Principal Ashley Rao will be participating in Mount Holyoke’s “Summit on Feminist Leadership in Climate Justice” as a panelist for Material Selection and Extraction in the Built Environment.  This panel is set to focus on material extraction, specification and use in the built environment and the impacts of material selections on climate equity and justice. They will discuss the Design for Freedom toolkit, earthen building, and mass timber.

The panel will take place at Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, MA 01075, Friday, April 25, 2025 3:25pm to 4:15pm.:

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We welcome faculty at accredited architecture schools throughout the U.S. to apply for an intensive 3-day workshop geared towards equipping faculty interested in teaching Mass Timber design.

The objectives of the workshop is to provide faculty in architecture schools throughout the country, holistic understanding about mass timber (what it is, its life-cycle components, design and engineering possibilities, benefits and challenges, industry connections, etc.) to enhance academic teaching in mass timber that is grounded in practice and facilitates creative explorations of design possibilities. The workshop is sponsored by the Softwood Lumber Board and U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities.

As the workshop balances practice and academia, the collaboration of Leers Weinzapfel Associates Architects (LWA,) Auburn University’s Mass Timber Collaborative and Rural Studio brings together architecture, forestry, engineering and construction spanning both.

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Principal Ashley Rao and Associate Principal Katia Lucic are presenting at SCUP 2025 North Atlantic Regional Conference in Buffalo, NY, April 6-8, 2025.

Ashley Rao will be presenting on “The Living Building Challenge: Creating Inclusive, Sustainable Community Spaces”, featuring the recently completed Davis Center at Williams College on Tuesday at 10:00am. This session goes through the planning process behind the Davis Center, explaining how the Living Building Challenges holistic sustainability framework was used to promote community engagement and wellbeing, foster and equitable built environment, and celebrated marginalized regional histories.

Katia Lucic will be presenting “Cornell Bowers CIS: Reimagining the Campus Edge as a Gateway to the Community” featuring the under construction Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science at Cornell University, Tuesday at 11:20am. This session discusses how the new CIS building created a new destination for its fast-growing program, benefiting the campus community by reimagining the campus edge as a vibrant gateway and welcoming precinct.

The event will take place in at the Buffalo Convention Center, Buffalo, NY April 6-8, 2025. Learn more

In February, we were invited to take part in an international exhibition showcasing the latest advances in the sustainable use of wood in architecture. Held at the Grand Palais in Paris, it was organized by Forum Bois Construction, a French association of wood builders, architects, fabricators, and included work from Germany, Austria, UK, and the Netherlands. Surprisingly, we were the only US firm participating. The three-day event was dynamic- the ground floor of the Palais was filled with booths/displays of wood producers, fabricators etc., and two large wood framed auditoria where continuous sessions and presentations were made. The mezzanine above the floor was ringed with the work of architects, more than 80 in all. It was an excellent opportunity to reaffirm our office’s dedication to promoting decarbonization and creating architecture that addresses contemporary challenges.

Trailer Video: https://www.forum-boisconstruction.com/FBC2025_trailers/Fbc2025_trailer_archis_01.mp4

Auburn University Kreher Preserve & Nature Center Environmental Education Building receives a Bronze Award for the World Architecture News Awards in the “Education – Under 10,000” category. “The choice of core materials aligns well with the building’s purpose, allowing it to blend naturally into its surroundings,” – Torquil McIntosh, Judge

Nestled within the 120-acre tract of the Kreher Preserve and Nature Center, the new education facility promotes wonder and exploration of the natural world and cultivates a sense of stewardship toward our community and environment.

Imagined as an extension of the network of trails throughout the preserve, the facility is organized along a central “learning trail” spine. Light-filled classroom spaces alternate with a series of open and covered porches that open out into the natural woodlands beyond.

WAN Awards Judges Quotes:

“Feels inspired and inspiring, and links very well to what it is”.

“This project is a great example of how architecture can truly connect with nature, both in form and function.”

“The result is evocative of what every child would love to build for themselves.”

Tom S. Chung, FAIA, LEED AP BD+C will speak about “Beauty, Craft, and Joy of Mass Timber” at SCUP “Souther Symposium: Building hte future with Mass Timber”at Clemson University. He will share a brief case study of two recent projects that elevate human wellbeing in mass timber buildings through beauty, craft, and joy.

The event will take place in at Clemson University, Madren Conference Center, 230 Madren Center Dr on March 20, 2025, 9:00 AM–4:00 PM Eastern Learn more

We are thrilled to share that Harvard District Energy Facility Received BSA’s Harleston Parker People’s Choice Award 2024!

The Harleston Parker Medal was established in 1921 in memory of Boston architect J. Harleston Parker. It is the BSA’s highest honor as a recognition of “the most beautiful piece of architecture, building, monument, or structure built in the metropolitan Boston area in the past 10 years.” Recognizing the public’s appreciation of beauty in architecture may vary from jury’s decisions, so each year the BSA seeks the general public’s input by voting on the selected finalists.

We are humbled and honored that the public chose DEF for this award. The project was the first new building to be completed on the Allston campus, therefore carrying the responsibility of setting a high standard of quality and design as well as of creating a visible demonstration of sustainable practice in building, landscape, and storm water management. Flexibility and innovation were key goals for the design of the project, which provides chilled water, hot water, and electricity to the new campus.

The Kreher Preserve and Nature Center Environmental Education Building at Auburn University and Davis Center at Williams College have received the 2025 Chicago Athenaeum Green Good Design Awards.

The Green Good Design awards celebrates projects “that have forwarded exceptional thinking and inspired greater progress toward a more healthier and more sustainable universe.” – Chicago Athenaeum

The reimagined 25,800 sf Davis Center is a unified complex with a major new addition nestled between the existing, beloved Rice and Jenness Houses.  Pursuing Living Building Challenge Petal Certification, the Davis Center is a bold and vivid expression of Williams’ commitment to cultivating a community that is socially just, culturally rich, and ecologically restorative.

Nestled within the Kreher Preserve & Nature Center (KPNC), the new environmental education building promotes wonder and exploration of the natural world and cultivates a sense of stewardship toward our community and environment. The building incorporates cross laminated timber (CLT) produced in near-by Dothan, Alabama with southern yellow pine from the area as a demonstration of this new, sustainable building product with great economic potential for the region’s forestry-based industries.

Principal Andrea P. Leers, Principal Tom Chung and Associate Principal Katia Lucic are in Paris this week at the Forum Bois International Wood Construction Forum. We are showcasing our recent Mass Timber projects at the Galerie de l’Architecture Bois/Biosourcée du XXIe siècle. The exhibit features the firm’s work including the John W. Olver Design Building, Adohi Hall, Environmental Education Building, and Museum of Forest Service History. 

Leers Weinzapfel Associates will be exhibiting recent Mass Timber projects at the International Wood Construction Forum at the Galerie de l’Architecture Bois/Biosourcée du XXIe siècle, in Paris, from February 26 to 28, 2025. The exhibit will feature the firm’s work including the John W. Olver Design Building, Adohi Hall, Environmental Education Building, and Museum of Forest Service History, highlighting sustainable and innovative features.