Join us for an engaging and insightful discussion featuring two distinguished speakers, Kimberly Dowdell and Jamie Gauthier, as they address the critical question: "How do we create more affordable and sustainable housing opportunities in Philadelphia?" Kimberly Dowdell, the current president of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and former president of the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA), is a leading advocate for equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) in the architectural profession. She will share her vision for the Chief Architect initiative and the pivotal role architects play in shaping equitable, sustainable communities.

Philadelphia City Councilmember Jamie Gauthier, renowned for her dedication to affordable housing and tenant protection, will discuss her initiatives, such as the Built to Last program and efforts to prevent displacement and discrimination against voucher users. With a focus on the city's goal of creating 30,000 housing units, Gauthier will explore the challenges and opportunities in achieving this target, including funding strategies, comprehensive planning, and the role of transit-oriented development (TOD).

Participants will analyze AIA's mission and its alignment with Philadelphia's housing challenges, identify specific local issues such as tax increases and energy burdens, and explore effective solutions from other cities that could be adapted to Philadelphia's unique context. This program aims to foster a proactive, collaborative approach to ensuring that housing in Philadelphia is both attainable and sustainable, enhancing the quality of life for all residents.

Learning Objectives:

1. Participants will analyze AIA’s mission and its alignment with the housing challenges in Philadelphia, focusing on how it addresses issues like financing, tax cycles, and community planning.
2. Participants will identify and evaluate the specific challenges in Philadelphia related to keeping people in their homes, such as increased taxes, energy burden, and issues with existing housing quality.
3. Participants will explore effective solutions implemented in other cities, such as Toronto's cooperative housing and Denmark's approach to private equity, and consider their applicability to Philadelphia.
4. Participants will learn about proposed, tailored solutions for Philadelphia’s housing challenges, including proactive planning, supporting tenant rights organizations, and integrating transit solutions to improve overall community wellbeing.

Credits: 1.5 AIA LUs (HSW)

Meet the Speakers:

Kimberly Dowdell, AIA, NOMAC, NCARB, LEED AP BC+C
AIA National President

Kimberly has devoted her entire professional career to laying the foundations for architects to create positive social change on a local, national and global scale. She has built bridges connecting diverse pillars of our society, from architectural firms and their clients to professional organizations, commercial developers, government agencies and academia. As a skilled relationship-builder, she fosters a more collaborative and inclusive approach to architecture, paving the way for a brighter future for all.

Kimberly’s impact reaches far beyond HOK’s clients and partners, as she frequently speaks at conferences and events and mentors emerging leaders within the firm and throughout the industry. She co-chairs HOK’s Diversity Advisory Council (DAC) and co-founded HOK Impact, the firm’s social responsibility arm.

Kimberly’s expertise and leadership have earned her recognition and appointments from several prominent organizations. She currently serves as the 2024 President of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). She previously served on the board of directors of the Architects Foundation, the philanthropic partner of the AIA. She also sits on the board of the Chicago Central Area Committee (CCAC), which works to shape the city’s growth, equity and quality of place. Kimberly is also a board member of the Chicago Architecture Biennial (CAB), and Ingenuity Chicago, which increases access to quality arts education for all Chicago Public School students.

Kimberly is the past president of the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) and a member of the National Organization of Minority Architects Council (NOMAC), the organization’s highest level of recognition. She is a past AIA Young Architects Award recipient and was recognized for her activism efforts by Architectural Record’s Women in Architecture Awards program.

Kimberly co-founded Social Economic Environmental Design, an organization that promotes sustainable development in 2005. She has been honored as a “40 Under 40” in Crain’s Chicago Business and Crain’s Detroit Business and delivered the 19th Annual Dunlop Lecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. She was elected by her fellow alumni to serve on the board of trustees at Cornell University in 2022.

Jamie R. Gauthier
Councilmember, 3rd Distrcit of the City of Philadelphia

Jamie R. Gauthier represents West and Southwest Philadelphia as the City Councilmember for the Third District. Councilmember Jamie Gauthier fights for her constituents’ right to live with dignity and remain in the neighborhoods they’ve called home for decades. She is the only elected official in the City of Philadelphia with a planning degree, offering her a unique perspective on social and economic issues.

Councilmember Jamie Gauthier’s agenda prioritizes creating and preserving affordable housing, combating gun violence, empowering young people, connecting residents to family-sustaining jobs, protecting our environment, advancing small businesses, and investing in public spaces.

In her role as the Chair of City Council’s Committee on Housing, Neighborhood Development, and the Homeless, Councilmember Jamie Gauthier champions policies that encourage the construction of new affordable housing, and the preservation of the city’s existing stock. She enacted the City’s first mandatory inclusionary zoning policy, helped create the nationally acclaimed Eviction Diversion Program, made it easier for Community Land Trusts to acquire public land, secured millions of dollars to preserve and create affordable homes, and equipped the City and its partners with additional tools to keep expiring government-subsidized affordable housing online.

Councilmember Jamie Gauthier became the Chair of City Council’s Committee on the Environment in 2024. A champion of sustainability long before joining City Council, Councilmember Gauthier recognizes that high-quality public spaces like parks and recreation centers, as well as urban farms and community gardens, nurture our environment and give young people an opportunity to connect with nature and each other. During her first term, she helped secure historic investments in long-neglected community resources, and successfully secured $14 million reopen our beloved Sayre Pool.

In 2022, Councilmember Jamie Gauthier created her #JustServicesPHL campaign, which called for major investments to improve quality-of-life services through interventions like cleaning and greening. Since its inception, #JustServicesPHL has won tens of millions of dollars, and counting, to improve basic municipal services.

Councilmember Jamie Gauthier leads the charge to enact a stronger local response to the gun violence epidemic. In 2020, she became the first local elected official to call for a gun violence emergency declaration, which Mayor Parker signed on her first day in office. Councilmember Gauthier’s leadership also helped secure record investments in multiple City budgets for grassroots anti-violence programs. She continues to champion a comprehensive, targeted, and public health-centered anti-violence strategy.

Councilmember Jamie Gauthier established the Philadelphia Reparations Task Force in June 2023. The Philadelphia Reparations Task Force studies and develops reparations proposals and programs for Black Philadelphians whose ancestors endured chattel slavery and Jim Crow in the United States. The Task Force will advise the government at every level on how to best atone for its role in chattel slavery, Jim Crow, and institutional racism.

Before joining City Council, Councilmember Jamie Gauthier served as Executive Director of the Fairmount Park Conservancy, where she carried out vital improvements in West Fairmount Park and organized stewardship and care for parks across the city. Councilmember Gauthier is also the former Executive Director of the Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia.

After graduating from Central High School, Councilmember Jamie Gauthier received an accounting degree from Temple University and her Master of City Planning from the University of Pennsylvania.

Moderator: Rebecca Johnson
Executive Director of AIA Philadelphia