I’m an urban planner, designer, and writer based in Washington, DC. My practice spans the fields of housing, economic development, and narrative change. I write broadly about the stewardship of land, institutions, and communities. My book Homes for Living—on the struggle among residents of two social housing co-ops as they decide whether to privatize and profit from the public goods they own—was named a Best Book of 2025 by The New Yorker. My next book, Little Boxes Everywhere, is under contract with One Signal. For more on my latest essays and photos of my cat Kaju, read my newsletter Rectangle | Square. Put to use a curriculum for developing a Personal Theory of Practice that I co-created. Work with me via All Commons. To inquire about a speaking engagement, get in touch.

   

   

I've served as chief researcher and a contributor for Nonstop Metropolis: A New York City Atlas, an exploration of the city in maps and essays from UC Press and editors Rebecca Solnit and Joshua Jelly-Schapiro, and as editor in chief of Urban Omnibus, a magazine of the Architectural League dedicated to observing, understanding, and shaping the city. I've also held roles at the Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation at Johns Hopkins, Urban Edge, the Boston Housing Authority, and MICA. I'm proud to sit on the board of Shelterforce and to be counted among Next City's Vanguard.

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Queries  |  Ayla Zuraw-Friedland @ Frances Goldin Literary Agency
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