Welcome

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Welcome to the Summer 2024 issue of The Narrative, which captures our culture and reflects our priorities. At Perkins Eastman, communication in its many forms is key to our work—and to the topics in this issue. For example, we find ourselves introducing clients to net zero energy, embodied carbon, and other critical earth-friendly concepts with increasing regularity. “Speaking of Sustainability” clarifies the jargon around these terms, and “Healthier Materials, Healthier People” stimulates the conversation.

Convening in person to exchange bold ideas is in the Simons Foundation’s DNA and at the heart of the challenge to create a pedestrian connection between its two noncontiguous buildings in the Flatiron District of Manhattan. Learn how the firm communicated the appropriateness of its boundary-pushing, glass-and-carbon-fiber design to the client and city officials in “Skybridge.”

Medical campuses are being dramatically transformed to increase interactions among staff, students, patients, their families, and local communities. Dive into the master plans in “Rx for Change.”

Design competitions give firms a chance to “make some noise” and, in some cases, catapult them to the global stage. These competitions are also opportunities to experiment, sharpen skills, and spur lively discussions. See “The R&D Dividend.”

In “Proof Positive,” learn how a new Perkins Eastman-Drexel University study reveals that school modernization significantly improves key educational indicators. Our K-12 Education practice is communicating the findings and deploying valuable tools developed for the study to help school officials make educated decisions regarding facility improvements.

In addition to settings conducive to learning, students reap big benefits from mentoring. Through long‑established programs with nonprofits, our PEople teach critical thinking and collaboration skills to aspiring architects in “Engaging Young Minds.”

Consensus building is another way our firm communicates. In “Studio Spotlight,” we highlight one of our affiliates, BFJ Planning, a small team that makes a big impact on communities in the Northeast and farther afield.

In “Perspectives,” discover the “happy people” drawings that Principal Frances Halsband, one of our esteemed architects, creates to imagine the interactions taking place in her projects. And meet intriguing PEople from our 1,000-strong staff: At 16, Jason Abbey, a co-managing principal in our Washington, DC, studio, bicycled from New Jersey to Oregon. Our Director of Sustainability Heather Jauregui used 96 percent less water per month compared to the average American when she volunteered in Africa after college. Enjoy their stories and more in our Summer 2024 edition of The Narrative.

The Communications Team

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