Alejandra Menchaca
Founding Principal, AIRLIT studio

Alejandra is a Principal at AIRLIT studio, an environmental consultancy with a design-minded approach rooted in technical excellence. Alejandra combines expertise in mechanical engineering and building science to give clients a clear understanding of the impact design strategies and innovative solutions have on long-term building performance. Alejandra leverages research and simulations to provide project teams with sustainable design knowledge and energy expertise. With a Ph.D. in natural ventilation, she is experienced in designing passive buildings. In addition to her interest in passive solutions, Alejandra also has extensive experience with energy-intensive buildings such as laboratories and healthcare facilities having worked as an in-house building scientist at Payette for four years. Her experience also includes a focus on the power of early design analytics, gained during her tenure as a consultant at Thornton Tomasetti, where she built their Boston-based sustainability group. Lastly, Alejandra’s expertise also includes thermal comfort, energy modeling, daylighting, and computational fluid dynamics.

Barry Alan Yoakum, FAIA
Partner/CEO, Archimania

Barry Alan Yoakum, FAIA, is Partner & President/CEO of archimania, located in Memphis, Tennessee. For almost five decades, Barry has fostered a collaborative spirit rooted in actionable, environmentally sustainable work. With Founding Partner Todd Walker, FAIA and a host of archimaniacs, he has helped advance the practice to national prominence. archimania has been ranked as high as 8th nationally in design via ARCHITECT Magazine’s ARCH50. archimania has the distinction of realizing the world’s first two dual-certified Zero Energy / Zero Carbon buildings by the International Living Future Institute, Both buildings met the AIA 2030 Challenge a full decade early, are LEED Platinum certified, and are AIA COTE® Top Ten award recipients, the industry’s best-known award program recognizing innovative projects integrating exemplary performance with compelling design.

Cesar Escalante, AIA
Senior Technical Marketing Manager, Autodesk

Cesar Escalante, AIA, LEED AP, CM-BIM, Sr Technical Marketing Manager - Autodesk. As Autodesk's architecture innovation evangelist, Cesar leverages his two-decade career at industry leaders like Gensler, HOK, and Flad Architects to champion cutting-edge technologies. A deep passion for computational design and digital prototyping complements his expertise in delivering multi-billion-dollar projects. A recognized thought leader, Cesar shares his knowledge through speaking engagements and education while actively shaping the industry through leadership roles in the American Institute of Architects.

Corey Squire, AIA
Sustainability Director, Bora Architecture & Interiors

Corey Squire, AIA is Sustainability Director at Bora Architecture & Interior in Portland Oregon, and a member of the AIA's Strategic Council. He lectures nationally on a range of sustainability-related topics and was a creator of AIA Framework for Design Excellence, a resource that’s actively redefining excellence in the built environment. Corey is the author of the recently published book, People, Planet, Design: A Practical Guide to Realizing Architecture’s Potential.

Dana Moore, AIA
Architect, Dattner Architects

Dana Moore, AIA is an architect and activist working for five years in the Transportation and Infrastructure Studio of Dattner Architects in New York City. Her projects span city clients including New York City Transit, Port Authority, Department of Sanitation, and the Parks Department. As part of Dattner’s BIM Taskforce, Dana tests out green-forward BIM tools under the firm’s Director of Sustainability and contributes the team’s findings to Dattner workflows firm-wide. Her awards include the 2022 Urban Design Forum’s Forefront Fellowship and the 2023 WIA NY Women in Architecture Recognition Award. Dana is a new New Yorker originally from San Antonio, Texas.

Daniel Stine, AIA
Director of Design Technology, Lake|Flato Architects

Dan Stine, AIA, is the Director of Design Technology and leads the internal research program at Lake Flato Architects in San Antonio, Texas. He serves on the national AIA COTE^® LG and teaches graduate architecture students at NDSU. He co-authored the "AIA Climate Action Playbook" and helped update the "AIA Public Policy and Position Statements" section, Architects are Environmentally Responsible. Dan has written 19 textbooks; two are on architectural hand sketching, and another is the #1 book on Autodesk Revit in North America. He won the AIA San Antonio 2024 Trailblazer Award.

Enrique Galicia, AIA
Director of AI Innovation, AvantLeap

Enrique Galicia is an architect, software developer, and Director of Innovations and AI, with 17 years of experience integrating technology into real-world AECO challenges. His work spans AI-driven workflows, automation, and platform solutions, always with the goal of making technology more intuitive and valuable for the industry. His passion lies in turning complex technology into actionable solutions, ensuring that AI, automation, and digital tools serve professionals in meaningful ways. Whether it's improving workflows, enhancing collaboration, or unlocking new efficiencies, Enrique is dedicated to making technology work seamlessly within the AECO industry.

