Constance Bodurow, SMArchS/MCP '91, Founder and Director of studio[Ci]

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

Constance C. Bodurow; Detroit, MI, USA; Founder and Director, studio[Ci] LLC.

What was your affiliation with MIT?

Alumna: SMArchS and MCP ’91; Immediate Past President of MITARCHA

What was your thesis title, if you completed one?

Rethinking the industrial landscape: the future of the Ford Rouge complex

What are you doing today?

Directing a transdisciplinary design collaborative based in Detroit, Michigan - studio[Ci] – while celebrating our 10th year as an LLC! Keeping abreast of the latest trends in urban sustainability via research and co-authoring journal articles with former students. Spending a month or so in the EU each year.

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?

Absolutely! After graduating from MIT, I stayed in Boston and “cut my teeth” at several architecture firms, and also worked on the CA/T project (didn’t everyone in the 1990s?). My design and planning have always been focused on the larger scale: city, regional, and infrastructural design. I returned to Detroit as the Executive Director of a regional NGO, then taught architecture and urbanism at NAAB accredited programs for 15 years (disseminating, doing visiting professorships and fellowships, and receiving numerous grants and awards). I originally founded studio[Ci] as a research lab to engage students and fellow faculty, then created the LLC in 2013 to focus on our patents and built work. We have always operated at the boundaries of architecture and planning, collaborating with diverse disciplines and communities at that boundary territory to generate “net new” creative production and disciplinary knowledge.

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

Being at MIT, the SA+P, and in Cambridge/Boston were transformative for me as a designer and for my career trajectory. My undergraduate degree was a BFA, and I was an industrial designer prior to being accepted. I had always been curious about the forces which shape the city, and I could not have imagined a better educational experience: the opportunity to learn from and support the research of inspirational and generous faculty, to co-create with accomplished and dedicated fellow students in architecture, planning, real estate development, engineering (et.al.), to hang out in 10-485 (with the spirit of Kevin Lynch very much present!), to be a citizen of and engage in the dialogue of equity within the country’s most historic, dynamic, and progressive urban context, all while being a student at a globally-/locally-focused crucible of excellence. Throughout my three years at MIT, the transdisciplinary method was emphasized and made a profound intellectual and practical impression on me – I was convinced it was the future of design research and practice! In 2015-16, I was offered the opportunity to return and complete a portion of my Sabbatical at the Center for Advanced Urbanism, an experience which once again refined my design focus. Most importantly, my time at MIT resulted in lifelong mentors and friends, expanded my collaborative creative production, and created opportunities for me to join fellow alumni to serve the institution which has given me so much.

What are you excited about in your career field today?

The role of design and design thinking in crafting the built environment and its associated ecosystem to solve the grand challenges facing the globe – particularly achieving net zero beyond the scale of the building.

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

The world is your oyster! You have the best design education on this planet – use your power for good (and do contact me if you are ever in Detroit)!

What are you trying to learn right now?

The North Carolina Energy Conservation Code.

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

W: studio-ci.net; E: cbodurow@alum.mit.edu; Twitter: @studioCiDetroit; LinkedIn: Constance Bodurow | LinkedIn

Mindy Lehrman Cameron, M.Arch '82, Architect & Artist

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

Mindy Lehrman Cameron, FAIA

Seattle, Washington

Architect/Artist

What was your affiliation with MIT?

I received a Masters in Architecture in 1982

What was your thesis title, if you completed one?

Permanence and Change; Architectural Translation from Traditional Japan

I was a carpenter in Japan in the late ‘70s and, in this thesis, I was trying to synthesize aspects of traditional Japanese architecture for use in an American context. 

What are you doing today?

Last June, I closed my thirty-five-year business making narrative architecture, and segued into personal projects, art, and civic ventures, serving on boards (art, science, design), and mentoring students. I write, draw, travel, appreciate museums, and attend theater. A Seattle Cultural Center idea of mine is gaining traction. 

Right now, I am drinking coffee and composing interview responses (meta, right?). This morning, I will take Pilates; finish an art/science retreat review; delve into files for a history collection; brainstorm with my supportive husband; facetime with one of my two remarkable daughters; and order windows for our country house. Later, I will help digitize my handwritten journals, to lighten my physical load while preserving stories. 

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?

Yes. It was unorthodox and not traditional for a female to start and sustain an architectural practice and become a Fellow of the AIA. Also, my work focus evolved into designing out-of-classroom educational environments -- a unique niche. But I want to answer differently. When I began grad school, I thought architecture was a form of art, and people tried to disillusion me. Now, I have come back to the realization that even if architecture is not always art (and should not always be art), art is where I live, including within the architectural realm.

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

At MIT, there is no distinction between work and play. People are diligent, demand a lot from themselves, and continue on a path of life-long learning and creative seeking. At MIT, I realized that almost anything can be learned, and this gave me a great amount of confidence to proceed through work and life with so many multi-dimensional demands and rewards. 

What are you excited about in your career field today?

Personally, I love what I have been doing and the field I am in. Interpretive architecture is totally engaging, and I have been thrilled to use both sides of my brain to actualize imagination into physical results. There is a popular buzz about “storytelling” in design. I have been creating in that world for decades. 

In a broader sense, the field of architecture is misunderstood by many, acts of imagination are undervalued, and, although it affects us all every day, most people are design-illiterate. But I do see an emerging, diverse set of design thinking, a wider range of interesting voices, and an explosion of creative works that are exciting and promising, along with a buzz about design and art, permeating educational tracks, and growing in our culture. This gives me hope. 

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

Your passion for your work, focus, and obvious joy and interest in the work itself will often mean more to a prospective employee than the degree you hold or where you received it. Be authentic. Learn, be curious, do the hard work, have fun. 

What are you trying to learn right now?

During the pandemic, I taught myself Procreate. Also, after years of delegating, I learned AutoCAD and SketchUP. I am studying Spanish to reach another level of proficiency. I am drawing again for fun, not to illustrate something about a project. I am trying to face my personal demons and get rid of my stoppages. 

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

Please check out my website: http://lehrmancameron.com. (It might be hard to navigate through the projects from the main page, so I suggest going to the FAIA tab in the menu, as that is one continuous read and gives an overview. Here is a direct link to that: http://lehrmancameron.com/wp-content/uploads/MLC-FAIA.pdf).

