DC CO-CHAIRS MARK E STRAUSS, FAIA, AICP, LEED | FXFOWLE | SENIOR PARTNER | DC CO-CHAIR As an architect, planner, urban designer, and past president of AIA New York, Strauss is an advocate for bringing a greater appreciation for architectural and urban design excellence to public policy. A key aspect of his interests and talents lies in developing strategic approaches to assist communities, institutions, and developers to redefine properties in response to urban design, economic, infrastructure, environmental, and political concerns. Strauss directs FXFOWLE’s efforts in the Washington D.C. Metro Area, and is currently leading a number of Transit Oriented Development planning efforts in the Mid-Atlantic region, totaling over ten million square feet, in addition to several planning and urban design projects with mixed-use development programs.
KEVIN CANNON, AIA, LEED AP | FXFOWLE | PRINCIPAL | DC CO-CHAIR Cannon has over 20 years of experience as project architect leading the design on a range of projects of various scales and typologies—mixed-use, commercial, cultural, transportation—in the U.S., Canada, and the Middle East. Cannon’s approach is rooted in a comparative analytical process that seeks to test a variety of strategies in order to unearth the design potential and raise the aspirations of each unique project.
SPEAKERS KEYNOTE | GARY HANDEL, FAIA | HANDEL ARCHITECTS | FOUNDING PARTNER + MANAGING PRINCIPAL Since starting the practice in 1994, Handel has overseen its growth to a firm of over 160 architects, designers, and planners around the world. He leads the firm’s direction by placing an emphasis on enriching the urban environment. Current work includes the largest and tallest “Passive House” building in the world, on Cornell University’s new Tech Campus in New York City, and the new Millennium Tower, under construction in Boston, which will be the tallest residential building in that city.
ROGER FRECHETTE III | INTERFACE ENGINEERING | MANAGING PRINCIPAL Frechette has three decades of experience in the field of sustainable engineering and building design. His work encompasses sustainable master planning and building systems designs for some of the world’s largest and most iconic structures. His portfolio includes high performance buildings including Burj Khalifa, formerly known as Burj Dubai, “Dancing Dragons” Towers in Seoul, Korea; and Greenland Tower in Wuhan, China, soon to be amongst the tallest buildings in the world. Frechette is currently working on the design of a net-zero headquarters in D.C. and a net-zero high school in Arlington County, Virginia.
DUNCAN LYONS, RIBA | GENSLER | FIRMWIDE COMMERCIAL OFFICE BUILDING DEVELOPERS PRACTICE AREA LEADER Lyons serves as Design Director for architecture in Gensler’s D.C. office. In a career spanning more than three decades, he has designed award-winning buildings for a variety of institutional and commercial clients in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region, Europe, Asia, and Australia. His passion for high-performance buildings and sustainable design has led to LEED certification for many of his projects, including three at the Platinum level. Lyons earned a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Bath in England and is a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).
ROBERT MOJE, FAIA | VMDO ARCHITECTS | PRINCIPAL A leader in K–12 design, Moje is a passionate advocate for today’s “New Learner.” He continually partners with diverse organizations to craft new resources that both expand educational planning and design and enrich communities. His 40 year tenure at VMDO Architects includes overall leadership of the K–12 practice. Moje’s work cultivating designs for schools examines what is best for the growing, learning child and looks critically at what that really means. In 2012, Moje was elevated to the AIA College of Fellows specifically for his work in the K–12 educational sector.
ROBERT SCHOFIELD JR. | AKRIDGE | SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR, DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION Schofield oversees the design and construction of all development projects. His responsibilities also include project feasibility evaluation, acquisition, entitlement, and finance. With over 25 years of experience in real estate, Schofield has managed $1.95 billion of construction and development work, including over 3.5 million square feet of office space and over 1.5 million square feet of mixed-use space. Schofield has a passion for architectural design as well as construction. Since joining Akridge in 2000, he has been responsible for the execution of all of Akridge’s large commercial real estate projects.