12 minute read
AIANYS Board Quotes
In keeping with the theme of Reflection, Inflection, Pivot, and Transformation, we asked our AIANYS Board Members to submit a quote, or a sentence or two, that reflects on something they’ve learned, something they’ve had to approach differently in practice or in life, or something positive that has come out of the adversity they’ve faced over the past year. Here’s what they had to say...
“Leading an association via Zoom during a pandemic is hard! However, it brought out the resolve to work more closely, communicate more clearly and support one another more than ever before. We will carry this resolve with us as we emerge from this pandemic to better serve our members in the years to come.”
Joseph J. Aliotta, FAIA 2021 AIANYS Past President
Reflection
Tannia Chavez, Int’l Assoc. AIA Associate Director – New York Region Representative to the National Associates Committee (NAC)
Scott Townsend, AIA AIANYS Director
Reflection
Christopher Fagan, AIA New York Region Representative to the Young Architects Forum (YARD)
Victor K. Han, RA, AIA New York Region Representative to the AIA Strategic Council
Nell Taranto, AIA AIANYS Director
Inflection
“Over the past 365 days I was reminded that at any given second, life can be transformed. I received an epiphany when I realized that our momentary existence is unpredictable, therefore I had to modify my thought process to engender adaptability and acceptance of change in the uncertainty that is life. To that end, I am eternally grateful for all I was able to think, plan, execute and accomplish during my time of chrysalis.”
Ofe’ J. Clarke, AIA Vice President, Emerging Professionals
“Out of darkness comes light. And during those darker days, it was in the perseverance and compassion to look out for each other while learning to slow down, that I was able to reflect and have a new outlook on what our lives could be. I watched the decisions of myself and others unfold this past year as people made the choice to move, change jobs, start families, and Facetime their distanced loved ones. Many new beginnings and routines resulted from those dark days—we are now building the foundation to really appreciate the brighter days ahead.”
Jenna Wandishin, AIA AIANYS Director “I’m an architect…perfectionist… you know I’m going to give it to you at the last minute…just save me a spot.”
Jeff Pawlowski, AIA Vice President, Communications & Public Awareness
Transformation
Kirk Narburgh, FAIA, ASLA New York Region Representative to the AIA Strategic Council
Vince Lombardi
Rick Torres, AIA AIANYS Director
Pivot
“2020 induced deep thinking on what matters most for each of us—whether it was health, mental, financial stability or just survival. Having lived through economic downturns, terrorist attacks and a super storm it was easy to shift, be resilient, change the business strategy and learn new ways of delivery. BUT, how do you deal with mental depression, anguish or having suicidal thoughts and being helpless to someone you care for? How does anyone pivot from that!? They are tough to deal with, even with the help and support of therapy. I have never been much of a spiritual person, however, if there is one thing this pandemic did for me, it was to get closer to knowing God and the holy scriptures— he has a plan for each of us and created the blueprints of our life.”
Transformation
Portfolio Updates
Ga
Government Advocacy
Reimagining Advocacy
The AIANYS Grassroots Advocacy Task Force had just begun its work to transform and elevate the organization’s advocacy efforts when businesses shutdown and the State Capitol was shuttered to the public. One year later, AIANYS is on a course to launch a series of Local Advocacy Days in coordination with local components. The concept of Local Advocacy Days emerged from the work of the Task Force and became the keystone initiative to build advocacy capacity and maintain a perennial presence among our elected representatives. While Architects in Albany Advocacy Day will continue to be a vital annual event, gone are the days of the one-and-done advocacy event. The sheer breadth of issues facing state government requires a steady chorus of voices from well-informed and engaged members willing to deliver the message across the state.
The Iron is Hot—So is the Planet
The stakes have never been higher, and opportunities abound for the profession to make a lasting impression on policymakers seeking information and resources they can trust. The top priority listed consistently by AIA members across the country, and most recently in the AIANYS Siena Poll, is the need to address the climate crisis by reducing the carbon footprint of buildings. The state of New York shares these concerns and planted a lofty green flag for the country to see when it passed the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) in 2019. The primary progeny of the CLCPA was the creation of the Climate Action Council and several policy panels tasked with crafting recommendations to aggressively reduce carbon emissions over the next thirty years: 40 percent by 2030 and 85 percent by 2050 over 1990 carbon levels. When these recommendations are ready for primetime they will be released to the public for review and commentary. The involvement of AIANYS members in this process will be crucial to the future of the built environment and the profession. More information and preliminary planning documents can be found at: https:// climate.ny.gov/Climate-Action-Council.
AIANYS Priorities: Investing in the Future
In February, the American Institute of Architects unveiled a $300 billion plan to invest in green buildings over a period of five years as part of a potential federal infrastructure package. In similar fashion, AIANYS has joined a coalition of groups led by Rebuild by Design to push for a $3 billion Environmental Bond Act for New York state. A recent study by AECOM shows the Bond Act could leverage an additional $3.7 billion and create up to 65,000 jobs. At least $350 million would be set aside to retrofit state-owned buildings and up to $700 million if properly leveraged to attract federal investment. AIANYS is also moving forward with a campaign to pass the Safe Schools by Design Act, which aims to reassert the role of design as an integral component to providing a safe and healthy learning environment. While schools are using more of their capital expenditures and funds from the Smart Schools Bond Act to purchase high-tech security devices, the State legislature is growing increasingly leery of intrusive technology, prison-like school environments, and the presence of armed police officers. Recalibrating the conversation back to where all things begin—design—offers a balanced strategy to deliver safer schools and provide a response to the concerns raised by parents, communities, and elected leaders.
