Kimberly Dowdell is an exceptional leader in architecture and public interest design whose professional accomplishments and visionary advocacy make her an outstanding Honorary Fellow. In 2024, Kimberly made history as the first Black woman to lead the American Institute of Architects (AIA), representing over 100,000 members, advocating for architectural impact, climate action, and equity in design on international platforms, including the United Nations’ Buildings and Climate Global Forum.
As the driving force behind the AIA’s Chief Architect initiative, Kimberly has pioneered partnerships with the U.S. Conference of Mayors, embedding architects within city governments to champion urban solutions to address climate, housing, adaptive reuse, and sustainable transit challenges. Building from the momentum of her predecessors, Kimberly’s work on federal procurement reform led to raising a long-standing fee cap on design services. This groundbreaking achievement will not only benefit architects across the U.S., but it is expected to have positive implications for architects globally. Beyond her professional role, Kimberly’s dedication to mentorship and community engagement shines brightly. She speaks to students of all ages, inspiring future architects by sharing her journey and advocating for diversity in the profession of architecture.
A nationally recognized thought leader, Kimberly’s extensive career includes her role as Principal and Director of Strategic Relationships at HOK, where she leverages her expertise to elevate urban design for clients focused on social equity and sustainability. Her numerous accolades, including the AIA Young Architects Award and Crain’s Notable Black Leaders honor, attest to her profound influence and commitment to fostering inclusivity in the built environment.
Through her trailblazing leadership and dedication to public service, Kimberly exemplifies the transformative potential of architecture.
Emily Grandstaff-Rice, FAIA, has dedicated her career to advancing equity, fostering leadership, and steering the architectural profession toward a more inclusive and innovative future. As the 99th President of the American Institute of Architects, Emily led national conversations on critical issues such as advocacy, ethical practice, and equitable governance, making her a trailblazer in expanding architecture’s role in society. Her passion for addressing implicit bias and enhancing architects' roles in communities reflects her commitment to creating a responsive, diverse, and impactful profession.
Emily’s work extends beyond leadership into transformative contributions in architecture and education, making a tangible difference in communities' lives. She has managed and designed projects across a wide spectrum, from educational institutions to museums, each reflecting her dedication to creating spaces that inspire learning, joy, and comfort. Her influence has shaped new educational programs, enhanced leadership development, and sparked critical strategic thinking among architectural professionals.
Through her thoughtful advocacy and strategic insight, Emily has been instrumental in reframing the value of architecture in solving today’s pressing challenges, including climate change and adaptive reuse. Her vision continues to inspire countless emerging professionals, demonstrating that architecture is both a vehicle for change and a means of uplifting communities. Emily’s unwavering dedication to advancing equity and building a more inclusive future is an enduring testament to her profound impact on the architectural profession.
Michelangelo Sabatino, PhD, is a publicly engaged educator, historian, curator, and preservationist. He is Professor of Architectural History and Heritage in the College of Architecture, Illinois Institute of Technology, where he currently directs the PhD program and is the inaugural John Vinci Distinguished Research Fellow.
Sabatino was born in Toronto and studied at universities in Canada, Italy, and the United States of America. He earned a professional degree in Architecture at the Università IUAV di Venezia and a doctorate in the Department of Fine Art, University of Toronto, and held a post-doctoral fellowship in the Department of History of Art + Architecture, Harvard University. Sabatino taught history and theory of architecture at Yale University and the University of Houston before his appointment to IIT.
Throughout his career Sabatino has focused new light on larger patterns of design discourse and production during the twentieth century in Canada, the USA, and Europe. His first book Pride in Modesty: Modernist Architecture and the Vernacular Tradition in Italy (2011) was translated into Italian and won multiple awards, including the Society of Architectural Historians’ Alice Davis Hitchcock Award. Sabatino has contributed to numerous award-winning books, including a survey entitled Canada: Modern Architectures in History (with Rhodri Windsor Liscombe, 2016); a book about Arthur Erickson is forthcoming.
Sabatino and his partner live in Chicago and completed the preservation-restoration of their 1930s modern house, an endeavor that required combining the skillset of architect, historian, and preservationist.
Martin Segger’s five-decade career as an architectural historian, preservationist, civic advocate, professor, author and museum curatorial specialist has placed him amongst the leaders of recent and current distinguished Canadian architectural advocates and educators. While well known in various international academic institutions, organizations and affiliated scholarly communities of history and research, Martin’s influence and renown has been particularly felt in his home of Victoria, British Columbia and throughout the Pacific Northwest. He has been most highly regarded for his tenure as Associate Fellow, Centre for Global Studies at the University of Victoria, a position that has enabled his passion for the regional built environment to be featured through many books, talks and media coverage. Martin’s coverage of the built environment is well known through guides and feature publications that have made Victoria’s rich architectural heritage accessible to residents, students and interested visitors.
For 15 years, he supervised the RAIC Syllabus course, A History of Ideas in Architecture, then authored the current online version.
Through past presidencies, Martin has made significant contributions to museum and curatorial communities such as the Society of Architectural Historians, Pacific Northwest Chapter, and the Commonwealth Association of Museums. He has been Head of the University of Victoria’s Art Gallery and Collections and responsible for curating several notable exhibitions including mid-century modernism on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands.
In addition to academia, Martin’s dedication is evident through his years of civic leadership and discourse on the built environment. His commitment to seeing future generations appreciate the built environment through a critical architectural lens is worthy of recognition.
The remarkable accomplishments of His Late Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan IV spans various aspects of the field of architecture as part of his broader social and economic development work, particularly the specialized cultural programming undertaken through the Aga Khan Trust for Culture. This includes the Aga Khan Historic Cities Programme, which has been responsible for the restoration of many heritage sites throughout the Muslim world, as well as the Aga Khan Award for Architecture.
His Late Highness the Aga Khan was the 49th hereditary Imam (spiritual leader) of the Shia Ismaili Muslims and Founder and Chairman of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), one of the largest private development agencies in the world. Since taking on his role as Imam in 1957, the Aga Khan has been deeply engaged in improving the quality of life of the most vulnerable populations, while emphasizing the need to uphold human dignity as well as respect for tolerance and pluralism.
The AKDN is active in over 30 developing countries employing some 96,000 people with the support of tens of thousands of volunteers. The Network’s underlying ethic is that of compassion for the most vulnerable in society and service to humanity without regard to faith, origin or gender.
His Late Highness the Aga Khan created the Aga Khan Award for Architecture established in 1977. It is given every three years to projects that set new standards of excellence in architecture, urban and regional design, conservation and landscape architecture. The Award seeks to identify and encourage building concepts that successfully address the needs and aspirations of societies in which Muslims have a significant presence.
When New York’s Museum of Modern Art decided to present an exhibition to recognize projects from around the world that emphasized social program and environmental performance, no fewer than three Aga Khan Architecture Award winners were included among the ten projects exhibited.
His Late Highness the Aga Khan passed away on February 4, 2025.