Upcoming Real Estate Events

WEBINAR SUMMARY

1. Tips and strategies for borrowers when seeking debt relief and working with lenders
2. What borrowers are requesting of their lenders right now. And what lenders are agreeing to
3. Different types of relief being given today
4. CMBS loan workouts during the pandemic
5. The process for modifying CMBS loans

ARON YOUNGERWOOD

Principal, Lucrum Realty

BERT HABOUCHA

Principal, Atlas Capital Advisors

LESLIE LUNDIN (MAJOR RETAIL OWNER/DEVELOPER)

Managing Partner, LBG Real Estate

WHY THIS MATTERS

WEBINAR SUMMARY

1. Is the flight to the ‘burbs’ real? Are we seeing more demand for office space in suburban and coastal locales in NJ? What is the current state of the NYC office exodus?
2. What are the key characteristics of a self-sufficient city that doesn’t depend on connectivity links to CBDs?
3. What cities can be self sufficient in NJ, and how close are others to reaching that level?
4. When retail and leisure are struggling to stay afloat, how can we create vibrant neighborhoods in this new world?
5. How can tech help in enabling accessibility and socio-economic opportunities in cities?

JOYCE WATTERMAN

Council President, City of Jersey City

JOEL BERGSTEIN

President, Lincoln Equities Group

JEFFREY AMENGUAL

COO, DMG Investments

DAVID WOLFE (MODERATOR)

Partner, Skoloff & Wolfe

WHY THIS MATTERS

WEBINAR SUMMARY

1. What type of deals are raising the most equity right now?
2. What is the outlook for secondary cities, or 18 hour cities, like Nashville, Charlotte, Austin that were growing rapidly pre-pandemic?
3. What’s happening with asset acquisition prices?
4. What are the critical components of getting your deal approved and in front of online investors right now?
5. In terms of getting a deal done, what have we learned from the pandemic so far?

DARREN POWDERLY

Co-founder & VP-Capital Markets, CrowdStreet

MARCI GRIFFITH LOEBER

Managing Principal, Griffith Properties

ANNA-MARIE ALLANDER LIEB

Director of Investments, CrowdStreet

JACK CHANDLER

Founder, Majesteka Investments, & Chairman, ULI Americas

WHY THIS MATTERS

WEBINAR SUMMARY

1. What makes data centers a recession-proof asset class?
2. How are regulatory incentives across the U.S. and abroad creating more opportunity for investors and developers? Where are the most compelling incentives?
3. How can investors locate and approach a deal strategically in this current landscape?
4. Which emerging markets hold the most potential for yield?
5. What are the different deal types on the market? Is ground-up construction, adaptive reuse or upgrading outdated assets the safest investment now?

WHY THIS MATTERS

WEBINAR SUMMARY

1. How to preserve cash and manage debt in a period of recession
2. Where and when opportunities will arise as a result of the pandemic
3. Which demographic and societal trends to look out for and which real estate sectors they will help and hinder
4. How to grow your business while remaining agile and still making good returns for investors

KEN CAPLAN

Global Co-Head of Real Estate, Blackstone

WHY THIS MATTERS

Please join us for the new SCIAME Global Spotlight Lecture Series, titled Far South. Curated by Associate Professor Fabian Llonch the series features prominent architects from South America who will discuss their work and the unique political and environmental challenges they face. The third lecture of this series, entitled “Our Construction,” will be presented by Gloria Cabral, a Paraguayan architect and partner at Gabinete de Arquitectura in Asuncion. Along with Solano Benitez, they research architecture’s role in the construction of society.

In 2010, the duo was selected to participate in the Bienal Panamericana with the CRIT Teleton building. Cabral was selected to participate in the Rolex Mentor & Protégé program, which offered her the opportunity to work alongside architect Peter Zumthor in his Swiss studio in 2014. The studio received the Golden Lion prize at the 15th International Architecture Exhibition, La Biennale di Venezia, for their project, “Breaking the Siege”. In 2016, they won the Panorama prize for their project “Quincho de la Tia Coral”. Subsequently, Gloria received the Moira Gemmill Prize for Emerging Architecture and participated as a juror of the RIBA prize Home of the Year. She is currently teaching studio at UNA in Paraguay and HKU in Hong Kong.

The lectures are free and open to the public. Check out our calendar for lecture descriptions and Zoom links. We hope you will join us.

