AUGUSTA -- The University of Maine at Augusta's architecture program is launching a yearlong lecture series on Thursday that focuses on sustainable architecture.

The series, "Sustainable Practices: Architects Working in Maine," includes three lectures, a gallery exhibit and an all-day symposium about alternative design and building practices.

The lecture series kicks off Thursday with a talk by Steve and Wiebke Theodore, of Theodore + Theodore Architects in Bath. The talk begins at 5:30 p.m. in the auditorium of UMA's Jewett Hall.

Other lectures are scheduled for Dec. 10 and Feb. 12, 2010.

The Theodore brothers will discuss architecture in New England, which involves a focus on energy efficiency and can involve a variety of styles, including row houses, mill and factory buildings, and barns and farmhouses.

"The ... lecture series will both look at, and go beyond, what it means to practice 'green' building in Maine," Eric Stark, the UMA architecture professor organizing the lecture series, said in a statement. "The series is designed to engage architects statewide, those in related fields, the wider community and our own faculty and students."

UMA's is the only architecture program in Maine and the three northern New England states.

For more information, contact Stark at eric.stark@maine.edu or 621-3249.