So you want to be a Citizen Architect?

Moderator: Jessica O’Donnell is a proactive and engaged young architect. She is a leader in her community, her firm, and the AIA. She is devoted to preparing the next generation of architects to propel the profession forward and continually seeks opportunities to get others engaged. O’Donnell was named AIA New Jersey’s 2019 Young Architect of the Year and spotlighted by the AIA as a 2020 Citizen Architect.

Panelists: Tiara Hughes is a senior urban designer at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, an adjunct professor at the Illinois Institute of Technology, a commissioner with the Chicago Landmarks Commission, and a real estate professional. She is a St. Louis native, now based in Chicago. In 2021, Hughes received the prestigious AIA Associates Award.

Tom Hurlbert is co-founder and CEO of a 20-plus-person firm, CO-OP Architecture, with locations in Sioux Falls, Rapid City, and Aberdeen, South Dakota. In 2018, Hurlbert became the only South Dakota architect to ever receive the National Young Architects of the Year Award from the AIA. He is also president of AIA South Dakota.

Trinity Simons has served as the executive director of the Mayors’ Institute on City Design since 2012. In this role, she works with mayors across the country on the nation’s most pressing urban planning and design challenges. She speaks about the intersection of design and politics at universities, events, and symposia across the country.

What do a Sioux Falls district commissioner, a commissioner of Chicago Landmarks, and an executive director for the Mayors’ Institute have in common? They are all Citizen Architects. What is a Citizen Architect? That was one of many questions three panelists were asked during a webinar organized by the Young Architects Forum (YAF) advocacy work group (Monica Blasko, Kaitlyn Badlato, Trevor Boyle, Anastasia Markiw, and Jonathon Jackson) on May 21. Moderated by the YAF’s Jessica O’Donnell, the “So you Want to Be a Citizen Architect?” webinar was a 90-minute session in which three panelists, Tiara Hughes, Assoc. AIA, NOMA; Thomas Hurlbert, AIA, LEED AP; and Trinity Simons, were asked a series of questions from the moderator and our listeners. Although each panelist comes from a different background, theirs journeys to becoming a Citizen Architect had many similarities.

Above: The “So you want to be a Citizen Architect” webinar panelists and moderator. (Graphic created by Monica Blasko)

Above: Attendees we engaged with Mentimeter polling questions during the webinar. (Graphic created by Monica Blasko)

Above: Panelists offered their advice on how to get started and be an effective Citizen Architect. (Graphic created by Monica Blasko)

For all the panelists, it started with passion and a purpose. For Hughes, it boiled down to the people she grew to know in her community and understanding their needs. Living in Chicago, Hughes found herself surrounded by disadvantaged areas without the necessary resources to grow and thrive. This lit the fire under her to do something about it. Much like Hughes, Hurlbert and Simons found that they were drawn to community-based design. As Simons put it, “The desire to participate is only the starting point”; you then have to establish a strategy for getting involved.

That strategy was clear to Hurlbert. He stressed the importance of building your brand and taking the initiative to get involved when opportunity shows up. However, this process is not a sprint, but a marathon that takes time, strategy, and effort. You need to focus on what specifically you want to change, surround yourself with the heavy hitters involved in that category of work, and build relationships. The best way to build these relationships is with an eager but open attitude, which involves taking the time to listen instead of being the only talking head in the room. A posture of humility is essential. Taking the first step can be the most daunting. If you are not comfortable with public speaking, start with writing a letter or making a phone call to a representative or attending a community meeting because those actions can be just as effective, and they build your comfort level.

Hughes recognized that as an architect, she had a natural critical lens that she could put to use. She emphasized that you have to ask the tough questions. In her case, it worked out to her favor because it reinforced her initiative to address certain issues in her community. The recognition of her initiative resulted in her nomination to the Chicago Landmarks Commission. Although this seems unconventional, it is not uncommon for someone to gain a position for which they had not even applied. While Simons’s path began in architecture, she is now in an architecture-adjacent field. She recognized that a lot of elected officials do not understand the implications of the policies they have in place. That is why she joined the Mayors’ Institute, where she holds five to six sessions a year that help mayors harness their role in the community. With so much in common, architects and mayors come together in a candid atmosphere to learn from one another.

The panelists’ stories sound so positive and inspiring, but you are probably thinking, “What’s the catch?” Recognizing that architecture or any creative field should be fun and passionfueled, there are always challenges along the way. Hughes said “Balancing everything is a challenge.” When you add something like COVID to the mix, trying to help people with limited physical interaction and economic and societal stressors can make it even more challenging. But if there’s any silver lining, it’s that architects are trained to manage their time well. There is not a blanket solution to addressing these challenges. Each person needs to look at themselves and their specific situation to understand how much time and effort they can realistically contribute. But as Hurlbert reminds us, “The work is supposed to be fun.” In the end, we do not get involved in civic work for ourselves but for others. With that said, we still seem to get rewarded by the smiles, hugs, and light bulbs that go off when we are given, or fight for, a seat at the table to make a difference.

The other major challenge you will most likely face in public policy is trying to win people over. Not everyone has the same interests, so calling an audible to their agenda while in office can often be difficult. When in doubt, Hurlbert says, “Use economic development as your sword.” It is hard for people to say no to a proposal if the economic benefits clearly outweigh the negatives. Make sure your proposals are bipartisan so that politics are left out of the equation and everyone can relate. If funding is the challenge, then pick up the phone and start fundraising.

Above: Attendees we engaged with Mentimeter polling questions during the webinar. (Graphic created by Monica Blasko) Above: Attendees we engaged with Mentimeter polling questions during the webinar. (Graphic created by Monica Blasko)

A common theme with our panelists is creating real change and not just on an individual level. Hurlbert pointed out that organizations like NOMA and the AIA can use a broader brush to bring about change on a bigger scale. We as architects must join these organizations and create tangible goals and milestones for creating more Citizen Architects. We need to set an example within our organization for how equity is established, how climate change is addressed, and much more. Citizen Architects are essential to addressing the most pressing issues facing our profession and communities.

In closing, I want to share my own account of how I became a Citizen Architect. Identifying with many of the strategies mentioned above, I can tell you that this recipe works. It may not work according to your timing, but sometimes even that will work out in your favor. Living in Michigan, and knowing that a new governor would be taking over soon, I applied for a Board of Architects position with the understanding that some of the members would be stepping down. I did not get the position. But because I showed interest, I was asked if I would like to join the Construction Code Commission, where there was one vacant seat for an architect. Knowing nothing about the commission or what my responsibilities would be, I immediately said yes. I am now going on two years on this commission, and I have learned so much from the opportunity. If I could leave you with one bit of advice, it is to not underestimate your abilities and not be afraid to fail. What can look like failure at first can often lead to successful opportunities. If you are not happy with how those in office are running things, do not complain about it from the outside, change it from the inside. Do not allow yourself to be distinguished by your “thunderous silence,” as legendary civil rights leader Whitney M. Young once said. If you are passionate about something, then it is time to get involved. So ask yourself, how will you get involved as a Citizen Architect?

Watch So You Want to be a Citizen Architect? Get inspired to Take Action! on demand on AIAU here (free for AIA members, 1 HSW LU)

Jonathon Jackson, AIA

Jackson is a project architect at Ghafari Associates in Dearborn, Michigan. He lives in Carleton, Michigan with his wife, Grace, daughter, Ava, and sons, Jonah and Owen.