Imagine a Place

Architect Nadia Borrás Marković takes us back to her childhood in Mexico City, reflecting on special memories of the home her father built and the creative spirit he nurtured in her. She opens up about her persistence in achieving her goals as one of the few women studying architecture. Towards the end, she explains how architecture goes beyond the practical to create connection and the importance of understanding people’s stories.

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Here are some key takeaways from Doug's experience at the New Year New You event in Miami.

Authentic intelligence comes from experience and activating our brains, hearts, and souls.

There is a difference between artificial intelligence (AI) and authentic intelligence. Artificial intelligence is knowledge gained through algorithmic study and memorization—learning in 2D—while authentic intelligence comes from experience that activates more areas of the brain and leaves emotional imprints. It engages our brains, hearts, and souls. And as AI advances, we need to balance and develop our authentic intelligence through conversations, travel, and immersive experiences.

Curiosity is the most important skill in the AI era.

Curiosity is singled out as the most important skill in the AI era. With unlimited information at our fingertips, our impact comes from the questions we ask, not just passively accepting the answers we receive. Staying curious allows us to steer our use of AI tools, rather than losing agency and keeps us from falling into sameness.

Imperfections make us human.

As AI generates hyper-perfect images and content, imperfections make us human. We need to embrace the imperfections and uniqueness that differentiates human creativity from AI. In design, we should move away from perfection and embrace more human, authentic work. Our humanity shines through those imperfections.

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In this episode Doug sits down with David Polzin, Executive Director of Design at Cannon Design in St Louis. David is known for creating and fostering a creative culture within a large organization—something that proves to be more and more difficult. There is an inherent tension between structure and creativity in large organizations which means it can be difficult to spark innovation. But David believes that embracing risk and failure is actually very important for fostering a creative environment. New ideas are born from continuously iterating on ideas, letting go of attachments, and synthesizing constraints.

The workplace is changing and the creative process is changing with it. One of David's biggest concerns is that people are becoming disengaged from their physical environments due to immersion in technology and that architecture should enhance lived experience and nature. We are slowly losing our connection to spaces and nature. It's on leaders to adapt their leadership styles to new generations and help rescue the creative process.

Overall this is an incredible interview where David shares his thoughtful philosophies on creativity, design, leadership, and the human experience.

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Today is Martin Luther King Jr. day and we are honored to present an interview with renowned architect Curtis Moody, Founder of Moody Nolan. In today's episode, we delve into the profound impact of truth and self-belief on Curtis's life and pioneering achievements. He shares intimate reflections on his upbringing in Columbus, Ohio, highlighted by a pivotal life moment: a school counselor's claim that his skin color barred him from pursuing a career in architecture. This episode is a journey through the challenges and triumphs that have defined Curtis's journey.

Curtis shares vivid memories of learning about Dr. King’s assassination as a teenager and the impact this event had on his life. He also discusses how being a competitive athlete impacted his approach to business, including an incredible strategy that landed him the commission to design Ohio State's arena.

From the guiding principles he lives by to the projects most meaningful to him, Curtis speaks candidly about the passion and persistence that led him to become one of the most prominent architects in the country.

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In this end-of-year solo episode from Doug Shapiro, he shares how picking a random seat at a dinner changed the course of his life. Doug's story of how he found OFS and became a part of the company is inspiring. It shows that taking initiative can lead to big opportunities and even bigger growth.

Doug also gives insight into barriers. The things things that call us the most, the things we know we should do, those are the things we tend to avoid the most. Attack them head on and your possibilities open up tremendously.

We also get some holiday and family appreciation from Doug. He is human after all and he couldn't do what he does without the support of those closest to him.

Thank you all for a wonderful year! We have big things planned for 2024!

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Earlier this year at NeoCon 2023—OFS, Imagine a Place, and IIDA hosted a lively roundtable discussion focused on sustainability, moderated by sustainability leader George Bandy. The panel featured Stacey Crumbaker, an architect and designer based in Seattle, and Paul Shahriari, founder of green building data platform ecomedes. Their conversation offered wisdom and advice for the next generation of interior designers and architects aiming to make sustainability a priority in their work.

How does the next generation get involved and make changes? Building and developing a personal brand that puts you in the position to advocate for sustainable design in your current position is a great way to get involved. Make the case for conscious material choices and their impacts. Legacy mindsets are part of the problem, but designers can create a new legacy mindset—one that aims to reduce consumption and waste, not just meeting minimum requirements. Consider the full lifecycle of your specifications and be mindful of the generational impact.

Designers need to redefine beauty and realign the definition with sustainability. Seek out inspiration from a diversity of spaces like food deserts (geographic areas, often low-income neighborhoods, where residents have limited access to affordable, nutritious food), not just affluent communities. We need to design with marginalized users in mind and include them in the process.

Learn more about IIDA

Learn more about George Bandy

Learn more about Stacey Crumbaker

Learn more about Paul Shahriari

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NOTE: Todd has left JLL since recording this episode.

