*Members of the US Hemp Building Association elected seven new board members this month to two-year terms. Photos courtesy of USHBA*

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By HempBuildMag

The trade association for hemp building in the United States announced a new slate of directors after members voted in an election that ended December 9. New board directors manage the US Hemp Building Association and its sister non-profit US Hemp Building Foundation for two-year terms.

Elected president was Clifton “Ray” Kaderli, a New Braunfels, TX-based hempcrete builder and CEO of the Hemp Build Network.

“Over the last few years this new trade association pioneered a new element of the building industry,” Kaderli said in a message to HempBuild Mag. “I am honored to carry this momentum forward as hemp in construction makes its way into the mainstream.”

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Other elected directors included Ryan Doherty, CEO of Boulder, CO-based Hemp Ventures, as vice president; Fort Collins, CO-based Jean Lotus (editor of HempBuild Mag) as secretary and Michael Knight, founder of the Hemp Accountant in Charleston, NC, as treasurer. Three new directors at large are Matthew Bruce, CEO of Hackettstown NJ-based Herbal Vybz; Tai Olson, director of operations for Chicago-based US Heritage Group and Santa Fe, NM-based architect Alex Sexsmith, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP. All board members are unpaid volunteers who are members of USHBA.

Twelve candidates ran for seven positions. The election sought to gain input to the board from the association’s 10 regional leaders, and achieved that goal, said Henry Gates, Jr., the outgoing president.

Hackettstown-based Bruce said he wants to increase communication between the executive body, the regional leaders and all members, “to make sure that we are meeting the needs of our communities throughout the US.” Of the USHBA, Bruce said, “This organization means a lot to me as I focus on implementing hempcrete and other industrial hemp based products into our communities both domestically and internationally.”

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The small-but-mighty USHBA was formed in 2019 by a group with select experience in building with hemp – a rarity in the United States since the material had only been legalized in the United States the year before in the 2018 Farm Bill. At that time, any hemp used in US building materials had to be imported.

The US Hemp Building Association is a membership organization dedicated to “support and advocate for hemp building professionals, projects, and materials in the United States,” according to its website.

In 2022, the organization was able to successfully certify hemp-lime ”hempcrete” wall infill insulation in US building codes with an appendix in the International Residential Codes. Former Executive Director Jacob Waddell and Former President and Certifications Director Henry Gage Jr. coordinated a group of international experts who devoted hundreds of volunteer hours to the project.

Moving forward, the association would be continuing to focus on “awareness [of hemp building materials] and collaboration,” Kaderli said.