Arthur is a co-founder of Kounkuey Design Initiative and serves as Treasurer to the KDI Kenya Board. He is the Technical Director and Director of Projects at CentumRE. Prior to this role, he worked in various architectural firms in the US and Kenya. Arthur is a lecturer at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology. He is a graduate of the University of Nairobi (BArch, Architecture) and Harvard University Graduate School of Design (MLA, Landscape Architecture). Arthur is a member of the Design Impact Committee.
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Zeerak is the first member of the Alumni Council from the Master in Design Engineering program. He works with GSD students and faculty to expand the school’s scope and influence in the areas of technology and internationalization.
Zeerak’s decade of experience in the tech industry allows him to build conversational bridges between software engineers, product managers, and designers. His expertise is in understanding audiences historically underserved by modern technology; for example, he builds novel software for Urdu and Arabic, expanding the usefulness of modern software to South Asia. His work has been recognized by the Industrial Designers Society of America, the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, Amazon, and the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, among others.
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Raised by a father from Italy who taught high school in California, and a mother who worked for the airline industry, Mari grew up with a passion for travel, and a curiosity about people, life, and the built environment in different parts of the world. This background, in turn, has deeply shaped her career in the hospitality industry. Mari loves this industry for its ability to make compelling design accessible. When we travel to celebrate weddings, reunite with family and friends, or discover new places, hospitality environments create the settings for some of our most memorable experiences.
Most recently, Mari joined Airbnb to lead the Environments Design team, the group within Airbnb responsible for the physical expression of the brand. A Global Director, Environments Designs, Mari oversees the team that designs Airbnb’s offices worldwide, and collaborates with real estate developers to create new models of housing design that can support Airbnb’s model of resident hosting.
Previously, Mari was Vice President of Design Services for Hyatt Hotels, where she oversaw design for Hyatt’s portfolio of full-service hotel brands, throughout the Americas region. As Senior Vice President of Design for the Morgans Hotel Group, Mari was responsible for multiple award-winning designs. She was also Global Director of Design for St. Regis Hotels at Starwood Hotels and Resorts. Before transitioning to in-house design roles, Mari got her start as Studio Director for Aero Studios Limited in New York City. There she oversaw new construction and renovation projects, both residential and commercial, including the hotel 60 Thompson and Giorgio Armani’s private residence in Manhattan.
Nathalie is HDR Resiliency Lead for Architecture and Planning. She is working in the USA and internationally. She contributed to the World Bank Report for Sustainable and Resilient Futures for Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and resiliency guidelines for international posts for the US State Department. She has been teaching on climate resiliency at Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD), Northeastern University and Wentworth Institute of Technology. In 2016, she started the BSA/BSLA Global Design Initiative for Refugee Children which built playgrounds in Lebanon, Uganda, Greece, Mexico and Boston. It received the 2020 AIA National Collaborative Achievement Award.
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Michael Bischoff is a dedicated design professional committed to engaging with the community not only through the built environment but also through mentorship and dialogue. As a member of the Alumni Council, he aims to advance its initiatives in these areas, drawing on his extensive experience as a practitioner and active participant in the global conversation around sustainable urbanism. Michael looks forward to connecting with GSD students on these critical issues, supporting them as they navigate their academic training and develop their creative vision. In the spirit of One Harvard, he is eager to explore ways for the Council to work at various scales, connecting with new communities and regions.
As a partner in charge of PCF&P’s efforts in California, the Middle East, and India, Michael oversees an extensive portfolio of urban design and campus planning projects. He directs the firm’s sustainable design initiatives and its participation in the AIA 2030 Commitment, tackling the challenges of urban growth and sustainability through speaking engagements, articles, and speculative studies. Passionate about sharing his enthusiasm and insights with young designers, Michael participates in the Architectural League of New York’s mentorship program, providing a taste of the profession and real-world perspective to a diverse array of students at Kean University and City College of New York.
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Cal Brook is an architect, urban designer and planner and co-founder of Brook McIlroy, an architecture, urban design, landscape architecture, and urban planning practice with offices in Toronto, Thunder Bay and Winnipeg. A key focus of his practice is through collaborations with the firm’s Indigenous architects and interns within Brook McIlroy’s Indigenous Design Studio, reinstating Indigenous presence in the Americas through place-making and place-keeping.
