Are You A Vanguard? Applications Now Open
David Jurca is the Associate Director at Kent State University’s Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative (CUDC), where his work integrates professional practice, applied research, and teaching. In 2013, David launched COLDSCAPES.org, a multileveled initiative to spur creative engagement and livability in winter cities. He also co-founded Design Diversity, an initiative to promote people of color in architecture and design professions in Northeast Ohio.
Earl Kaing is a transportation planner with the San Francisco MTA, where he works to improve the walking, waiting, and riding experience for transit customers. In a past life, he was a management consultant with Accenture. Earl holds degrees from UCLA (graduate), and the University of California, Berkeley (undergraduate).
Allie serves as a Community Engagement Program Coordinator at Keep Indianapolis Beautiful where she works with neighborhoods and communities across the city to help people and nature thrive. She works to ensure that community needs are being heard and met, while creating a greener and more sustainable city. Her work experience is in local and state government, policy analysis, non-profit and strategic planning.
Sarah M. Kaufman is Digital Manager at the NYU Rudin Center for Transportation, where she researches, advocates for and educates about cutting-edge technologies in transportation. She focuses on open data and intelligent planning in urban transportation systems. Ms. Kaufman joined NYU Wagner after nearly five years at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, where she created the open data program.
Molly Rose Kaufman is the cofounder of the University of Orange, a free people’s urbanism school. Her writing has appeared in YES! Magazine, Kinfolk and the New York Times. She has an MS in journalism from Columbia University and was a 2016 Civic Liberal Arts Fellow at the New School.
Michael Kaufmann splits his time between cultural economic development work for Indy Chamber, and Health & Hospital Corporation in his role as director of special projects and civic investment. He has spent the last four years supporting art and design, and livability initiatives for Eskenazi Health. He also currently manages Son Lux.
Erin Kelly is the Blue and Green Infrastructure Program Manager at Detroit Future City’s (DFC) Implementation Office. Prior to joining DFC, Erin was a Detroit Revitalization Fellow at NextEnergy, where she managed a range of projects occurring between the public, private and nonprofit sectors in southeast Michigan, each aimed at creating value from vacant buildings and structure-free land.
Matthew’s is the co-owner of Studio North, an emerging design + build practice (www.studionorth.ca). His ambitious nature as a designer, artist, and maker has driven him to realize projects of a variety of scales across Canada. His process of designing and making facilitate a logical process of composing ideas into built works.
Naria is Senior Planning Coordinator at KDI. She partners with policymakers and residents in underserved communities to establish resident-led land use through planning and design strategies. Naria holds a BS in Public Policy and Planning from the University of Oregon and an MA in Urban Planning from UCLA.
Phil Kidd is the associate director of Youngstown CityScape, a non-profit dedicated to the improvement of the greater downtown Youngstown, Ohio area. He is also the owner of Youngstown Nation, a gift shop and information center also located in downtown, and author of Defend Youngstown, a blog summarizing community development news in the city.
Aaron Kimberlin holds a B.S. in Design from ASU and an M.A. in Urban Planning and Policy from the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs. Currently, as Assistant Director of Community Engagement with ASU’s School of Geographical Sciences & Urban Planning, he is committed to redeveloping the Phoenix Metro Area and to promoting continued education through workshops and outreach events.
Cecily is a real estate developer and consultant returning to her native NJ after several years in Detroit. She is passionate about real estate because it is something that touches everyone’s lives. Cecily earned her MS in Real Estate Development from Columbia University and holds degrees from Lehigh and Princeton.
Dan Kinkead is an architect and urban designer. He serves as the Director of Projects for the Detroit Future City Implementation Office. Dan is also a writer, contributing to a forthcoming urban research book by Carnegie-Mellon University regarding the transformation of post-industrial cities. Currently Dan is collaborating with the World Bank to graphically convey ongoing research regarding rapid urbanization in East Asia, South Asia, and Africa.
