We’re pleased to announce AJ Pires has joined Jamie von Klemperer as Co-Chairs of Urban Design Forum. We thank outgoing President Margaret Newman for her service. We are also pleased to welcome Judy Kessler as Treasurer.

What an absolute privilege it is to sit at any table Urban Design Forum hosts! It is with that honor always present that I consider what the Forum can achieve in years ahead. As a result of the incredible work Guillermo, Katherine, Martha and Miranda promote, Dan McPhee’s singular leadership and the steady guidance of the board leadership of Margaret Newman and Jamie von Klemperer, the Forum has truly embodied its mission to connect and inspire New Yorkers to design, build and care for a better city. As I look ahead, I’m filled with optimism and excitement.

More than 1,000 members have grown the organization to one of the most significant groups shaping New York City’s future — and the largest it has been in its nearly 50-year history.  Preserving excellence and minding organizational health is now a critical responsibility for our leadership. Indeed, I believe our charge is to sustain the shape of the Forum as it stands and ensure its work will thrive in years ahead.

Some 100,000+ New Yorkers now follow our work. As a think tank, project incubator and professional network, the Forum is being called on to speak louder. The quality of our ideas and thought leadership deserves to be promoted. It is time to meaningfully step up our advocacy. I would go so far as to say we have a responsibility to share. The work is that good! To that end, we should create new tools to educate the public and promote thoughtful debate around the future of our city.

We will certainly be challenged in the year ahead. A national election will both enrage and distract us from thoughtful discourse. Our local electorate will continue to both inspire and frustrate progress throughout the city. The fabric of our neighborhoods will weave and stretch through constant change. But this is the New York we expect, and why we love it! In the face of these challenges, I’m reminded of the value of centering joy and curiosity, which form the foundation for the better questions, stronger connections and ultimately the better improvements across our city.

Join us by listening. Join us by showing up. Join us by digging in. Your time, your industry, your support makes for a better city. For that we’re forever grateful. Onwards!

AJ Pires
Co-Chair, Urban Design Forum Board of Directors