John Flynn, AIA
AIA Oregon President-Elect
Looking Forward
Hello, Colleagues –
I’m writing to you from the President-Elect’s desk for the last time. The New Year is just around the corner and I’m honored to step into a new role as AIA Oregon’s President. Thank you, Kaley Fought, for your leadership over the past two years! And for your continued expertise next year in your role as Immediate Past President.
For me, I’m excited and looking forward to 2024. We’ve been growing as a single-state chapter. Think of it. In 2018 we, as an organization, voted to consolidate our four Chapters into a single entity with five Sections. As 2024 begins, we are starting our sixth year as the Oregon Chapter of AIA. We have established our core values around stewardship in terms of climate change, resiliency, and universal design as well as our increased commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion at every level of engagement in our profession. It’s time for us to solidify how we take our statewide strengths to the section level. This is where we can build volunteer capacity and provide meaningful services for our members. I’m thinking of more programs and engagement opportunities for all our Sections!
Let me tell you what else I’m looking forward to in the coming year:
Increased programming and member services: Our budget outlook is healthy, and we will be using our resources to increase programs and services. This may even take the form of adding to our AIAO staff so that we can fully serve all sections.
We are currently “unburdened” from paying for leased spaces (see my next bullet point) and that provides us with opportunities to channel our resources to areas that will have a direct impact on all our members.
A new idea for how we interconnect – the not HQ: As you may have read in our previous “Message From…” posts, the results of our HQ Task Force survey and outreach/engagement with membership over the past months has yielded an understanding that, for now, we don’t necessarily need a physical headquarters space. This idea comes from our sensibility that, as a statewide organization, we can connect, exchange, and collaborate without the financial challenges of leasing and/or building-out a permanent physical space.
When we need to connect in person, we’ll find places/facilities that meet the needs of the moment, thereby keeping our operations lean and statewide-focused. The Task Force that’s been working hard for almost a year-and-a-half will be presenting recommendations to the AIAO Board of Directors in January for how we can elevate our game with a new perspective on AIA Oregon’s “home.”
The Oregon Design Conference: The Conference will take place in Bend, May 8 – 10, 2024. ODC 24 will offer the state’s 1500+ AIA members educational programming and networking opportunities. We are planning an in-person conference with opportunities for members to access recordings of the presentations after the event.
The conference theme of ODC 2024 “Beyond Shelter: Confronting Our Housing Crisis, Together” will address the housing crisis, sustainability, and resilience through the lens of what actions architects can take to have a positive impact. Architects have a responsibility to consider their role and the possibilities that exist for their collaborative impact. More information will be coming soon on the state’s only conference on the practice of architecture!
Increased advocacy and civic engagement: AIA Oregon will continue to address issues, both statewide and locally, that affect us as design professionals and community leaders. We have an active Legislative Affairs Committee and, although 2024 is a short session for our state legislators, we expect our voice to be heard in matters of business interests, the built environment, and climate action. Public policy advocacy is such an important aspect of our organization.
Finally, I’m looking forward to connections with members and partners. I’m committed to engaging with Section activities across the state – in person as often as I can. And that gets us back to where I started with today’s message. Let’s make the most of our statewide strengths. I’m excited for a productive 2024 with all of you!
Thanks and Happy Holidays to everyone!