Derek Kitchen is a Council Member in Salt Lake City. He is using collaboration and collective impact to help direct sustained solutions to the complicated urban problems of homelessness & affordable housing, transportation & connectivity, and urban development. He operates two small businesses, and views economic development as a tool to help drive social justice.
Chris Ko serves as the Director of Systems and Innovations for the United Way of Greater Los Angeles. In this role he executes the collective impact work of Home For Good and works across its leadership network to eliminate systematic barriers and innovate long-term solutions to homelessness. Previously, Chris oversaw the development and operation of the Coordinated Entry System, which works to scale more broadly in his present position.
Cailean Kok works on the Healthy Places Program and the Bass Center for Transformative Placemaking at Project for Public Spaces applying her passion for transforming the built environment to improve physical and mental health outcomes. Cailean is active locally in Newark, NJ with bicycle advocacy, mentoring, and supporting local arts.
Melissa Konur is the Planning Director at Downtown Fort Worth, Inc.
Andrew is the principal of Good Done Daily, a graphic design and strategy studio that works with mission-driven organizations and community impact programs throughout Southeast Michigan. For 14 years, his efforts have helped dozens of established and grass-roots leaders build movements, tell stories, and rally for social change.
Ali is an architect with over 15 years of experience in architecture, urban design, and community engagement projects. She focuses on housing and mixed use developments with a specialization in historic preservation and adaptive reuse projects. Ali uses place making at all scales as catalytic opportunities for underutilized urban infrastructure.
Micah Kotch serves as the Managing Director for Urban-X: an accelerator by MINI and SOSV that makes equity investments in early-stage startups shaping the future of cities through technology, passion and design. Headquartered within A/D/O in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, Urban-X is dedicated to helping entrepreneurs turn compelling ideas into viable solutions for urban life. Micah previously served as the Director of NY Prize and Strategic Adviser for Innovation at the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), where was responsible for the design and execution of the nation’s first community microgrid competition and worked to transform the electric utility business model and help commercialize new clean energy technology.
Ersela Kripa is a registered architect and founding partner of AGENCY, a design and research practice leveraging spatial design and information to counteract forms of global and urban inequality. Located on the US–Mexico border, AGENCY develops methods to identify and subvert subperceptual urban and atmospheric events that violate human rights.
Kindy is an experienced urban planner focused on building quality of life programs that ensure access, equity and excellence in government including workforce development, land use, open space and sustainability. Kindy recently launched an Apprenticeship Navigator program for a 10-county region in northeast Illinois to connect employers, education institutions and job seekers with resources to ensure access to high-skilled, high-paying jobs.
Natalia is a practicing architect in Sydney with a keen interest in designing community oriented spaces. She has been involved in advocating for child-friendly cities since graduating from Monash University in Melbourne, engaging in a range of place-making initiatives around the world with a focus on play.
Karen Kubey is a New York-based architectural designer, educator, and writer, specializing in housing. A Board Member at the Institute for Public Architecture, Kubey began her career in affordable housing design. She co-founded both the Architecture for Humanity New York chapter and New Housing New York, the city’s first design competition for sustainable and affordable housing.
Laura Kushnick returned to Cleveland in September of 2007, and is devoted to its resurgence as a vibrant, dynamic urban center. She is passionate about the visual arts and hopes to see them continue to flourish in Cleveland.
Grace Kyung is a Project Manager at Urban Strategies, Inc., an organization committed to using place-based strategies and local resources to capitalize on the inherent strengths of the community to ensure all children and families will be stable and thriving. She is passionate about developing and supporting community-based partnerships that work to eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in community planning. She works in East St. Louis and is developing a Transformation Plan for a HUD Choice Neighborhood Planning Project.
Vanessa Leon is founder and CEO of Pinchina, a women-led international urban planning firm. Ms. Leon was inducted into the Haitian Roundtable as one of 2015’s “Top 5 to Watch” among Haitian-Americans and is pursuing a doctorate in public and urban policy at the New School in New York City.
