The Harvard Graduate School of Design (Harvard GSD) has announced the Class of 2025 Loeb Fellows. Ten practitioners and activists from around the world have been selected to join the Loeb Fellowship program to expand their careers and advance their programs and initiatives focused on equity, resilience, and collective action.
The ten selected practitioners are mid-career professionals coming from diverse backgrounds. Each one has been recognized for initiating practices that are transforming public spaces and urban infrastructures, addressing public health concerns and environmental injustices, as well as housing needs and efforts to preserve the cultural, natural, and architectural heritage of diverse regions from all continents.
The Loeb Fellowship includes a 10-month residency at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, a time during which the practitioners can immerse themselves in the academic environment, audit courses at both Harvard and MIT, exchange insight, and expand their professional networks. They are also presented with opportunities to participate as speakers and panelists at public events, convene workshops, and join other activities that encourage the creation and sharing of knowledge, thus creating opportunities to expand the impact of their work.
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Crimson Veritas: Building Architecture and History at HarvardEvery year, Loeb Fellows bring an incomparable breadth and diversity of experience to the GSD. They inspire us with their accomplishments, enrich conversations across our school, and challenge us to think critically about how designers can create a more just world. - Sarah M. Whiting, Dean
The Class of 2025 Loeb Fellows is comprised of 10 practitioners and activists coming from diverse backgrounds and areas of expertise. Read on to discover the 10 participants.
Mariana Alegre
Mariana Alegre is a city designer and community engager from Lima Peru, and the founder of Sistema Urbano, Cómo Vamos, Ocupa Tu Calle, and NODAL, all organizations aiming to address climate injustice and build community resilience.
Pierre-Emmanuel Becherand
Pierre-Emmanuel Becherand is the head of design, culture, and urban planning for the Grand Paris Express, overseeing the largest current urban project in Europe and guiding architectural designers and artists to create new metro stations, permanent artworks, and local cultural events.
Leanne Brady
Based on her expertise as a health systems activist and filmmaker in Cape Town, South Africa, Dr. Leanne Brady addresses the legacy of apartheid on public infrastructure through storytelling. Her focus is on collaborative projects that use insurgent planning to challenge spatial apartheid.
Shana M. griffin
A New Orleans-based feminist activist, sociologist, abolitionist, artist, and geographer, Shana M. griffin uses her research-based practice to help protect and bring awareness to the violence and social exclusion experienced by vulnerable social groups. She founded the feminist initiative PUNCTUATE and co-founded the Jane Place Neighborhood Sustainability Initiative, the first community land trust in New Orleans.
Nikishka Iyengar
Nikishka Iyengar, founder and CEO of Atlanta’s first co-living company, The Guild, is a social entrepreneur and writer focused on transforming economic and community development with a lens on racial justice and climate action. She promotes community-owned real estate to empower marginalized groups, merging social entrepreneurship with social activism.
Tawkiyah Jordan
Tawkiyah Jordan, an urban planner in New York City and vice president of housing and community strategy at Habitat for Humanity's US office, is a dedicated advocate for environmental justice, transportation, and inclusive zoning. She amplifies the voices of marginalized communities in policy and planning decisions.
Tosin Oshinowo
Architect, designer, and curator Tosin Oshinowo is the founder and principal of Oshinówò Studio in Lagos, Nigeria. In addition to her socially responsive architecture and urbanism strategies, Oshinowo's curatorial work, which includes the Sharjah Architecture Triennial 2023, addresses cultural and identity issues, offering a contemporary view of the built environment in Africa and the global South. She is celebrated for her unique design philosophy that blends modern aesthetics with local traditions, making significant contributions to the discourse on African architecture.
Sahar Qawasmi
Sahar Qawasmi is an architect, restorer, and cultural organizer dedicated to conserving land and architectural heritage in Palestine. She co-founded Sakiya – Art | Science | Agriculture in Ramallah to help artists, farmers, activists, and students rethink political and social agency and the commons.
Matt Smith
Matt Smith is dedicated to rural community development through planning, design, and construction. He co-founded and directs Building Common Ground in Santa Fe, New Mexico, providing long-term support to rural, remote, and Indigenous. Previously, Matt was managing director at MASS Design Group, overseeing significant growth and co-leading the launch of the Santa Fe Studio focused on rural and Native communities.
Tunde Wey
Tunde Wey is a Nigerian social practice artist based in Lagos, Nigeria, and Detroit, Michigan. His work uses food, film, finance, and investment capital to address geographic and racial funding disparities, aiming to resource underfunded regions and communities.