*This event is occurring as a live webinar. Registrants will be emailed a link to access the program.*

The annual Gil Oberfield Memorial Lecture was founded in honor of Gil Oberfield, AIA, former member and chair of the AIANY Interiors Committee. The lecture brings to the podium speakers whose work excels in the field of interior architecture. This year’s lecturer is with INC Architecture & Design.

INC is an open-source, multi-disciplinary architecture and design studio with experience in a wide range of project types. The studio works globally but acts locally, implementing environmental best practices naturally. Each project is a unique portrait imbued with the aspirations of the clientele, that leverages the complementary strengths of the firm’s leaders to mastermind rich, immersive spaces that carry an emotional impact through careful consideration of context, details, and technology. INC’s work includes projects such as the 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge Park, The LINE Hotel DC, and the TWA Hotel. 

Conceived as a singular intensely collaborative studio, INC is the brainchild of Adam Rolston, Gabriel Benroth, and Drew Stuart. Dedicated to an integrated vision for the architectural and design disciplines, these three creatives shepherd every INC project, big or small, from beginning to end, with a passionate, hands-on engagement, bringing their respective talents and interests to bear. The Inspiration, functionality and technique required at each phase of the design, construction, and fabrication process is provided for by their distinct but complementary gifts. This “team-of-interdisciplinary-specialists” approach informs the culture and structure of the studio, where an “expert” is always within reach. Adam Rolston keeps an eye on the big picture, from 30,000 feet and down to earth, making sure that the sum is always greater than its parts. Gabriel Benroth leverages the power of technology in the studio to build a better world outside it. For Drew Stuart, the DNA is in the details that make a good idea a great design. Together they are on a mission to fashion objects, spaces, and buildings deeply and emotionally connected to their social and cultural contexts. As they like to say, design for humans.   

Speakers:
Adam Rolston, Creative & Managing Director, Partner, INC Architecture & Design
Gabriel Benroth, Studio & Information Director, Partner, INC Architecture & Design
Drew Stuart, Field Director, Partner, INC Architecture & Design 

About the speakers

Adam Rolston has been engaged in the practice of architecture since 1985. He was born and raised in Los Angeles and attended Syracuse University School of Architecture, where he studied both in Syracuse and in Italy under the influence of the Northern Italian Rationalists. Rolston has served as the Senior Designer and Project Architect for many large-scale, commercial office, residential condominium, private residential, hospitality, and retail projects in Southeast Asia, Europe, and New York. He is known for his keen attention to detail, his ability to tackle the design and planning of complex projects at a variety of scales, and for his careful attention to client and user needs. Rolston is a registered architect in the State of New York and a member of AIA New York and USGBC.

Gabriel Benroth attended the University of Cincinnati School of Architecture and Interior Design, where he graduated magna cum laude with dual degrees in Architecture and Interior Design. Starting in 1997, Benroth worked on commercial office spaces at Gensler-DC; retail and campus planning for BAR in San Francisco, CA; urban residential historic preservation in upstate New York; and high-end residential interiors at Tsao & McKown Architects. Benroth’s primary focus is the intersection between architecture and interior design, which finds expression in projects ranging from custom furniture to private and boutique retail interiors and large luxury hospitality and commercial projects. His specialty in visualization and design is renowned in the industry. As Studio Director, Benroth has expanded the traditional role by building new systems and adopting new technologies to model and integrate disparate business processes with tools that capitalize on new open interfaces in software.

Drew Stuart has been engaged in the practice of architecture for nearly two decades. At University of Cincinnati School of Architecture, and in extensive travels to Europe and Asia, he developed a commitment to quality and craft. He joined Tsao & McKown Architects in 1999 where he worked for seven years before founding INC in 2006. Stuart has designed and executed private residential interiors, homes, hotels, spas, restaurants, and large and small residential condominium developments – all with a domestic sensibility. He possesses a particular interest in the complexities of ushering a design from conception to realization while maintaining an appropriate balance between design and constructability. 

The past year has given way to unparalleled momentum and support for developing green, energy efficient, healthy buildings. Commitments towards a more sustainable future have been integrated into all aspects for the real estate industry from green financing, new design considerations, building operations and environmentally conscious construction practices to a heightened awareness surrounding how tenant health and wellness factors into the built environment. Are new challenges in delivering sustainable solutions arising from the covid crisis? Tune in to hear about the top trends in commercial real estate sustainability, emerging innovations enhancing the building ecosystem and the unique complications posed by recent public health concerns.

