Many organizations strive to reduce their environmental impact, but few people espouse the concept of sustainability as fully as Peter Halsall.

"[Our] intent is to be an enduring organization," Halsall says, referring to Halsall Associates Ltd., the leading Canadian engineering consulting firm of the same name. "We count on being around for many generations. This ties into our vision of sustainability."

The President of Halsall Associates, Peter Halsall is a Professional Engineer with a Master's degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Toronto, where he graduated at the top of his class. Halsall's father, Robert, started the firm in 1956, and over the past five decades, the company has built an international portfolio that boasts some of the most prominent buildings in North America.

Halsall Associates carries a well-known reputation for championing sustainability in their building and planning projects. The firm is a founding member of the Canada Green Building Council, and has aided in the development of the LEED Canada standard for Existing Buildings. Over 70 of the organization's LEED projects are currently pursuing certification. Halsall Associates also maintains a green building and sustainability consulting team of over 30 staff.

"The feedback that we've gotten, that resonates with us, is that we walk the talk," Halsall says of his clients' responses. "Our service is seen as different, because we believe in our vision of sustainability. I believe not everyone has that passion."

Halsall's vision of sustainability extends beyond the environmental. The organization has been recognized as one of Canada's Top 100 Employers by Maclean's Magazine for several consecutive years. That they have been recognized for their positive, team-oriented work ethic belies a commitment to a greater idea of sustainability that goes beyond solely green thinking.

"In 1995, we set about to make a place where we'd be proud to have our children aspire to work here," Halsall explains. "In order to make that place, we got serious about our workplace practices." After a revamp of their internal operations, the results were considerable: Halsall states that the organization has reduced their emissions output to about 60 per cent of those they had benchmarked against.

Halsall's offices in Ontario, Alberta and B.C. have been bullfrogpowered since 2006, making the firm one of the longest-standing members of the bullfrogpowered community. Halsall's home is bullfrogpowered as well. "It was a good fit," Halsall says of the decision to purchase clean, emissions-free electricity from Bullfrog. "It fit our desire to be good citizens. We wanted to be a part of supporting the movement to green electricity." He adds, "It made more sense to support community change. We're proud to still be here!"

Halsall Associates now takes its green-minded approach to its communities. "We realized that there were bigger opportunities in community planning," Halsall says. "We wanted to see that communities were being more rationally planned, in order to take advantage of a low-carbon future."

How does Halsall view Canada's sustainable future? "Within Canada we have a lot of leaders, but on the whole I think there is room for improvement," he explains. "I think we should build on the strengths that we have." Halsall cites the Canadian Urban Institute as one such positive institution. "But as a nation, I think we should be getting it faster."

Halsall Associates continues to develop and promote new sustainability initiatives in building. "We're excited about a whole slew of projects!" Halsall enthuses. "[From] a housing development on Vancouver Island, a carbon-neutral community in Montreal, to the Brick Works in Toronto, and Markham's new sustainability guidelines…there's a lot of momentum, and a lot of people are prepared to take up the challenge and run with it; they get it."

For Peter Halsall, the end goal is ensuring a bright future for generations to come. "I want all my employees to have the best career possible," he says. "I take that personally all the way through."

By no small coincidence, that includes Halsall's daughter, who is continuing the family tradition as an environmental engineer at Halsall. "She's doing a great job," he says. "I'm really proud to have her working here."