Aaron Lande is currently with STAR Communities, a non-profit organization advancing a national framework to evaluate and certify sustainable communities in North America. Aaron works with communities, introducing them to the STAR Rating System and assisting them through the certification process. He also manages the STAR Affiliates program.
Rani Langer-Croager founded Uptima Business Bootcamp to address the challenges of traditional entrepreneurship programs in providing rigorous and culturally relevant education and mentorship to diverse entrepreneurs. Rani draws on 20+ years experience advising organizations on strategic planning and capital raising to develop innovative models for entrepreneurship training and financing programs.
I serve to build bridges of upward mobility for our most vulnerable populations. I am motivated by the belief that access to safe, affordable housing is the requisite for building resilient and sustainable communities. For 10 years, I have worked at the intersections of housing, education, community development, and equity.
Stephen Larrick, an urbanist and city planner turned open government advocate, is Open Data Project Lead for the Sunlight Foundation in Washington, DC where he works with mid-sized American cities to encourage the adoption open data policies as part of the Bloomberg-funded “What Works Cities” initiative.
Guillaume Lavoie is a City Councillor in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Elected in 2013, he is the official opposition’s spokesperson for finance, government relations and international relations. He is also Vice President of the Finance and Administration Committee at City Hall. Before entering politics, Guillaume Lavoie worked in public diplomacy, public policies and international relations.
As President and CEO of Jubilee Park & Community Center, Ben leverages his expertise in policy, program development, and team-building to improve lives and strengthen community in Southeast Dallas. Under Ben’s leadership, Jubilee and its neighbors have built a national model in safety, health, housing, education, and opportunity programs.
As a FIRE alum, Maxwell spends his days pursuing wide-ranging interests including urban advocacy and sustainability. With a professional background that spans the music, nonprofit and real estate industries, Maxwell is particularly passionate about discovering artistic and startup communities in cities across the globe, as well as access to affordable housing and transportation.
Bryan Lee, Jr. is an architectural designer, artist, writer and devoted advocate for social justice through design. Throughout his professional career, Bryan has been dedicated to promoting diversity within the profession and relentless in his efforts to elevate the design process as an effective catalyst for community change. He is currently the Place & Civic Design Director for the Arts Council of New Orleans.
Hannah LeGris has served 3rd District Councilmember in Lexington, Kentucky since January, 2021. Hannah has worked professionally in the higher education, private, and nonprofit sectors. She holds a B.A. in English from the College of Wooster and an M.A. in English from the University of Kentucky.
Tim Leisman is an organizer with Code for Greensboro and a civic entrepreneur focused on building new systems of engagement and community sustainability. He is a civic tech enthusiast, designer of equitable learning solutions, community organizer, and graduate of Guilford College and UNC Greensboro’s MPA program.
Laurent Levesque cofounded and coordinates UTILE, a nonprofit business developing self-financed, affordable student housing. He is also a radio columnist on economics and Chair of the youth wing of the social economy movement. He is an organizer of Transformer Montréal, a conference on democratizing the economy. He has studied urban planning, urban economic development and management.
Quardean Lewis-Allen is Founder and Director of Made in Brownsville, a social venture creating jobs for residents in Brownsville in creative services and increasing youth access to fields in design and technology. MiB works at the intersection of design and community development to serve as a model for resident led change.
Lora Lillard is an urban designer with the City of Portland’s Bureau of Planning and Sustainability (BPS). She joined BPS’s Urban Design Studio in 2005, where she works with communities to explore design issues and opportunities that create better places for people. Lora has served as a guest speaker and design critic for the University of Oregon and Portland State University.
Stephany Lin is an urban planner focused on the role of anchor institutions in communities. At U3 Advisors, Stephany works with universities, foundations, and non-profits to advance mission-aligned real estate and community development strategies. She is passionate about aligning educational and neighborhood-based investments to support young people in our cities.