Earn 1 AIA LU

The purpose of this presentation is to give an introduction to GFRC (glass-fiber reinforced concrete), including the virtues and benefits seen when choosing to work with this material for the fabrication of residential or commercial furnishings. The course does this by exploring a common GFRC application – countertops – while discussing the pros and cons of utilizing GFRC while comparing and contrasting it to a variety of other stone products.

Learning Objectives:

• A brief history of concrete and GFRC
• A comparison between typical concrete and GFRC
• An explanation of what GFRC is and the process to create GFRC products
• A comparison between GFRC and other forms of stone
• An explanation of what applications GFRC should and should not be used in

• Matt Tighe
  Sales Director
  Trueform Concrete, LLC
• Samuel Medina
  Executive Editor/Moderator
  The Architect’s Newspaper

Using Partnerships for Airport Infrastructure 
Public-private partnerships (P3s) have seen much recent success in delivering critical infrastructure across the country.  As some airports face challenges in finding ways to enhance their capacity to fund and construct major expansion or even maintain needed infrastructure, many are looking to P3s as an opportunity to facilitate growth.

Join over 1,000 airport representatives and industry leaders for 3 valuable days of project delivery discussions. The Summit will focus on project management, planning, procurement, and networking for airport owners, operators, airlines, and other industry professionals. Our event is dedicated to P3 education, industry networking, and business development. If you’re looking to connect with new partners and identify project opportunities, you’ll want to attend.

Short term accommodation through providers such as AirBNB have become a popular model as recreational and business travelers embrace unique local experiences. With the disruption to the travel industry as a result of COVID-19, this model is being tested, along with hotels, hospitality and multifamily assets classes. During this Masterclass, you will hear from the leaders in flexible accommodation as they outline their approach to not just recover from the immediate disruption but to put in place new collaborations and financing possibilities to have thriving and performing assets into the future.

*This event is occurring as a live webinar. Registrants will be emailed a link to access the program; please continue to register.*

The AIANY Women in Architecture Committee continues its annual Women Design Leaders Series with four extraordinary international women architects who were educated in the US and have since achieved design accolades either in their native or adoptive countries. Please join us to learn about how they contribute to their communities, educate the next generation, advocate for equity, fight climate change, and improve the built environment. Above all, they will inspire us to look beyond our cities and encourage women design leaders to think about how to impact the world.

Presenters:
Astrid Piber, Partner, UN Studio | Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Betsy Williamson, Principal, Williamson Williamson | Toronto, Canada
Kotchakorn Voraakhom, Founder, Landprocess and Porous City Network | Bangkok, Thailand
Victoria Marwa Heilman, Principal, VK Green Architects | Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Moderator:
Hana Kassem, AIA, LEED AP, Principal, KPF

About the speakers

Astrid Piber, Partner and Senior Architect at UNStudio, graduated from the Technical University Vienna in 1997 and received her MS in AAD from Columbia University New York in 1999. Since joining UNStudio in 1998, Piber has worked closely with Ben van Berkel on a wide range of projects. Her first was the now completed Arnhem Central Station masterplan. In the intervening years, she has worked on numerous projects in Asia and Europe from the initial urban study and competition phase through to realization. She is currently in charge of numerous mixed-use and transport projects internationally. Piber became a share-holding Partner at UNStudio in 2007 and was jointly responsible for setting up the UNStudio Asia office.

Betsy Williamson, OAA, FRAIC, is Principal of Williamson Williamson Inc., a Toronto-based architecture and design studio that she founded with her partner, Shane Williamson, in 2007. Williamson’s work has been published widely and has received numerous awards over the years. Notable practice-based recognition includes the Professional Prix de Rome for Architecture from the Canada Council of the Arts, the Emerging Architectural Practice Award from the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, and the Young Architects Prize and the Emerging Voices Award from the Architecture League of New York. Williamson is a founder of and the current Advisory Committee Chair of Building Equality in Architecture Toronto (BEAT), an organization dedicated to the promotion of equality by providing mentorship, networking, and leadership opportunities for women and minorities in the profession.