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Francisco “Pancho” Brown is a Nicaraguan designer and communication strategist. He is a Senior Editor and Engagement Manager at Metropolis Magazine, and co-founder of MICROPOLITAN Studio, a multidisciplinary art and design collective selected by the New Museum’s NEW INC program.
Pancho is also a correspondent for Mexico’s Arquine Magazine and serves on the Steering Committee for US Architects Declare.
Pancho’s multidisciplinary and international career made him want to engage with current and recently graduated students, especially international ones, to support their transition into creative professional work in the US.
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Stacy intends to share her untraditional path from architect to human-centered, women-focused design strategist and business owner as a member of the Alumni Council. She hopes to connect with current GSD students and recent alumni who, too, are interested in pursuing an untraditional career coming out of the GSD as personal desires, industry expectations, and global needs shift around us.
Stacy uses her practical knowledge of architecture in combination with design thinking and ethnographic research to generate disruptive and innovative environments that capitalize on user productivity, efficiency, and revenue generation capable of redefining an industry. As the Co-Founder & Design Lead of PinPoint Collective, Stacy leverages human-centered research to innovate spaces, services, products & experiences that make an impact in the world. When she founded PinPoint in 2018, her and her business partner did so with a mission to touch 100 million women’s lives. To date, they have helped organizations deeply research the needs of underrepresented female decision makers and design strategies that generate more fair, equitable, and inclusive communities.
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Loreta is co-founder and partner with Jose Ambrosi of the architecture and urban design studio Taller Capital, based in Mexico City. The work of the studio focuses on understanding the city through its housing and water systems, with a special interest in the design of soft infrastructural public spaces. They argue for spatial quality and richness through material austerity, understanding design as a tool to fix the broken city. Their work has received national and international recognition.
Loreta is also professor at the School of Architecture, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México UNAM. She is author of the book La imagen del agua en la ciudad, where she has gathered an important part of the research she has done on water management through urban design, propelled by the Druker Travelling Fellowship granted by the GSD. She has been an invited critic and professor at several universities in America, Latin America and Europe. She is member of the Board of the Holcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction and of the Fundación México en Harvard, understanding these platforms as important opportunities to share with the broader community her interest in actively intervening in the city through architectures that provoke positive feedback loops.
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Nina is currently co-chair of the GSD Alumni Council and Founding Principal of Merritt Chase Landscape Architecture. In partnership with Sameh Wahba, she leads the Alumni Council and steers the Alumni Council Executive Committee. Prior to this role, she was actively involved in the S/AX Committee, helping to facilitate alumni and student connections through in-person gatherings, mentoring, and online panels focused on relevant, student-oriented topics.
Nina’s professional experience as a landscape architect is informed by a commitment to the design community through teaching, research, and volunteering. She lectures often and serves as a design critic, both nationally and internationally. She is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects and a former adjunct faculty member at Carnegie Mellon’s School of Architecture as well as emeritus board member of the Landscape Architecture Foundation. Her work has received national recognition from the American Society of Landscape Architects, the Landscape Architecture Foundation, and the Architectural League of New York. As a member of the GSD Alumni Committee, she is an active ambassador of the GSD.
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Florence serves as a member of the Ambassadorship Committee, where she works to connect alumni in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area through active engagement, communication, and events.
An architect with extensive experience in complex large-scale projects in China, her completed works include landmark towers in Hong Kong, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou. She is a board member of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat’s Hong Kong chapter, where she promotes the sharing of knowledge on tall building design. In 2022, Florence served as president of AIA’s Hong Kong chapter, where she led the establishment of a mentorship program to connect students and emerging professionals with seasoned architects.
Previously, Florence also served as an adjunct faculty member at the Chinese University of Hong Kong School of Architecture, and she is a frequent design critic and speaker at local architectural schools and international conferences.
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Sekou Cooke is an architectural practitioner and educator currently based in Syracuse, New York. He is an Assistant Professor at Syracuse University’s School of Architecture, where he teaches design studios and seminars that value breadth of exploration over formulaic production. Through his professional practice, sekou cooke STUDIO, he brings thoughtful processes and rigorous experimentation to a vast array of project types from commercial and residential works in New York, New Jersey, and North Carolina, to mixed-use projects and tenant improvements in California, to speculative developments in Liberia and his native Jamaica.
Through his research, practice, and other academic endeavors, Sekou hopes to leave an equally lasting impact on ivory towers and underserved communities.