If you want to reach me, my email is mindylc@lehrmancameron.com. Or you can find me on LinkedIN and direct message me there. I do have an Instagram, which I tend to neglect, although I might be using it more in the future. 

Emily Huang, M.Arch '91, Founding Partner of Huang Iboshi Architecture

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

Emily Huang, San Francisco, CA, Founding Partner of architecture firm, Huang Iboshi Architecture, a small practice of 9 team members.

What was your affiliation with MIT?

Master of Architecture, 1991

What was your thesis title?
Body in Space: the Sensual Experience of Architecture and Dance

Dance and architecture are two disciplines of creativity that share a special relationship. Both disciplines define and use space as the main medium for creative interpretation. Dance is movement of the human body through space over time. Architecture and its spatial qualities are experienced by the human body through movement over time. 

What are you doing today?

I am the founding partner of Huang Iboshi Architecture, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. We specialize in private residential design and small institutional projects in San Francisco and Northern California. It is a privilege to live and work in one of the most inspirational environments in the world. I have been happily married for 28 years and the mother of an 18 year old son. In my volunteering role, I am the Co-President of MIT Architecture Alumni, MITArchA.org, and also a member of the Mentoring Committee, a service I strongly believe in. I have been contributing to the success of MITArchA as a board member and as the vice president of membership since 2019.

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?

Our architecture practice takes a project from the inception of an idea to the delivery of the furnished space. From casual evaluation, it is quite traditional. However, from the inception of the practice, we have applied non-traditional ways of thinking about architecture, its delivery, and as a product and service. Our aesthetic is not idiosyncratic because we believe in doing work that is appropriate and in harmony with the greater whole. Our brand offers problem solving solutions that are synergistic with all our considerations, therefore making poetry out of the practical.

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

MIT instilled in me a sense of belonging to the entire world because of its diversity in people, culture and knowledge. I think of my work and my practice as a service to our society. My work is about how to improve our environment, create beauty, and offer benefits to people.

What are you excited about in your career field today?

Architecture has an inherently useful and helpful purpose. It provides for human inhabitation and it promotes well being and peace. Architecture can bring people together to foster a stronger community. I think our world in its current discordant state can benefit from our agency. The process of making a project takes years and involves many. Our role as architect involves a well designed and thoughtful process: advocacy, delivery of work, and responsible and durable buildings. I believe in creating harmonious and responsive design in every aspect of my work, reinforcing positivity and supporting the world.

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

If you think design thinking and design making is your calling, then believe in it and have tenacity. Don't give up on your purpose because it feels like a challenge with many obstacles and not enough to gain. Our work does not need to be unique or unprecedented to be impactful. Our work needs to contribute positively to our world and inspire the people we serve. We are all interconnected and we all matter. Respect the people who came before us and foster the people who come after us.

What are you trying to learn right now?

I am in collaboration to make an upcoming art film about architecture and dance. I am working on how to apply my architecture thesis to the narrative and the overall concept of the film. The film will be set in Barcelona and will feature choreography and dance in Barcelona Art Nouveau architecture. I am researching the impetus and history of Barcelona Art Nouveau. In addition, I am learning furniture design, metal fabrication, and how to be a master gardener.  From a spiritual perspective, I am learning and trying to manifest beauty in every way possible and pursuing how to find peace and gratitude every day.

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

Emily@HI-arch.com, HI-arch.com

Alex Sun, M.Arch/MSRed '12, Executive Director of CICC

What is your name, current location, and current occupation? 

I am Alex Sun, currently based in Singapore. I am the Executive Director of CICC, a global investment  bank.

What was your affiliation with MIT? 

M.Arch and MSRED 2012 

What was your thesis title? 

“Ghost in the Shell” 

What are you doing today?

As a senior banker, I am responsible for the bank’s cross-border real estate transactions and Southeast  Asia investment banking business. As an adjunct professor in SUTD, I teach the course “Financial  Disciplines for Architects”. I also play guitar in a small rock band in Singapore.

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional? 

I guess I am not the most orthodox type. I was trained as an architect and ventured out into banking,  private equity, investment, and fund management.  

How did your time at MIT affect your career path? 

I did an architecture and real estate degree concurrently and finished the five-year coursework in two and half years. The experience taught me that if people tell you something is impossible, most likely it is a path that is yet to be fully explored. 

What are you excited about in your career field today? 

Having the ability to achieve financial freedom. It is perhaps the foundation and one of the plausible paths towards true inner peace.  

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT? 

Networking

What are you trying to learn right now? 

Retail infrastructure C-REIT & Web3 metaverse

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

portugalwin@gmail.com

Clay Anderson, M.Arch '13, Associate at Olson Kundig

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

My name is Clay Anderson and have been living in Seattle since graduation. I am an Associate at Olson Kundig and currently focus on residential and cultural projects.

What was your affiliation with MIT?

I completed my M. Arch in 2013 with concentration on urbanism.

What was your thesis title?

My thesis was titled Havana ruins : post-embargo habitación regenerative prototypes. I was investigating new forms of accommodation that celebrated the ruin and material of Havana instead of demolishing wide swaths of the city for future American influx.

What are you doing today?

What I really enjoy is the diversity of projects and work I get to contribute to at Olson Kundig. Today, for example, I was working on several projects including a clubhouse in Park City, a residential remodel in NYC, a cabin in Hudson Valley and a kitchen house garden outside of London.

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

Exposure to innovative material investigations and fabrication / installation design while at MIT are something I still think of to this day. It is something that I embed into the “why” I practice architecture and think about design in general. I think you can see some of the installation work transfer to some of my work / interest at Olson Kundig

What are you excited about in your career field today?

I am excited to continue to see a convergence between new technologies and architecture. Currently there are interesting disruptions with AI and automation which will have huge impacts to the industry.

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

Ask questions and really listen.