Kotchakorn Vorrakhom, CEO and Founder of Landprocess and Porous City Network, is a landscape architect from Thailand who works on building productive green public spaces that tackle climate change in urban dense areas and climate-vulnerable communities. She has designed the first critical green infrastructure for Bangkok, Chulalongkorn Centenary Park; the largest urban farming green roof in Asia at Thammasat Urban Farm Rooftop; and the first park bridge across the river, Chao Phraya Sky Park. Vorrakhom was featured in the 2019 “TIME 100 Next” list as one of 15 leading women fighting against climate change and the “Green 30 for 2020” by Bloomberg. She is Chairwoman on the Landscape Architects Without Borders of the International Federation of Landscape Architects, Asia Pacific Region (IFLA APR). Vorrakhom received her Master’s in landscape architecture from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design and taught there as design critic in Spring 2020. She is also an Atlantic Fellow, TED Fellow, and an Echoing Green Climate Fellow.

Victoria Marwa Heilman is a co–founder and Chairperson of Tanzania Women Architects for Humanity (TAWAH) NGO. Heilman holds a Doctorate degree in Architecture from the University of Stuttgart in Germany, a Master degree in Architecture from the Catholic University of America (CUA), and a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Dar es Salaam – UCLAS in Tanzania. Heilman works professionally as an architect at VK Green Architects Ltd., a company that she started in 2012. She has volunteered with Habitat for Humanity Tanzania for a number of projects in rural Tanzania as a coordinator and a construction supervisor. In 2018, Heilman left her teaching career at Ardhi University to devote more time to helping communities in need through her knowledge and expertise in architecture.

Hana Kassem, AIA, LEED AP, Principal at KPF, has applied a human-centric approach to design across various project typologies over her 25-year career as an architect. With a design focus on Sustainability, Resiliency and Wellness, she examines how we affect our environment and how in turn our built environment impacts us. She employs this approach on projects in countries ranging from the United States to China, and from Brazil to Abu Dhabi. Her international background affords her the ability to tailor solutions to various cultural contexts while maintaining universal commonalities. Kassem is adjunct professor at the Parsons School of Constructed Environments. She serves on the AIANY Board of Trustees and is Founding Chair for its annual Leaning Out | Women in Architecture panel. Kassen also serves on the Van Alen Institute Board of Trustees. She is the co-editor of Architect d.b.a. | On Re-defining the Roles of the Architect Today, a book published by the AIANY.

Launching September 24th, 2020 at 9AM – 2PM EST, Design Impact: Transformation at the Intersection of Climate Change, Equity, and Health, is a global design summit sponsored by the Harvard Graduate School of Design Alumni Council, the Harvard Alumni Association, Harvard Alumni Architectural and Urban Society in collaboration with the World Bank.

The virtual event brings together an outstanding roster of global leaders to share their work and vision, challenging us as a global community to use design as a tool for actionable, transformative change and healing.

The event is free and open to all.

Thursday, September 24, 9:00 am – 1:30 pm
Friday, September 25, 1:00 pm – 6:00 pm

The events of 2020 have exposed critical issues of social justice and health equity that are embedded in the built environment. It is clear that our professions face a broad range of challenges for the future. Are planners, architects, and landscape architects equipped to make measurable and positive change?

This multi-disciplinary conference seeks to examine how current events have shaped public health, transportation, and technology, and how the allied professions can aid our communities in moving forward. We will explore how these components of society are understood from the neighborhood level all the way to a global scale. Now more than ever, each discipline must work to address, at all scales, social and environmental issues. The conference will engage government officials, practitioners, and researchers in discussions about the relationships between scales and the methods of practice used across our professions.

See further information on speakers and sessions here.

Credits (pending):

6.0 AICP CM Credits
6.0 LACES Credits
6.0 AIA Credits

Pricing:

APA-ASLA-AIA Member Registration
Early Bird Pricing ends September 10.

Sessions:
*Speakers and program for each day will be updated soon*

Session 1 – Public Health

As we work towards a more socially just, inclusive and healthy future, design professionals are being asked to deploy and develop tools and techniques for engagement and practice. Policy frameworks not only facilitate the design of our physical surroundings, both natural and built environments, but also serve as a vehicle for designers and planners to harness their capacity to yield profound and positive health impacts on near term measurable outcomes and future trajectories.

