Elaine is a senior associate and strategy director at Gensler. A connector, catalyst, instigator and communicator, Elaine believes solutions to the wickedest problems come in many forms and often from the most unexpected places. Positive impact comes from thoughtful, informed and tangible solutions, achieved when passionate people come together around a shared narrative and common goals. Trained as an architect, Elaine’s approach to problem solving balances visionary ideals with realistic measures. As a visual communicator, she excels at organizational development and innovation process. Elaine has worked across the private, public and non-profit sectors with a current focus on supporting mission driven organizations. In addition to leading a regional initiative to drive more community-engaged practices into design projects, she also helped launch gServe, Gensler’s CSR program, and serves on the firmwide steering committee. Active in the local social enterprise community, she fosters connection and collaboration across organizations.

Shannon is a Professor of Architecture at the University of Kansas and co-founder of Dotte Agency, a multi-disciplinary design collaborative that enables community engagement processes to create an architecture that serves the greater good. She has been awarded grants to develop and deliver design solutions that shape the built environment in order to improve public health. Her writings have appeared in Good Deeds, Good Design: Community Service Through Architecture, Design Build Education in North America, Plan Journal, All-Inclusive Engagement in Architecture and received national awards from ACSA Collaborative Practice Award and IARSCLE Public Scholarship Award. She holds a B.Arch from Kansas State University and an M.Arch from the Harvard Graduate School of Design.

Joshua Frank serves as Project Director and Urban Designer/Town Planner at Dover, Kohl & Partners. He has a variety of experience in the built, natural, and cultural environments, spanning the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, planning, transportation, and urban design. Josh has worked on projects ranging from campus and municipal master-planning to streetscape and public realm design throughout his native State of Florida. Josh is formerly a founding principal, as well as a distinguished Research Associate with the University of South Florida’s School of Architecture and Community Design where he received numerous awards including the AIA Bronze Medal and the eponymous Frank Award for Leadership in Research. Most recently, Josh was recognized with the AIA Tampa Bay’s 2019 Christopher Kelley Emerging Professional Award for demonstrating exemplary service above self to champion the causes and issues of AIA chapter members, local community organizations, and beyond.

Ms. Rachel Jefferson, Executive Director of Groundwork Northeast Revitalization Group (Groundwork NRG), was born in Kansas City, Missouri and attended Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Upon returning to Kansas City, Rachel relocated to the Kansas side of the state line, and began a career in public health as Outreach Director and Administrative Assistant at a local safety-net clinic. Rachel’s time in the healthcare sector provided her with an understanding of the socio-economic struggles that hinder good health among minority populations and ignited her passion to support the growth of human, social, and civic capacity at the grassroots and community levels.

Taryn Sabia’s fifteen-year career in architecture and urban design is anchored by a passion to involve citizens in actively shaping the built environment. Her diverse background in architecture, urban design, education, and community engagement has provided a deep understanding of the importance of context-based design, mobility, resiliency, and culture of place, and how these elements inform the design of an urban framework. Ms. Sabia is Director of the Florida Center for Community Design and Research (FCCDR) at the University of South Florida’s School of Architecture and Community Design. As a Research Associate Professor, she teaches graduate courses and studios on urban design policy, climate change and sustainability, urban form, urban transportation systems, and citizen involvement in urbanism. Her research is committed to the merging of design and civics, with a focus on climate change adaptation, transit modes and public space. She has extensive experience building partnerships between community members, organizations, and government leaders, Ms. Sabia has served as a Principle Investigator on more than 25 projects and advised numerous elected officials including 39 mayors. Ms. Sabia is a co-founder of the Tampa based non-profit, urban design collaborative, Urban Charrette, Inc. The organization is dedicated to educating community leaders and young professionals about sustainable urban design and empowering citizens to make their neighborhoods and cities better places to live. She has worked professionally in the field of architecture, facilitated over 150 public charrettes and workshops and has authored several articles about community engagement and urban design including a publication in the National Civic Review. In 2014 and 2017, Ms. Sabia led the East Regional Session Mayor’s Institute for City Design program. She has presented numerous times at national and regional conferences and has served as Chair for the American Institute of Architects’ Regional and Urban Design Leadership Group leading initiatives for the Active City Conference in 2017 and the Future of Urban Design Education Symposia.