Kelly Chanopas, AIA is an Associate at ZGF and has chaired AIA Oregon CoEDI since 2019, after serving as vice-chair since the committee’s founding. Octavio Gutierrez, AIA is an Associate at Mahlum and has vice-chaired the committee since 2019.
Greetings, colleagues!
The AIA Oregon Committee on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (CoEDI) was initially formed in 2018 in an effort to expand the (then) AIA Portland Chapter’s commitment to impacting equity, diversity and inclusion across our member community by offering programs that address leadership development, workplace culture, career development, and broader community engagement. Our mission today remains to better reflect the global and demographic richness of our population through advocacy for under-represented groups in our profession. Throughout our short history, our mission has been guided by four keystones: supporting firms in attracting and retaining diverse talent, mentoring across all phases of the professional pipeline, facilitating connections to our communities, and promoting the value of design and its contributions to and from society.
While we currently serve as chair and vice-chair of CoEDI, our committee’s efforts are supported by a dedicated – and truly fabulous – group of members and allied professionals who selflessly volunteer their time to develop our recurring programs (Engage, Workplace Now), put on our flagship annual event (Future Vision), and identify additional tools, topics and speakers to offer learning opportunities for the greater AIA Oregon membership. We are always happy to talk more about our events, but here is a brief summary:
Engage is a series focusing on opportunities to connect architects and designers with each other and our communities, celebrating the contributions of those who bring diverse experiences, views, and needs into the design process. Past events have included a volunteer opportunity open house and bringing in speakers from local government and non-profit organizations.
Workplace [Now] is an interactive series exploring the elements of firm culture. The format and theme of each events vary, but past events have focused on the multi-generational office and mentorship.
Future Vision is a day-long symposium organized around themes of justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. Future Vision 2019 focused on the tools necessary to promote equity within the profession, and Future Vision 2020 will explore issues of identity and intersectionality. Our 2020 event will be virtual with sessions held over multiple days.
We both got involved with CoEDI as a call to action and a determination to take the necessary steps to effect meaningful change. For us, CoEDI embodies a framework necessary for just and equitable processes to be developed, tested, and widely shared through our professional networks in order to create diverse and inclusive work environments where BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) professionals are treated equally as their true, authentic selves.
Although the current pandemic has upended many of our lives, we remain committed now more than ever to bring social and racial justice to our profession. We are encouraged by the overwhelming response that you – our members – have shown by attending our June 2020 social justice listening sessions and monthly committee meetings, and we appreciate your patience as we re-tool our processes for a broader, albeit remote, level of committee engagement. We are forging ahead with planning for Future Vision 2020, and we are preparing to re-launch our discussion groups around the AIA Guides for Equitable Practice and other member-suggested reading selections.
CoEDI meets on the fourth Thursday of each month, from Noon to 1pm, and we look forward to welcoming you at a future meeting or event. Until further notice, we are meeting remotely via video conference. We are joining the 8/14 AIA Oregon Virtual Happy Hour at 4:00 to discuss allyship within our profession. Join us! If you have any questions or would like to receive meeting notices and committee announcements, please e-mail us at info@aiaoregon.org.