The Intersection Series aims to explore the intersectionality of equity and issues confronting architects today.
The first event, Equity + Resilience, will dive into the complexities of resiliency and its many facets including community, economic, and disaster resilience. In a round-table format, we will discuss how we can build resilience into our communities via the built environment, what is being done in the region, and strategies for ensuring equitable distribution of resiliency efforts.
Learning Objectives:
- Define the different types of resiliency.
- Explore the intersection of resiliency and equity; how can both be incorporated into design or how might resilience efforts (e.g. hardening buildings against disaster) counteract equitable design?
- Investigate how resiliency can benefit from community engagement.
- Identify different strategies that are being implemented to provide equitable resiliency in the area.
Presented by:
Lindsay Brugger
Vice President, Urban Land Institute
Lindsay Brugger is Vice President of ULI’s Urban Resilience Program. She leads strategy and project development to advance the real estate industry’s understanding of resilience, catalyze action to reduce vulnerability, and support communities in becoming more climate resilient. A licensed architect and certified passive house consultant, Lindsay has worked for over a decade at the intersection of resilience, adaptation, and the built environment to turn the negative impacts of climate change into opportunities where all can thrive.
Scott Matties
Executive VP, Wiencek + Associates Architects + Planners
Scott Matties holds a Master of Architecture from the University of Michigan and has more than 30 years of experience in architectural design and master planning for award winning institutional, academic, commercial, and residential projects. His career has encompassed all aspects of residential design. Mr. Matties has led numerous community engagement sessions leading to approvals by jurisdictions throughout the DMV area and has extensive experience in community-based architecture and managing diverse stakeholder expectations. He has served in the AIA Northern Virginia chapter as a Board member and chaired many design award committees such as AIA NOVA, Fairfax County
Design Excellence Awards, and California Central Valley Design Awards.
Leila Finucane
President & CEO, Victory Housing
Since 2017, Leila Finucane has led Victory Housing, Inc., a regional nonprofit focused on affordable housing development and the provision of assisted living, as president and chief executive officer. Ms. Finucane, an attorney, has over 25 years of experience in real estate, affordable housing, and community development in the private, nonprofit and government sectors. Prior to Victory Housing, Ms. Finucane worked on
affordable housing and risk mitigation strategies at Capital One, as a director at NeighborWorks America, and as the appointed director of the DHCD for the District of Columbia, where she led the District’s affordable housing and community development efforts.
Jeff Blackwell
Senior Vice President, Real Estate Development, Victory Housing
Jeff Blackwell joined Victory Housing in 2005. His primary leadership responsibilities include overseeing the financing, design, construction, and lease-up of both existing buildings and new communities. Mr. Blackwell manages architects and engineers, general contractors, and consultants. In addition, he develops and/or coordinates often complex, multi-layered financing strategies to fund Victory Housing's communities. He has a background in taxable and tax-exempt bond financing as well as the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, HUD Section 202 program, and other funding sources.
Prior to joining Victory Housing, Mr. Blackwell was a Vice President for Bank of America's Community Development Banking in their lending and historic tax credit equity groups. Responsibilities included providing first mortgage financing, both taxable and tax-exempt, to clients who were building affordable and mixed-income housing. As an Equity Manager, he worked with clients to fund Bank investments in historic properties. Experience also includes working for the Community Preservation and Development Corporation, a nonprofit developer of affordable and mixed-income housing, and the Housing Research Foundation, a research and technical assistance provider for HOPE VI Public Housing Authorities.
Mr. Blackwell earned a Masters of Regional Planning with a specialization in Housing and Community Development from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Affairs and Planning from Virginia Tech. He has been instrumental in several awards received by Victory Housing, including the Financial Innovation Award received from the Maryland CDA in 2018.
Rick Schneider
Principal, ISTUDIO
As a board member with the VT’s Washington Alexandria Architecture Center, Rick addresses issues on design education in the 21st century. He served as a board member with the USGBC, the Committee of 100 on the Federal City, and GreenHOME. Rick is a Virginia Tech alumnus with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Architecture. He resides with his wife, a DCPS teacher, and his three daughters in the nation’s capital. Rick is an urbanist, a musician, and avid outdoor enthusiast who enjoys live music, mountain biking, and trips to National Parks.
Ryan Moody
Founding Principal, Moody Graham
Ryan Moody is a registered landscape architect and founding principal of Moody Graham, a design firm based in Washington, DC focused on Garden Design, Landscape Architecture, and Ecological Planning. Ryan holds master’s degrees in architecture and landscape architecture from the University of Virginia and a Bachelor of Science in Architecture degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Bold in design, thoughtful in approach, Moody Graham uses the power of nature and the craft of architecture to compose vibrant landscapes that promote healthy living, working, and being. Recently completed and ongoing projects by Moody Graham include the Ward 5 Short Term Family Housing Facility and Ward 8 Senior Wellness Center with the DC Department of General Services, the Rock Creek Golf Course with National Links Trust and the National Park Service, and the Southwest-Buzzard Point Flood Resilience Strategy with Ramboll and the DC Department of Energy and Environment.
Organized by:
AIA|DC Advocacy Committee
AIA|DC Resiliency & Disaster Relief Committee