The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has created the Equity in Architecture Commission, a blue-ribbon panel of leading architects, educators, and diversity experts to investigate diversity and inclusion in the profession.
The 20-member group is charged with assessing recent data, setting a plan of action, and reporting on results to the AIA Board of Directors by the end of 2016. The commission is a result of the “Equity in Architecture” resolution passed at the 2015 AIA annual meeting—a call to action to retain talent, advance the profession, and further the value of design in society through diversity actions.
“Diversity and inclusion is a priority of the AIA. We have made progress, but not fast enough. The world around us is changing much faster and we can do better,” said 2015 AIA President Elizabeth Chu Richter, FAIA. “We have great opportunity now to look at how to achieve the equity, diversity, and inclusion in AIA member firms through a creative means and provide a framework for the profession to act faster and better to meet a growing demand for architects.”
The goals for the Equity in Architecture Commission include:
- Develop specific recommendations that will lead to equitable practices
- Create measurable goals and develop mechanisms for assessing ongoing progress
- Present a plan of action based on the Commission’s recommendations
Related Stories
| Jun 17, 2014
U.S. Census report examines why Americans move
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 35.9 million people moved between 2012 and 2013, meaning that 11.7% of the U.S. population moved in one year. The report seeks to examine why.
| Jun 17, 2014
World's tallest pair of towers to serve as 'environmental catalyst' for China
The Phoenix Towers are expected to reach 1 km, the same height as Adrian Smith and Gordon Gill's Kingdom Tower, but would set a record for multiple towers in one development.
| Jun 16, 2014
6 U.S. cities at the forefront of innovation districts
A new Brookings Institution study records the emergence of “competitive places that are also cool spaces.”
| Jun 13, 2014
Gilbane Building Company names new president and chief operating officer
Gilbane Building company hires new president and COO
| Jun 13, 2014
First look: BIG's spiraling museum for watchmaker Audemars Piguet
The glass-and-steel pavilion's spiral structure acts as a storytelling device for the company's history.
| Jun 13, 2014
Grocery stores, restaurants make neighborhoods most desirable [infographic]
John Burns Real Estate Consulting ranks the top 25 housing amenities by generation, based on feedback from more than 20,000 home shoppers.
| Jun 12, 2014
Zaha Hadid's 'gravity defying' Issam Fares Institute opens in Beirut
The design builds upon the institute’s mission as a catalyst and connector between AUB, researchers and the global community.
| Jun 12, 2014
Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects' design selected for new UCSC facility
The planned site is a natural landscape among redwood trees with views over Monterey Bay, a site that the architects have called “one of the most beautiful they have ever worked on.”
| Jun 12, 2014
Austrian university develops 'inflatable' concrete dome method
Constructing a concrete dome is a costly process, but this may change soon. A team from the Vienna University of Technology has developed a method that allows concrete domes to form with the use of air and steel cables instead of expensive, timber supporting structures.
| Jun 11, 2014
David Adjaye’s housing project in Sugar Hill nears completion
A new development in New York's historic Sugar Hill district nears completion, designed to be an icon for the neighborhood's rich history.
