I Am AIA:

Elizabeth de Regt AIA

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Elizabeth de Regt is an architect and urban designer specializing in master planning, with experience designing a wide range of corporate office, mixed-use, higher education, and healthcare projects. Her passion lies at the intersection of architecture and urban design, and she seeks to create spaces that enhance sustainability at an urban scale. Elizabeth focuses on livability issues, with expertise in researching daylighting in the public realm as well as zoning issues that impact shared spaces. By facilitating livability in an urban context, she hopes to make cities more attractive, affordable, and sustainable for a diverse array of people.

What is the value of AIA to you?

AIA provides a voice for the architecture profession. It brings those from different areas and backgrounds together to learn from one another and advocate together for change.

What project are you working on now?

I am working on two projects at the moment. One is a campus master plan for an institutional client, looking long-term to determine their spatial and cultural needs and how best to meet them. The other is known as the Southwest Corridor, a new 13-station line for TriMet’s Portland-area light rail system. The project includes a number of elements, with an emphasis on placemaking, community connectivity, redevelopment potential, and environmental restoration.

How do you explain what you do for a living?

Most people know that architects design buildings, but they don’t know what that means our day-to-day lives hold. When asked, I say that I love what I do because every day is different. Whether I’m meeting with a user group to better understand their current workflow, sketching a potential layout, or calculating a client’s spatial needs, I am problem solving. I design better ways to inhabit the world in order to let my clients function more efficiently, more effectively, and more enjoyably.