This panel will discuss how research and practice are working to identify and support policy-centered, equitable design solutions that improve the physical and mental well-being of communities,from individuals and neighborhoods to regional landscapes and populations.

Session 2 – Transportation

Transportation networks have become central to the physical and social fabric of our built environment, whereby designers and planners are often responsible for creating/implementing  these systems. Transportation systems can be assessed on their accessibility, the functional qualities of the spaces, and how these systems  intersect with other modes.  Transportation systems have the capacity to alter our relationship to the landscape around us and to one another, both positively and negatively, while promoting efficient and convenient modes of travel.

This panel will discuss the extents of transportation systems and their relationships to both environmental and social ecologies, and will consider how practitioners can design systems that support equity, reinforce social cohesion and promote robust, self-sustaining ecosystems.

Session 3 – Technology

Distributed and readily available technology is at the fingertips of publics and practitioners alike, enabling  access to seemingly democratized interfaces and generating endless feedback loops. Its availability creates new opportunities to enhance the experience and better understand the behavior of folks who use, manage, plan and design our built environment, thereby enabling work in increasingly functional and responsive relationships to our social and environmental policy frameworks.

This panel will discuss the ever increasing use of technology across our professions and question whether its use is balanced, equitable, and accessible enough to engage and use with and without the public.

Session 4 – The Role of Each Profession at all Scales

As we close the day of discussions, it is important to consider the role that each profession plays in their current iterations, and what are our responsibilities now and in the future to our profession and the people with whom we work. Building on the previous discussions of public health, transportation, and technology – and the scales at which allied professionals engage these topics – this closing session will investigate the state of the allied  professions,how our professions can examine and dismantle the disparities laid bare by Covid-19 and racial injustice, and how we need to shift our focus and evolve to address current and future challenges and crises.

You deserve more than a webinar and we’re here to deliver! Introducing Bisnow’s 

Tri-State Multifamily Digital Summit: all the features of our BMAC live event series from the safety of your home. Chat one-on-one with fellow attendees, join breakout groups with speakers and take part in speed networking to expand your connections.

We hope that bringing people together across the wider Tri-State area for this digital summit will be a small but important step in helping the multifamily industry plot a course through the current uncertainty in the world.

We’ve lined up a stellar group of experts, featuring top executives at Taconic, JP Morgan & Chase, PGIM, Lendlease, Invesco and more to discuss the current state of the Tri-State area’s multifamily market during this extremely turbulent time.

We will cover everything from rent collections to eviction moratoriums, financing and investment strategies, resiliency in design and operations, all the way to innovative leasing strategies to save and keep rent flow consistent.

Our all-star panelists will tackle the industry’s most pressing questions as well as provide answers to:

1. How have nationwide eviction moratoriums — and NYC’s city-wide ban — changed the approach for multifamily landlords and developers? And what happens when the moratorium ends?
2. How is the multifamily industry seeing the impact of the November elections, both on the federal and local levels?
3. How are labor and material costs changing in response to supply chain difficulties due to the pandemic?
4. With a record-breaking number of apartments sitting empty in Manhattan, how is technology now being incorporated into property management?
5. What are critical factors and the long term benefits of designing, delivering and financing sustainable and energy-efficient multifamily developments?

Please join Huggins Wood Floor Specialist for our two credit courses:

Designing with Wood Floors (AIACED108501) (CEU-104158) and Specifying the Right Wood Floors for the Job (AIACED108503) (CEU-104201) on 9/24/20 between 1PM-230PM at Downtown Floor Supplies. We will be covering the latest trends to hit the American market in flooring.

These are a 2 CEU Credit course. The National Wood Flooring Association will submit the forms to IDCEC and AIA for your CEU’s approval. Seats are limited please sign up fast. Lunch will be served.

Guess Speaker Matthew Federick owner of -Matthew Frederick Interiors Please contact Huggins Wood Floor Specialist at 908-232-6600 for more information.

This event, hosted by nycoba|NOMA, will present opportunities for young professionals to learn and potentially form lasting relationships with more experienced professionals.

