Excited to share my time on Martha’s Vineyard, where power, purpose, and possibility converged through conversations, community, culture, and connection. From engaging with Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley and attending Bloomberg New Voices programming to experiencing the UBS Collectors X gathering, The Black Man Can, and the historic Polar Bears of Martha’s Vineyard, the week became a powerful reminder that some of the most meaningful opportunities begin not on a stage, but by showing up, being present, and building relationships in rooms where ideas, influence, and impact intersect.

Representation in the Room

One of the most meaningful moments of my time on the Vineyard was meeting Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley.

During our conversation, she shared that I was the first Black woman architect she had ever met.

I gave her two hugs.

As the 315th living African American woman to become a licensed architect in the United States, I understand the numbers. I have spent much of my career working to change them. But there is something different about hearing, in real time, from a Black woman serving in the United States Congress that in all of the rooms she has entered, all of the communities she has served, and all of the extraordinary people she has encountered, she had never before met a Black woman architect.

And then, during her remarks, Congresswoman Pressley offered a statement that stayed with me:

“By taking up space, you make space for others.” — Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley

Those words deeply resonated with me because they articulate so much of what I have tried to do throughout my career. Taking up space has never simply been about being the first, the only, or occupying a room myself. It is about using whatever access, platform, or influence I have earned to make the room larger for those coming behind me.

That is why her comment about never having met a Black woman architect was both affirming and sobering. Representation cannot simply be about celebrating the people who have made it through. It must be about expanding access, creating visibility, building pathways, and ensuring that the next generation encounters possibility much earlier and much more often.

What made the exchange even more exciting was that it did not end with an introduction. We left the conversation excited about the possibility of building together, and I am looking forward to where that connection may lead.

Culture, Capital & Collecting

The highlight was attending the UBS Collectors X gathering, an experience bringing together artists, collectors, cultural leaders, creatives, and people invested in the power and future of Black art.

The gathering created opportunities for conversations across disciplines that do not always occupy the same rooms, but absolutely influence one another: art, architecture, development, investment, culture, community, and legacy.

I had the opportunity to connect with remarkable artists and leaders, including Rick Lowe (pictured above flipping through GREATNESS), whose work and perspective prompted a particularly meaningful conversation about creativity as a tool for solving problems. Those exchanges reinforced something I believe deeply: our disciplines become more powerful when we stop treating them as isolated practices and begin understanding the larger ecosystems they help shape.

Seeing the gathering subsequently recognized by Forbes only reinforced the significance of what was being cultivated on the Vineyard: spaces where Black creativity, cultural influence, economic power, and community are not peripheral to the conversation, but central to it.

Expanding the Conversation

I attended Bloomberg New Voices programming representing The Third Office while on the island, entering another room that challenged me to think about where my own voice can contribute.

Much of my career has been dedicated to expanding who is recognized, documented, celebrated, and heard within architecture and design. But the built environment is also an economic story. Capital, investment, development, policy, labor, and business decisions ultimately determine what gets built, where resources flow, and which communities benefit.

Being in that environment encouraged me to think even more expansively about how the perspectives of architects and those responsible for shaping our physical world can contribute to conversations well beyond the boundaries of our profession.

Community, Brotherhood & Showing Up

The Black Man Can offered another dimension of the Vineyard experience: an intentional celebration of Black men, leadership, community, mentorship, and possibility.

Being present in spaces centered on strengthening community reminded me that professional success and collective progress cannot be separated. The relationships we build, the people we champion, the knowledge we share, and the doors we hold open all contribute to the ecosystems necessary for people to thrive.

And sometimes community looks a little less formal.

I also participated in the historic Polar Bears of Martha’s Vineyard experience, joining a tradition rooted in gathering, movement, wellness, joy, and Black community on the island. In a few days filled with meetings, introductions, conversations, and events, there was something grounding about simply being present in that experience.

GREATNESS on the Vineyard

And, of course, I had to find a little GREATNESS while I was there.

I am incredibly proud that GREATNESS: Diverse Designers of Architecture is available at Edgartown Books on Martha’s Vineyard.

For a book created to document and permanently celebrate the work and stories of diverse architects and designers, seeing it continue to find its way onto bookshelves and into communities around the country remains deeply meaningful.

Every shelf creates another opportunity for someone to discover these designers, learn their names, encounter their work, and understand that greatness in architecture has never had a single identity.

The Power of Presence

I arrived on Martha’s Vineyard without a keynote to deliver, an award to receive, or an exhibition to unveil.

And perhaps that is precisely what made this experience worthy of sharing.

These few days reminded me that presence itself can be purposeful.

There is value in entering new rooms with curiosity. There is value in listening. There is value in meeting someone whose work has existed outside your immediate orbit and discovering where your missions intersect. There is value in allowing conversations to begin without knowing exactly where they will lead.

Martha’s Vineyard gave me an opportunity to move among spaces centered on politics, art, capital, media, leadership, culture, community, and joy, while continuing to bring architecture and the built environment into each of those conversations.

Some opportunities begin behind a podium.

Others begin across a dinner table, during an introduction, on a beach, in a bookstore, or simply because two people who are committed to making an impact happened to find themselves in the same place.

I am grateful for all of it.

And I am excited about what we may build from here.

If you're receiving this message, it's because you are part of my journey. Your support sustains me. I carry each of you into every room I enter, and I hope to continue making you proud.

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