Women's Month Profile: DANIELLE REIMERS, SENIOR ASSOCIATE, SAOTA

This August, in celebration of Women’sMonth, Leading Architecture + Design has profiled a dozen inspiring women in the fields of architecture, urbanism, interior design and engineering, showcasing their skills and achievements, as well as their views on the challenges that the industry faces.

DANIELLE REIMERS, SENIOR ASSOCIATE, SAOTA

Danielle Reimers is responsible for designing, developing and coordinating a diverse range of international projects. She has a strong interest in vernacular design and passive sustainable architectural practices. She is currently completing her MBA at the Graduate School of Business at the University of Cape Town, specialising in Leadership with a focus on Diversity & Inclusion.

Before joining SAOTA in 2013, Danielle worked at the internationally acclaimed architectural practice Renzo Piano Building Workshop, where she was involved in the extension to the Kimbell Art Museum in Dallas, Fort Worth, the extension to the Harvard Art Museum in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the Masterplan for the Area EX-Falck, a 45-hectare zone north of Milan, Italy.

“While women are forging paths in many maledominated industries today, gender inequity remains a problem in architecture,” says Danielle. “A 2015 SACAP survey reflects an unacceptably low level of women and highlights the extensive marginalisation of female architects of colour.”

She believes that diversity in the workplace unlocks new ideas and drives market growth, both paramount for innovation and economic growth. While the “slow shift to build equity” has a way to go, she says, “It’s a great time to be woman and an architect.

“Newly formed South African advocacy groups such as HerPerspective, Matri-Archi and The Why Group are fuelled by creating gender equitable workplaces,” says Danielle. “They are making concerted efforts to address professional obstacles through mentorship programmes, exhibitions and publications acknowledging women’s contributions to the field of architecture.” Their collective voice, bolstered by digital activism, is, she says, “fundamental in forging new conversations, perspectives and ideas that mirror the rich human tapestry we serve”.

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