If you have never attended AIA Grassroots, you should. I had the honor and privilege to attend on behalf of AIA Detroit this year as Past-President. While many of the individual sessions are typically organized for emerging leaders; such as presentation skills, strategic planning and the Christopher Kelley Leadership Development Program, the biggest take-away I had from the conference was two-fold: professional networking and community leadership. Having the opportunity to network with other architects from around the country who are not solely involved in healthcare was an invaluable experience; I used the time wisely to promote the work our KC is doing with respect to health in all my conversations.
While I was not able to attend Capitol Hill Day, from those I spoke with, it was an amazing experience to have over 600 architects, from 48 states, 2 US territories, meeting with 83% of all congressional districts, and 96 out of 100 Senate districts; extremely impressive! We covered topics like energy and natural resources; health, education, labor and pensions, homeland security and finance. There was so much energy that day, it was infectious (pardon the healthcare pun).
Not to mention the keynotes were amazing; the Mayor’s Panel discussion was particularly interesting – they challenged us as architects to get involved locally; this is where we can have the most immediate impact. “Architects are the people that a community looks to. When an architect comes with an idea, people pay attention.” - Nannette L. Whaley, mayor of Dayton, Ohio
And if you have an opportunity, please check out Doris Kearns Goodwin’s book on “Leadership in Turbulent Times.” I’m not a history buff, but Ms. Goodwin’s storytelling abilities are amazing. So much so, I bought the book, which attempts to answer the question; are leaders born or are they made? Read it, and let me know what you think. Bottom line; as architects, we have the knowledge, education and perspective to create the communities of the future; and health is at the center of these thriving towns and cities.
By the time you read this, ASHE PDC 2019 will be in the history books, and the next opportunity to engage with the architectural community will be at A’19. The A’19 theme is “Blueprint for Better Cities,” and while many of you might think: “what does this have to do with health(care)?” – I would argue – EVERYTHING. Healthy communities are the basis for everything we do as healthcare architects: from master planning, to sustainable solutions to healing local artwork. Each and every aspect of our designs require diligence to create spaces that support healing, comfort, safety and efficiency. Healthy communities require the same, don’t they? What happens in Vegas…
With respect to the Communication Committee, this year we have added two new committee members, Nupur Gupta and Purvashi Haktar. A big AAH welcome to you both! With their added energy and our re-commitment to bring you more frequent news and information, you will see an increased presence in social media, bringing our story to life on LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a newsworthy item, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at aah@aia.org. We are always looking for great content.
As always, I wish you health, happiness and inspiration for great design!
Cheers,
Kimberly Montague, AIA, EDAC, LEED AP
AAH Communications Committee Chair