Anthony Ling is the CEO at Bora, a technology startup developing a new transportation service platform allowing on-demand rides in shared vehicles, as well as Editor-In-Chief and Policy Analyst at CaosPlanejado.com, a collaborative on-line journal covering issues on cities and urbanism.
Robert Linn is the Senior Inventory Data Manager at the Detroit Land Bank Authority, where he manages an inventory of 80,000 vacant and abandoned parcels while overseeing the development of land use policy and the use of data to create more granular and proactive responses to the city’s vacant properties.
Marian Liou is the Founder of We Love BuHi, a social enterprise that supports a livable, inclusive, thriving Buford Highway corridor, the diverse, multicultural heart of metro Atlanta, through community-based creative placemaking.
Adrian Lipscombe is currently getting her Ph.D. student in the Community and Regional Planning program at the University of Texas at Austin, concentrating her studies on attitude and behavior of minorities towards transportation and land use, she has her Masters in Architecture and is the Principal of Urbanlocity Design firm. She resides in La Crosse, Wisconsin while finishing her dissertation.
As Manager of Digital Marketing at the Greater Newark Convention and Visitors Bureau Isaiah leads the maintenance of the organization website and digital campaigns across the organization. He studied at Temple University’s Fox School of Business and held positions with Newark’s Office of Information Technology among other community organizations.
Jennifer Litwak serves as the Executive Director of Housing on Merit. At the helm of Housing on Merit, Ms. Litwak has successfully managed the closing of over $283 million in multifamily acquisitions and overseen the preservation and renovation of over 2,150 units of affordable housing in California and Washington, D.C.
In 2017, Ms. Litwak was profiled by the Daily Transcript’s Influential Women Report as one of the most influential women in San Diego County. In 2016, Ms. Litwak was chosen as one of the Top 100 Business Professionals in San Diego and in 2015 she was recognized as one of Real Estate Forum’s Fifty Under 40 in the commercial real estate industry.
She has a Bachelor of Arts from Wake Forest University, a Juris Doctor from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, and is pursuing an Executive Certificate in Nonprofit Leadership from John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
Amy is a city planner working on innovative stormwater planning and policy for the Philadelphia Water Department. She develops policies and partnerships to implement Philadelphia’s Green City, Clean Waters Plan. Amy holds a Bachelors in Environmental Studies from UC Santa Barbara and a Masters in City Planning from Cornell University.
James Llamas is a transportation planner and engineer (PE) at Traffic Engineers, Inc. (TEI) in Houston where he works primarily on the firm’s transit, street, sidewalk, and bike planning and engineering projects. James also serves on the boards of directors of Houston Bike Share and the Midtown Management District.
Zakcq Lockrem, AICP, is a partner and cofounder at Mend Collaborative. His work focuses on low- and middle-income working-class communities like the one he grew up in as they navigate urban change, seek to build greater access to resources and opportunities for themselves and their children, and have more say in the changes that their community is experiencing.
Andrew Londre wears many hats – currently working for an anti-poverty nonprofit focused on entrepreneurship and skills enhancement, and a writer for a local magazine, Andrew also serves on eight, local, regional, and national boards. Andrew has started several new organizations and initiatives – from a CDC to, most recently, LaCrosse SOUP.
Betsy Loring, principal of expLoring exhibits & engagement, develops interactive science exhibits for multigenerational audiences. She trains professionals in using evaluation-driven iterative prototyping to create effective learning experiences. She is fostering a Community of Practice of museums partnering with urban planners to promote inclusive, educational community engagement in planning.
Eamonn Lourey fell into community development through founding Perth’s Street Roller Hockey League, a social sporting association aiming to disrupt the traditional model of delivering organised sport.
He now also works in a private consultancy applying his learnings to communities and town centres all over Perth.
