and impact of ILFI’s product programs involves collaborating with internal and industry stakeholders; addressing challenges faced by manufacturers; and interpreting and synthesizing relevant scientific research, industry standards and publications, best practices, and regulatory updates to support ambitious environmental goals for products.  An ideal candidate will have successful experience in aligning industry standards’ core principles while also identifying areas where pushing the boundaries of regenerative design are needed.

The successful applicant will have practical knowledge, experience, and understanding of LCAs, Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), Product Category Rules (PCRs), embodied carbon reporting, and holistic systems thinking. They should be adept at understanding LCA rules and various datasets, and have experience or a deep interest in learning and applying other environmental impact modeling, such as ecosystem services quantification, biodiversity protection methodologies, and product circularity by design. The applicant will also have a demonstrated passion for the interaction between environment, health, and equity in products in the building industry, and for transitioning to regenerative and circular economies.  Extra consideration will be given for experience in and knowledge of the built environment industry, product design and supply chains, and/or the various systems and certifications available for sustainability-related product and built environment attributes.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES
 

Program Development

• Support the development of the new version of the Living Product Challenge - updating the requirements to improve the program’s scope and rigor, and place it at the leading edge of climate, health, and equity within the building industry. This may include gathering internal and external input and feedback; adhering to the scope, timeline, budget, and work plan; collaborating with consultants assigned to the work; supporting internal cross-team coordination; drafting, reviewing, and finalizing written and graphic content; and helping with related external communications.
• Manage periodic updates to ILFI’s Living Product Challenge and other Challenges and Labels, as directed.
• Create educational content and other resources supporting customer success with the Living Product Challenge and other programs.
• Qualify, train, and evaluate program auditors, and help continuously improve the ILFI auditor programs.
• Understand, integrate, and align concepts and strategies between ILFI and external tools, standards, certifications, and rating systems, to maximize the beneficial outcomes of the financial and time investments made by sustainability teams.
• Help create and maintain scientifically-credible, rigorous, and clear guidelines for Handprinting methodologies that are accepted by industry peers and regulatory organizations, to help ILF