2023 Speakers

Erin Jacobs, ASLA, LEED AP BD+C
Partner, Mithun

Erin is a landscape architect and leader within Mithun’s interdisciplinary digital design team guiding advanced data-driven design, visualization and research initiatives. Her built and theoretical projects—incorporating a wide range of educational, residential, workplace, civic and cultural programs—share in common the application of integrated design strategies, cued by the natural environment and carefully woven with client objectives. Erin’s passion for place-based design, her thorough research into native ecology and ability to integrate site and community yield creative indoor-outdoor connections and uses. Her design strategies emanate from an intuitive understanding of how space influences human experience, with positive impacts upon both occupant well-being and functional efficiency. Erin’s notable projects include UC San Diego Mesa Nueva Graduate Student Housing, Uber Skyport, Athenian School Master Plan and Innovation Center, Lopez Island Community Land Trust Housing, and Newcastle Library.

Jason Steiner, LEED AP BD+C
Partner, Mithun

Jason leads the design of complex and thought-leading projects that push the boundaries of innovation and creativity. His unwavering commitment to excellence has been crucial in the success of notable projects such as the AIA COTE Top Ten Award-winning Sustainability Treehouse, Heirloom Carbon HQ, Perot Family Offices in Dallas, Weyerhaeuser HQ at 200 Occidental, University of California Irvine Mesa Court Expansion, Novelty Hill Winery, and the Louisiana Children’s Museum. With more than 20 years of experience and a decade of service on the Mithun Board of Directors, Jason has been instrumental in guiding the practice towards the future.

In addition to his project-based work, Jason leads digital design integration, guiding the implementation of BIM, computational design, visualization, performance-driven design and digital processes throughout the firm. He directs both the Mithun coLAB and Mithun R+D, deftly advancing the firm's efforts to empower staff, tackle global challenges, build strategic research partnerships and generate new design knowledge. Jason lectures nationally on a wide range of topics, including mentorship, design technology, integrated design, and research and development.

Paul Fast, P.Eng. BC, AB, ON
Founder, Fast+Epp

Since graduating from the University of British Columbia in 1981 and establishing his own firm in 1985, Paul has been the lead engineer for many of the Fast + Epp’s most prominent projects, having been recognized for his architecturally expressive, hybrid structures of timber, concrete, and steel. In 2010, Paul was named a Fellow of the Institution of Structural Engineers and an honorary member of the Architectural Institute of British Columbia. In 2014, he was granted the Engineers Geoscientists of

British Columbia’s highest annual honour, the RA McLaughlin Award.  In 2021, Paul was awarded the prestigious Gold Medal by the UK based Institution of Structural Engineers. Paul is a Clinical Professor at the College of Fine + Applied Arts, University of Illinois.

Z Smith, PhD, FAIA, LEED Fellow, WELL AP
Principal, EskewDumezRipple

Z Smith is Principal and Director of Sustainability and Building Performance at EskewDumezRipple, winner of the AIA Firm Award. His built work includes academic, laboratory and residential buildings earning LEED Gold and Platinum certification, and winners the AIA COTE Top Ten award, the RAIC Green Building award (Canada), and the international Urban Land 10 Extra Green award. He brings training and experience in physics and engineering to the field of architecture, is named as inventor on 10 patents, and author on over 50 peer-reviewed scientific publications He teaches at the Tulane School of Architecture, and has served on state, national and international bodies including the Louisiana Energy Code Commission, the Louisiana Climate Initiatives Task Force, the US Green Building Council Louisiana Chapter, the national Advisory Group of the AIA Committee on the Environment (COTE), and the International Union of Architects Sustainable Development Commission.

Chandra Robinson
Principal, LEVER Architecture

Chandra Robinson is a Principal at LEVER Architecture, a Portland, Oregon and Los Angeles, California based design practice recognized for material innovation. Chandra recently completed a LEED Platinum campus for equity-based foundation Meyer Memorial Trust and is currently working with communities on transformative designs for libraries, K-12 and higher education, museums, and affordable housing. She is passionate about creating beautiful spaces that are accessible for everyone and enjoys working closely with clients to create designs that are expressive of their values. In addition to her civic design work, Chandra is a member of the Portland Design Commission; a Founding Board Member and

Treasurer of the National Organization for Minority Architects (NOMA) Portland chapter; and on the advisory board of Hip Hop Architecture Camp.

Ginger Gosnell-Myers
Fellow, Decolonization and Urban Indigenous Policy + Planning, Simon Fraser University, Wosk Centre for Dialogue

Ginger Gosnell-Myers is Nisga'a and Kwakwak'awakw, whose 20+ year career challenging colonial systems is creating new pathways for radical change. She is the first Indigenous Fellow with the Simon Fraser University Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue, where she focuses on Decolonization and Urban Indigenous Policy and Planning. She played an integral role in making Vancouver the world's first official City of Reconciliation, which was an outgrowth of her work on the landmark Environics Urban Indigenous Peoples Study, the first comprehensive research of its kind in Canada.