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

Reach out to me on Instagram @claybismarc or email me clay@olsonkundig.com

IMAGE AND PROJECT CREDITS

Photo 1 Credit: Rafael Soldi

The Icecube

Photo 2 Credit: Eirik Johnson

Project Team: Mark Olthoff, AIA, LEED® AP, Design Mentor; Clay Anderson, Noah Conlay, Jarri Hasnain and Gregory Nakata, Architectural Staff

The Cortland

Photo 3 Credit: Aaron Leitz

Project Team: Tom Kundig, FAIA, RIBA, and Kirsten Ring Murray, Design Principals; Daniel Wilson, Principal; Clay Anderson, Project Architect / Project Manager; Michelle Hamilton, Justin Dennis, Ann Wright and Evan Harlan, Architectural Staff; Debbie Kennedy, Interior Design; Margaret Undine, Hunter Van Bramer and Eunice Kim, Interior Design Staff.

Mukilteo Multimodal Ferry Terminal

Photo 4 Credit: Benjamin Benschneider and LMN Architects Project Team:
Team: Clay Anderson, David Backs, Greg Bishop, Elizabeth Correa, Aubrey Davidson, Matthew Fisher, Howard Fitzpatrick,
Cody Gabaldon, Apoorv Goyal, Mette Greenshields, Chelsea Holman, Euiseok Jeong, Gustavo Lopez, Graham Moore, Lori Naig, Christopher Patterson, John Petterson, Bennett Sapin, Tyler Schaffer, Todd Schwisow, Kathy Stallings, John Woloszyn, Rushyan Yen.

(Clay worked at LMN Architects 2013 – 2016)

Anthony Flanagan, M.Arch/MSRed '91, Real Estate CEO

What is your name, current location, and current occupation? 

Anthony Flanagan

Location: San Francisco, California

Occupation: Real Estate Development

What was your affiliation with MIT?

M.Arch 1991, SM Real Estate Development 1991

What was your thesis title? 

Name Unknown - Joint Thesis with CRED & MArch

What are you doing today?

I am the CEO for Boulevard Properties LLC, an international real estate development company. We focused on three pillars: (1) strategic planning for real estate ventures, (2) organizational development for global start-ups and large-scale developments, and most importantly, (3) the execution of major urban mixed-use development projects. We have worked in several global regions, such as: USA, Middle East, Asia, and Europe. The company focuses on collaborating with global partners and governments, providing a Managing Partner leadership and expertise in all core real estate development disciplines, and with an end-to-end commitment.

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional? 

For sure my career path has been unconventional. For 24 of a 32-year career I have been committed to pioneering a new asset class, integrated-use experience based district development. Beginning with developments like: Santana Row, Treasure Island, The Shipyard, Candlestick Point, and the Whole Living Community, I’ve had a wonderful opportunity to explore deeply new concepts and principles for urban living. With Treasure Island and the Shipyard we were able to begin to incorporate meaningful applications in sustainability and regenerative development, which will surely benefit future generations. In 2006 we took these ideas world-wide with a small group of like-minded executives and have had some success in the USA, China, Europe, and more recently in the Middle East.

How did your time at MIT affect your career path? 

My time at MIT was a game changer for me and my career. It provided me with the tools I needed to step into the development world with confidence and offered me a set of values that remain deeply embedded in everything I have done since.

What are you excited about in your career field today? 

I firmly believe that the new millennium has brought into focus transformational change for cities worldwide, largely due to technology, urban migration, and the new millennials. I’ve traveled the world in my practice and everywhere I am witnessing the same trend in every city from San Francisco, to Beijing, and Riyadh. The challenge is for this generation of planners, designers, and developers to better understand this important transformation period. To use this opportunity to make places more livable and regenerative, and to implement solutions that put our cities on a better path for our future. 

What advice would give to a new alum coming out of MIT? 

Be bold, take chances, and embrace failure. To be a pioneer in any field one must be curious and prepared to explore new ideas. The fact is that many ideas will fail, but through that failure you may also find your way to success, however you define it. It is an adventurous process, and perhaps not for everyone, but for some, it is a wonderful life changing and fulfilling path to discover.

What are you trying to learn right now? 

We’ve spent decades thinking about people in cities, and how to create a meaningful experience in our rapidly changing world.  During this time we had some opportunity to incorporate concepts around sustainability and ICT. Today we are challenging ourselves on the meaning of sustainability. It’s a term with many definitions so we’re seeking to explore more deeply what it means for us. For the moment, we’re exploring more deeply the interrelationship between, social livability, economics and regenerative city-making and hope to incorporate these principles into our next development.

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further? 

Boulevard Properties LLC has a web site at: www.boulevardpropertiesllc.com and I can be reached at: aflanagan@boulevardpropertiesllc.com

Jonathon Brearley, M.Arch/SMBT '22, Sustainability Engineer

What is your name, current location, and current occupation? 

Jonathon Brearley, Brooklyn, NY, Sustainability Engineer

What was your affiliation with MIT? 

I recently graduated from the MArch and SMBT!

What was your thesis title? 

Taming Torridity: New Housing Forms for Heat Resilience

What are you doing today?

Today, I am settling into my new life in New York, and getting used to not being a student for the first time since…preschool?!  I work for Transsolar KlimaEngineering, a sustainability consultant based in Germany with a small (but growing) office in New York. 

P.s.. We’re hiring so check out the website and send your resume if you think you like our work and think you might be a good fit! 

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional? 

Maybe, yes. Still early days in terms of my career, but with my undergraduate degree in architecture and then going to MIT for the M.Arch, I never necessarily thought I would be working in sustainability consulting…see next question. 

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

MIT really transformed how I think about the future and shaped my interests with regard to the built environment. I always found building technology to be super interesting, although I  never had a real chance to dive in and explore. Faculty and peers presented so many ways of thinking creatively and innovatively about integrating quantitative methods with studio design projects. All this led to working toward a concurrent SMBT and provided a lot of direction for what I was looking for when I graduated. 

What are you excited about in your career field today?

I’m really excited about how many quite traditional design-focused architecture firms are excited to do better, and even go above and beyond with regard to sustainability. I think many are realizing that being carbon-neutral or even carbon-positive is equal parts creative design as it is engineering. 

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

Always support your peers. 

What are you trying to learn right now?

Being more patient and not feeling guilty for not working all the time.