Sekou holds a BArch from Cornell University and an MArch from Harvard University, and is licensed to practice architecture in New York and California.
Michelle joined the Alumni Council in 2024 having graduated with distinction from the GSD’s Master of Architecture in Urban Design in 1999. Prior to Harvard, Michelle studied Architecture at the University of Sydney, receiving the University Medal and NSW Board of Architects Medallion in 1995.
Michelle is passionate about putting people first when creating connected, productive, resilient and inspired communities. An architect, urban designer and urban development leader, she has experience in development, government and consulting. Michelle brings a holistic understanding of place, precincts, property, infrastructure, governance, sustainability, social impact, urban economics and innovation to city shaping projects. Her signature projects include Sydney Harbour’s urban regeneration project Barangaroo and Sydney Olympic Park for the 2000 Olympic Games. She is a University of Sydney and Harvard graduate, Fulbright, Knox and Byera Hadley Scholar, and specialist advisor to UNICEF Australia and Mercedes Benz for human-centred design. Michelle is Deputy President of the University of Sydney Alumni Council. She was recently awarded the 2024 Property Council of Australia’s People in Property Pathfinder Award.
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Hazel Edwards has been a member of the Alumni Council Governance and Student Exchange committees.
She has served as a tenured faculty member in city planning, urban design, and architecture programs at three universities for more than 20 years. Her role as academic, researcher, and practitioner has given her a unique perspective from which to engage with a wide range of people. Overall, the common thread of her academic, scholarly, and professional endeavors has been improving livability for all citizens. She has worked to increase diverse voices, particularly those of women, through innovative educational and mentoring techniques that have nurtured a new generation of planning and design professionals who express a broad spectrum of cultural values in their work with the built environment.
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Jennifer is an architect, educator, and advocate with over 15 years in professional practice. She is a registered architect in Ontario, Canada (previously registered in Nova Scotia, Canada), a principal at Place of Work Architecture Studio (Halifax/Toronto, Canada), and an assistant professor at Toronto Metropolitan University’s Department of Architectural Science (Toronto, Canada). Past associate at superkül (Toronto, Canada) and MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects (Halifax, Canada). Jennifer previously taught at the undergraduate and graduate level at University of Waterloo, Dalhousie University, and the GSD (Career Discovery). Current chair of Building Equality in Architecture Toronto, Executive Committee (BEAT). Current mentor for Ontario Association of Architects Internship Program, past mentor for Nova Scotia Association of Architects Internship Program. She is also a Mentor with Harvard Women in Design (WiD), Harvard Mentor Collective, Carleton Alumni Program. Planning committee for International Landscape Collaborative (GSD initiated organization).
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Alicia is a London-based associate at Gensler. A landscape architect and urban strategist who has practiced in Spain, the US, France, and the UK, her work includes the development of projects at different scales, all the way from strategic concept frameworks to construction detailing. Alicia´s interests rely on the interface between landscape, architecture, ecology, and anthropology, with a focus on delivering sustainable and culturally sensitive projects that engage well with their user communities.
While pursuing her studies in landscape architecture at the GSD, she worked as a research assistant at Exuma Lab, developing sustainable proposals for empowering local Bahamian communities. In addition, she received first prize in the Northeast Los Angeles (NELA) Placemaking Design Competition for her proposal to revitalize the Los Angeles river titled “Arroyo Seco Artcupuncture.” Alicia has been a visiting professor for the Master in Landscape Architecture program at Greenwich University, and is regularly invited as a guest critic at other London design schools. Since moving back to Europe, she has been very active in the Harvard Alumni community, acting for several years as the co-chair of the Harvard Club of the United Kingdom’s Young Alumni chapter.
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Gregory joined the Ambassadorship committee within the GSD Alumni Council and is focused on organizing events that will engage alumni and raise awareness of the GSD within the broader design community and the public. He hopes to leverage his involvement in a broad range of professional associations, including the NYC chapter of the AIA, the NY Metro Chapter of the APA, and the Harvard Alumni Architectural and Urban Society (HAAUS) in order to reach, and to bring together, a broader audience for events highlighting the endeavors, achievements, and contributions of Harvard GSD alumni, faculty, and students.
