Innovations & Forward Thinking Design

A future-forward outlook on design, the future of workspace, conversions and the latest trends

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  Scott Hunter

  Scott Hunter is a Regional Director and Partner at HKS. Scott directly leads all HKS commercial sector projects on the West Coast. He draws on experience working across the U.S. and Asia to bring clear design direction to projects of varying program, scale, and complexity.

  HKS

  Partner, America West Regional Director

  Scott Hunter

  Partner, America West Regional Director

  HKS

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  Robert Norwood

  As a firm leader of NBBJ’s Interior Design Practice, Robert brings a distinct compliment of skills that enable him to contribute to the firm’s rich legacy of renowned interiors experiences. Robert’s diverse background in hospitality, corporate, commercial, healthcare, science, higher education, sports and civic design has honed his ability to understand unique project needs. His empathetic approach combined with his pursuit of unconventional problem solving make him an excellent client advocate and a dynamic and admired team leader. Robert’s passion for beauty and quality of life for all fuels every design move to ensure he crafts compelling and memorable experiences for iconic occasions and everyday moments alike. Robert’s achievements have received top recognition from the AIA and IIDA, while his project work is widely published in leading publications across the world including Interior Design, Healthcare Design, Architectural Record, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Harvard Business Journal and the Los Angeles Business Journal. He is also a frequent design awards juror, lending his expertise to the Los Angeles area and beyond. Prior to relocating to Los Angeles from Seattle, he served as revenue strategist on the board of directors of the IIDA Northern Pacific Chapter, and also co-founded the chapter’s signature design awards competition. In addition to his active involvement in professional organizations, he has also served as a guest critic at the Parsons School of Design, Cornish College of the Arts and Bellevue College.

  NBBJ

  Principal, Interior Design

  Robert Norwood

  Principal, Interior Design

  NBBJ

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  Michael Volk

  With more than 28 years of experience designing, leading, and executing innovative architecture and urbanism projects in the U.S. and abroad, Michael brings his passion for design and his expertise as a forward-thinking and collaborative leader to his role as a global leader of Gensler's Culture & Museums practice. An accomplished and award-winning architect and educator, Michael was formerly a Partner with Coop Himmelblau, Vienna, Austria, and Director with REX, New York, where he gained a unique understanding of the international market and global design culture while working to deliver world-class architecture. A Design Director in Gensler's Los Angeles office, Michael has served as a member of the design faculty at the Southern California Institute of Architecture, the University of Southern California, and has been an invited speaker at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Forum for Architecture and Urbanism. --

  Gensler

  Principal, Design Director

  Michael Volk

  Principal, Design Director

  Gensler

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  Duane Border

  Duane Border is an award-winning landscape architect and Design Director at BORDER, a boutique studio in Los Angeles that utilizes an interactive design process combining lifestyle, sustainability and art to generate creative design solutions and interactive environments. Using a wide range of design influences, he explores the boundaries of landscape architecture by embracing the cultural, artistic and environmental influences of each site to craft a unique sense of place and developing an engaging experience. Duane developed a connection to landscape during his youth in Indiana as part of a family with agricultural roots where the environment, land, and horticulture were a way of life. Combined with his love of art and incessant doodling in the margins of his algebra notebook, landscape architecture was a natural fit. As an intern at a firm specializing in zoological and botanical gardens Duane learned the power of immersive landscape design. Through his career designing civic, education, residential, and hospitality projects, Duane has engaged individuals with the richness and wonder of the natural environment. BORDER is an evolution of Duane’s philosophy of providing contemporary, urban landscape solutions that maintain the romance of the garden he used in the founding of his previous firm, Duane Border Design, in 2012. BORDER elevates this philosophy to include a focus on the restorative properties of landscape design. Under his leadership, BORDER has built a reputation as a collaborative studio with an award-winning tradition.

  Border LA

  Principal

  Duane Border

  Principal

  Border LA

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  Daniel Gehman

  Daniel Gehman attended Cornell University in upstate New York before relocating to California. Daniel has been involved in the industry since 1986 and brings specialized expertise in architectural design to the Ware Malcomb team. As Director, Multifamily, he is responsible for the growth of the multifamily practice, focusing on business development, client service, and project execution. Daniel's background includes a variety of multifamily project types, with 25 years of specialization in Southern California and current projects in the Central Valley and Arizona. He currently teaches a class in the Master of Real Estate Development (MRED) program at the University of Southern California as an adjunct professor and is active in many industry associations.

  Ware Malcomb

  Director

  Moderator

  Daniel Gehman

  Director

  Ware Malcomb

Sustainable Design & Building a Green City

Regenerative design, embodied carbon, the rise of new-age materials, and connecting people through nature

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  Tiffany Dahlen

  Tiffany Dahlen is an Associate Partner at MAD Architects. She is an American-born architect who graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, and joined MAD in 2010. Leading projects and competitions both in China and abroad, she has experience with large scale projects in dense urban conditions that aim to emulate MAD's philosophy of the Shan-Shui city and evoke the emotional connection of humanity to nature. She currently leads several projects in MAD, including Shenzhen Bay Culture Park - the new landmark in Shenzhen. She has worked on a number of MAD’s iconic projects including the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles, Melbourne Southbank competition, Nanjing Zendai Himalayas Center, Chaoyang Park Plaza in Beijing, Huangshan Mountain Village, and Xinhee Design Center in Xiamen. She has also been involved in the realization of several MAD art projects, including: “Moon Landscape” for Swarovski and the “Vertu Mobile Pavilion”.