Jeremy Loveday is a performance poet, community builder, and Victoria City Councillor. Jeremy is the founder of the Victorious Voices youth spoken word festival and he has toured internationally as a performer and public speaker. Jeremy is a passionate advocate for people-centred communities which are affordable, sustainable, and vibrant.
Amanda Lovelee is an artist who works in city systems as a translator between government and community with the goal of building places where everyone belongs. Lovelee focuses on civic engagement through her city popsicle truck. She is interested in how people connect and the spaces in which they do.
Nick Lovett is a Transportation Planner in Christchurch New Zealand. He is a passionate urban advocate with a keen interest in sociodemographic, economic and technological trends facing cities. In the weekends he runs bike tours showcasing Christchurch’s transformation, history, creativity, identity and future direction to like-minded visitors.
Nikki Lowy works with K-12 and higher-Ed clients to ensure more kids gain access to healthy, inspiring learning environments. She began her career as the program director at the Urban Land Institute (ULI) San Francisco. Nikki holds a BA in Urban History and Spanish from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from the U.C. Berkeley Haas School of Business.
Ryan Lugalia-Hollon is Director of Excel Beyond the Bell San Antonio. He served on the board of the Community Justice for Youth Institute, worked as a program evaluator for Northwestern University’s Institute on Policy Research, and has been a Justice Fellow at Adler University. He received his Ph.D. in Urban Planning and Policy at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Allison is a licensed Architect, certified City Planner and urbanist at heart. Prior to joining Greater Cleveland Partnership, Allison was the Director of Planning and Development at the City of Euclid and a Project Manager in Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Shanghai, China. Allison is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University.
Katharine leads an academic research center focused on advancing transformative mayoral leadership, catalyzing city/university partnerships and closing the gap between research and practice. She was a brand strategist and researcher for Fortune 500 companies, before serving as a mayoral advisor where she launched Boston’s citywide pay equity initiative, 100% Talent.
Mike Lydon is a Principal of The Street Plans Collaborative. A founding member of the New England Chapter of the Congress for the New Urbanism, a Board Member for CNU New York, and a steering committee member of the Next Generation of New Urbanists.
An award-winning arts manager, Bridget’s work blends her love of culture and cities together. She is the former Events Manager for the City of Hamilton and recipient of the City Manager’s Award for Excellence in Public Service. She has held senior cultural programming and policy leadership positions with the cities of Toronto and Mississauga, is the past producer of the Toronto Fringe Theatre Festival and was recognized as a Top 40 Under 40 Hamilton Business Leader. She currently serves as the Vice-President of Festivals & Events Ontario, is a member of the Project for Public Spaces Placemaking Leadership Council, member of the Canadian Arts Coalition Research & Policy Development Committee and continues to work on major city-building events such as Nuit Blanche (Toronto).
Lizzie MacWillie is a Director at buildingcommunityWORKSHOP in Dallas, TX. She is an urban designer who works across project types. Recent work includes community engagement for the City of Dallas’ Cultural Plan; and El Sonido del Agua, an arts and advocacy project in the Rio Grande Valley.
Nidhi Madan is an architect and landscape architect based in New Delhi, India. Her current work in the public domain includes community-driven projects -streetscapes, parks and greenways, with a focus on accessibility, resource-consciousness and equity through nature-based solutions. She is also Director and Access Consultant at Samarthyam, National Centre for Accessible Environments.
Moe designs evidence-based models that are grounded in strong program management, rigorous performance monitoring, and public-private partnership. He helps organizations develop human-centered strategies, build capacity, and align program operations to outcomes. Moe’s a graduate of NYU Wagner and St. John’s University.
Daniel Makela is a planner with Progressive Urban Management Associates in Denver. At P.U.M.A., he focuses on helping downtowns of all shapes and sizes reach their potential. Daniel moved to Denver from his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, where he worked on the Mayor’s Innovation Team and most recently with the City’s downtown management organization.