Gregory is a New York-based architect and urban designer and an Associate Principal with Henning Larsen. His work focuses on engagement with the public realm through civic, mixed-use, and urban design projects. Previously, he worked with Grimshaw, Polshek Partnership (now Ennead), Rafael Vinoly and Deborah Berke. Gregory has taught at the Boston Architectural Center, the New York and New Jersey Institutes of Technology, and the New York City College of Technology, CUNY. Additionally, he has been an invited juror or lecturer at Columbia, the University of Pennsylvania, Harvard, Yale, Parsons, City College, and Pratt.
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Prior to starting her own practice in 1985, Judith Heintz worked for the fledgling Central Park Conservancy, where she, with 3 colleagues, prepared the plan to guide future projects and operations at the Park, published by MIT Press in 1987 as Rebuilding Central Park: A Management and Restoration Plan. Intentionally not called a Master Plan, the plan was conceived to be flexible, to respond to new social and cultural needs, new or evolving ecologies, and changing resources.
Working within various organization structures (Judith Heintz, ASLA, Heintz/Ruddick Associates, JHLA, WRT and sassafras55), she has worked on many projects at a variety of scales: from regional, city-wide, and local to interventions on an intimate micro scale.
Using a process developed over many years, her design goal is to create connections – between places, people, and periods of time – within an existing landscape, bringing out or enhancing qualities that are already perceptible just under the surface. In both public and private projects, collaboration with the user/client means that the work recedes as the client settles in. The landscape seems inevitable and right, the product of gradual evolution, a place where things can still change and grow through time.
In addition to her Master of Landscape Architecture from the GSD, Judith received a BSLA from the Ohio State University (summa cum laude) and a Master of Architecture from Columbia University GSAPP.
LaShawn Hoffman serves on the GSD Ambassadorship Committee and the President of the Loeb Fellowship Alumni Association.
LaShawn M. Hoffman is a civic and community leader who advocates for safe, healthy, and economically viable communities. He leads a boutique consultancy focused on the intersection of public health and community development. LaShawn has spearheaded a wide range of programs focused on community improvement, public health, and economic growth collaborating with community advocates, academic partners, and agencies to promote partnerships using the community-based participatory research model. His work has promoted neighborhood preservation and socio-economic and cultural diversity through housing development, public health, social services, civic engagement, and advocacy. LaShawn’s leadership is evident through his appointments to local and national taskforces and committees.
Dara Huang is the founder of Design Haus Liberty, an international architecture, interiors and design practice established in 2013 with global offices in both London and Hong Kong. She holds a master’s degree in Architecture from Harvard University and started her career at Herzog de Meuron, Basel and Foster + Partners, London. In the company’s short time, Dara has received numerous awards and honors, including Property Week’s 40 under 40, BBC China’s 100 Women, Prestige Hong Kong’s 40 under 40 and three RIBA competition recognitions. She sits on the board for Prop Tech and is a member of the Milken Institute. She has also exhibited at Somerset House, London, and the Architecture Venice Biennale.
The daughter of a NASA scientist who emigrated from Taiwan to the United States, Dara grew up in multi-cultural surroundings and global travel. She has a keen interest in contemporary art and nature, which inspires much of her designs.
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Mark participates in the Student Alumni Exchange Committee and holds occasional student and alumni events in Denver.
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As a new member of the AC, Thomas wants to focus on Europe and help the GSD’s current and prospective students from the region to connect. He was also the MAUD/MLAUD class marshal of ’09.
Thomas is a director at Buro Happold and their head of Sustainability and Climate in Europe. He is a leader in resilience, carbon, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) frameworks on scales spanning from individual buildings to districts, cities, and regions. He leads teams across the region on integrated development, strategic planning, mobility, sustainability, and energy, guiding them toward the goal of zero carbon.
His professional experience includes working as an architect for Stefan Behnisch, Qingyun Ma, and Kenneth Yeang, as an urban quality consultant for Jan Gehl, and as an engineering advisor and consultant for Buro Happold. He also worked for the European Commission as an expert on sustainable urbanization. He has lived and worked in Germany, Denmark, the US, Malaysia, China, and Vietnam. He is a licensed architect and urban planner in Germany and an appointed member of the Association of German Architects (BDA). Thomas teaches frequently across Europe and holds various teaching positions in urban development and sustainability.
He is a co-initiator and co-founder of the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB) and member of the board of directors. He has received numerous scholarships, including a Fulbright to attend the GSD and MIT, and he is a fellow of the Mercator Institute for Chinese Studies and the BMW Foundation Herbert Quandt.
