Archinect - News

Kimberly Dowdell hits back at anti-DEI push in business circles and academia

2024-03-25T14:21:00-04:00

The new AIA President and Principal in HOK’s Chicago office, Kimberly Dowdell, talked with Crain’s recently, stating diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts must be sustained in the face of the latest anti-DEI pushback parroted by Elon Musk and other business leaders that contributed to the resignation of Harvard University President Claudine Gay and other rollbacks on Wall Street and in corporate America.

"It's really disturbing how quickly the pendulum is shifting back toward a less inclusive and diverse society," she says, referring to different policymakers who are beginning to codify their resistance in conservative states like Florida and Texas.

Revisit our 2019 Archinect Sessions interview with Kimberly Dowdell, then President of the National Organization of Minority Architects

Of her company’s ethos she says, "[It’s] about diversity and its multiple forms in terms of its people but also the work and the kinds of work that we do," something that has underpinned its success...

Perkins&Will opens Philadelphia studio in Northeastern expansion

2023-09-28T11:41:00-04:00

Perkins&Will has opened a new studio in Philadelphia as part of a mission to “extend its integrated design services to clients in Philadelphia and the surrounding region, including western and central Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and New Jersey.”

The Philadelphia office, located at 2000 Market Street, is expected to integrate with the firm’s existing Northeast regional teams in New York, Boston, and Washington D.C. According to the firm, the establishment of a Philadelphia studio was motivated in part by the city’s growth in the commercial life sciences sector, particularly cell and gene therapy.

Perkins&Will-designed office tower for the University of Pennsylvania Health System. Image credit: Perkins&Will

“We’re thrilled to officially launch our Philadelphia practice, joining many of the nation’s leading businesses, medical centers, and higher-education institutions,” said Bill Harris, regional managing director at Perkins&Will, in a statement about the new office. “We already ...

Archinect's 2023 (100% anonymous) Mental Health Survey

2023-09-27T08:08:00-04:00

It's been a little over three years since we last surveyed the architecture community about our collective mental health. In preparation for World Mental Health Day on October 10, the Archinect team seeks to check in with our audience and learn more about how our community is doing. For this special news article, we're reaching out and asking our readers to share their input and comment on how the last several years have impacted issues on mental health.

We've discussed mental health and workplace issues extensively in the past, and as we slowly reach the last quarter of 2023, we want to check the pulse of our community. Our survey asks questions that aim to help our team learn more about how architects, design professionals, students, and educators have handled and are handling the stressors related to the architecture industry.

Previously on Archinect: Mental Health in Architecture (October 2022)

Our overall goal is to use the information gathered to help guide and inform upcoming...