Over the last month, we have reached internally to focus on change, and establish a culture of commitment to social justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. Though the conversation around Black Lives Matter has been especially prevalent in recent times, due to the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor. Ahmaud Abery, and countless others, we understand that this is a conversation that needs to be ongoing, with solutions that should be everlasting. We are committed to change, both internally and externally, for a better tomorrow.

We have begun to take important steps and have conversations throughout our office. To date, we have established a forum on Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI), and held multiple town-hall style meetings to engage our staff in the conversations surrounding racial justice in America, and what we, as architects and designers, can do.  We have also facilitated a database of information and organizations for our staff to use to become more educated and engaged in local and nationwide initiatives.

We are committed to the following:

Increasing our partnerships with Minority Owned Businesses – through consultants we work with, and goods we use in our office.

Engaging youth groups and academic programs to create scholarship opportunities for disadvantaged communities.

Increasing our pro-bono work. As architects and designers, we can truly build a better tomorrow.

Offering our office’s public community presence through our windows and street-level spaces to artists’ and efforts focused around social justice.

Prioritizing affordable housing and development work that addresses social issues within our communities

 

This is just the beginning of the conversation.