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Ethan is excited about the power of mentorship and connection to current GSD students. The support from the GSD community both before, during, and after attending Harvard has been an invaluable resource, both personally and professionally. He is glad to support students (and Midwesterners!) however possible.
Ethan’s professional experience has been focused on increasing economic empowerment through the built environment and development finance. Post-GSD roles across economic development consulting, community development non-profits, private real estate development, and the public sector have all reinforced this guiding principle. He was involved in the initial creation of the Black in Design conference and Blackspace Chicago, and continues to partner on community development work with an emphasis on the South and West Sides of Chicago.
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John Mann is a land use planning policy advisor for the Secretary of the Navy and the Chief of Naval Operations, the senior civilian and military leaders of the U.S. Department of the Navy. He is engaged in long-range planning, development and real estate strategies for naval installations world-wide to support U.S. foreign policy objectives.
He started his employment with the Navy in 2007 where he led the Navy’s planning division for the Washington, DC region. Key efforts his planners managed included the relocation of the National Museum of the United States Navy; master plans for the region’s installations; and coordination with local and federal planning and review agencies.
From 2002 to 2007 John served on the staff of the National Capital Planning Commission, the federal government’s planning agency for the National Capital Region. His work at the Commission addressed the shifting landscape of 21st century development; the urgent actions necessary to combat the threats from climate change; and the opportunities created by advances in technology, challenging traditional ideas of mobility and workplace. From 1987 to 2002 he worked as a land use planner for the Department of Defense and as a consultant in the private sector, giving him a broad perspective on differing approaches to administration and governance.
John is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners and is a site visitor for the Planning Accreditation Board, the organization which accredits graduate and undergraduate planning programs in North America.
Amelia joins the GSD Alumni Council following over a decade of service on the Harvard Alumni Association Board of Directors. A graduate of both Harvard College and the GSD, Amelia is keen to build connections between GSD students and alumni and the broader university. Born and raised in Greenville, South Carolina, Amelia is also passionate about recruiting urban planning and design practitioners to work in the South.
As an urban planner and designer, Amelia is drawn to work in small and mid-sized cities and to questions of how opportunity meets place. Currently an Urban Studio Designer with David Baker Architects, Amelia previously served as Civic Design Principal and Senior Advisor in the City of Birmingham Mayor’s Office. There, she led an interdisciplinary team charged with catalyzing innovative approaches to major challenges in the city, including urban development, resilience, sustainability, economic mobility, and food access. Amelia previously worked in higher education and digital strategy before realizing her calling to build a better South.
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Alpa Nawre is Associate Professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture at University of Florida, and Partner at her design practice, Alpa Nawre Design. Alpa is a recipient of the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture Award for Excellence in Design Studio Teaching, Harvard University’s Dumbarton Oaks Mellon Fellowship in Urban Landscape Studies, and Landscape Architecture Foundation’s Fellowship for Innovation and Leadership. Issues pertinent to the design of urban water infrastructure, and resource challenges in the context of rapidly urbanizing, developing countries inform her research, teaching and practice. Her writings have been published as books, chapters and in journals such as Landscape Journal, JoLA and Thresholds.
Alpa is a licensed landscape architect in Kansas, a licensed architect in India, and a LEED AP. She holds a Masters degree in Urban Design from Harvard Graduate School of Design, a Masters in Landscape Architecture from Louisiana State University, and a Bachelor in Architecture from NIT, Raipur, India. She has worked internationally in design offices in India, USA, UAE, and Switzerland and serves on the editorial board of JAE, the Journal of Architectural Education.
Riki Nishimura, AIA, AICP, is a Principal at Populous, a global architectural design firm specializing in creating environments and venues that draw communities and people together. He is a licensed architect, certified planner, and urban strategist with over two decades of experience in the strategy and design of our cities. His specialty is providing design strategies for maximizing value for all stakeholders for next-generation venue-integrated destination communities. He approaches design from a collaborative and evidence-based perspective, resulting in the design and implementation of world-class experiences. In the process, he balances visionary and fiscally responsible development to achieve memorable, sustainable, and enduring places in both the public and private realms.
Riki’s experience includes award-winning projects that create unique and extraordinary user experiences and optimize the functionality and viability of venue-integrated mixed-use and entertainment districts, mixed-use urban regeneration districts, next-generation waterfronts, corporate and technology workplace campuses, university campuses, and urban cultural parks.
