How WLS impacts architecture and the building industry

{"version":"0.3.0","atoms":[],"cards":[["images-card",{"images":[{"url":"http:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/dpcbzfiye\/image\/upload\/v1689691012\/opyqqvtnodfk9atrxlgj.png","id":"6648539"}],"caption":"Attendees at the 2009 WLS. "}]],"markups":[["em"],["a",["href","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=93mTpQ8bGfU","target","_blank"]],["strong"],["a",["href","https:\/\/events.aia.org\/s\/lt-event?id=a1Y8Z00000872ZSUAY#\/Speakers","target","_blank"]],["a",["href","https:\/\/events.aia.org\/s\/lt-event?id=a1Y8Z00000872ZS#\/About-WLS","target","_blank"]],["a",["href","https:\/\/architectsfoundation.org\/our-programs\/architecture-scholarships\/sho-ping-chin-wls-grant\/","target","_blank"]],["a",["href","https:\/\/events.aia.org\/s\/lt-event?id=a1Y8Z00000872ZS#\/Sponsors","target","_blank"]]],"sections":[[1,"h2",[[0,[],0,"In September, AIA\u2019s Women\u2019s Leadership Summit returns to its Boston birthplace. Architects reflect on the value it brings to women in the building industry. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"When Carole Wedge, FAIA, began her career in the mid-1980s, she counted herself among the \u201cOnly\u201d generation of architects. \u201cIt was pretty common in my generation that you would be the "],[0,[0],1,"only "],[0,[],0,"woman on a job site or the "],[0,[0],1,"only"],[0,[],0," woman at an interview,\u201d said Wedge, who recently retired as CEO from Shepley Bulfinch. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"By the mid-1990s and early aughts, as more women became CEOs of healthcare and education companies, Wedge recalls a shift in the culture, from both firms and clients. \u201cA lot of clients started embracing cultural values and asking why there weren\u2019t more women on architecture teams.\u201d "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"And architects like Wedge, and the late "],[0,[1],1,"Sho-Ping Chin, FAIA"],[0,[],0,", who created the Women\u2019s Principles Group within the Boston Society of Architects, started asking why there were not more networks for themselves and their peers."]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0," \u201cI had observed men who had networks through golf or playing squash together or through their fraternity in college. There were networks I saw people in architecture connected to that did not include me\u201d said Wedge, \u201cand I didn\u2019t want to have to learn how to play golf.\u201d "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"What Wedge, Chin and others did want to learn was how they could create a space for women to support and inspire each other. When AIA brought its annual conference to Boston in 2008, the Women\u2019s Principles Group turned a workshop into a movement that became the Women\u2019s Leadership Summit (WLS). \u201cMy personal goal was to create a women\u2019s network,\u201d said Wedge. \u201cIt was a little bit of a homegrown thing, AIA just let us run with it.\u201d"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0," "],[0,[2],1,"Sharing perspectives"],[0,[],0," "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"WLS became an event many in architecture and allied professions credit as a turning point in their career. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"\u201cPeople started pursuing work together,\u201d recalls Wedge, from the early years of WLS. \u201cThe conversations really started to help people navigate their firms, their careers, and their personal perspectives about leadership.\u201d"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0," Attendees value the platform the event provides for women from various parts of the country, who are in in different career stages, to learn from each other. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"\u201cMy favorite parts of the WLS are the meals and events where we spend time getting to know each other and sharing perspectives from different points in our careers,\u201d said Alyson Steele, CEO, Quinn Evans, and a member of AIA\u2019s Large Firm Roundtable. \u201cComparing notes between generations is always eye-opening!\u201d "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"This year, AIA President Emily Grandstaff-Rice brings WLS back to its Boston birthplace September 12 -14. The \u201chomegrown\u201d workshop has turned into three days of high-impact programming and networking. New in 2023 is a national-led advisory group, who have designed a program to meet the needs of the event\u2019s growing, diverse audience. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0," \u201cWelcoming all women, the summit provides an opportunity to discover paths for career growth, unlock your strengths and form new connections - come to get inspired!\u201d said Yanel de Angel, FAIA, who co-chairs the advisory group with fellow Bostonian Kelly Ard, AIA. Jennnifer Wright, AIA, Portland, Oregon, Whitney Lewis, Assoc. AIA, Seattle, Saakshi Terway, Assoc. AIA, Washington, D.C., Milan Jordan, Assoc. AIA, Washington, D.C., Aim\u00e9e Moore, Assoc. AIA, Columbus, Ohio, and Maria Kook, AIA, Chicago make out the rest of the advisory group."]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0," "],[0,[2],1,"Invest in your own leadership"],[0,[],0," "]]],[10,0],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Both Wedge and Steele will be among an impressive list of "],[0,[3],1,"keynote speakers and panelists"],[0,[],0," at the 2023 WLS. They look forward to the event as a reunion of sorts and hope emerging leaders \u2013 and the firms where they work - recognize the impact WLS creates within the building industry."]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0," \u201cThe WLS is an unparalleled opportunity for women leaders of all ages to meet and compare notes on the issues they face and ways to address them. Our staff who have attended in the past have found the experience validating and empowering,\u201d said Steele. \u201cThis supports team building, to grow diverse leadership styles within our firms, which is critical to respond to the complex challenges of designing more sustainable and equitable communities.\u201d "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0," WLS is an investment in personal leadership, says Wedge, which will serve attendees and the clients and communities they support. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"\u201cIf you have been the \u2018only\u2019 and you are navigating these bigger issues there is such camaraderie in just seeing all these different people in similar roles,\u201d said Wedge. \u201cSo, whether your firm is sending you or you\u2019re paying for yourself to go, it\u2019s an incredibly dynamic, inspiring group of people that you should be associated with.\u201d "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[2],1,"Resources:"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[4],1,"Register to attend WLS"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[5],1,"Apply for a Sho-Ping Chin grant to attend WLS"],[0,[],0," "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[6],1,"Become a WLS sponsor"],[0,[],0," "]]]]}