At the heart of Architecture for Humanity is a core group of people who have generously donated their time and efforts to keep us running. With advocates around the world, Architecture for Humanity is truly becoming a global organization that encourages designers to make a difference.
Main Office | Design Fellows | Hall of Fame
Main Office
Barb Alvarado: Associate Development Director (bio)
Nathaniel Corum: Outreach Director (bio)
Joyce Engebretsen: Director of Operations (bio)
Satu Jackson: Program Coordinator (bio)
Michael Jones: Program Manager (bio)
Melody Mason: Marketing Manager (bio)
Mike McCaffrey: Web Development Manager (bio)
Steven Meier: General Counsel
Kelsey Ochs: Program Administrator (bio)
Kimberley O'Dowd: Program Manager (bio)
Cameron Sinclair: Executive Director/Chief Eternal Optimist (bio | where is Cameron?)
Kate Stohr: Managing Director (bio)
Ana Vasconcellos: Web Developer (bio)
Frederika Zipp: Program Manager (bio)
Design Fellows
Main Office: Alec Hawley, Erin Reichert, Molly Stack, Carlene Ho, Erin Terry, Lizzie Cohn-Martin, Amanda Bensel, Renee Bissell, Renee Charland, Alix Ogilvie, Eric Kostegan
Hyderabad, India: Sandhya Janardhan
Bamako, Mali: Mike Heublein
Nairobi and Mahiga, Kenya: Isaac Mugumbule and Greg Elsner
San Francisco, California: Sumita Mukherjee
Paarl and Cape Town South Africa: Eugene da Silva, Killian Doherty, Kevin Gannon
Hall of Fame
Hall of Fame: Learn about staff, volunteers and fellows who have worked with us in the past.
Staff Bios
Barb Alvarado, Associate Development Director
Barb is involved in everything from planning events to tracking donations to developing programs. She is an architectural graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Her previous nonprofit work experience includes work with UNIDOS Against Domestic Violence and SERRV International. Ms. Alvarado’s volunteer experience includes working with the Madison-Arcatao Sister City Project, and as Grants Allocation Committee Member for the Wisconsin Community Fund.
Nathaniel Corum, Outreach Director
A staff architect for Architecture for Humanity, Nathaniel Corum coordinates its international studio programs, including an AfH Container Studio, a Prefab Core Studio, a Floating Classroom Studio, and a Pac Rim Studio. He is also a design architect for various AfH projects, particularly a Tribal Elder Housing Initiative with Indigenous Community Enterprises and the Navajo Housing Authority. In addition Nathaniel leads a material science team for an AfH Alternative Masonry Unit (AMU) project, and serves as Cabin Architect and Sustainability Consultant for the Plastiki Expedition.
After studying product design at Stanford University, Nathaniel trained as an architect at the University of Texas at Austin. A subsequent Fulbright Scholarship allowed him to focus on preservation and urban poverty issues in North Africa. He is also the recipient of a Rose Architectural Fellowship, and author of Building a Straw Bale House (Princeton Architectural Press). Nathaniel has been collaborating with AfH since 2005 when he and Cameron were both teaching in Montana and writing books.
Joyce Engebretsen, Director of Operations
Joyce Engebretsen joined Architecture for Humanity as the Operations Manager in 2008. In this role she oversees the internal operations of this rapidly growing organization. In addition, she acts as project lead and manager on projects around the world from schools in Liberia to orphanages in India.
Joyce is a registered Professional Engineer and was formerly the Director of Operations for Hinman Consulting Engineers, a leading specialist structural engineering firm. At Hinman, Joyce was project manager on numerous award-winning international design and construction projects (from embassies to corporate facilities including the San Francisco Federal Building and Eugene Federal Courthouse and the US Embassy in Beijing) as well as manager of the resources, business development and financial operations of the firm.
Joyce has also served as a Board Member and Art Programming Director of 18 Reasons Gallery, a non-profit art space in San Francisco's Mission District that promotes community through neighborhood-based art and food programs.