Committed to furthering sustainable strategies, practices, and contributions to the real estate community, he is active in the Urban Land Institute (ULI). The ULI recognized him in 2016 with the 40 Under 40 award. He contributes to the ULI Advisory Services and serves on the ULI Americas Executive Committee, the Global Exchange Product Council, and the ULISF Executive Board. Riki is the Co-Chair of the Harvard GSD Alumni Council and serves on the Board of Directors of the Harvard Alumni Association. He actively participates as a design review critic at Harvard, Stanford, UC Berkeley, and UCLA, and he has held an appointment at Stanford University as an adjunct lecturer in Risk and Resilience at the School of Engineering. He received a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Toronto and a Master of Architecture and Urban Design from Harvard University.
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Chelina has been an active member of the GSD alumni community as a Connect mentor, critic, and lecturer, and she has hosted many summer interns at her mission-driven firm, Kounkuey Design Initiative (KDI). In her new position, she looks forward to expanding the reach of the Council through her global design network across the Americas, Europe, and Africa.
Chelina believes in the power of community-engaged design to advance racial, environmental, and economic equity in neighborhoods and cities. With KDI, she aims to bring good design to places where it is not often found and to connect localized design interventions to large-scale policy change. Her expertise includes gender equity and the built environment, child-friendly cities, and design for climate justice. In 2022, Chelina received the GSD Alumni Council Award, and KDI received the National Design Award for Landscape Architecture. Chelina has lectured globally on KDI’s community-engaged mode of practice and taught at the GSD; she currently holds a teaching appointment at UCLA.
Biography coming soon.
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Stacey Pennington is the current co-chair of the Design Impact Committee. She is a former member of the Ambassadorship Committee and Strategic Planning Committee.
Stacey is the founder and principal of SLP Urban Planning, as well as a strategic advisor for the World Woman Foundation and the San Diego-based real estate development firm Lankford & Associates. Stacey’s point of view, whether in her work as an urban planner, community organizer, or civic leader, is shaped by a commitment to challenging the parameters of traditional real estate development and community engagement.
Currently, Stacey’s work with the World Woman Foundation is focused on designing and producing the 2023 Sustainability Forum, which is the launchpad for a year-long initiative focused on the importance of human-centered design at the intersection of urban planning, energy, the digital economy, food systems, and women’s health. This initiative is one of the ways that the World Woman Foundation fulfills its mission of empowering women and girls to reach their full potential through education, mentorship, and community engagement through the lens of sustainability.
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Gil has been consistently involvement with the GSD in various roles: as a member the GSD Alumni Council where he serves on the Ambassador Committee, as a member of the Harvard University Alumni Real Estate Board, and as a member of the Josep Lluís Sert Council since 2015.
Gil is an accomplished and award-winning professional and civic leader with expertise in several interrelated fields, including real estate, urban planning, historic preservation, sustainability, design, infrastructure, community, and economic development. He has worked as an entrepreneur and held positions in the private, public and non-profit sectors.
Gil draws on his unique multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral experience, local knowledge, and national/international perspective to holistically approach and successfully execute challenging, high-profile real estate and urban redevelopment projects that are a win-win for business, community, environment, and government. Gil is involved in several community and professional organizations including ULI (Urban Land Institute), American Planning Association/American Institute of Certified Planners (APA/AICP), and founder of Open House Atlanta, a non-profit dedicated to showcasing the built environment.
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As a new addition to the Alumni Council, Estello is particularly interested in sharing resources and fostering a welcoming community for recent alumni and emerging professionals.
Estello is the Landscape Architect, Senior Public Space Planner for the city of Somerville. Prior to receiving his Masters in Landscape Architecture from Harvard’s Graduate School of Design in 2019, where he was the 2018 University Olmsted Scholar, he studied biology and English at Vassar College. Estello has served as a co-chair for the Boston Society of Landscape Architects Emerging Professionals and is an active member of the BSLA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion working group.
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Rob is delighted to be joining the Alumni Council this year; he is a frequent mentor to recent GSD graduates and welcomes each opportunity to connect. Rob and his firm opened their New York office early this year to a group of current students and young alumni for a talk about practice and office culture after the pandemic.
