Collaborations focused on cities and civic systems

Place is the most important scale of change in our world today

I work across design, planning, economic development, and civic innovation, exploring how complex systems—land use and real estate, infrastructure, mobility, natural resources, public policy, and governance—shape the neighborhoods and cities we call home.

My work focuses on both building these systems and making them legible—aligning how they function and how people experience and participate in them.

This site collects selected projects, research, and collaborations from these efforts.

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Featured Work

A multi-institutional collaboration focused on district-scale systems, sustainability, and equitable development. Serving as the inaugural Executive Director, my role focused on advancing district-scale initiatives related to engagement, infrastructure, development, and public realm enhancements.

I lead strategy and partnerships related to:

  • nonprofit leadership, finance, and management

  • community engagement and equitable development

  • green infrastructure, stormwater systems, and public realm improvements

  • innovation and creative economy strategy

Towerside Innovation District

A construction site in an urban area with a large, dug-out area of bare earth, surrounded by a black fence. Construction equipment is present, including small excavators. Nearby, there are multi-story buildings, including a white residential building with black balconies and a partially constructed building wrapped in brown protective material. In the foreground, a landscaped garden with plants, flowers, and stone pathways is visible, along with parked cars and tram tracks crossing the street.
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Imagine 2050: Art+Policy

I play ongoing roles with nonprofit organizations working on place-based approaches and the built environment. Whether executive leadership, membership, or board service—I bring interdisciplinary expertise to operationalize good governance, organizational development, and spatial projects or programs.

This includes:

  • organizational structure and strategic plans

  • convenings and field-building efforts

  • systems mapping and visual frameworks

  • collaborative research projects

Indoor event with many people gathered around tables displaying various handmade crafts, jewelry, and art pieces. Some individuals are browsing, talking, and participating in activities, with a blue wall and industrial ceiling in the background.
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Civic Leadership

An initiative embedding artists into regional planning and policy processes to explore how creative practice can amplify public sector work across a region. As the co-leader of the project, I leveraged my design and engagement background to help the Metropolitan Council of the Twin Cities better understand and communicate their complex civic systems.

We designed this program to advance meaningful approaches to:

  • creative public engagement

  • regional planning

  • storytelling within policy

  • translating complex systems for public understanding

A group of people standing and talking outside a building at night, with a sign in the foreground thanking the community and featuring signatures.
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Project Highlights

Selected projects focused on aligning infrastructure, development, and institutions to shape the places we live.

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  • People sitting on outdoor tiered concrete steps near water, watching a performance with dancers in traditional costumes, a stage with a white canopy, a dragon dance, trees, a building in the background, and balloons.

    Lyndale Gardens Shoreline & Amphitheater

  • A colorful painted food truck featuring an artistic depiction of a woman's face surrounded by flowers, butterflies, and abstract designs against a blue sky.

    Met Council Imagine 2050 Art+Policy Project

  • People sitting at a table engaged in a discussion at a conference or workshop, with multiple tables and participants in the background.

    Towerside Partner Roundtables

  • Colorful mural on a building wall depicting silhouettes of people reaching upwards and holding a glowing, radiating cluster of bricks in the center.

    Creative Enterprise Zone + Chroma Zone Mural & Arts Festival

  • Empty city sidewalk with wooden benches, trees, and modern apartment buildings during early evening, after rain.

    Green 4th Street Enhancements

  • A diverse group of people sitting around a large table in a bright, modern conference room, engaged in a meeting or workshop, with colorful sticky notes, papers, laptops, and drinks on the table.

    Thermal Energy Network (TENs) Workshop

  • A person walking along a sidewalk park with trees, bushes, and grass in the foreground, and a modern multi-story apartment building with colorful sections in the background.

    Maintenance District Management

  • People reviewing a wall filled with colorful sticky notes and timelines labeled from 2017 to 2020 during a planning session.

    Nonprofit Strategic Planning

Let’s Connect

If you’re working on a project related to cities, infrastructure, or civic systems and would like to collaborate, please get in touch!

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