Benedictine Monastery Receives Highest LEED Score

The rolling hills of southern Wisconsin are now home to the two highest-rated LEED-Platinum buildings in the country. The Holy Wisdom Monastery in Madison, Wisconsin, home to the Benedictine Women of Madison, recently earned a LEED score of 63 (out of a possible 69) points, surpassing the nearby Aldo Leopold Legacy Center (61 points), to become the nation’s top-rated LEED building.

The Sisters chose to deconstruct their 60,000 ft2 (5,600 m2) former conference center, Benedict House, and replace it with a 34,380 ft2 (3,200 m2) facility, sited on a 95-acre parcel of prairie restored by the Sisters and volunteers over the span of a decade. The building was designed to accommodate future upgrades that would eventually make the building carbon neutral. The two-story Holy Wisdom Monastery now houses the Benedictine Sisters’ community, serves as a retreat center and place of worship for various faith and cultural communities, and hosts other community events and performances.