Rob founded ROGERS PARTNERS Architects + Urban Designers in 2013 based on more than 30 years of experience, blurring the boundaries between urbanism, landscape, and architecture. Major civic and institutional works include the award-winning Henderson Hopkins School in Baltimore, the new St. Pete Pier in Florida, and the reimagined Constitution Gardens on the National Mall. Rob has served as a critic and professor at academic institutions around the country, including Harvard, Yale, Columbia, and Rice Universities and the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc). Rob currently chairs the advisory committee for Rice Architecture and recently completed a four-year term as chair of Open House New York. Rob is a fellow of the American Institute of Architects.
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Euneika’s leadership within the Alumni Council involves strengthening equity, diversity, and inclusion efforts through the support of the and through engagement with students by developing regional, on-the-ground projects in which students can apply a variety of design skills. The Committee offers one-on-one mentoring and portfolio and thesis reviews, as well as courses rooted in the social design of our region.
Euneika is a creative researcher at the Destination Design School of Agricultural Estates. Working at the intersection of conceptual and material practice, she develops projects that deal with the natural environment’s role in culture, examining the significance of mainstream industrial production in developed countries and local production in developing countries. Her current work explores the social and philosophical dimensions of reparation ecology, the curious intersections of the humane and inhumane, and art as a means of engagement, education, critique, and healing. She is interested in co-designing global curricula and workshops that address ecological crises.
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Adriana collaborated on Volume 5 of the Design Impact Series, specifically Global Gardens, focusing on Latin America. Reaching out to GSD Alumni in the region and portraying the richness of our natural assets, the role they play globally and regionally, showcasing alumni work and their involvement with communities, landscape, mobility (physical and social), and overall social impact. Questions were centered on our values as a region in transition but also as fertile ground for innovation in softer landing for required infrastructure for development. Special emphasis on cultivating and safeguarding cultural knowledge as a tool for design innovation, sustainability, equity, inclusion, and justice.
Latam, and former President Harvard Club of Mexico. Envision Sustainability Professional, Project Designer | Project Architect for sustainable beach house, Puerto Escondido, for a refurbishment of a 1920s house/art gallery in Condesa, Mexico City. Former Governance and Finance for Metropolitan Development consultant for the Valley of Toluca, State of Mexico. Project Coordinator for the St Regis Hotel and Residences, Mexico City, in collaboration with PCP Design Architects, YabuPushelberg Interior Design Firm, Starwood Hotels Luxury Brand, and Ownership. Contributed to the new governing alignment for the Mexican Association of Urban Planners (AMU) and is the former Vice President of Legislation and Governance.
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Born in Tokyo, Japan, Paul Tange received both his AB (1981) and Master of Architecture (1985) from Harvard University. Immediately after graduation, he began his architectural career with Kenzo Tange Associates, the architectural firm headed by his father, Kenzo Tange.
Paul became President of Kenzo Tange Associates in 1997 and founded Tange Associates in 2003. He became Chairman of Tange Associates in 2016. Paul is a registered architect of both Japan and Singapore. He has served extensively as a juror on international design award panels, including the judging panel of DFA Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Selection Committee for Tradition Creatrice Award, and a member of Harvard’s Committee of University Resources.
Seema Thomas joined the GSD Alumni Council in 2024 and sits on the Student Alumni Exchange Committee.
Seema’s professional experience as an urban planner is informed by inclusion and innovation through financing, implementation, research, and teaching. Currently, she is a Deputy Director at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development only community development loan program (Section 108 Program), which was created in 1974. In 2022, she received the Secretary’s Award for her work to support the Department’s mission to build strong, sustainable, and inclusive communities. In addition, she periodically lectures at the University of the District of Columbia in urban sustainability and urban leadership. In parallel, she is a Planetizen course instructor to support current and future planners for an impactful urban planning career.
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Ming Thompson is co-founder of Atelier Cho Thompson (ACT), a New Haven- and San Francisco-based multidisciplinary practice working between architecture, interiors, graphics, and strategy. ACT’s work frequently blurs the boundaries between typologies, as they draw inspiration from their work in schools, museums, offices, restaurants, and homes around the world.
Ming was a recipient of the AIA Young Architects Award in 2020, and her firm has been honored with the IIDA Foundation Visionary Award and The Architect’s Newspaper’s Young Architects Award. ACT’s work has been featured in Metropolis, Architect Magazine, Interior Design Magazine, Dezeen, Divisare, and at the Venice Architecture Biennale. Educated at Yale College and the Harvard Graduate School of Design, Ming has taught at the California College of the Arts and has served on design juries around the US. She is a co-founder of A Rising Tide, an initiative to cultivate leadership among and increase the visibility of Asian and Pacific Islanders working in design for the built environment.