Her work centers on the creation of new planning and design processes so that Indigenous knowledge is reflected meaningfully throughout, ensuring co-learning for all parties in centered, going beyond the normal token or decorative-only approaches. Ginger’s goal is to re-define government policies and industry processes, creating new standards that meet the United Nation Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP).

Ginger contributed a chapter for Sacred Civics (2022) titled “Co-creating the cities we deserve through Indigenous knowledge”, and has delivered a TedX Talk - ‘Canadian Shame: A history of Residential Schools’. Ginger is the Chair of Greenpeace Canada’s Board of Directors, and currently lives in the Squamish Nation community of Eslha7an.

Mary Ann Lazarus, FAIA
Cameron MacAllister Group

With more than 35 years of experience, Mary Ann Lazarus, FAIA, LEED Fellow, works with architects, engineers, and other building and design professionals to accelerate their sustainable and resilient design outcomes.

Mary Ann has been active in green building as an author, national lecturer, community advocate, and volunteer at the local and national levels. She served as 2017 Chair of the AIA’s Committee on the Environment Advisory Group. She also sits on the new USGBC Resilience Steering Committee Group and serves on the Advisory Board of the Resilient Design Institute.

Prior, Mary Ann worked at HOK as the Firmwide Director of Sustainable Design and one of the founders of the firm’s sustainable design initiative. She is co-author of the seminal HOK Guidebook to Sustainable Design, 2nd Edition. In addition, she served as Resident Fellow on Sustainability at the American Institute of Architects and authored the AIA’s Sustainability Leadership Opportunity Scan, addressing how architects can expand their impact through sustainability.

Mary Ann is an Adjunct Faculty and Sustainability Program Coordinator at Washington University in St. Louis. She received her Master of Architecture degree at Washington University, studied architecture at Boston Architectural College, and has an undergraduate degree from Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts.

Derrick McDonald

Derrick McDonald is an organizer, designer, and researcher with a deep commitment to freedom and justice, especially as it relates to space and place. They have spent the past five years studying and working to understand how power manifests in the ways people imagine, make, and maintain the built environment. Outside of their professional work as a Design Strategist at Hacker Architects, they organize community and steward land throughout Seattle in pursuit of land and food sovereignty with Black and Indigenous communities.

Jennifer Devlin-Herbert, FAIA
CEO, EHDD

Jennifer Devlin-Herbert, FAIA, leads EHDD as their CEO. For over 28 years, she has demonstrated her leadership in the design of learning environments across multiple project types, from libraries to museums, aquariums, and educational spaces. Her key strength is an ability to effectively engage the community—the public at large, project user groups, the design team, and firm members. For Jennifer, engaging people is a way to discover a common vision, to incorporate fundamental values and goals, and thereby to represent a community with conviction.

Jennifer’s rich portfolio includes projects that reflect an unwavering commitment to her clients’ vision. Her work has been recognized with a National AIA Honor Award for Design.

Amy K. Donohue, AIA, LFA, NOMA
Principal, Bora Architecture & Interiors

A Principal with Bora Architecture & Interiors, Amy Donohue has almost thirty years of experience designing spaces for education, performance and collaborative work. She holds a Bachelor of Design in Architecture from the University of Florida (’94) and a Master of Architecture degree from Princeton University (*01). She has served as an assistant design instructor at Princeton University and adjunct professor for architectural design at the University of Oregon (2001-2007). From 2003 to 2010, she was actively involved with the Board of Trustees for the Oregon College of Art & Craft, serving as Chair of the Board in 2009. Amy currently serves as Vice Chair of the Board of Directors for Literary Arts, a literary non-profit in Portland, and is a Board member for the political advocacy group, Family Forward. For the last three years, she has been part of the Advisory Council for the University of Florida School of Architecture.

Trained in Design Justice and Critical Race Theory, Amy has been instrumental in the creation of Bora’s equity framework and action plan. She is currently leading the firm’s effort to co-develop workforce housing for young Black professionals in the AEC industry, seeking to grow the pipeline of diversity in the profession.

Amy and her husband, architect Paul McKean, live in Portland with their two young daughters. In her free time, Amy enjoys reading, gardening and exercising with friends.

Brad Nile
Project Executive, Andersen Construction

As a lifelong builder and student of construction systems, Brad Nile has made this the focus of his academic studies and world travels. In his 29 years with Andersen Construction, Brad has managed the construction of many landmark buildings in Portland Oregon, as well as the seismic upgrading of dozens of buildings. His work as a builder includes several high-profile housing and healthcare projects in Portland along with the new generation of mass timber buildings at several institutions in Oregon and Washington.

Gregg Novicoff, AIA, LEED AP
Principal, LMS Architects

Gregg Novicoff, AIA, LEED AP, is a Principal with LEDDY MAYTUM STACY Architects in San Francisco. Working closely with his clients, he produces creative and thoughtful designs — buildings that perform a vital role in leading the way to an environmentally and socially sustainable future. His work includes affordable housing, cultural and civic projects, including the Edwin M. Lee Apartments, Family House, the Ed Roberts Campus, Sweetwater Spectrum Community, and the California Shakespeare Theater. Gregg received his BA from UC Berkeley and his MArch from Harvard University.

