A Design Laboratory.
About
Our Story
Over the past seven years, we've been studying the different types of conflicts that affect territories around the world: From the impacts of the Arab-Israeli conflict on the longest continuously inhabited city on Earth... to the Syrian/Jordanian border where thousands of refugees are stranded in No Man's Land... to Central America where drought and climate change are propelling migration to the United States... to Bosnia & Croatia where the Balkan Conflict destroyed invaluable cultural heritage and patrimony...
Collective
Our People
Our intersectional and interdisciplinary team brings unique perspectives to our work and research. We pride ourselves on our anti-racist and anti-biased approach to advancing urban equity issues. We all share a passion for pursuing justice through the power of research and design. Our team spans diverse national, gender, and cultural norms to bring key perspectives to the creation of thriving, inclusive, cities, and places.
Zarith Pineda, Founder &
Executive Director
Zarith Pineda is an architectural and urban designer. In 2017, she was appointed to teach Digital Design Techniques, Urban Theory, and Data Visualization at Columbia University as an Adjunct Associate Professor. At Columbia her research on water diplomacy, spatial justice, and conflict urbanism awarded her the prestigious Lowenfish Memorial Prize. Zarith has practiced at a number of national/ international architectural and urban design firms where she was involved in a broad range of institutional, residential, and planning projects. Zarith’s work has been published and exhibited in New York, New Orleans, Washington D.C., Paris, Brussels, Venice, Amman and Tel Aviv. She appreciates a good IPA, listening to podcasts, and FaceTiming her genius nephew, Oliver.
JD Coronado, Director of Operations
JD comes from a revenue management, business intelligence and consulting background. Some of the companies he has worked with include Hilton Inc, SHL trade company, Brigard & Urrutia and MyPhoneMD. He graduated from Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá where he completed a Bachelor’s of Business Administration specializing in Management. Previously, he attended Tulane University’s A.B. Freeman School of Business graduating with a Bachelor’s of Science in Management where he majored in Finance, Marketing, and Entrepreneurship. He brings professional expertise from Bogotá, Rio de Janeiro and New York to TE. In his spare time, he enjoys practicing his Portuguese and perfecting his famous culinary skills.
Victoria Vuono, Architectural and Urban Designer
Victoria is an architectural and urban designer based in New York. Her architectural work experience spans numerous typologies in scales providing a broad understanding of the city. She has recently completed her graduate studies, obtaining a Master's in Architecture and Urban Design from Columbia University. Her research focused on equity through productive landscapes of which she was awarded the Lowenfish Memorial Prize. In her free time she enjoys cooking and spending quality time with her cat, Silvio.
Cecilia Gonzalez- Rubio,
Architectural Designer
Cecilia is an architectural designer from Mexico. She has a B.Arch from Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City and an M.S. in Advanced Architectural Design from Columbia University. Cecilia has worked on culturally sensitive approaches to communicating research through compelling storytelling for our project "Segregation is Killing Us."
Tola Oniyangi, Urban Planner, Design Technologist
Tola explores human-centered design through technology. Her passions involve merging research, analysis and computational design through the lens of the human experience. Recent graduate of Columbia GSAPP with Master of Architecture and Master of Science in Urban Planning degrees. Open to job opportunities at the intersection of design and technology.
Valentin Fauveau, Data Scientist, Biomedical Engineer
Valentin is a Data Scientist and Biomedical Engineer, he graduated from the University of the Andes in Biomedical Engineering and with a double master's degree from Télécom Paristech in Medical Imaging and Artificial Intelligence, and from Columbia University in Computational Bioengineering.
Yi Zhang, Landscape,
Urban Designer
Yi Zhang is a landscape architect and urban designer. Following years of working as a design professional in Asia and Europe, she recently received her second master’s degree from the Master of Science, Architecture, and Urban Design program at GSAPP. Yi has in-depth multi-disciplinary training in landscape, architecture, and urbanism, crossing with urban sociology and ecology. Building upon her academic experience, Yi has participated in a diverse range of design projects from the public realm, urban mobility, smart growth, to infrastructure in addition to urban studies in urgent issues of urbanization, urban biodiversity, and social inclusiveness.