Jennifer Berthelot-Jelovic, CEO of A SustainAble Production, shares her journey with WELL and how her involvement as a WELL AP and WELL Faculty has been a powerful catalyst for her career and lifestyle.
Jennifer is the President and CEO of A SustainAble Production (ASAP). ASAP is a woman owned, full-service, global Sustainability and Wellness Consulting firm based in Los Angeles, CA. ASAP provides an array of holistic global consulting services including sustainable, regenerative, resilient and healthy design & construction for single buildings, communities, porfolios, and entire cities; WELL certification; LEED certification; Living Building Challenge; Net Zero; Waste Audits; and more.
Jennifer is an expert in the International WELL Building Institute’s (IWBI) WELL Building Standard (WELL). Jennifer was one of the first Provisional WELL APs, WELL APs, and WELL Faculty in the world. Jennifer was a Peer Reviewer for v1.0 and v2.0 Pilot of the Standard, and continues to contribute to the development of WELL and its Pilots. Jennifer has had the unique experience of being a Consultant to both Delos and IWBI; as well as working with WELL in various phases and Pilots, on over 100 projects around the country and world. Jennifer works with Global companies as they explore WELL for their projects and portfolios. Jennifer is the WELL Consultant and Portfolio Advisory Representative for numerous Portfolios enrolled in the WELL Portfolio Pathway Pilot Program. Jennifer has also been a second-round reviewer for the Greenbuild International Conference and Expo education program multiple times as a Health and Well-Being expert. Jennifer’s continued contributions to WELL make her an expert and innovator, always leading the way.
As a holistic wellness and sustainability Consultant; Jennifer also has extensive experience with the USGBC’s various LEED rating systems including LEED for Homes, New Construction, Core & Shell, Commercial Interiors, LEED for Schools, Retail, LEED Volume, Campus, Arc and more. She is currently working on many projects seeking Net Zero certification. Jennifer’s contribution to some of the most innovative and “first of their kind” sustainability projects in the country and world, has been invaluable. In her previous role as Owner’s Representative at Shangri-La Industries and Director of Sustainability at Shangri-La Construction; Jennifer was instrumental in securing the world’s first LEED Platinum certification for New Construction for an aviation facility through her work on Hangar 25 in Burbank, CA. Hangar 25 was awarded the title of “Greenest Aviation Facility In the World”. Jennifer also successfully facilitated the LEED certification of 302 E Carson located in Las Vegas, NV. This LEED Gold Core & Shell project was Nevada’s first LEED Gold office retrofit, marking an important milestone for the City and State. Jennifer also orchestrated the LEED Platinum certification of Citadel Environmental Services, Inc.’s Corporate Headquarters under LEED for Commercial Interiors. This was the first LEED Platinum Commercial Interior office space in the Tri-City (Glendale/Pasadena/Burbank) area. One of Jennifer’s most renowned projects is Step Up On Vine, a Platinum certified LEED for Homes Multi-family, permanent supportive housing project for chronically homeless, mentally ill individuals in Hollywood, CA.
Jennifer has provided tours of hundreds of LEED and WELL registered and certified projects around the country for international and domestic Owners, Developers, Design teams, Build teams, Consultants, Innovators, Fortune 500 Companies, and more. Jennifer has also provided hundreds of Sustainability and Wellness presentations around the country for over 50 organizations. Jennifer has been written about, quoted, and published in over 100 articles and publications over the past 10 as well as being the voice and face of many of IWBI’s marketing campaigns. Jennifer partnered with Chromatic Content as a Subject Matter Expert on the WELL Learning Library (WLL). The WLL is a series of eLearning modules focused on WELL v2. Jennifer is a content contributor and reviewer, in addition to being featured in the modules as a Subject Matter Expert.
Jennifer’s commitment and service include joining the Board of Directors for the San Fernando Valley (SFV) Green Team, while simultaneously Co-Chairing the SFV Green Building Task Force from 2009 to July 2013. Jennifer was a Board Member of the USGBC-LA Chapter from March 2012-August 2018; as Vice Chair from January 2013- August 2015, and as Secretary from January 2012- January 2013. Jennifer was a Founder of the SFV Branch of USGBC-LA Chapter; as Chair and later, Vice Chair from September 2013 to present. Jennifer joined the Urban Land Institute Los Angeles Building Healthy Places Steering Committee in March 2016 and is still an active member.
Jennifer’s Projects have won hundreds of awards between them and Jennifer herself, has also won numerous awards for her leadership and contributions in the industry, including:
• Green Building & Design (gb&d) 2018 Women In Sustainability Leadership Award (WSLA) Winner
• International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) 2018 Leadership Award Winner
• Los Angeles Business Journal’s 2014 Women Making a Difference Award Winner- Rising Star Winner
~ 250 Women were nominated in 6 categories. Jennifer won the Rising Star award for making noteworthy contributions to date, and being well on her way to making a meaningful imprint on the future of her organization and the local business community.
• USGBC-LA Chapter, 2014 Leadership Award & 2011 “Green Mind” Award Nominee
WHY I JOINED THE WELL COMMUNITY
I was fortunate enough to work on many of the first Pilot projects before WELL v1.0 was released. I was a WELL v1.0 Peer Reviewer, one of the first Provisional WELL APs, one of the first WELL APs and one of the first WELL Faculty. I have watched the Standard grow and mature in a very short time; learning important lessons from LEED and other predecessors. I love the Standard and everything about it! I have been impressed with how quickly the market has adopted WELL. Since human health and well-being is one of my greatest passions, it has been really exciting to see how much my business has grown and flourished through my work with WELL. As someone who is passionate about this issue, I am inspired by the fact that there is a certification to provide healthier places for people. I foresee my career focusing a great deal on this issue for years to come! I was also inspired by the leadership at IWBI!
WHAT WELLNESS MEANS TO ME
What I love about the WELL Standard is that it holistically addresses health and wellness and how I approach it in my own life. For me, wellness is a balanced lifestyle that addresses air quality; water quality and access; healthy nutritious food; light that is best for productivity and performance; being comfortable in my space; being inspired and motivated by my space; having the ability to exercise; and getting a good night’s sleep. My kids and I carry a canteen of alkaline filtered water everywhere we go so that we have access to safe and good tasting water all the time. I’ve been a vegetarian for 26 years, eat mostly organic food and I have raised my two kids as vegetarians eating predominantly organic food as well. We grow our own fruits and veggies in our Garden Towers in our backyard. And we planted 17 raised garden beds at our school so we could ensure that the kids also have access to learning in a natural way while at school. My office and my house are full of windows and doors in every room so that we can get natural daylight, views and fresh air. And we have walk off mats at all of the entries to our home and office to diminish indoor air contaminants. Our house and my office are covered with artwork that inspires and stimulates us. We have beautiful green walls that cover the perimeter of our house and my office. The backyard of our house and the exterior of my office are focused on a pool, so that we always have access to water for swimming or the calming effect it creates, as the sun reflects off of it. I love to swim, do yoga, hike, and box. There is a boxing bag and equipment in our house and office so that we can take a break from daily life and work, to get some exercise. I rarely sit at a desk while working and tend to move around to the space I feel most productive in. I also ensure that I get a minimum of 7-8 hours of sleep almost every night. For me, wellness is balancing a lifestyle that keeps my mind, body and spirit aligned and inspired to perform its best!