Hundreds of architects celebrate belonging at the 2022 Women’s Leadership Summit

{"version":"0.3.0","atoms":[],"cards":[],"markups":[["em"],["u"],["a",["href","https:\/\/perkinswill.com\/person\/zena-howard\/","target","_blank"]],["a",["href","https:\/\/www.publicdesignforequity.org\/about","target","_blank"]],["a",["href","https:\/\/massdesigngroup.org\/team\/jha-d-amazi","target","_blank"]],["a",["href","https:\/\/www.quinnevans.com\/people\/brenda-williams","target","_blank"]],["a",["href","https:\/\/www.aia.org\/resources\/6322768-women-in-architecture","target","_blank"]],["a",["href","mailto:womeninarch@aia.org"]]],"sections":[[1,"p",[[0,[0],1,"Image above: "],[0,[1,2,0],3,"Zena Howard, FAIA"],[0,[0],1," of Perkins\u0026Will presents the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture as part of a panel entitled, \u201cExploring History of Place and People through the Power of Design\u201d at WLS 2022. She is joined by "],[0,[1,3,0],3,"Shalini Agrawal"],[0,[0],1,", "],[0,[1,4,0],3,"Jha D Amazi"],[0,[0],1,", and "],[0,[1,5,0],3,"Brenda Williams"],[0,[0],1,". (Photo credit: Stacy Moses)"]]],[1,"p",[]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"One of AIA\u2019s signature events, the Women\u2019s Leadership Summit\n(WLS) took place last week in San Jose, California, at the San Jose Center for\nthe Performing Arts, built in 1972 and designed by the Frank Lloyd Wright\nFoundation. Over 700 attendees from across the country, women and men alike,\ngathered for \u201cthe best WLS yet,\u201d with high caliber speakers and inspirational\ncontent that broadened the world view of each registrant. The event was organized by AIA National with local host chapter, AIA Silicon Valley, who was pivotal in cultivating the spirit of the event and has dedicated over three years of planning to WLS 2022.\u0022"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Women leaders in diverse industries such as architecture,\nurban planning, economics, real estate, community design, engineering, and\nconstruction, spoke at and attended the Summit."]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"In addition to gleaning advice from the speakers at these\ninspirational sessions, WLS attendees celebrated the spirit of place in the Bay\nArea. There were over 20 excellent guided tours around the region from Monterey\nto the Silicon Valley that explored nature and built structures alike. Each day\nthe Summit would start with wellness sessions like yoga and dance in the great\noutdoors."]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"At night, WLS attendees took over the city of San Jose at dine\narounds which made for great networking. The Summit kicked off with a welcome\nreception at The Tech Interactive\u2014designed by architect Ricardo Legorreta with\nthe spirit of innovation in mind \u2013 attendees were invited to engage with\ninteractive exhibits that focused on sustainability, urban planning, and the\nfuture of buildings. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"The event was emceed by Hiba Bhatty, Assoc. AIA, a project\narchitect at Valerio Dewalt Train, who thoughtfully weaved comedy and stories\nthat celebrated the joy of architecture between sessions. WLS was headlined by keynote\nspeaker, Zainab Salbi, global humanitarian, author, founder of Women for Women\nInternational and co-founder of Daughters for Earth. Salbi has been described\nas one of the \u201c25 women changing the world\u201d and \u201c100 Top Global Thinkers.\u201d"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Salbi emphasized the connection of women around the world\nand explained how every person in attendance is deeply connected to the earth,\nwhich she described as a living being with a heartbeat. That heartbeat was\nrepeatedly referenced by subsequent panels and emerged as a motif for the\nentire Summit. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"AIA leaders also took the mainstage, including, EVP\/CEO,\nLakisha Ann Woods, CAE, President Dan Hart, FAIA, 2023 President-elect, Emily\nGrandstaff-Rice, FAIA, and 2024 President-elect, Kimberly Dowdell, AIA. In a\npowerful panel discussion, Woods, Grandstaff-Rice, Dowdell, and moderator,\nCarole Wedge, FAIA, discussed the future of the profession, women\u2019s leadership,\nand celebrated the historic first: three women serving at the helm of AIA. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"The Friday morning keynote speaker Dr. Molly Steenson, Vice\nProvost for Faculty at Carnegie Mellon, and an Associate Professor in their\nschool of design, delivered a captivating presentation on the intersection of\nartificial intelligence, architecture, and ethics. She provided in depth\nknowledge on the fourth industrial revolution and its impact on the\narchitecture profession. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Jeanne Gang, FAIA, founder and leader of the architecture\nand urban design practice Studio Gang, closed the Summit with a presentation\nthat likened her office structure to that of a tree. She advocated for\ntransforming hierarchical firm structures and rather, whimsically shared\nStudio Gang\u2019s workplace model, designed to be like a regenerative tree, that\nembraces diverse thoughts and ideas regardless of rank. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Gang shared a cutting-edge portfolio of work that integrates\ncommunity, sustainability, and resiliency. As a business owner, Gang said she\nensures that she reserves capacity in her business to do projects without\nclients that enable her to focus on the issues that are most pressing to her\nand her firm. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Pay equity matters deeply to Gang, who says she turned\naround her company\u2019s pay gap in just one pay cycle. But pay equity isn\u2019t the\nonly key, says Gang, who emphasized the importance of pay transparency, and\nsays listing pay ranges in a job posting should be standard practice. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"In addition to these keynote speakers, women leaders from\nacross the AEC industry spoke at the Summit. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Highlights include Tamarah Begay, AIA, Founder of Indigenous Design Studio + Architecture and first-ever licensed Navajo woman architect, who shared\nher historic journey to success. April De Simone, Principal at Trahan\nArchitects, described how red lining had a direct impact on her family life\ngrowing up in the Bronx, and explained her non-traditional career path to get\nto architecture. And Lona Rerick, AIA, who shared information on AIA\u2019s Materials Pledge, a critical tool that shifts the way we think about materials and sheds light on issues like slavery and child labor in material manufacturing."]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Speakers spoke on subjects including mental health,\nentrepreneurship, and belonging. The latter included audience participation\nthrough the WLS event app, where attendees were asked to describe what\nbelonging means to them. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"\u201cBeing accepted for my flaws and reminded of my strengths,\u201d\nread one audience response, while another read \u201cbeing in a place that\nreinforces and celebrates my identity and supports me in the exploration of new\nfacets of my self and my professional development.\u201d"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Another response simply read \u201cthat my voice is heard.\u201d"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"The 2023 Women\u2019s Leadership Summit will take place in\nBoston, Massachusetts. Check out resources for women in architecture "],[0,[6],1,"here"],[0,[],0,". Contact us at "],[0,[7],1,"womeninarch@aia.org"],[0,[],0," if you\u2019d like to receive\nthe latest notifications on all things related to AIA\u2019s gender equity\nprogramming and events. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n"]]]]}