I started thinking more deeply about the importance of legacy on my flight home from the 2026 Environments for Aging (EFA) Conference + Expo, this past March in Phoenix. I often hear industry colleagues talk about what their legacy will be.
Because so much of our time and energy is focused on architecture, we naturally think about physical structures and the hope that our work may endure. But on that flight, I found myself thinking less about buildings and more about people.
Founding of the David Green Memorial Award
At this year’s conference, I had the privilege of presenting the David Green Memorial Award (DGA). David Green was a co-founder of SAGE and a champion of improving environments for older adults. I first met David in 1998, when I was a new SAGE member and a graduate architecture student interested in specializing in environments for older adults. Over time, that connection grew into opportunities to work with David through both SAGE and the design of senior living environments.
Part of David’s passion for improving environments for older adults came from his continued thirst for knowledge. He enjoyed teaching, sharing both success stories and lessons learned. One of his favorite places for exchanging information and ideas was the EFA Conference + Expo.
When David died in 2014, his family recognized how much he cared for his SAGE colleagues and wanted to create an ongoing endowment to promote the ideals of the organization. As his wife, Vernita, said, “When the memorial gifts poured into our family in David’s honor after his death, we decided to think of a way to give back to the people who loved this field as much as David did.”
Considering David’s love of the conference and his passion for learning, the idea of providing an EFA experience through the David Green Memorial Award was born. Today, the award, which is administered by SAGE, provides two first-time attendees with an EFA Conference + Expo experience. It’s specifically intended to make that opportunity possible for individuals just getting started in the senior living industry.
The experience is sponsored in partnership with the Green family, Emerald (presenters of the EFA Conference + Expo and Environments for Aging magazine’s parent company), and SAGE, which serves as an partner of the EFA Conference + Expo.
Fostering mentorship in senior living design
SAGE brings together providers, design professionals, regulators, residents, researchers, manufacturers, educators, and students around the shared goal of improving environments for older adults. That multidisciplinary structure creates a natural setting for mentoring and educating the next generation of professionals and is what makes the award especially meaningful.
In addition to attending the conference, recipients are immersed in the association’s experience through SAGE-sponsored sessions, networking with members and leaders, and a complimentary one-year SAGE membership. The setup allows winners to not simply attend an event but to begin building relationships within a community of shared learning and purpose.
2026 DGA winners recognized at EFA Conference + Expo
The 2026 David Green Memorial Award recipients are Wenjin “Summer” Wang, a Ph.D. candidate and lab manager of Design Research for Active Living (DrAL) at Texas A&M University (College Station, Texas), and Heather Button, senior associate with Kearns Mancini Architects (Toronto). The two winners were recognized on stage at the 2026 EFA Conference + Expo.
After the event, Wang shared that she is “deeply grateful” for the David A. Green Memorial Award, which made it possible for her to attend her first EFA experience. “I was inspired by the thoughtful details behind each senior living design case and by the many supportive products in this industry,” Wang said. “Most of all, the experience strengthened my commitment to translating research into design practice to support more age- and dementia-friendly environments.”
EFA Conference offers engaging programming and networking opportunities
The EFA Conference experience is an ideal way to expose DGA recipients to multiple perspectives. It allows them to see that meaningful progress in this field never comes from one viewpoint, but from people learning from one another across disciplines.
Engaging with the award recipients is also a meaningful reminder that the David Green Memorial Award is not only about attending a conference. It is also about welcoming the next generation into a community of learning, connection, and shared purpose.
If someone comes to mind who is just beginning their journey in this field, I hope you will consider encouraging them to apply for the award and helping extend David Green’s legacy to the next generation. To learn more and apply for the 2027 David Green Memorial Award, go here.
Andrew Alden is a senior design architect with AG Architecture (Wauwatosa, Wisconsin) and a SAGE member since 1998. He can be reached at [email protected].
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