LEED certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is the green building certification system, established and improved by The US Green Building Council (USGBC). LEED certification is given for all types of buildings and accepted in Turkey and all over the world as the most valid green certification system. LEED certification aims to create more healthy and livable environment that we live in. LEED certification system’s primary goal is to design environment-friendly, human and nature-oriented buildings as the most accepted principle in the world. When the LEED certification is assessed according to the specific criteria of the structure in the rating of green buildings, LEED certification system is based on significant design criterias including sustainable lands, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, settlement and transportation, interior quality as well as innovation and regional priority credits, which become an important part of integrative processes. LEED certification is awarded by only one level from 4 certificate rating systems according to the applicability of all criterias in the buildings: Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum. LEED certification system regarding the efficiency and performance of green buildings with many subtitles, evaluates the prevention of construction pollution in sustainable lands, the reduction of water consumption in water effciency criteria, energy efficiency and minimum energy performance in atmosphere, basic fluid method, the collection of recyclable materials in materials and resources criteria, indoor air quality performance in the interior quality of indoor and lastly smoke control.

Avcı Architects considers the notion of sustainability as a global threat and tackles it as an inevitable practical idea in every stage of design process of building production. The design studio evaluates the concept of sustainability as an integrated and programmable process by focusing on basic eco-design principles in every stage of design ranging from conceptual analyses to the implementation of process. However, Avcı Architects does not design its own sustainable buildings targeting the basic rules of LEED certification. LEED certification system only becomes a natural part of the reinterpration of the system that reshapes the way of thinking and defines the new methodologies for the office’s design approach. In this sense, Avcı Architects uses the evaluation methods of LEED certification as an administrative tool by considering its contribution to human, nature and environment. Avcı Architects is always designing sustainable buildings that become a part of the nature in all circumstances. The studio’s design principles on sustainability start from the first sketch of project, design analyses and datas deirved from the context  and are shaped with local and international architects, experts and sustainable consultants from diverse disciplines.

Avcı Architects interprets the evaluation concepts of LEED certification as a current data and systematic approach in its own architecture design process. While building its own methodology, the studio avoids from drawing a concrete framework targeting sustainable architecture. Avcı Architects argues that all of these parameters do not apply to the identifiable, gradable or strategic list for the LEED certification. Avcı Architects explicitly considers that the questioning of the notion of locality and the datas of nature should be one of the most natural design parameters and be solved with regard to the essence of the problem in all circumstances. In this regard, the nature attitude of Avcı Architects to every design process reveals itself as the most basic method in the efficient and effective use of natural resources, recycling of materials and reducing waste and their static tests on human and nature environment.