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

Brearleyjonathon@gmail.com

brearleyjonathon.com

Ginevra D'Agostino, M.Arch '22, Co-Founder of Liminal

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

I am Ginevra D’Agostino, I recently relocated back to Italy where I am trying to strike a balance between work and the amazing food options!

I am also the co-founder and president of Liminal (@liminalweb), a network of young professionals that work with local communities and government authorities to contribute to the future of rural areas of Italy struggling with depopulation and disinvestment.

What was your affiliation with MIT?

M.Arch 2022 Alum

What was your thesis title, if you completed one?

Rebuilding the Edge, The case of the Sulmona-Carpinone railway and the town of Pettorato sul Gizio. The thesis process for me was a point of departure, an attempt to understand what contributions I am uniquely positioned to make when it comes to issues brought forward by the depopulation of small centers. I discovered that architecture has a relevant role in the articulation and resolution of multidisciplinary initiatives that seek to address the challenges faced by small cities and towns.

Rebuilding the Edge became Liminal Lab’s pilot project, a program through which a multidisciplinary team of MIT students and faculty collaborated with Liminal on a vision for towns along a rehabilitated railway atop the Apennines. Students lived and worked in Abruzzo for three weeks thanks to the support and partnership of MIT-Italy, Fondazione FS Italiane, MIT Urban Risk Lab, and MIT Digital Structures.

If you want to read more about the project you can visit: Salone del Mobile di Milano + Fast Company or/and Koozarch Rebuilding the Edge Interview

What are you doing today?

First of all, I like to start and end my days with a long walk with my dog: Olivia. I also enjoy spending my weekends re-energizing in the countryside, where I spend my time having long conversations with locals in front of a cozy meal and go on long walks in nature. 

When it comes to work, I am 100% focused on structuring Liminal and transforming it into an institution, from fundraising to the administration, as well as creating new projects and partnerships able to catalyze tangible results in the areas and municipalities we work with. At Liminal we are committed to supporting small and medium-sized municipalities and rural areas of Italy in the cultural, socio-economic, and ecological transition we find ourselves in. Liminal’s network of talented people is in full expansion, and we are every day working to build the structure needed to allow new energies to get on the ground and translate their interests into tangible results.

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

My time at MIT was defining for my career path. I was fortunate to encounter and engage with genuinely committed and caring colleagues, professors, and staff who are passionate about what they do, as well as making a tangible contribution to society, and supporting people and communities most in need. 

At MIT I was exposed to entrepreneurial and spatial thinking as well as different ways of practicing. This has been an incredible opportunity to reevaluate the way I position myself in the vast landscape of the architecture world and more broadly the built environment.  

What are you excited about in your career field today?

I believe that the technological, social, environmental and cultural changes that are taking place, require us to rethink the way we understand our role in society and the contribution that we are uniquely positioned to make.

In addition, the focus in the last decades has been so much on the expansion of metropolitan areas, that we have left rural areas on their own. Today these territories are fragile and stripped away of all the human capital, and livelihood they need to survive. I think we are at a new frontier of architecture and planning that requires us to see problems up close and from different points of view to propose concrete solutions. We have to collaborate with people from different fields, get on the ground to engage with communities and together brainstorm ways to move forward.

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

Being comfortable with being uncomfortable is advice I would give. Learning new skills in the work environment, that we are not taught in school, is exhausting and requires us to be okay with making mistakes. What is important is caring enough about a given topic or idea to push through the obstacles we encounter, so that we can eventually enjoy the results of our efforts and the positive feedback of the people we help or who are going through this journey with us. 

I believe it is important to get out there and reach out to people, create human connections, and most of all be generous with others. 

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

I am always looking to engage in conversation with new people and I highly encourage anyone who resonated with what I have shared to reach out to me at ginevra.dagostino@liminalweb.com or visit our website liminalweb.com

Charlotte Matthai, M.Arch '22, Architectural Preservation Designer

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

Charlotte Matthai! I live in Los Angeles and work at a firm called Architectural Resources Group.

What was your affiliation with MIT?

I completed my MArch in 2022.

What was your thesis title, if you completed one?

I collaborated with Ryan Clement on our thesis: “Bernini Started It”

What are you doing today?

I work at a firm that specializes in preservation architecture, so my coworkers are architects, urban planners, and conservators.  I didn’t have a lot of experience with preservation when I started, but I love working with existing buildings. They have so much character, I find the kinds of problem solving they require really exciting, and adaptive reuse has a much lower carbon impact.

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?

I studied political science and art history in undergrad and then worked as a cheesemonger before starting my MArch, so my path to MIT was slightly nontraditional but has become more linear as I’ve figured out my interests. I’m currently pursuing licensure and am enjoying learning the weeds of how a building actually comes together.

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

I appreciated MIT’s somewhat experimental approach towards architecture (I also sometimes found it difficult…).  My thesis with Ryan was definitely on the edge of what many would consider “Architecture” and I loved that we had the flexibility and freedom to explore.  But I most valued the people. My classmates were/are inspirational and driven. I also worked for Miho at the Urban Risk Lab and had amazing mentors there.

What are you excited about in your career field today?

Conversations on equitable compensation and working conditions.

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

Come to LA! :)

What are you trying to learn right now?

Construction details. Also boxing.

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

Reach out to me on instagram @thecheeselorax

Dalia Munenzon, SMArchS '16, Professor of Urban Design

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

Dalia Munenzon, Houston TX,
Presidential Frontier Assistant Professor of Urban Design in Sustainable Communities and Infrastructure,

The University of Houston, Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and Design  

What was your affiliation with MIT?

SMArchs Urbanism program 2014-2016

What was your thesis title?

Continental islands: Ceuta and Gibraltar: A typological research into transactional and partially autonomous territories

What are you doing today?

This Fall, I started a new position as A Presidential Frontier Assistant Professor of Urban Design in Sustainable Communities and Infrastructure at The University of Houston, Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and Design. Part of my new role is to develop research on climate adaptation and equitable resilience, and I am starting a new lab with the same focus in the Hines CoAD. My current research explores climate adaptation as a means for transformative actions in the urban realm. This includes studying infrastructure systems, codesigning visions, and analyzing regulations and policies required for implementation. My goal is to further the discourse on design as a multidisciplinary exchange between communities, cultural practices, regulatory complexity, economy, landscape, and the built environment.

