Initiate candid conversations to begin to heal the deeply afflicted wounds compounded over generations.

• Held an organizational committee meeting in 2020 to discuss committee structure and initiatives that lasted more than 3 hours.
• Held a second organizational committee meeting moderated by former AIA national president, Bill Bates and national EQFA Committee chair, Emily Grandstaff Rice.
• Held a town hall with NOMA Presidents Kimberly Dowdell, AIA, NOMAC and Jason Pugh, AIA, AICP, NOMA.
• Posted provocative content to the AIAH Facebook and Instagram pages during JE:DI weekly takeovers.
• Joined Beyond the Built Environment’s (Pascal Sablan’s) Say it With Media Commitment pledging that 15% of our publication and social media featuring diverse designer. We easily reach this goal. AIAH is the only AIA component to join this campaign.
• Fieldnotes resource list - https://aiahouston.org/v/site-page/Justice-Equity-Diversity-and-Inclusivity/Field-Notes/ce/
• The committee is putting together a JE:DI Firm Challenge based on a program of SoCaL NOMA and AIA Los Angeles.
• The committee is working on an exhibition for ArCH based on the book The Color of Law.
• The committee initially agreed to participate in a “Say it Loud – Texas” exhibition to bring awareness to the work of BIPOC architects and designers across Texas and ArCH agreed to host a run of the exhibit. When the exhibit was changed to only include the work of only women and without regard to race or ethnicity the committee and ArCH backed out. But, there have been conversations on the ArCH exhibitions committee about doing a “Say it Loud – Houston” exhibit of the work of BIPOC architects and designers sometime in 2024 or 2025.
• The COTE Committee adopted environmental justice as the theme for Gulf Coast Green 2021, a 2 day symposium of keynotes speeches, panel discussions, speakers and project tours related to the theme of Environmental Justice.

 

Integrate justice, equity, diversity, and inclusivity training and education for AIAH and ArCH leaders.

• Leaders were given 2 opportunities to participate in training organized by TxA as a partnership with the local chapters in Texas.
• Leadership is encouraged to participate in the training programs organized by the AIAH WiA Committee including the Equity Series and Worskhop. In 2021 the theme for the Equity Series and the accompanying workshop was Work/Life Balance by Design. This was followed by a separate workshop later in the year called Knowing and Setting Healthy Boundaries at Work. 
• AIA leadership was encouraged to attend COTE Committee trainings on Environmental Justice during Gulf Coast Green and on the JUST Program during a COTE lunch and learn.

 

Re-evaluate, build and support a pipeline of diverse leadership in AIAH and ArCH for the advancement of the profession and city.

• AIAH passed a bylaws amendment incorporating a commitment to diversity.
• The AIAH board passed a written board selection policy that changed the typical nominations process and board election process in an effort to cast a wider net and affirmatively seek out BIPOC architects to participate on the board.
• MGMC continues to bring diverse individuals into the pipeline with their scholarship competition and greatly increased their fundraising for scholarships with the first annual Clays for College in January 2022.
• LiA began a mentoring program and are embarking on a scholarship program for which they have gained approval and raised nearly $25,000.
• JE:DI Collective held a roundtable discussion titled What’s Next? Transitioning from school to work. The discussion brought together students from UH, UTSA, LSU, Rice, TAMU and PVAMU and industry professionals. The discussion was to lay the groundwork for a mentorship program.
• AIAH and HNOMA are partnering on a JE:DI Firm Challenge with a target rollout in 2022.

Conduct an internal audit of the gender and racial diversity of the past ten years of AIAH and ArCH board of directors, executive committees, committee chairs, juries and panels.

• A ten-year audit was completed in 2020 and continues to be updated each year and included annually in AIAH and ArCH board of directors on-boarding materials. The audit covers:
• AIAH board service
• AIAH executive committee service
• ArCH board service
• ArCH executive committee service
• AIAH & ArCH committee chairs
• Honor award winners
• Design award jurors

Create an environment that encourages and fosters diverse award submissions, programming, and engagement in an effort to more accurately reflect our community and membership.

• AIAH and ArCH have made a commitment to have diversity on all panels and juries.
• Joined Beyond the Built Environment’s (Pascal Sablan’s) Say it With Media Commitment pledging that 15% of our publication and social media featuring diverse designer. We easily reach this goal.
• AIAH has amended the bylaws to include a commitment to EDI.
• AIAH has formed a board level task force to examine how honor award recipients have been chosen.
• The COTE Committee produced Gulf Coast Green 2021 with a focus on Environment Justice.
• The COTE Committee produced a lunch and learn on the JUST Program.
• LiA produced a program on Texas licensure for those licensed and or educated in other countries. The program ran twice – once in English, then in Spanish.

 

Form and develop an AIAH Justice Equity: Diversity Inclusivity (JE:DI) committee.

• The committee was formed in 2020. Like all committees, development continues from year to year.

 

Adopt a JE:DI statement for AIAH and incorporate the goals into the strategic plan.

• AIAH and ArCH adopted a JE:DI Statement and the current strategic plans explicitly incorporates EDI as a priority.
• AIAH will update the current strategic plan in August 2022.

 

Create an alliance between HNOMA, AIAH and ArCH to collaborate on programming, broaden our reach and deepen our community ties.

• AIAH, ArCH partnered with HNOMA and the City of Houston on “Designing for Impact” – a program of panel discussions, workshops, charrettes and presentations in conjunction with leaders in complete communities that brought design ideas to underserved communities.
• HNOMA held their 2021 Holiday Party at ArCH at no charge.
• ArCH has offered to donate the space for HNOMA’s project pipeline
• 2022 AIAH president AJ Sustaita has asked all AIAH board members to join NOMA.
• AIAH and HNOMA are collaborating on a JE:DI Firm Challenge that should roll out in 2022.

 

Strengthen architecture education programs through outreach to and mentorship of Black/African-American students, maintaining measurable connections with students as they progress through school and into their careers.

• JE:DI Collective held a roundtable discussion titled What’s Next? Transitioning from school to work in April 2021. The discussion brought together students from UH, UTSA, LSU, Rice, TAMU and PVAMU and industry professionals. The discussion was to lay the groundwork for a mentorship program.