Hafsa Burt
Principal, hb+a Architects

Hafsa Burt is an architect, LEED Fellow, and sustainability expert with over 24 years of experience in architecture, and sustainable design strategist. She is the Founder and Creative Director of hb+a Architects and the visionary behind Box Lab, an initiative focused on zero energy and low carbon building prototypes. She is a LEED Fellow, WELL AP, and a pioneer in integrating Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ), low carbon reduction strategies, and life cycle analysis into mainstream architectural practice. Since 2006, Hafsa has led technical consulting on more projects, ranging from transportation to housing. She has authored performance specifications used by numerous firms to meet LEED and CALGreen mandates and has trained professionals in healthy building design and LEED's Materials and Resources Credits for Embodied Carbon Reduction, including architects, engineers, and municipal reviewers.

Ian Malloy
Director of Product Management, Autodesk

Ian Molloy is Director of Product Management for Carbon Insights and MEP Design to Fabrication with the Autodesk Building Group. Ian has 30 years of experience in the AEC industry and in Product Management. Ian is based in Boston and works globally with Autodesk, its partners and customers to help design and make a better world for all.

Jack Rusk, FAIA
CEO, C.Scale

Jack Rusk the CEO and co-founder of C.Scale, a software startup democratizing access to whole life carbon data and design strategy. C.Scale was founded on the belief that data-driven tools can help get "all hands on deck" in the work of transforming buildings and cities from a climate burden to a climate solution. In the last few years, he's presented research at the International Mass Timber Conference, applied machine learning and remote sensing techniques to model how urbanization is changing people’s exposure to natural hazards in mountainous areas, helped the US GSA define its carbon mitigation strategy, and written articles for a number of architecture publications and peer-reviewed research journals. He give around 20 talks a year at leading universities, professional conferences, and industry convenings.

Jessica Zofchak
Director, New York, Atelier Ten

As a New York Director at Atelier Ten, Jessica has impacted the design of a wide range of masterplans and buildings including commercial offices and life science, academic buildings, museums, and K-12 schools throughout the world. With nearly 20 years of experience in the industry, Jessica has consulted on highly ambitious projects, focusing on environmental design, sustainable masterplanning, and façade optimization. Through her roles as Masterplan practice leader and Environmental Design Practice director, Jessica has advised several institutions on visionary frameworks that strive to create a development identity grounded in environmental performance and equity while reducing resource consumption and impacts on climate change. She has contributed to over 100 high performance projects. Jessica is a LEED Accredited Professional and served as the Lecturer for Daylighting for the University of Pennsylvania's Weitzman School of Design for over 10 years.

Kjell Anderson, FAIA
Director of Sustainable Design, LMN Architects

Kjell Anderson, FAIA, LEED Fellow, practices architecture and serves as a Principal and the Director of Sustainable Design at LMN Architects, working with all of LMN’s clients to set and exceed sustainable design goals. He wrote the first architect-centered book on energy modeling, co-authored AIA’s first policy statement on climate change, led the development of the Path To Zero Carbon series and has spoken extensively on energy, water, materials, and embodied carbon. He founded the Seattle Hub of the Carbon Leadership Forum, served on the AIA National Committee on the Environment and currently serves on the Washington State Building Code Council where he chairs the Energy Code Technical Advisory Group. A lifelong Washingtonian, he lives in Seattle with his wife and two daughters and enjoys playing music and soccer.

Marisol Foreman, AIA
Principal, Marisol Architecture

Marisol Sanchez Foreman, AIA, CPHD, is the founder and principal architect of Marisol Architecture, a Colorado-based firm specializing in high-performance design and sustainability consulting. A Certified Passive House Designer, she integrates data-driven strategies with sustainable principles to create efficient, environmentally responsible architecture. Beyond her practice, Marisol is deeply involved in advancing sustainability within the architecture community. She serves as Co-Chair of AIA Colorado’s Committee on the Environment and as a board member of the Colorado Green Building Guild, advocating for climate-responsive design and education. Through Marisol Architecture, she helps firms and clients elevate project performance, achieve environmental goals, and integrate sustainable strategies into their design processes.

Miguel Elizardo
Design Performance Technologist, Lake Flato Architects

Miguel Elizardo is the Design Technologist at Lake Flato, where he drives firm-wide technology integration and sustainable best practices. Passionate about high-performance building design, he believes that leveraging innovative strategies can create environmentally responsible and efficient architecture. With a focus on building performance and analysis, Miguel actively explores design simulation techniques, including daylighting, energy modeling, and views analysis. He also contributes to in-house training and the adaptation of sustainability practices, ensuring that the firm stays at the forefront of sustainable design. Miguel earned his Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Texas at San Antonio and brings ten years of diverse experience across Retail, Commercial, K-12, and Higher Education projects. His expertise bridges technology and design, enhancing project outcomes through research-driven solutions.