Rohit Malhotra is the Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Civic Innovation in Atlanta, his hometown city. His background is in social entrepreneurship, digital communications, open data and community organizing. Most recently, he served as an Ash Innovation Fellow in the White House Office of Management and Budget.
Danicia Malone is a lifelong student, embarking on her PhD to research the User-Experience of Race. Danicia’s work investigates the context of Race & Space – Growing Critical Cultural Capacity in the Built Environment.
She is a creative director, interaction designer and planner based in Indianapolis, IN. Daniciamonet.com
Andréanne Maltais-Tremblay is an urban planner who advises the Office of the Mayor of Montreal and the Executive Committee on a diversity of urban planning issues: urban policies, town planning regulations, residential, commercial and public spaces projects.
Gabriel Mandujano is the Founder and CEO of Wash Cycle Laundry, a triple-bottom line social enterprise that is proving that bikes are commercially viable alternatives to trucks for intra-urban transport, and has created 50 jobs for chronically unemployed job-seekers.
Raj Mankad is Editor of Cite: The Architecture + Design Review of Houston. His writing helped bring about the launch of Sunday Streets HTX and the planned integration of commuter bus systems from Houston to Galveston. He completed a PhD in Literature and Creative Writing from the University of Houston.
Rev. Levon Manzie’s diverse district spans historic neighborhoods to the downtown Entertainment Quarter. Under his leadership, it’s undergoing a major renaissance with initiatives focusing on infrastructure and blight issues. He serves as Assistant Pastor of St. Joseph Missionary Baptist Church and previously served on the Mobile County School Board.
Steven D. Marcus is Building Commissioner at the City of Gary, Indiana, where he leads several initiatives addressing the plight of the urban community. He is program manager for the My Brothers Keeper-Gary Federal Initiative, Board Chair for the Gary Commission on the Social Status of Black Males, Fellow of the Indiana Democratic Party Emerging Leaders program, and currently holds position as President of the Urban League of NW Indiana Young Professionals. Steven holds an MA in Architecture from Hampton University.
Manni Marquez is dedicated to serving urban communities, specializing in the Latino Community. He has dedicated his life to increasing the quality of life for individuals and families in neighborhoods with high crime rates, low employment rates, education deficiencies, and where public safety is lacking. His passion is fueled by his own troubled youth aimed at righting his wrongs and changing lives in a positive way.
Nolan Marshall has led two for profit companies: Good Citizen, a consulting firm specializing in political, outreach, and engagement campaigns, and NAM-IT, a promotional and printable products company. Nolan works to strengthen the DDD’s relationships with Downtown stakeholders and other governmental and economic development agencies.
Karlos L. Marshall has been recognized globally as a social entrepreneur at the intersection of urban literacy, neighborhood revitalization, and economic redevelopment. He has received the following recognitions: Forbes 30 Under 30, United States Library of Congress Literacy Awards, International Literacy Association 30 Under 30, and OpenIDEO Innovation Prize.
Josh Martin possesses over fifteen years of urban planning experience. As Director of Planning & Strategy at Turnberry Consulting US, Josh manages the US operations of London-based Turnberry Consulting and has led numerous strategic development projects including development feasibility and financial studies; regional and community master plans; and the implementation of the retrofit of suburbia.
Michael Martin is an interdisciplinary leader with ten years experience in innovation strategy, program design, and community building. A city planner by trade, he currently is the Head of Communities at SignalFire, an AI-driven, early-stage venture capital fund.
Additionally, he is Co-Founder and Policy Director of Free Machine, a non-profit organization that develops public policy and creative projects to shape a high-tech future that is equitable, abundant and sustainable.
He is animated and passionate about the ways in which cross-sector partnerships can unlock long-term global challenges, specifically as it relates to frontier technologies and democracy. Serving as an interlocutor between technologists and civil society, he brokers relationships that are often asymmetrical yet, at their core, values-aligned.