Thursday, September 24th, 2020
6:30pm – 7:30pm

Video Conference

‪(US) +1 513-796-6928‬
PIN: ‪699 249 692‬#

Please RSVP

For additional information please email professionaldevelopment@nycoba.org

*This event is occurring as a live webinar. Registrants will be emailed a link to access the program; please continue to register.*

Case Studies in Carbon Reduction for Modern Heritage Buildings

This panel discussion explores exemplary architectural projects at the intersection of modern heritage and sustainability that have used a mix of Passive House strategies, new technology, and creativity to drive their retrofit process. Buildings featured include Habitat 67, the Pirelli Building, and the Guggenheim. In the quest for Net Zero, the preservation community is well positioned as a key player based on the overall embodied carbon savings of working with existing buildings. However, many challenges are present as retrofitting can potentially affect the historic character of irreplaceable heritage buildings. In this event, architects working with iconic modern heritage buildings talk about the complications of preservation in the age of sustainability.

Moderator:
Scott Henson, FAIA, CPHD, Principal at Scott Henson Architect

Panelists:
Lois Arena, PE Director, Passive House Services, Steven Winter Associates
Bruce Becker, FAIA, AICP, Principal at Becker and Becker
Angel Ayon, AIA, LEED AP Principal at AYON Studio
Ghislain Belanger, OAQ, MRAIC, LEED AP Principal at C012 Architecture

About the speakers:

Scott Henson, Founding Principal of Scott Henson Architect, has over 30 years of experience in design and construction, with a focus on historic preservation and sustainably retrofitting historic and existing buildings, and his buildings include those on the National Historic Register, individual Landmarked Buildings, and those located in Historic Districts. Henson has used his design expertise, evolved from years of study with master craftsmen, and now as a Passive House designer, to devise intricate restoration techniques, and orchestrate unique strategies to restore previously derelict and abandoned historic structures to meaningful use, demonstrating the traditional, cultural and sustainable stewardship of historic preservation. Having founded Scott Henson Architect in 2003, and as an active member of the AIANY Committee on the Environment, the Historic Buildings Committee, APTI’s Technical Committee on Sustainable Preservation and Co-Chair of the Zero Net Carbon Collaboration, Henson cultivates the exchange of knowledge throughout the international community, specifically related to the realities and challenges of retrofitting historic and existing buildings and the reduction of their overall carbon output.

Lois Arena, Director of Passive House Services at Steven Winter Associates, Inc., possesses over 25 years experience in the building science field and has extensive experience with new and existing buildings. Arena holds both US and international Passive House consultant certifications and is currently consulting on some of the largest and most difficult Passive House projects in the world.  She has co-authored and presented training programs about energy efficient building practices to professionals in all sectors of the building industry and is regularly invited to present at conferences and private firms around the world to discuss the benefits of and road blocks to PH adoption.

Bruce Becker uses a fully integrated approach to sustainable design, planning, financing and development of buildings to meet the social, economic and environmental needs of communities. His firm focuses on green supportive, affordable, and mixed-income housing, community centers, child and senior day care, and urban and historic revitalization projects. Becker + Becker has planned designed and developed over 10,000 units of multi-family rental housing, and a wide variety of commercial, retail, educational and mixed-use facilities. Becker founded two non-profit housing organizations to sponsor innovative mixed-use affordable housing projects, Common Ground HDFC and Under One Roof. He has served as development consultant and architect to dozens of not-for-profit organizations and municipalities to create supportive and affordable housing and educational and community facilities. He initiated the 2004 “Energy Efficient Housing Technical Correction Act” with Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney which modified FHA multifamily underwriting standards to include financing of energy efficiency technologies, and designed and initiated the Connecticut State Green Buildings Tax Credit program.

Angel Ayón is both an Architect and Preservationist and has more than twenty years of experience working with historic buildings. Trained in his native Havana, Cuba, Washington, D.C., and New York City, his expertise ranges from building-envelope evaluation and repair to full-scale rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of commercial and residential properties, as well as cultural and educational institutions. Ayón believes it is the responsibility of the current generation to save and secure our built heritage as a cultural asset. He currently serves as Vice-President of Save Harlem Now! and is a member of the Advisory Board of the Historic Districts Council, the Historic Preservation Committee of The Municipal Art Society of New York (MAS), and the Preservation League of the NY State’s Board of Trustees. He is also an active member of Columbia University’s Preservation Alumni, as well as the AIA, NCARB, USGBC, APTi, APT NE, US/ICOMOS, and Docomomo. Ayón holds a professional degree in Architecture and a Master of Science in Conservation and Rehabilitation of the Built Heritage from Havana’s Higher Polytechnic Institute, as well as a Post-Graduate Certificate in Conservation of Historic Buildings and Archaeological Sites from Columbia University in New York.

