The Urban Land Institute Pittsburgh Chapter (ULI) Women’s Leadership Initiative (WLI), working in collaboration with the American Institute of Architects Pittsburgh Chapter (AIA) Diversity and Inclusion Committee, were proud to host a summit titled “Built by Women: How would women design cities differently?” This event, held in the Rivers Club in Pittsburgh on September 29, 2022, gathered over 90 attendees to rethink the design and planning of our city and our manmade environments that support equity and inclusion, and that support women. Keynote speaker Mary Anne Ocampo is a Principal at Sasaki, a multidisciplinary firm with an integrated planning and design philosophy, and an Associate Professor of the Practice of Urban Design and Planning in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She practices as an urban designer, working on international and domestic institutional and urban projects, leading teams with strategic planning and a commitment to design excellence. She serves as the Chair of the board for the Hideo Sasaki Foundation (with a mission focused on design and equity) and is affiliated with faculty at MIT’s Leventhal Center for Urbanism. Her keynote speech shared examples from around the world of how women are included or excluded from cities, and the resulting impacts on their social and economic status. She described the various ways that Sasaki’s work in places like Afghanistan and the Philippines is measuring gender inclusivity and promoting concepts for city design that better address the invisible needs of women. For example, her work in the Philippines explored how women’s work in the fishing industry, from cleaning to sales, provides the majority of the labor needed to get fish to market but is valued less than the traditionally men’s work performed upfront. Mary Anne talked about how typhoon weather disproportionately impacts women, an interesting conversation to explore as this event occurred the same week that Hurricane Ian hit Florida. Her keynote, while international in focus, brought to light many issues and imbalances that we continue to see play out in the United States as well.

Following her presentation, the summit transitioned into small group discussions focused on discussing these issues and possible solutions within a local Pittsburgh and regional context. The in-person round table discussions assembled women leaders and innovators together to examine how our city can evolve to be more equitable, diverse, and inclusionary from a viewpoint of women in our community. Each table was moderated by a local female leader from across various interrelated fields within real estate and design. These discussions gathered ideas and experiences that women bring to the field, and explored ways in which we can continue to transform our lived environment to be more inclusive for all. The table discussions considered three primary questions: How can city design better reflect the daily needs, safety, and activities of women? How can city design better reflect the invisible work of women? How might a focus on social equity, diversity, and inclusivity positively influence post-Covid economic recovery? ULI and AIA thank our excellent table leads: Caren Glotfelty, Executive Director, Allegheny County Parks Foundation; Ling Hong Almoubayyed, Smith Group; Ose Akinlotan, Planning Manager, City of Pittsburgh; Rebecca Kiernan, Principal Resilience Planner Sustainability + Resilience Division, City of Pittsburgh; Kathryn Schlesinger, MPM, Senior Mobility Project Manager, Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership; Darcy Cleaver, Section Manager of Transit Amenities, Pittsburgh Regional Transit; Georgia Petropolous, Chief Executive Officer · Oakland Business Improvement District; Carissa Schively Slotterback, Ph.D., FAICP, Dean and Professor, Graduate School of Public and International Affairs; and Dusty Elias Kirk, Partner, ReedSmith LLP. An hour of coffee and networking preceded the keynote and was a highly enjoyed opportunity for attendees to connect and socialize.

This event received funding from the Hillman Foundation and the Heinz Foundation. Their support made this event possible and ensured a successful and well-attended program. The University of Pittsburgh was also a valued partner. University students attended and acted as note-takers at the tables, and this program was designed in collaboration with the University of Pittsburgh to support their Women in Design seminar series planned for spring 2023. The program was built upon a panel discussion conducted virtually in 2021. Our goal is to ensure that women’s voices are heard, their contributions acknowledged, and their issues and challenges are addressed as we consider how cities should adapt in the future.

Written by Kirsten Compitello, ULI Pittsburgh member and National Broadband Digital Equity Director at Michael Baker International.