Outside of architecture, Ming is a first-year adviser at Yale and actively involved in her community in New Haven, serving on the boards of the Yale-China Association and the New Haven Preservation Trust. In addition, Ming co-founded Design Brigade, a project to connect design students with community design problems, at Yale’s Center for Collaborative Arts and Media.
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Zenovia is co-chair of the Student Alumni Exchange Committee. The committee has conducted portfolio reviews and one-on-one meetings with students, in addition to a panel on the challenges and opportunities of entering the post-GSD life.
Through courses at Dartmouth, Zenovia has been working with students on developing projects that explore the social impact of Architecture in Public Space, emphasizing ideas that can accommodate the needs and desires of vulnerable individuals and underserved communities. She provides one-on-one mentorship to all her students and other students, many of whom . She has been organizing panels and events which explore professional matters emerged by the needs of students, often focusing on social impact, ethics in design, and ethics in professional practice.
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Hunter Tura is the CEO of THE-CREATIVE, an anti-disciplinary brand consultancy where he is responsible for the firm’s overall creative excellence, strategic direction and global business development. With an emphasis on work that integrates brand strategy, design, and innovation, he has worked with business, culture, and design leaders from organizations such as Netflix, Muji, Ford Motor Company, Pfizer, The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Samsung, and more.
Since 2021 he has served as a “Supermentor” for the Field X / Field Y courses at Harvard Business School, providing insight and counsel to start-up and early-stage companies. From 2014 to 2017, he was an External Advisor and Guest Lecturer at Designskolen Kolding in Denmark. Additionally, he has served on the design faculty of the University of California and Columbia University and has lectured and served as a guest critic at universities and conferences worldwide.
He is co-chair of the GSD Alumni Council Communications Committee, a member of the Design Council for IE School of Architecture and Design in Madrid, and the Alumni Board for The Williams School in New London, Connecticut.
Sameh Wahba, together with Nina Chase, is the co-chair of the GSD Alumni Council. He is also a member of the Dean’s Council. He is a co-creator of Design Impact and has contributed substantively to several DI, including “Following the Sun: Design Futures at the Intersection of Health, Equity and Climate Change.” He contributed actively to the Ambassadorship Committee and was co-chair of the Governance Committee, committed to strengthening the international dimension of the Alumni Council.
Sameh Wahba is the Regional Practice Director for the Planet Department at the World Bank’s Europe and Central Asia region, where he oversees all World Bank lending, technical assistance, partnerships, and policy advisory work in sustainable development, including agriculture and food, climate change, environment, natural resources and the blue economy, social inclusion and sustainability, and water. He oversees a $10bn portfolio and a team of 200 staff. Between 2016-2022, he worked as Global Director for Urban, Disaster Risk Management, Resilience and Land Global Practice where he oversaw a team of 450 staff and a $30bn portfolio. He holds a Ph.D. and Master’s in Urban Planning from Harvard University, and a Master’s and Bachelor’s in architectural engineering from Cairo University. He has 25 years’ experience in urban development, disaster risk management, infrastructure, and sustainable development. His publications on cities, housing, land, infrastructure, and finance include books, chapters and articles in peer-reviewed journals. He is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Cities Council and the advisory board for the WRI Ross Center for Cities, and a Commissioner in the Global Commission for Urban SDGs Finance.
Sameh’s training in architectural engineering, urban design, and urban planning, in addition to finance and economics, makes him well-positioned to serve as a bridge between the different design disciplines in the GSD.
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Ole is co-chair of the Design Impact Committee and a mentor in the GSD Mentorship Program.
Ole earned a bachelor’s degree at Manchester University in England before coming to the GSD for a Master of Architecture. He worked in Boston before moving to Edinburgh, where he worked for six years as an architect. He then co-founded NSW Arkitektur in Oslo and is currently Founding Partner and Architectural Director. The firm has three locations in Norway and has done a number of jobs abroad. Ole has served as President of the Norwegian Association of Architects and has also been active in the academic world, having been a teacher and external examiner in 7 architectural schools in 6 countries – currently in Riga, Latvia. He is also the village architect in the Mediaeval village Colletta di Castelbianco in Italy.
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