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?

The general trajectory was relatively traditional, but perhaps the focus of the practice was less common when I graduated. After MIT, I started working at an architecture and urbanism firm focused on urban resilience. My position at One Architecture and Urbanism allowed me to work on diverse long-term planning projects with municipalities and community organizations in the Boston area. Much of our work required research and exploration, as many of these urban adaptation projects required new approaches to urban design and systems thinking. I started teaching when a friend at RISD suggested I develop a studio focused on sea level rise. After several years, I realized that my work in practice had a unique space in education and research, and I applied for a full-time faculty position. 

How did your time at MIT affect your career path? 

It is challenging to pinpoint one specific way my time at MIT impacted me, as it allowed me to build a network of exceptional friends and colleagues, changed my perspective on design, and expanded my understanding of what is relevant to the built environment. 

What are you excited about in your career field today? 

I’m excited about trying and share my takeaways from MIT with my students and hopefully inspire their career paths as designers. To enhance the capacity of next-gen designers to narrate and create the tools to share thoughtful, contextual, and time-bound stories that construct social and environmental awareness and can help build sustainable and equitable design.

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further? 

dmunenzontitelboim@uh.edu

www.daliamunenzon.com

Tyler Crain, M.Arch '15, Architectural Product Designer

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

Tyler Crain

Oakland, California

Architectural Product Design

What was your affiliation with MIT?

M.Arch Graduate, 2011-2015

What was your thesis title?

Disturbance Grounds: An Inquiry Into Non-Equilibrium Architectural States

What are you doing today?

In 2022, I began work at an architectural products company. I have been working on developing a modular indoor wall/room system and will be helping to plan new initiatives for future research and development.

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?

Yes. I think my original goal coming out of undergraduate was a relatively direct path to becoming a practicing architect, with perhaps a focus on custom fabrication and computational design approaches. I've certainly taken a few turns along the way.

After graduate school at MIT I went on to work for a visualization company in New York called March to create high-end visual marketing assets for real estate development projects. I did this for a few years working some freelance as well. This eventually brought me a little deeper into the tech side of CG, where I worked for about 4 1/2 years with computer vision engineers at a startup, called AiFi, that develops automated retail software. With this company I helped develop simulated environments for training AI models, designed weight sensing hardware, camera hardware concepts, and built the world's first fully automated small format modular stores. I sold and managed the deployment of many of our first projects while helping to build out a more scalable deployments pipeline. Over the past few years the company has rolled out around 80 automated stores around the world and has grown from about 16 employees when I started to about 110 employees.

I moved on in mid-2022 to my current employer, KOVA Products, where I work in the R&D group developing new architectural products. This has brought me back more into the AEC world after a few years at sort of an arm's length.

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

I gained exposure to a lot of different topics and talented colleagues. It has helped open up an amazing professional network and has given me confidence to pursue unique trajectories in my career.

What are you excited about in your career field today?

Solving tough, multi-disciplinary problems that improve future outlooks for the planet.

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

During MIT...

Work on developing clear direction for your work, the problems you want to solve and how you uniquely solve them. It is so hard to carve out this kind of free time for exploration later in your career. There are a lot of ambitious personalities at MIT with their own agendas.They compete for your time and attention - this can lead you to be pulled in so many different directions that you lose sight of developing your own agenda and voice.

Take advantage of this great time you are in, uninhibited by years of expertise (yours, colleagues or consultants around you). That is a great creative advantage to solving problems with more creative approaches.

After MIT...

Work with diligence and passion, but also remember to balance your life in ways that give you the right perspective, inspiration, and sustained mental energy to continue to do good work throughout your career. I think graduate school can have a tendency to upset this balance for a while.

What are you trying to learn right now?

Product development and real estate development

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

tc@tylercrain.com or LinkedIn

Liz Gálvez, M.Arch '16, Office e.g. Principal and Critic

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

My name is Liz Gálvez. I currently live in Brooklyn. I run an experimental architecture firm focused on developing new relationships to our surrounding material and climatic environments  that is based between New York City and Michocán, Mexico. I also teach as a faculty member at The Yale School of Architecture. 

What was your affiliation with MIT?

I studied my M.Arch at MIT, graduating in 2016. 

What was your thesis title, if you completed one?

I completed a thesis, and it was titled Life Under the Desert Sun: Dust Storms, Steam Baths, & Outhouses for the Unencumbered Desert Dweller. 

What are you doing today?

Today, I am preparing a course syllabus for my upcoming Seminar at Yale SoA: (Im)material Artifacts: Matters, Environments, and their Techniques. I have a virtual meeting with a fellow MIT Alum, as we are collaborating on a project that looks at Collective Comfort in relationship to heat insecurity in Desert Environments, especially in the Southwest of the United States. Afterwards, I hope to devote some time to my practice, where I am in the design-development phase for an experimental home or  ‘casa de campo’ in La Tuna Manza in Michoacan. There are minimal weather extremes in this region of the world and for those reasons there are few mechanical systems incorporated into the architecture there, yet one can still experience discomfort at various peaks in the winter and summer weather. The house develops the concept of the hearth to create warmth within the home, while allowing for passive ventilation through this thick and massive center. I had the opportunity to travel to the site over the winter break  to learn more about the building phases as well as the materials and methods that are available in this region of the world, and I am working on incorporating those metrics into the design. 

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?

This is a tricky question because I feel that there is not necessarily a clear or linear trajectory in the development of a design, and for me this extends to the character and trajectories of so many of my former classmates and colleagues! Perhaps I can answer simply by sharing my trajectory from a very tactical standpoint. I pursued Architecture and Philosophy in my undergraduate education and received my B.S. in Design from Arizona State University, about an hour away by car from where I grew up.  I went on to work for a year at Will Bruder Architects in Phoenix, AZ, while simultaneously applying to Master's programs and finally decided on an offer to pursue my M.Arch from MIT where I was fortunate enough to be offered a full-tuition fellowship. I stayed in Boston for the two-years following to pursue practice and architecture licensure, before I began to apply for teaching-fellowship positions. After being offered the Muschenheim Fellowship from The University of Michigan’s Taubman College, I took a leap of faith, and moved to Ann Arbor where I first had the opportunity to teach and to develop my own courses and research amongst a number of critical, yet generous and supportive colleagues. I taught at Rice University in Houston for two-years and most recently, I made the decision to move back to the east coast to teach at Yale, but also to be closer to friends and the thriving design culture that the City has to offer. 