Satu Jackson, Program Coordinator
Originally from Germany, Satu Jackson brings an international perspective and a background as an architectural designer to her work at Architecture for Humanity. In Architecture for Humanity's capacity as Program Coordinator Satu manages the Curry Stone Design Prize. She is involved in the 2009 Capital Building Campaign and is part of the launch team for Design Like You Give a Damn 2.
Satu's relationship with Architecture for Humanity began over 4 years ago in Montana - where she joined the organization as a volunteer in the wake of Hurricane Katrina while pursuing her degree. She holds a master's degree in Architecture from Montana State University, is LEED accredited and has a love for writing and languages: she is fluent in French, German and Spanish. Satu worked for five years in high-end residential design with JLF & Associates and was a project designer with Access Consulting, a structural engineering firm in Missoula, Montana. Most recently she worked for Gensler, Los Angeles, where she was part of a core design and production team for the Howard Hughes Center, the LA County Museum of Art and the Port of Long Beach Administrative headquarters. Satu moved to San Francisco and re-joined Architecture for Humanity in January of 2009.
Michael Jones, Program Manager
Michael has been a volunteer and Design Fellow with Architecture For Humanity since 2008. He has worked with Nathaniel Corum on cabin design for the Plastiki Expedition, straw bale housing for Navajo Elders in Arizona, and the domestic beta for the Alternative Masonry Unit.
He is currently working on the SIDAREC Technology and Media Lab and the Game Changers initiative including the Mahiga High Rainwater Court.
Michael has a Bachelors of Architecture degree from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and spent a year studying at DIS in Copenhagen, Denmark. He is a LEED Accredited Professional and California Registered Architect. His work aims to instill environmental awareness while nurturing social justice, ecological balance, and community integration through design.
Melody Mason, Marketing Manager
Melody Mason brought her marketing and design experience to the Architecture for Humanity Development team in 2009 as a Marketing Manager and Design Fellow. She has extensive experience gained from her travels and work as an international architect in Chicago, London, San Francisco and Southeast Asia. After settling down in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2001, her work for the American Institute of Architects, Heath Ceramics, and the Ferry Building Marketplace & Farmer’s Market, amongst others, joined her interests and passions for architecture, design, food and sustainable causes into a new career: supporting the passionate causes she cares so much about by marketing design-related businesses and organizations.
She currently serves on the Board of the Center for Architecture and Design, won a 2008 Presidential Commendation for her work in Sponsorship for the AIA and the Architecture + the City Festival. Melody holds 2 degrees in architecture: a Bachelor of Science in Architecture (Ohio State University) and a Master of Architecture (University of Illinois, Chicago)
Currently in the Bay Area, she works as the Marketing Manager for Architecture for Humanity and builds relationships for the 10 Year Campaign. She continues her support at Heath Ceramics on the weekends, with factory tours and occasional events that promote design.
Mike McCaffrey, Web Development Manager
Mike McCaffrey is responsible for the technical development and maintenance of the Architecture for Humanity website and other online resources. He was informally involved with the organization for over a year before becoming the Web Development Manager in November 2008.
Mike has over ten years of experience developing websites, the last three of which have been concentrated on building sites with Drupal, an open-source content management system.
Kelsey Ochs, Program Administrator
Kelsey joined Architecture for Humanity in 2008. She helps coordinate volunteers, tackles systems administration and IT issues around the office, and works with project managers to provide support and organize information related to projects around the world.
An aspiring Architect originally from the Pacific Northwest, Kelsey earned a BA in studio art from Whitman College. Prior to joining the Architecture for Humanity team, Kelsey worked with Volunteermatch.org. She enjoys traveling, climbing, hiking, and art-making in her free time, and is interested in design activism.
Kimberley O'Dowd, Program Manager
Kimberley moved from Philadelphia to join Architecture for Humanity in 2008 as a Program Manager. She is currently involved in several projects including Football for Hope and the Open Architecture Challenge.
She studied Architecture at Philadelphia University and studied abroad at both Temple University Japan in Tokyo and Ecole d’Architecture La Villette in Paris before receiving her Bachelors of Architecture. She is a registered architect and LEED Accredited Professional.
