By Emi Day, AIA
1 AIA LU|Elective

Architects are trained to design buildings, but not the partnerships required to realize civic work. This session uses the Burnside Centennial Dinner as a case study in building public-private collaboration from scratch — aligning agencies, businesses, nonprofits, and community voices around a shared goal.

Rather than focusing on the event itself, the session breaks down the underlying structure: how to identify stakeholders, build trust across sectors, secure resources, and create momentum without formal authority. It offers a replicable framework for architects to act as conveners: designing the social and organizational systems that make projects possible.

Attendees will leave with practical tools to intentionally create community, not as an outcome, but as a designed process embedded in how we initiate and deliver work.