The urban and the natural – often people think nature and cities can’t coexist. But in our industry of architects, landscape architects, and urban planners, we have the ability to merge these seemingly contrary realms, creating spaces that offer both structure and boundlessness. It is my hope that in my career, I can help to improve cities with this balance in mind, creating more walkable, equitable, green, and sustainable places to limit sprawl and suburban development.

Growing up in a walkable college town in New Jersey, I walked and biked a lot as a kid, exploring the different neighborhoods. My father owned a small woodlot about 30 minutes from the town where we would go on the weekends in the summer to plant trees, chop firewood, clean the barn, and walk the woods. It is in this place that I fell in love with the outdoors and woodworking, a love that has stayed with me to this day, now manifesting in my fascination with mass timber construction.

Mass timber/CLT/engineered wood includes a range of products created by binding smaller wood pieces together to create columns, beams, walls, floor slabs, stairs, etc. When done right, this process uses sustainably grown wood and captures/stores lots of carbon while the trees are growing. By contrast, concrete and steel produce/release a lot of carbon during the manufacturing and building process.

Currently there are many challenges associated mass timber – primarily sustainable wood sourcing, cost, fire, moisture protection… But I see these challenges as exciting puzzles to solve collaboratively, working with engineers and contractors to devise cutting edge solutions.