I think everyone has their own path and the values that spur one into action are always evolving. So I encourage students not to compare their path or trajectory, but rather to search for what drives and feels right to them.  

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

MIT affected my career path dramatically and in many ways. The academic setting was filled with critical thinking that truly inspired me and challenged many of the preconceived notions that I had not only about architecture as a discipline, but what about being in the world in general. I was exposed to fantastic designers and was urged to “try on different hats” in order to later develop my own design process, and I truly enjoyed this pedagogical model of exposure to a diverse set of examples that were ultimately focused on personal development as opposed to any specified ideology. Secondly, developing relationships and mentorship opportunities with the faculty at the department felt accessible due to the size of the department and the investment that the faculty had in their teaching. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, I feel that MIT most influenced my path in introducing me to my classmates. I have developed lasting relationships from a number of my classmates both from across the department and well beyond my own discipline program! If there was one piece of advice that I could offer current students, it is that they get to know their peers at the department and to allow for informal conversations and debates outside of the studio or classroom setting. 

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

As an educator, I love keeping in touch with students and sharing advice on their possible career paths. I am fortunate to have great mentors, starting with my time at MIT and am happy to have these conversations with fellow-MIT alums. Please feel free to reach out to me via email to liz@officeforexample.org. Anyone can also follow me on instagram at @office.for.example

Geoffrey P. Moussas, M.Arch '93, Designer and Professor

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

Geoffrey P. Moussas

Kyoto, Japan

Architectural designer, professor, exhibitor, collaborator. 

What was your affiliation with MIT?

M. Arch., 1993

What was your thesis title, if you completed one?

Experience of House as an Illusion of Stability

What are you doing today?

Geoffrey is a Kyoto-based architect who has lived in Japan since 1994. He came to Japan to work for Fumihiko Maki (MIT Media Lab addition, 4 World Trade Center architect) as well as Yoshio Taniguchi to work on the MoMA restoration of '97.  Since founding Design 1st, he has restored and designed over 40 traditional Japanese structures including machiya townhouses, tearooms, kura (storehouses) and temples. Geoffrey has allso been involved in the renovation of a 400-year-old Buddhist temple in Aichi Prefecture of Japan, with the addition of a modern ossuary, as well as the relocation of a 400 -yr old samurai house to the Huntington Gardens, San Marino, CA - set to open in 2023.

His most recent project is as Chief Designer of Genji Kyoto, a luxury boutique hotel located on the Kamo river with spectacular views of the river and mountains. The architectural concept of the Genji Kyoto can best be described as one that is striving for a true Japanese experience through materiality and spatial techniques such as thoroughly integrating interior and exterior spaces. These techniques have been expressed in Japanese architecture through the centuries since the Heian period, the era in which the Tale of Genji is set.

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?

Maybe unorthodox in the architectural world, but not for MIT. 

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

Simple:  If I did not graduate from MIT, I would not be here today. 

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

Just do what you think is right and what you want to do. 

If you persevere, you will succeed.  

What are you trying to learn right now?

Everything and anything. 

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

www.design1st.net or gpm.design1st@gmail.com

Mackenzie Muhonen, M.Arch '19, Senior Visual Designer at AirBnB

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

Mackenzie Muhonen, Los Angeles / Orange County CA, Senior Visual Designer at Airbnb (Experiential Creative Product team)

What was your affiliation with MIT?

I’m an M.Arch (2019) alumna.

What was your thesis title, if you completed one?

Low Fidelity 

What are you doing today?

I’m currently the lead designer for the Experiential Creative Product team at Airbnb. It’s a team focused on developing the Experiences product of Airbnb. My position is a departure from practicing architecture, but I still use my architectural training every day. At present, I am currently on maternity leave (just had my first child on November 21!). 

Do you think your career path has been nontraditional?

My career path has definitely been non traditional. When I graduated from MIT, I worked in the visualization industry, and focused entirely on 3D modeling and rendering. I was hired to be a viz artist on Airbnb’s Samara team, before Samara separated from Airbnb. I ended up staying at Airbnb after Samara broke away from the company, and my role changed to be a more generalist designer rather than a hyper-specific 3D visualization artist. I’ve just followed my interests and seen where they take me, which perhaps has resulted in an unorthodox ‘architecture’ career.

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

My time at MIT taught me the relevance, applicability, and value of an architectural education across disciplines. There is so much value in the rigorous (and oftentimes exhausting!) training that goes into an architectural education. I find myself using the training I received every day, especially with ‘design thinking’ becoming increasingly popular in non-architectural workplaces.

What are you excited about in your career field today?

Within my current position, I’m excited about the opportunities to introduce meaningful design into products that reach a large and diverse audience. 

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

I can be reached over email: mackenzie.muhonen@airbnb.com

Ana Cristina Vargas, SMArchS '14, Architect and Social Entrepreneur

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

Ana Cristina Vargas, Caracas (Venezuela), architect and social entrepreneur

What was your affiliation with MIT?

Alumni course 4, SMArchS Architecture and Urbanism

What was your thesis title, if you completed one?

Tracing Public Spaces

What are you doing today?

Morning starts early with my 1 year-old calling for mom from his crib and my eldest girl (3 year old) running to get him (or trying to..). My husband or I get him, we cuddle, eat breakfast and get dressed to be ready for the day. We take turns in dropping each one at school and go to work. I drive forty minutes from home to a rural school in the outskirts of Caracas where we are designing a park with the middleschool kids. They have already taken our design course with my NGO (Trazando Espacios) and made their proposals represented in architectural models.

Today, I meet with the photographer and topographer to a site visit and draw blueprints of the place where the park will be built. We are also meeting with one of our partners who will finance a safe drinking water fountain for the park and a specialist on water harvesting because on this part of the city there are no public water pipes.