C&Pa Communications & Public Awareness
The Communications & Public Awareness (C&Pa) Portfolio identified several projects this year that align with the 2021-2023 Strategic Plan: AIANYS Website Redesign | Positive member and non-member journeys are critical components to ensure website success. We are in the early stages of creating our website strategy, develop an RFP and explore potential firms to invite to submit a response. Social Media | We are working hard to increase our social media presence on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter, creating original content, sharing fun, relevant posts from our regional components and more. We are also looking into adding other platforms throughout the year. If you haven’t already, follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook - AIA New York State and Twitter @AIANewYorkState. Improve Communication Vehicles | AIANYS issues
an e-newsletter on the second and fourth Thursdays of every month where we share timely articles, upcoming events and education programs, a calendar of events. We also publish the digital publication, “Architecture New York State” at the end of each quarter. This issue, the first of the year, includes diverse articles and information shared under the theme of reflection, inflection, pivot and transformation. We’ve introduced portfolio updates to keep you informed about initiatives and progress made throughout the year. Working with the Emerging Professionals, we’ve decided to sunset the EPZine, the EP newsletter, and incorporate their content into this publication in order to streamline our communication vehicles and expand their audience. The Emerging Professionals have created a successful podcast series—you can learn more about that in the EP portfolio update on the next page.
Handbook will serve as a resource for chapters and members to better understand their role in preparing for and responding to disasters throughout New York State. The Disaster Assistance Handbook Work Group, led by Tim Boyland, AIA and comprised of volunteer members who have a passion or experience in disaster assistance, have been working together to develop a draft of the handbook. Work is ongoing and an update will be shared during the April 28 Board meeting. Honor Awards Program Review | We are establishing
a Task Force to review our current nomination process, submittal guidelines and awards and propose revisions in order to enhance and improve the program. Subject Matter Expert Campaign | A cross portfolio
initiative, the Subject Matter Expert Campaign seeks to identify and engage thought leaders who are willing to use their knowledge and expertise for the betterment of their communities and the elevation of the profession in the eyes of all New Yorkers. Sign-up to be a Subject Matter Expert and help write the next chapter of our profession - https://conta.cc/3tu2Orh Hyo Chang, for the project CORE - THE CENTER OF DIVISION; Violet Wen for The Space Capsule; and Ryo Ishioka & Shiori Green for Community Circuit. As we move deeper into 2021, we look forward to continuing our momentum and delivering AIANYS EP’s the content and tools they need to develop into the future leaders of AIA New York State.
Ep
Emerging Professionals
Much has changed over the past 12 months, but one thing has remained consistent—the ability of emerging professionals to adapt and find ways to take advantage of the “new normal.” Just three months into the new year, the EP Committee has been very busy! Three new episodes of EP Architalk, the EP Podcast have been released, highlighting architects who have taken their circumstances and transformed them into businesses. All three episodes are available to download at https:// www.buzzsprout.com/1494238 or wherever you get your Podcasts. The annual EP Forum is also getting a makeover. On April 9th, in addition to EP leaders from each Chapter convening, we are able to include the general EP membership in this new virtual format. The Forum is designed to create an effective virtual gathering to discuss important issues affecting AIANYS EP’s and develop collaborative leadership amongst the local components. Close to $5,000 in scholarships have been distributed to architecture students and Associate members. Two extremely well deserving and qualified individuals, Peter His, Assoc. AIA and Chitra Mamidela, Assoc. AIA, were each awarded $1,410 to cover the full cost of the ARE Exams through the Burton L. Roslyn, FAIA Memorial Scholarship. The John A. Notaro Memorial Scholarship, which in partnership with the AIA Component Matching Scholarship Program, sponsors the annual awards encouraging the participation of New York State’s Schools of Architecture to recognize our future leaders in architecture. Three projects were selected to receive awards and each student will receive $500 to use towards their tuition— Seung
Ed
Education
The education team is pleased to continue offering a plethora of virtual education opportunities for members in 2021. We currently have 32 programs scheduled, of these, 17 are offered as a member benefit with no charge through OldCastle. It’s never been easier to earn credit through AIA New York State. We are excited to present our new series Reimagining School Design. This four-part series addresses key areas of adapting and transforming school design by examining past and present design best practices and explore ways to leverage existing or new buildings to create healthy learning environments. Speakers will include architects, engineers, school administrators, facilities directors, academia, law enforcement and policymakers. Register now - Part 1 is on April 9! (http://www.cvent. com/events/re-imagining-school-design/event-summary-b94afeaf992d4693bdd70c8cbdef451e.aspx). In addition, we’ve brought back favorite programs from last year including the Safety Assessment Program with Illya Azaroff, FAIA and Tim Boyland, AIA happening this spring and Basic Design by the 2020 Building Codes New York State presented by Laura M Cooney, AIA coming to your computer screens this fall. All programs and registration links can be found on the AIANYS website here. (https://www.aianys.org/ calendar/).
G&Ad
Governance & Administration
The COVID pandemic has created significant challenges for businesses across the country. In anticipating potential reduced memberships from financial hardship, AIANYS has reduced its budget for 2021 with no increase in membership dues. At the same time, the state component is providing more education programs than in the prior year to provide more value to membership. Member dues collections are going well, and the membership has increased from the end of 2020 through March of 2021. AIANYS maintains a solid financial position to allow member benefits to continue during periods of economic stress. The Budget & Finance Committee regularly receives detailed financial reports on performance of the organization and its investments. The committee has met three times so far this year and revenues and expenses are in line with budget expectations.
MARCH ’21
ARCHITECTURE NEW YORK STATE is a quarterly publication developed by AIA New York State, 50 State Street, Albany, NY 12207