Shiloh Butterworth, sHRBP
Oregon Regional Leader/Chief People Officer, PAE Consulting Engineers

Shiloh Butterworth is the Oregon Region Leader and Chief People Officer for PAE Consulting Engineers, overseeing the Oregon Region, Employee Experience, Learning & Development, Operations, and serves on PAE’s Board of Directors. Shiloh is also a Technical Advisor to the International Living Futures Institute (ILFI) as a champion and partner for organizational equity. Shiloh is a transformational thought leader on people, performance, organizational culture, and employee engagement. He is passionate about bringing servant leadership to the workplace to help others thrive.

Originally from Oregon, Shiloh graduated Summa Cum Laude from Rutgers University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Labor and Employment Relations and a Certificate in Workplace Diversity. Shiloh is also a decorated Combat Veteran, leading multiple Infantry Companies with the U.S. Army during Operation Iraqi Freedom, earning two Bronze Stars and the Valorous Unit Award. He retired in 2015.

Shiloh is fond of sports, paddle-boarding, hiking and the outdoors, and spending time with his family.

Sindu Meier, AIA, LEED AP BD+C
Associate Principal, William Rawn Associates, Architects, Inc.

Sindu has managed several of the firm’s highest profile projects, including the historic Johnson Building transformation of the Central Library at Boston Public Library (2017 Harleston Parker Medal), Taussig Cancer Center at the Cleveland Clinic and the Boston Museum of Science. Over her 26 years in architecture including 10 years at William Rawn Associates, Sindu recently completed the Net-Zero Emissions and LEED v.4 Platinum Cambridge Community Complex which was received an AIA COTE Top Ten Award.  She is currently working on the South Residential Village at Case Western Reserve University and the Boston Museum of Science.

Sindu serves as a Library Trustee for the town of Milton, MA and serves on the board of the Boston Society of Architects. Sindu is also the Chair of the Society of Indo-American Architects and Designers. Sindu is committed to helping civic and private institutions create welcoming and inclusive environments for all.

Amy Perenchio, AIA, NCARB
Principal, ZGF Architects

A leader within ZGF and the architecture profession, Amy is focused on helping people do their best work. Working at the intersection of people and practice, Amy oversees the talent management and recruiting efforts for designers and architects at ZGF’s Portland office. Her work has enabled design excellence, impacted culture, advanced firm-wide initiatives and programming, and increased advocacy of staff growth and development. Through prolific contributions to the national organizations
governing architecture, Amy is committed to improving system-wide processes and leading change efforts that help young professionals navigate their careers.

Amy has previously held director positions on the National AIAS and NAAB boards and has contributed to various committees and task forces for NCARB. She is passionate about teaching and growing the next generation of architects and has been a Course Instructor at University of Oregon and Adjunct Assistant Professor for the Global Track program at the University of Hawaii and Tongji University in Shanghai.

Sam Miller
Managing Partner, LMN Architects

Sam Miller is Managing Partner of LMN Architects, where he provides overall firm guidance and helps to shape the firm’s culture of collaboration to meet the demands of 21st century architectural practice. Sam coordinates LMN’s sustainability initiatives, exploring the advancement and integration of sustainable technologies that have resulted in groundbreaking projects. In addition, he is a co-leader of LMN Tech Studio, an experimental research and development group empowered to explore digital design technologies and innovative approaches to design, fabrication and operations.

Sam’s project work focuses on cultural and education projects and includes the Seattle Central Library; Seattle Art Museum Downtown Expansion; Museum of History and Industry; Seattle Asian Art Museum Renovation and Expansion, and the Voxman Music Building at the University of Iowa. Among his current projects are the Seattle Aquarium Ocean Pavilion, the Diego Rivera Theatre at City College of San Francisco, and projects for Stanford University, University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Missouri.

Kate Westbrook
Principal, LMN Architects

Danielle Tellez
Designer, Why Architecture

Zach Pauls
Associate Director, Why Architecture

Marc Brune
Principal, PAE Engineers

Glenn MacMullin
Senior Associate, KPMB Architects

Andrea Macaroun
Senior Associate, OAA, KPMB Architects

Sabina Poole
Architecture Audiences Lead, Autodesk

Syvia L. Magid
Fox Rothschild LLP

Syvia helps her clients with choice of entity decisions and entity formation, counsels businesses regarding general corporate matters and governance and regularly drafts and reviews contracts. Her practice particularly focuses on design professionals, including architects, landscape architects, interior designers, engineers and environmental consultants. Syvia drafts and reviews design services contracts and helps these clients to successfully transition ownership either internally, to a new generation of owners in order to allow for the growth of the design firms over multiple generations of ownership and leadership, or externally to become part of a larger organization through merger and acquisition. She earned her J.D. from the University of California, Hastings, College of the Law and her B.A., summa cum laude, from Whittier College.