Deep Dive: Renée Cheng on Building Diverse, Equitable, and Inclusive Organizations

Thursday, August 20 from 11 AM - 12:30 PM PDT 

We expect diversity to bring great things to our organizations — better collaboration, more innovation, and more creativity — yet diversity is simply the presence of difference and does nothing in and of itself. The presence of difference, if poorly managed, can become a source of conflict. Renée Cheng will demonstrate how intercultural competence can be the catalyst that transforms difference into a powerful force. She will describe how the concept of "difference" extends to include race, gender, AND discipline, and show attendees how competence in this area can be fostered and developed.

Featured Guest Bio

Renée Cheng, FAIA, DPACSA, is a nationally renowned Professor in the Department of Architecture and Dean of the College of Built Environments at the University of Washington. Educated at Harvard College and Harvard Graduate School of Design, Cheng has been recognized for educational excellence with numerous awards from AIA and others.

Cheng has pioneered research surrounding the intersection of design and emerging technologies including work on industry adoption of Integrated Project Delivery (IPD), Building Information Modeling (BIM), and Lean. She led the research team responsible for developing the AIA Guides for Equitable Practice.

Cheng was elevated to the AIA College of Fellows in 2016, served as AIA Minnesota President in 2009, and on numerous AIA committees on topics related to knowledge, innovation, culture, and equity.