In his previous work, he managed the IBM Watson AI XPRIZE and led Global Community Relations at the XPRIZE Foundation. He has also pursued affordable housing, urban resiliency, social impact communications, and been an executive at a local economic development non-profit.
Matt Martin has been the Executive Director of Trumbull Neighborhood Partnership (TNP) since its launch in 2010. TNP manages the Trumbull County Land Bank and focuses on housing, food access, and community organizing in Warren, Ohio. A Cleveland native, he has a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies and a Master of Arts in Environmental Studies, both from Cleveland State University’s Levin College of Urban Affairs.
Ra’Shann Martin, MBA is the Executive Director of St. John Center, a homeless service agency in Louisville, Ky. Ra’Shann is a passionate advocate for housing, education, and economic impowerment. Ra’shann serves on several boards as aligned with her passion for service enabling her to take a comprehensive approach to advocacy.
Alec Martinez is a city planner and community organizer from Laredo, Texas. They are currently writing their thesis on the development of cooperatives in the context of climate change/migration at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. They work on community projects on the border and with development firm CoEverything.
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Rosa Mayer works for LaunchCode and has been heavily involved with the coworking movement. She moved to St. Louis from New York and has loved what this rust belt city has to offer.
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Carla Mays is Founder & CEO of Mays Civic Innovation, a San Francisco based advising and strategy firm on innovation economy and Smart Cities. Clients include various state agencies in California, public officials in California, Florida, Washington, DC; and impact funds. Singularity University Impact in the 2016-17 inaugural class of Impact Fellows focused on development of frameworks “Exponential Equity for Smart Cities”. She is currently a columnist for American Society of Public Administrators (ASPA) PA Times focused on 21st Century Public Administration: Managing the Smart City. She is an award winning civic-hacker and has been recognized by the California State Legislature for civic engagement and inclusive govtech platforms on affordable housing and voter protection.
Patrick is a Urbanist, Designer, and Coder. He is currently serving as a Project Manager and Service Designer with the Innovation Office at the City of Austin. Previously, he served as a Code for America Fellow bringing civic tech to local government in Long Beach. Patrick believes that government is sexy and that public spaces have power, and he loves documenting all things urban. Ask him about Civic Tech!
David McGhee leads The Skillman Foundation’s youth development portfolio. Prior to joining the Foundation, McGhee served as congressional liaison for U.S. Representative Dan Kildee, and as a program director for Big Brothers Big Sisters. Born and raised in Flint, Michigan, David’s work with youth and communities and role as a thought-leader has been recognized across the state and beyond.
Megan is a civil servant with a passion for people. As Strategic Initiatives Manager at Detroit Land Bank Authority, she couples degrees in policy and community development with project management expertise. Four years of experience growing housing and vacant land initiatives support her drive for pioneering solutions in equitable development.
Kim McKnight is an Environmental Conservation Program Manager for Austin’s Parks and Recreation Department. Her work includes Historic Preservation Planning and Cultural Resource Management. Current projects include the Seaholm Waterfront Redevelopment and the historic Brush Square Master Plan. Past work includes award-winning master plans for Austin’s municipal cemeteries and Pease Park.
Josh McManus is fascinated with and driven by problem-solving for places, people and purpose. Josh assists corporations, foundations and large non-profits in reimagining post-industrial American cities. He is a constant advocate for using design processes to advance social, cultural and economic progress. Josh’s current work focuses on the revitalization and entrepreneurial development of Detroit, Michigan and other post-industrial cities.
Lynnette is a community development professional who is passionate about economic justice and eliminating the racial wealth gap. Lynnette serves as the Director of Neighborhood Strategy for Black Chicago Tomorrow — a startup committed to the vision of a vibrant African American community that benefits from and contributes to the Chicago region’s economy and society. Lynnette’s work revolves around bringing the civic, public, private and philanthropic sectors together in disinvested communities, in support of that community’s priorities and needs. Lynnette has worked as a community development practitioner at the federal, nonprofit and municipal level and has received degrees from Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Michigan.