Ghislain Bélanger has practiced over 27 years and worked as Design Architect and Project Manager on numerous projects of varying scales, complexities and scope, in a variety of domains, including Hospitals, Long term Care, Schools, Research facilities, Housing and Heritage conservation. His Montreal based firm CO12 Architecture was founded in 2015 and offers services from Architectural Design to Technical studies and Building Science. He is also currently teaching Design, materials and construction technologies at the UQAM’s School of Environmental Design, and has been guest critic at the University of Montreal School of Architecture and Azrieli School of Architecture in Ottawa. Some of his recent works on Heritage buildings and projects in the Canadian Arctic regions brought Bélanger to elaborate on conceptual and construction strategies involving research and technical solutions to deal with both heavy environmental challenges related to climate, and acute cultural significance. Particular interests in the state of Modern Heritage and the political debate attached to its preservation lead him to further investigate the complex rules and approval processes that are regulating the course of all conservation efforts.

Thursday, September 24, 9:00 am – 1:30 pm
Friday, September 25, 1:00 pm – 6:00 pm

The events of 2020 have exposed critical issues of social justice and health equity that are embedded in the built environment. It is clear that our professions face a broad range of challenges for the future. Are planners, architects, and landscape architects equipped to make measurable and positive change?

This multi-disciplinary conference seeks to examine how current events have shaped public health, transportation, and technology, and how the allied professions can aid our communities in moving forward. We will explore how these components of society are understood from the neighborhood level all the way to a global scale. Now more than ever, each discipline must work to address, at all scales, social and environmental issues. The conference will engage government officials, practitioners, and researchers in discussions about the relationships between scales and the methods of practice used across our professions.

See further information on speakers and sessions here.

Credits (pending):

6.0 AICP CM Credits
6.0 LACES Credits
6.0 AIA Credits

Pricing:

APA-ASLA-AIA Member Registration
Early Bird Pricing ends September 10.

Sessions:
*Speakers and program for each day will be updated soon*

Session 1 – Public Health

As we work towards a more socially just, inclusive and healthy future, design professionals are being asked to deploy and develop tools and techniques for engagement and practice. Policy frameworks not only facilitate the design of our physical surroundings, both natural and built environments, but also serve as a vehicle for designers and planners to harness their capacity to yield profound and positive health impacts on near term measurable outcomes and future trajectories.

This panel will discuss how research and practice are working to identify and support policy-centered, equitable design solutions that improve the physical and mental well-being of communities,from individuals and neighborhoods to regional landscapes and populations.

Session 2 – Transportation

Transportation networks have become central to the physical and social fabric of our built environment, whereby designers and planners are often responsible for creating/implementing  these systems. Transportation systems can be assessed on their accessibility, the functional qualities of the spaces, and how these systems  intersect with other modes.  Transportation systems have the capacity to alter our relationship to the landscape around us and to one another, both positively and negatively, while promoting efficient and convenient modes of travel.

This panel will discuss the extents of transportation systems and their relationships to both environmental and social ecologies, and will consider how practitioners can design systems that support equity, reinforce social cohesion and promote robust, self-sustaining ecosystems.

Session 3 – Technology

Distributed and readily available technology is at the fingertips of publics and practitioners alike, enabling  access to seemingly democratized interfaces and generating endless feedback loops. Its availability creates new opportunities to enhance the experience and better understand the behavior of folks who use, manage, plan and design our built environment, thereby enabling work in increasingly functional and responsive relationships to our social and environmental policy frameworks.

This panel will discuss the ever increasing use of technology across our professions and question whether its use is balanced, equitable, and accessible enough to engage and use with and without the public.

Session 4 – The Role of Each Profession at all Scales

As we close the day of discussions, it is important to consider the role that each profession plays in their current iterations, and what are our responsibilities now and in the future to our profession and the people with whom we work. Building on the previous discussions of public health, transportation, and technology – and the scales at which allied professionals engage these topics – this closing session will investigate the state of the allied  professions,how our professions can examine and dismantle the disparities laid bare by Covid-19 and racial injustice, and how we need to shift our focus and evolve to address current and future challenges and crises.