After these meetings I run to the office because we are pitching our most ambitious project yet to our Giving Tuesday ambassadors who will help us raise funds to start build a Community Center in January 2023. This project will be built in a rural community, Chuparipal, located in one of the poorest states in Venezuela but one of the most beautiful, once called “The promised land” by Christopher Columbus.  The idea of the project and design has been developed with the community and we are training them on how to fabricate CEB (compressed earth blocks) to make the walls and to start building during dry season, in one month!

Soon its noon and I ran downstairs to my eldest’s school (my office is next door…) and she is so happy to meet again. We go home meet with my little boy and husband, have lunch, they nap. I catch up with a last-minute meeting with my college in charge of site-work at Chuparipal to learn more about the last assembly meeting and the upcoming workshop to strengthen the role of women in the project. She is happy and a bit overwhelmed because after 7 months of community work, we will finally start to build.

My girl yells for me, nap is over. Soon my boy is up too and we have some tea and cake and get ready for the park. Work day is over, it’s fun with my toddlers now. I try to leave aside emails and enjoy the privilege of seeing them grow.

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?

Unorthodox, I am an architect but I am also a social entrepreneur. I am constantly learning about fundraising, psychology and community work. I am pushing my boundaries as an architect constantly. 

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

Big time! I created the methodology behind everything we do at Trazando Espacios, the NGO I founded after graduating. But the most important thing was learning that if you have a great idea, build a strong interdisciplinary team and work hard you can create marvelous things.

What are you excited about in your career field today?

I am excited about how architecture with social impact is becoming mainstream. Alejandro Aravena winning the Pritzker 5 years ago was an important step, but every day I learn more about young architects who are interested in projects with social impact, pushing the limits of traditional ways of doing architecture and trying to be more inclusive and participatory in their processes.

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

To make the most of every day at MIT. It is a unique time in their lives, an opportunity to learn, but more than ever to be curious and push theirs limits, because it is a safe place to take risks, to ask questions and not settle for the easy or obvious.

What are you trying to learn right now?

I am trying to learn how to balance between being a present and connected mom, and a professional in my field of work. I am also trying to unlearn a little bit of my preconceptions of poverty and to really go deeper into understanding the needs and possible help I can provide to people in a more disadvantaged situation than me.

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

avargas@trazandoespacios.org, www.trazandoespacios.org

If you would like to add a brick to the Community Center in Chuparipal follow this link! All donations are tax deductible in the USA and UK. 

Olivia Huang, M.Arch '18, Architect

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

Olivia Huang; Boston, MA; Architect

What was your affiliation with MIT?

MArch 2018

What was your thesis title?

Spaces of Justice (completed with James Addison, M.Arch ‘18)

What are you doing today?

These days, I'm architect-ing at Goody Clancy, teaching "Integrated Building Systems" at Northeastern University, volunteering with Communities for Restorative Justice and MIT Architecture Alumni, and dancing bhangra!

What are you excited about in your career field today?

I am excited about material salvage and reuse and the potential of a circular economy in building materials to decarbonise the industry. With that, I think there will be an accompanying shift in the industry’s attitude towards repair and the aesthetics of new. It’s been challenging to implement these ideas in practice because it’s uncommon and unfamiliar to our design process.

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

“Just show up!” It’s small effort and big impact advice that I still find helpful for myself, too. If I’m curious about a topic, want to get involved in something somewhere, whether professionally or personally, it reminds me that I don’t need to prep or invest a lot into exploring new steps. Go to the event, and even if you don’t talk to anyone, you’ll already feel a little less intimidated and a little more knowledgeable. Beyond the self, I also believe showing up is the foundation for building community.

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further? 

You can send me a message on Linkedin!

Patrick Evan Little, M.Arch '16, Senior User Experience Designer

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

My name is Patrick Little and I’m currently a Senior User Experience Designer at Microsoft, based in Seattle, WA.

What was your affiliation with MIT?

I graduated with a Master of Architecture degree from MIT in 2016.

What was your thesis title?

Inhabiting the Cloud: Architectural Excess to Surplus

What are you doing today?

While working in the Microsoft Edge Design Studio I’m leading an effort to make collaborative web browsing possible. If you’ve used live collaboration tools before you know how powerful they can be when working on a team. We hope to unlock new web browsing habits and hacks for our millions of daily users.

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?

Microsoft was my first non-architecture job. I was planning on being an architect in a big city like all my friends and then the summer before my thesis I got an internship at Xbox Design with two MIT Architecture alumni. I learned so much about UX (user experience) and fell in love with solving real world problems in creative ways for diverse people around the world. The skillsets translated surprisingly well, making my transition from architecture into tech easier than I initially expected.

 What are you excited about in your career field today?

The pandemic separated everyone physically and a desire to connect and feel close to others digitally became a new social necessity. Through my team’s work in collaborative browsing, investments in AR/VR, and the growing metaverse, I think technology will bring more people together mimicking architecture’s role in the physical world.

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

Don’t limit yourself to just the field that you studied. MIT prepares you for a vast array of disciplines and provides you with so many skills that other professions find incredibly valuable. If you’re given an opportunity into the unknown, take it!

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

Please reach out at my personal email: plittle89@gmail.com

Elliot Felix, M.Arch '06, Founder of brightspot Strategy

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

Elliot Felix

Minneapolis, MN

Founder of brightspot Strategy and Partner at Buro Happold

What was your affiliation with MIT?

MArch ‘06

What was your thesis title, if you completed one?

The Subway Libraries (Pdf summary article here)

What are you doing today?

In 2020, brightspot became a Buro Happold company and I went from leading a 15-person boutique higher education consultancy to being one of 70 partners in a 2,000 person global engineering and consulting firm. So, I now am leading and scaling brightspot while enhancing our work by incorporating the expertise of our new colleagues in sustainability, technology, economics, and more.

To share what I’ve learned as a consultant to more than 100 colleges and universities – including MIT’s Schwarzman College of Computing, Sloan School, and Libraries! – I wrote a book on the college student experience. How to Get the Most Out of College helps students and families make the everyday decisions that help them learn, belong, and succeed. It helps students understand themselves and their options during the search process, guides them through classes, clubs, and careers, and provides specific advice for different student identities such as first generation students, international students, students with disabilities, LGBTQ+ students, students of color, and more.

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?

