PRESS RELEASE
December 19, 2025

New York Passive House Announces New Board of Directors

Honoring Outgoing Board Members and Welcoming New Leadership

New York Passive House (NYPH) is pleased to announce the confirmed election of new members to its Board of Directors. These accomplished professionals bring deep expertise, leadership, and shared commitment to advancing high-performance, healthy, and resilient buildings across New York State and beyond.

Before welcoming our incoming Board members, we would like to extend our deep gratitude to our outgoing Directors: Todd Kimmel, Amy Failla, Max Wolf, and Vicki Yee. Through their guidance and dedication over the past term(s), NYPH has grown and evolved in meaningful and lasting ways.

We are especially grateful to Vicki Yee, who is stepping into the full-time role of Deputy Director. In this capacity, Vicki will continue working closely with the NYPH team to expand the NextGen group, develop impactful programming, and support our team, members, and partners.

Please join us in warmly welcoming our new Board members:

Cheryl Saldanha, P.E., CPHD
Cheryl is a Senior Project Manager and leader of the Building Science and Passive House practice at Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, specializing in building enclosure design and performance analysis. Recognized as a rising industry leader, including being named to Building Design + Construction’s 40 Under 40. Cheryl brings deep technical expertise in energy performance, thermal bridging, embodied carbon, and sustainable building systems that will further strengthen NYPH’s leadership in building science excellence.

Ben Leer, Passive House Trainer
Ben is a Passive House consultant, educator, and trainer with a strong background in sustainable architecture and building science. He has taught at institutions including Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and City College of New York and has served as a trainer for The Passive House Network’s CPHD and CPHT programs. Currently Director of Training and Education at Emu Passive, Ben brings a rare combination of technical rigor, hands-on construction experience, and a passion for education that supports both excellence and accessibility in Passive House practice.

Josh Shaffer, CPHC
Josh brings a developer and property manager perspective in his role as Capital Planning & Sustainability Manager at RiseBoro Community Partnership. With a background in energy management, building performance, and organizational development, Josh offers valuable insight into the operational realities of high-performance buildings. His addition to the Board helps bridge the gap between design and long-term operation, strengthening NYPH’s impact across the full building life cycle.

Erik Olsen, P.E.
Erik is a Managing Partner at Transsolar KlimaEngineering, an international climate engineering firm known for its collaborative, performance-driven approach to low-energy design. As leader of Transsolar’s New York team, Erik brings a powerful blend of technical depth and creative problem-solving that translates Passive House and climate-responsive design principles into elegant, human-centered buildings. His leadership will support NYPH’s continued work at the forefront of climate engineering and innovation.

Together, Cheryl, Ben, Josh, and Erik bring a well-rounded mix of technical mastery, education and advocacy, strategic leadership, and climate-focused engineering vision. One of our goals in this election was to broaden the Board to better reflect the diversity of roles shaping the Passive House ecosystem, from engineering and design to development and operations, and we are thrilled with the outcome.

We are excited for their guidance as we continue expanding high-performance building education, shaping policy and industry standards, and fostering collaboration across the New York Passive House community.

Thank you for your continued support as we grow and serve this community. 2026 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for Passive House in New York and beyond.

Learn more about our full Board of Directors at:
https://members.nypassivehouse.org/board

Considering membership?
https://members.nypassivehouse.org/member-application

Upcoming January programming:
https://members.nypassivehouse.org/main-calendar

Warmly,

The NYPH Team