Adam Meagher is a vice president for planning & development at the New York City Economic Development Corporation. At NYCEDC, he leads complex public-private initiatives that advance the City’s goals of promoting transit-oriented development, building affordable housing and strengthening infrastructure to support neighborhood growth. Adam is a graduate of the Master in Urban Planning program at the Harvard Graduate School of Design.
Neeraj Mehta is passionate about building equitable communities in the Twin Cities. Currently he is the director of community-based programs at the Center for Urban and Regional Affairs at the University of Minnesota, where he is finding creating ways to explore and address issues of race, place and poverty.
Tara Mei Smith is passionate about creating and supporting sustainable and equitable frameworks so that people and places can thrive for generations to come. Her background includes work as the Executive Director at Extra Terrestrial Projects, where she directs community planning and environmental stewardship projects through exploration and play, as a womenswear designer and supply chain manager – as part of Proenza Schouler’s CFDA award-winning team and as head designer at Waitex – and as a sustainability consultant at Field Guide. She has organized thought leadership convenings such as Moat Oracle’s inaugural summit on the future of digital attention, Attention.io. Recently she worked with a coalition of artists and community members to create a place-based equitable engagement blueprint for all future projects in Durham, NC. She is an Audubon Toyota Conservation Innovation Fellow and National Cultural Innovation Accelerator Practices for Change Fellow.
Michael is a Pinchot Faculty Fellow and associate research scientist at Yale University’s School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. He has more than a decade of senior-level experience in urban sustainability policy. This included working for the California State Legislature as a senior consultant, lobbyist, gubernatorial appointee, and as vice chair of the city planning commission. Michael’s research agenda investigates how the built environment, policymaking process, and social movements influence sustainability and population health in low-income neighborhoods and communities of color.
Juan Sebastian, an urban planner, is an avid community advocate who strongly believes that true urban change begins at the neighborhood level. He is currently a long range planner for the Laredo & Webb County Area MPO, where he works on plans to improve regional mobility and quality of life. Juan Sebastian holds a Master of City and Regional Planning and Master of Arts in Public Policy and Management from The Ohio State University.
Dekonti Mends-Cole is a fellow with the Strong Cities, Strong Communities Initiative in Detroit. Her role includes improving operational efficiency of the City’s law department and streamlining the City’s demolition process. Prior, Dekonti worked on revitalization and regional investment projects in the United Kingdom, Iraq and Zambia.
Manasvi Menon works at the intersection of transportation, urban strategy and policy at Parsons Brinckerhoff, a global infrastructure firm. She is interested in the ways that mobility and the built environment affect how we experience and engage with the city, and how civic-centered solutions can be scaled across multiple urban contexts.
Hannah Mae was drawn from her native Denver to Detroit to work alongside catalytic investor Dan Gilbert on what the NYT calls “one of the most ambitious privately financed urban reclamation projects in American history.” She directs special projects at the intersection of real estate development, economic development, and transit/mobility.
Kristen Michaels is the Executive Director of the Congress of Neighboring Communities (CONNECT) which brings together the City of Pittsburgh and 43 surrounding communities to collaboratively address common policy issues. She’s the Co-Founder of For Good PGH which works to promote tolerance and inclusion and support underserved populations, and Free Store Wilkinsburg which serves neighbors in need.
Stephanie Michel is the Director of the North 5th Street Revitalization Project in Philadelphia. She leads implementation efforts for N5SRP’s key revitalization components: cleaning, safety, business assistance, and community development. Stephanie applies her passion and talent toward engaging residents and merchants to work towards effective solutions to this vibrant corridor.
Ryan E. Mielcarek is Director of Strategic Initiatives for Compass Housing Alliance, Chair of the King County Veterans Consortium, and proud member of the ShelterBox international disaster response network. He leads community resilience and empowerment initiatives powered through radical compassion, inclusiveness, and collective impact.
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