I went into MIT as an architect. I came out as a designer, eager to design not only spaces, but services, systems, and organizations as well. MIT was the perfect place to uncover this non-traditional path.

After graduation, I started down this path first by working at a research and design consultancy called DEGW that was co-founded by an MIT visiting professor, Frank Duffy, where I got to work with several fellow MIT alums

Next, I founded my own strategy consultancy called brightspot that helps colleges and universities attract and retain students by the campus, support services, and technology that make up the student experience 

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

MIT was and is such an inspiring place, not only what we were learning in the studio and classroom but the community that you are part of, with so many brilliant people so eager to share, help, and work together. I learned the skills and made the connections across disciplines and between people that help me every day.

While in student government, I also did a project that foreshadowed the kind of work I do professionally: we surveyed students, facilitated town hall meetings, and analyzed our department in comparison to others to identify problems and propose solutions to improve the student experience. In the end, we ended up gaining more visibility and support for thesis work, doubling the compensation of TAs, and adjusting the schedule grid to facilitate taking classes outside the department.

What are you excited about in your career field today?

Unfortunately, the pandemic amplified the inequities of higher education with many students struggling to have the time, space, technology, and support they need to succeed. But fortunately, it made these inequities more visible and I’m excited and hopeful to see so many colleges and universities adapting to focus on better supporting their students.

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

Reflect on what made your MIT experience great – was it the challenging problems you got to work on? The amazing people? The collaborative culture? Then use that to guide where you go next and what you work on. If you are able, don’t be afraid to take some time to find the next step on your path. I had a few freelance gigs for 6 months after graduation before I found the right place for me to go next.  

What are you trying to learn right now?

The most interesting aspect of my research for my book How to Get the Most Out of College was the role of belonging for students – feeling like you are part of something and are understood, cared for, and supported. From this, I realized how important identity centers like a first gen center, an LGBTQ+ center, or a multicultural centers are for students to belong. I’m now digging deeper into the role the spaces, programming, and staffing of these centers play in belonging and student success.

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further (email address, website, etc)?

elliot@brightspotstrategy.com

www.brightspotstrategy.com

www.elliotfelix.com

Tracy Wydra, M.Arch '04, WINNØW Skincare Founder

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

I’m Tracy Taylor Wydra and I’m Co-founder of the Luxury Skincare Brand WINNØW. I currently live in Rye, NY.

What was your affiliation with MIT?

I received my Masters of Architecture (M.Arch) from MIT in 2004.

What was your thesis title?

Passages: A Hospice for New York City

What are you doing today?

I am the Co-Founder of the Luxury Skincare Brand WINNØW. I’m also a mother of 3 busy children.

Do you think your career path has been unorthodox or nontraditional?

I would characterize my career path as unorthodox. I started in finance after college and then pursued a Masters in Architecture at MIT. After working several years in architecture, I took some time off for family. When I returned to the workforce, I focused my creativity in a new direction with the creation of a skincare line.

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

At MIT I learned about creativity and problem solving, keys to design thinking. I learned how to bring together skill sets from different disciplines to create solutions.  These are the skills that I am putting to use daily.

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

There is not one correct path, things can change over time. Take advantage of opportunities and don’t be afraid to take risks.

What are you trying to learn right now?

I’m doing research on skincare science as well as learning how to grow a business. There are constantly new things to learn.

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further (email address, website, etc)?

Website www.winnowskincare.com and Instagram @winnowskincare

You can connect with me via LinkedIn.

Matthew Bunza, M.Arch '13, Metaamo Founder

What is your name, current location, and current occupation?

I’m Matthew Bunza, Principal @ Metaamo. Currently based in Portland, Oregon, USA

What was your affiliation with MIT?

Student - MArch ADV (2013), Urban Design Cert (2013), 

Faculty - Lecturer in Architecture - Option Studio (2013), 

Faculty - Visiting Lecturer in Architecture - Core II Studio (2021)

What was your thesis title, if you completed one?

Tohoku Topo-Urbanism - Oblique Community Form in Post-Tsunami Japan (Advisor, Jim Wescoat)  Interestingly, after several years, we’re beginning to put some of the ideas into practice around the Pacific in Japan and Micronesia.

What are you doing today?

85% Practicing architecture and urbanism @ Metaamo (w/ MIT alum Kyle Altman). 15% Teaching (MIT, U Oregon) and Research. All the while being a dad and husband. I seek partnerships w/ like minded folks to help bring meaningful spatial solutions to challenging problems, especially to those with less access to design expertise.  We are designing everything from private houses all over the world, to AI micro-retail prototypes in Silicon Valley (w/ MIT alum Tyler Crain), to design hotels in China that repurpose 350 year-old rammed earth fortresses, to resilient urbanism in the Pacific Atolls (w/ MIT alum Shoko Takemoto), to museums, cultural centers, and transitional housing with NW Coast Native American groups in WA state, to 'Āina-based resilience hubs in Hawai'i. 

How did your time at MIT affect your career path?

I had an amazing experience at MIT. My office Metaamo was literally conceived in Phil Freelon’s pro-prac class, and a classmate introduced me to my wife, so I’d say it had a profound effect. Even if you omit the institution, academics, and profs, just being in an environment with so many brilliant folks from all corners of the world, is a humbling and empowering experience. MIT helped me to challenge and contextualize what I do, reinforce my skills, and through its networks, connected my passion to real world problems and projects that we continue today. It’s a truly special place.

What are you excited about in your career field today?

The realignment of architectural education and practice towards a more meaningful, diverse, and inclusive one.

The larger societal realization that design matters, and that the three-dimensional thinking we have is applicable to so many of the world’s major issues today, be it in politics, the built environment

What is advice you would give to a new alum coming out of MIT?

Network, especially beyond your own profession. 

Move your feet.

Collaborate over compete.  

Empathy is your superpower.

Write what you want to do, where you wish to work, who with, and what kinds of end goals you hope to achieve. Let that be your North Star in the years and decades ahead.  If you aren’t able to immediately find your dream project — start laying the foundations on your own to create it.

What are you trying to learn right now?

Mandarin, Construction Law, Planting Design, Botany.

How can fellow alums reach you if they want to speak further?

Web: www.metaamo.com

Instagram: @metaamo

Email: info@metaamo.com