In this episode, Doug sits down with Todd Edstrom—formerly of JLL. Todd provides insights into why technology is transforming the commercial real estate (CRE) industry—an industry that has been slow to leverage technology. The industry is "curious but skeptical" excited to try new things, but slow to shake the industry.

So, what technology is beneficial to the commercial real estate industry? A major theme is the importance of data. How can data be used to inform better decision-making? While data sets such as survey's and utilization/badge data are necessary, Todd argues that productivity data is most important right now to understand exactly how spaces are being used. There's even new technology emerging that uses sensors to capture data and give researchers insight into how a spaces are actually used.

Looking into the future, Todd is encouraged by technologies like virtual construction site scans to automatically track progress and tools that use AI to instantly generate 3D space plans from PDFs. It's important to note that these technologies shouldn't replace human relationships and expertise in CRE deals, but should compliment them.

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Click here to get your copy of Doug's children's book—Design Your World.

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Follow Doug on LinkedIn.

Click here to get your copy of Doug's children's book—Design Your World.

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You've joined us for a very special episode! Our team at Carolina did some research and pulled together leaders from the Nursing Institute for Healthcare Design (NIHD) to discuss how clinicians and designers are partnering to create better healthcare environments. We also discuss the impact of spaces on burnout, emerging research, and new opportunities for clinicians interested in healthcare design.

So, how can we integrate clinicians into the design process? It starts at the beginning. One common mistake is bringing clinicians in when it's "too late." Including nurses and clinicians early in the process ultimately saves money in the long run. Designing a space correctly from the start is much cheaper than redesigning spaces later.

Another issue that can be solved by design is clinician burnout. Providing quiet spaces for respite, incorporating nature into stairwells, and using daylighting inside are all examples of needed design solutions to help clinicians combat burnout. Spaces affect emotions more than you know and there's research to prove it. In this episode, we talk about the innovative approaches like AI and biometrics that are being used to understand spaces and how they affect you.

If you're a clinician and you want to get involved, start now. Whether the project is big or small, get involved and contribute your voice in any way you can. There's more and more potential for new careers that blend nursing and design. NIHD is passionate about its mission and committed to advocating for clinical input in healthcare design.

Learn more about NIHD and Carolina.

Watch the full video.

Meet our guests below:

Elizabeth Johnson, Montana State University

Anthony Mistretta, Perkins+Will

Kristina Krail, Krail Advisory

Lynn Aguilera, Stanford Medicine Children's Health

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Follow Doug on LinkedIn.

Click here to get your copy of Doug's children's book—Design Your World.

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In this episode, Doug sits down with lifelong sustainability leader George Bandy—Chief Sustainability Officer for Darling Fibers. George has spent decades championing environmental justice and climate action for the likes of the US Green Build Council, Interface, and Amazon.

In this in-depth and candid conversation, George reflects on formative moments such as sitting on his grandmother's porch as a child learning about nature's wisdom and spearheading sustainability initiatives at major corporations. He unpacks complex issues with nuance and care and examines the sustainability field's evolution, its growing pains, and the work still required for true equity. No one company can drive the change needed—it's too late for that. George stresses that collaboration and shared goals across leading green building groups is the only way to see the impact needed.

This interview is full of humble optimism from George. He believes in sustainability's power to reveal our shared humanity and reconnect us to nature's rhythms. There is great joy when diverse people unite around a common purpose to create sustainable solutions.

Learn more about George Bandy.

Learn more about George's role at Darling Fibers.

Follow Doug on LinkedIn.

Click here to get your copy of Doug's children's book—Design Your World.

Follow Imagine a Place on LinkedIn.

Follow Doug on LinkedIn.

Click here to get your copy of Doug's children's book—Design Your World.

Follow Imagine a Place on LinkedIn.

In this episode Doug sits down with Sascha Wagner—President and CEO of Huntsman Architecture—to discuss the importance of in-person interactions, mentorship, and workplace. To put it bluntly, these things can't be replicated virtually. So what are we going to do? What is the case for "return to office"?

Sascha makes the point that the physical workplace plays an important cultural role in bringing people together and facilitating in-person interactions. These physical spaces can amplify company culture and encourage important interactions such as mentorship. Some of Sascha's early influences and mentors modeled professional behavior for him and emphasized the value of in-person interactions for learning and development.

The uncertainties that exist today can be viewed as opportunities to learn from and build more flexibility into workplace design. Simply put, places have the power to elevate the human experience.

Learn more about Sascha Wagner.

Learn more about Huntsman Architecture.

Check out this podcast from The Resilience Lab which talks about emotional intelligence in the workplace.

Follow Doug on LinkedIn.

Click here to get your copy of Doug's children's book—Design Your World.

Follow Imagine a Place on LinkedIn.

Follow Doug on LinkedIn.

Click here to get your copy of Doug's children's book—Design Your World.

Follow Imagine a Place on LinkedIn.