Nazish Pathan
Sustainable Design Professional II, HKS Inc.

Nazish Pathan is a seasoned architect with over eight years of experience in both consultancy and development roles in Dubai, bringing a deep understanding of complex design systems and project delivery. At HKS, she serves as a Sustainable Design Professional II, where she leads the firm's embodied carbon initiatives. Her expertise spans Whole Building Life Cycle Assessments (WBLCA), low embodied carbon specification and driving decarbonization on projects with regenerative building practices. Nazish is a passionate advocate for the integration of data-driven tools and the adoption of healthier, low-carbon materials and systems in the built environment. She champions design strategies that prioritize human and environmental well-being across the project lifecycle. She holds a Master of Science in Sustainable Design from Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh. 

Paul Doherty
CEO, The Digit Group, Inc. (TDG)

Paul is Chairman and CEO of TDG (the digit group, www.thedigitgroupinc.com), a globally renowned and award-winning architect who is one of the world’s most sought after thought leaders, strategists and integrators of process, technology, and business. Paul's current work is as Chairman of TDG Global Ventures, a Smart City real estate development company that provides financing, design-build and innovative technology solutions around the world. Concurrently, Paul is also the co-founder and producer of the critically acclaimed AEC Hackathon (www.aechackathon.com) that launched at Facebook Headquarters. His past successful ventures include Revit Technologies (Sold to Autodesk 2002), Buzzsaw (Autodesk 2001) and TRIRIGA (IBM 2011).

Sara Laudeman, AIA
Project Architect, Lord Aeck Sargent

Sara Laudeman, AIA NCARB, is a Project Architect at Lord Aeck Sargent Planning & Design. Her background is in sustainability practice in architecture, data analysis, and embodied carbon reporting. She has worked in architectural data management and novel embodied carbon estimation methods as both a consultant and a project architect. Her foundations in architecture, data analytics, and sustainability help to link the worlds of professional architectural practice, data management, and cutting-edge research.

Scott Axel
Associate, EwingCole

I'm Scott Axel, Associate Architect at EwingCole in Philadelphia. I'm a Project Architect and Project Model Leader for the Science & Technology practice at EC. This field continually pushes and inspires me; I enjoy the creativity in process and deep understanding required to solve complex problems in design for projects that benefit the world around us. I also contribute to sustainability, knowledge sharing, standard development, and educational development initiatives at EC. You can find me skiing, outside with my dogs, eating food from around the world, or hanging out with friends over a good beer or game.

Sheena Zhang
AECO Sustainability Strategy, Autodesk

Sheena Zhang, RA, LEED AP BD+C, LFA, is the AECO Sustainability Strategy Manager, where she leads the sustainability strategy across Autodesk's product ecosystem for the architecture, engineering, and construction, and operations industries. As a LEED AP and Living Futures Accredited professional and registered architect, she has a record of delivering a multitude of sustainable design projects and is passionate about democratizing sustainability tools for equitable impact in the built environment.

Thesla Collier, Intl. Assoc. AIA
Design Technology Manager, HNTB

Thesla has her Bachelor’s in architecture from the University of Honduras and has worked in the AEC Industry for over 25 years. She actively works with users to elevate their knowledge baseline to improve their skills on multiple software platforms. She is always seeking new avenues of technology to improve design workflows makes it possible to conceive, visualize, and adapt to a project’s specific needs.

Z Smith, FAIA
Principal | Director of Sustainability and Building Performance, EskewDumezRipple

Z Smith is Principal and Director of Sustainability and Building Performance at EskewDumezRipple, winner of the AIA Firm Award. His built work includes academic, laboratory and residential buildings earning LEED Gold and Platinum certification, and winners the AIA COTE^® Top Ten award, the RAIC Green Building award (Canada), and the international Urban Land 10 Extra Green award. He brings training and experience in physics and engineering to the field of architecture, is named as inventor on 10 patents, and author on over 50 peer-reviewed scientific publications He has taught at the Tulane School of Architecture, and has served on state, national and international bodies including the Louisiana Energy Code Commission, the Louisiana Climate Initiatives Task Force, the US Green Building Council Louisiana Chapter, the national Advisory Group of the AIA Committee on the Environment (COTE^®), and the International Union of Architects Sustainable Development Commission.