This is going to sound cliché, but I have had a strong desire to go to Japan after watching Jiro Dreams of Sushi. Not just to taste his food, although that dream remains on the bucket list, but to witness Japan’s culture, discipline, architecture, urbanism and landscape…

During my second year of graduate school, I spent about four months studying city architecture and urban design within the historic center of Rome. I shared a cozy apartment with two classmates in the neighborhood of Trastevere. Apart from traveling…

There are a number of places that I love to visit in San Francisco to spark creative thinking: Fort Funston, Telegraph Hill and the Filbert Street Steps, the Presidio and Land’s End. Here, I find inspiration and a restored freshness…

A couple of years ago I was traveling with a colleague to Seattle for a project. As we were walking to the hotel after dinner, we came across a beautiful storefront. It was two stories in height with high-quality detailing, red painted metal work…

One of my favorite things to witness in a city is children playing in water within a public space. The sound of their laughter every time a jet of water randomly squirts up and fills their diapers. It immediately makes me want to…

I prefer to travel, in order of preference, by foot and then by bike. Most importantly, I prefer both self-propelled modes of transportation over driving a car. I have been car-free for three years…

As an urban designer, I am passionate about creating walkable, sustainable communities by way of physical place-making. Based on my experience, people form attachments to places they love…