Office of Sustainability

Amanda Gale — Faculty

Auburn University, Auburn, AL 

Amanda Gale (PhD, LEED AP), encapsulates the spirit of sustainability through her enthusiasm, energy, and dedication to expanding the boundaries of how interior design can function more effectively for both building inhabitants and the planet. Whether training the next generation of interior designers or pushing for building policies and practices that optimize sustainability, Amanda’s passion creates an atmosphere that both engages and challenges others to think about how to build and design for a better tomorrow. By utilizing innovate design, combined with tangible research, Amanda is helping others expand their regenerative possibilities for interior design in the 21stcentury.

Amanda has been influential in reshaping the academic experience of many Auburn students. She has developed multiple interior design classes centered around the LEED rating system, and the sustainability concepts of biomimicry, biophilia, and natural capitalism. As a result of these courses, over 55 students have earned their LEED AP certification. Obtaining these credentials enables students to increase their marketability upon graduation, while also enhancing the reputation of Auburn graduates. These newly developed courses also allow Sustainability minor students to expand their understanding of the multiple ways in which the built environment influences sustainability and earn credit toward their degrees.

In addition to expanding curricular offerings, Amanda has also connected students to practicing professionals through her role in the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). As the faculty co-sponsor of the campus chapter of USGBC, Amanda has helped create opportunities for students to engage in state-wide sustainability projects, including the deconstruction of a single-family home in conjunction with the City of Montgomery, the Home Builders Institute, and Rescue Relics. In addition, the Auburn USGBC chapter has worked on a number of sustainability engagement projects with students, teachers, and administrators at the K-12 level. The appeal of these endeavors, alongside the enthusiasm Amanda displays, has resulted in an increasing number of interior design students engaging with the on-campus USGBC chapter.

Amanda’s impact, however, goes beyond the classroom. The core of her academic work centers on the relationship between sustainability and interior design. With numerous studies, papers, and presentations examining the intersection between building interiors, facility management, and occupancy health, Amanda is helping to advance scholarship in the realm of sustainable interior design. Furthermore, she embodies the Auburn spirit of outreach by taking her work beyond the university campus through her active involvement in USGBC both at the state and national levels. Amanda has volunteered her time and expertise in service to the USGBC through two terms on the Board of Directors, including holding positions as secretary, chair of the Nominations committee, a member of the Executive committee, and chair of the Green Schools committee. She has also represented the Alabama chapter of the USGBC at national level meetings.

Amanda Gale currently holds an assistant professorship in the Consumer and Design Services Department within Auburn University’s College of Human Sciences. She earned her PhD in 2011 from Eastern Michigan State University, and since that time has served on the faculty of Auburn University. In addition to her involvement in USGBC, Amanda is a member of the Interior Design Educators Council, the Environmental Design Researcher Association, and the American Society of Interior Design.