email: jwright@yellowwooddesign.com
phone: 503. 381. 3049
Founder
Jen Wright, AIA
Jennifer is an architect, writer & community builder based in Portland, Oregon. As an architect, she has 20+ years of experience in many different scales of projects ranging from residential to multi-story commercial. As the founder of @yellowwooddesign she provides a resource to connect, create & communicate on the importance of design. She's a contributing writer for publications such as Dwell, Portland Architecture, Oregon Home, UrbDeZine and EQxD. Her talents for listening and problem solving serve her well in both capacities. Researching & finding synergies that connect seemingly wayward dots is her super power! As a committed advocate supporting women and under represented groups within the profession of architecture, she served as previous chair of the AIA Portland Committee on Equity, Diversity & Inclusion and initiated the annual Future Vision Symposium advancing EDI dialogue. In her current role as AIA Oregon Portland Section Director, she represents over 1,800 local AIA members at the State level. Proud recipient of the Architecture Foundation of Oregon's Van Evera Bailey Fellowship in 2019, an annual grant awarded to architects and related professionals for the purpose of advancing their career development and encouraging greater contribution to their profession and community. Described as an opportunity for professionals in the field to examine not only what they think, but how they think. Jennifer used the award to research gender inequity within the profession of architecture, including the barriers women face with gaining construction knowledge. Seeing this fellowship as an opportunity to continue her work towards understanding the underlying elements that push women out of the profession even as more women are graduating with architecture degrees than men. This year-long investigation crafted the framework for the driving mission of what became Designers Build_pdx. An organization that builds equity by reducing barriers to opportunities that promote construction know-how, hands-on training and professional development to women in architecture. Based on the goal to not only retain talented women in the profession but to advance more women leaders by promoting safe spaces to experiment, problem solve and innovate. Designers Build_pdx supports this mission by organizing classes, tours & speakers related to our built environment, planning collaborate partnerships with purpose-driven organizations and curating an on-going calendar of building related classes and events.