  MAD Architects

  Associate Partner

  Tiffany Dahlen

  Associate Partner

  MAD Architects

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  Peter Devereaux

  My driving design challenge is to create an environment that encourages and engages exceptionally talented colleagues from different locations, studios and disciplines to come together as one integrated, collaborative project team to deliver thoughtful, creative solutions.

  HED

  Founding Principal

  Peter Devereaux

  Founding Principal

  HED

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  Jennifer Wehling

  As an architect, Jennifer believes the designers of the built environment have a responsibility to protect the natural environment. She leverages her passion and experience to help teams push the limits of sustainability while honoring each project’s unique opportunities and constraints. In her 20+ years of experience, Jennifer has worked on a wide variety of project types and sizes, working with teams to integrate sustainable design strategies, focusing on the delicate balance of environmental, social, and economic issues alongside the budget, scope, and schedule of a project, while considering the project location, team experience, and client priorities. As HMC’s director of sustainability, Jennifer leads strategic initiatives for sustainable building firm-wide and aims to impact not just HMC’s designs, but its operations as well; guiding HMC in minimizing its footprint while maximizing its positive impact.

  HMC Architects

  Director of Sustainability

  Jennifer Wehling

  Director of Sustainability

  HMC Architects

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  Joe Fitzpatrick

  With an education in architecture and business management, a background in project management, decades of experience in creative design, strategy for companies ranging from start-ups to Fortune 500, and a passion for all things architecture and design, Joe serves as a consultant/advisor to architects, owners, and contractors all seeking expertise in achieving their architectural design visions through advanced manufacturers and cutting-edge solutions providers.

  Architype

  EVP

  Joe Fitzpatrick

  EVP

  Architype

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  Christopher Lyon

  President of Tournesol Siteworks, Christopher Lyon, purchased the company in 1994. Over 25 years later, he's thrilled Tournesol has grown into a leading manufacturer of commercial landscape products. Tournesol’s product line consists of pots & planters, site furnishings and container irrigation made in North America. Tournesol has locations in California, Washington and Mexico. In June 2023 Tournesol acquired Greenscreen – the leader in commercial trellis systems and green facades located in Southern California. Chris is a big believer in stakeholder capitalism, and as Tournesol has evolved, Chris has focused on developing manufacturing processes to use more sustainable materials, with the intent of improving Tournesol’s environmental stewardship. Chris is currently the Chair of the American Society of Landscape Architect's Corporate Member Committee (ASLA.org), representing the manufacturing trade members. He previously served as a judge for Green Roofs for Healthy Cities' annual awards. In his spare time, Chris loves to tinker with vintage cars.

  Tournesol Siteworks

  President

  Christopher Lyon

  President

  Tournesol Siteworks

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  David McCullough

  A graduate of Cal Poly University, San Luis Obispo, David formed McCullough Landscape Architecture as a sole proprietorship in 1999 while consulting for another firm. After wife and partner, Catherine joined the business in 2001 and became Chief Executive Officer and President in 2002; the firm became a woman-owned corporation and a certified Small Business by the State of California. With offices in San Diego and the Bay Area, McCullough creates spaces for hospitality, retail, mixed-use and institutional properties around the world. As principal landscape architect, David oversees all aspects of the design and production of firm projects at McCullough. He serves as head designer on all projects and maintains quality control on all work completed. Previous projects have earned awards and recognition in several national publications. David finds time in his schedule to take leadership in creative organizations such as the the San Diego Architecture Foundation (SDAF) and the American Institute of Architects (AIA) local Urban Design Committee. He currently serves as Chair of the Pecha Kucha Night program, which is on its sixth successful year. He finds it inspiring to take part in such a diverse mix of creative minds while bringing them together to share with the public their wild ideas. In addition, recently David was appointed by San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer to serve on the Historical Resources Board as Chair, which governs the identification, protection, retention and preservation of historical sites in San Diego. Concurrently, he has been invited to serve on the city’s Code Monitoring Team (CMT). David’s design philosophy is centered around merging context and creative passion with grit, soul, and style. The firm takes every project with a uniquely creative approach that centers around diversity, discovery and conservation. David feels it’s important to engage the human spirit with nature, while expressing empathy. Recent projects include a large waterfront development in Shanghai, China, Seaport San Diego redevelopment, several multifamily projects in Calgary and Vancouver, along with other notable hospitality, entertainment, and mixed-use collaborations in the Western US and Canada.

  McCullough Landscape Architecture

  Principal

  Moderator

  David McCullough

  Principal

  McCullough Landscape Architecture

Opening Remarks

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  Sofia Szabo

  Marc Szabo Studios has been producing award-winning visualizations since the early 1970's. Marc was a pioneer among illustrators creating such books as "Drawing File" which has sold thousands of copies in multiple languages. Since then, MSS was one of the first teams to go digital, and continues setting the trends for how we visualize real estate. His daughter Sofia, took over the business in 2015, and has expanded their portfolio to predominantly multifamily and commercial properties. Sofia has brought the company to luxury markets and is consistently raising the bar for how developers and buyers showcase and approve their projects. Based out of Los Angeles, Sofia and her family maintain the highest quality presentations, and what sets them apart from the rest is their client relationships. Coming from twenty years of working in restaurants, Sofia brought the focus and attention to detail that is often missed in our industry. Deemed a concierge service studio, Sofia goes above and beyond to make sure each deadline is met with excellence

  Marc Szabo Studios

  President

  Sofia Szabo

  President

  Marc Szabo Studios