When not communicating with multiple time zones, she enjoys exploring San Francisco, sewing, following contemporary art, and staying connected to local architecture and green building organizations.
Cameron Sinclair, Executive Director/Chief Eternal Optimist
Cameron Sinclair was trained as an architect at the University of Westminster and at the Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London. During his studies Sinclair developed an interest in social, cultural and humanitarian design. His postgraduate thesis focused on providing shelter to New York's homeless through sustainable, transitional housing. After his studies, he moved to New York where he worked as a designer and project architect.
In 1999 Sinclair co-founded Architecture for Humanity, which seeks architectural solutions to humanitarian crises and brings design services to communities in need. Currently the organization is working in a dozen countries on projects ranging from health centers in Sub-Saharan Africa, community centers in Southeast Asia to low-income housing on the Gulf Coast of the United States. In 2007 Architecture for Humanity launched the Open Architecture Network, the worlds' first online community dedicated to improving living conditions through innovative and sustainable design.
He has spoken at a number of international business and design conferences on sustainable development and post-disaster reconstruction, including guest appearances on BBC World Service and CNN International, National Public Radio and PBS.
In 2003 Sinclair was named a Nice Moderist by Dwell Magazine. He is a recipient of the ASID Design for Humanity award and the Lewis Mumford Award for Peace. In 2004 Fortune Magazine named him as one of the Aspen Seven, seven people changing the world for the better, and in 2006 Sinclair was named one of three winners of the TED Prize, which honors visionaries from any field who have shown they can "positively impact life on this planet." Together with co-founder Kate Stohr he accepted the 2008 Cooper-Hewitt Smithsonian National Design Patron Award in honor of the work of Architecture for Humanity, its chapters, volunteers and design fellows.
Kate Stohr, Managing Director
Kate Stohr is the Co-founder and Managing Director of Architecture for Humanity where she has been instrumental in coordinating design services and bringing in more than $4 million for reconstruction and community development around the world. Stohr has also led the development of the organization's online platforms, including the Open Architecture Network (www.openarchitecturenetwork.org), and edited the book Design Like You Give a Damn. Her work with Architecture for Humanity has been profiled on NPR, CNN and Frontline/World, and she has served as a panel moderator and guest speaker at "Live from the New York Public Library," the Aspen Ideas Festival, and many other design conferences and events.
Stohr brings a background in project management, website development and a strong understanding of urban planning issues to the organization. Prior to co-founding Architecture for Humanity, she was a journalist and producer. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, Business Week, U.S. News and World Report and on MSNBC, A&E, and PBS. She developed a number of websites for Time Inc., Gruner+Jahr and other clients.
Stohr received her bachelor's degree magna cum laude from New York University and her master's degree in Journalism from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. She is the recipient of Wired magazine's 2006 Rave Award for Architecture and serves on the board of the Center for Architecture and Design in San Francisco. Together with co-founder, Cameron Sinclair she accepted the 2008 Cooper-Hewitt Smithsonian National Design Patron Award in honor of the work of Architecture for Humanity, its chapters, volunteers and design fellows.
Ana Vasconcellos, Web Developer
Ana works behind the scenes, using her years of experience developing drupal-based community sites, to implement new features and improve the code of the Open Architecture Network.
Ana has a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from University of California at Berkeley, focusing on computer science and social theory.
Frederika Zipp, Program Manager
Frederika Zipp joined Architecture for Humanity in 2009, and is primarily responsible for managing the network of AfH chapters throughout the world. In this role she provides guidance, training and support to chapter members, design fellows and grantees. Frederika travels to various AfH project site locations around the world to monitor and evaluate specific engineering and design project needs.
Frederika is a registered Professional Engineer, and has worked for some of the largest engineering and construction companies in the world, including Bechtel and MW Kellogg. Her experience includes design, specification and procurement for industrial projects. She also worked for a time in civil engineering, focusing on residential projects.
Frederika was born in Morocco, raised in Africa, Brazil and France, and educated in the United States. She holds a BS degree in Mechanical Engineering from Texas A&M University and is fluent in French. When not working, she enjoys open water swimming and skiing. Frederika is also a Children Docent volunteer at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.
