ISTUDIO Architects is pleased to announce that founder and principal Rick Harlan Schneider has been elevated to the College of Fellows of The American Institute of Architects (AIA). The honor, given to a small group each year, recognizes his significant contributions to the profession of architecture and to society.
“Rick is the embodiment of practice transformation that includes a more holistic definition of design excellence and civic engagement.”
- Kira Gould, AIA Committee on the Environment (COTE)
A nationally recognized advocate, educator, and innovator, Rick leads communities to a more resilient future with bold work that emulates the regenerative cycles of nature. Following a simple credo of “Do, Teach, Celebrate” he demonstrates that architecture can provide tools for learning and occasions to enjoy the cycles of life. Built environments from Northern Virginia to West Africa echo nature with rain harvesting, teaching gardens, daylighting, and natural ventilation.
Rick inspires a generation of architecture and planning students from the internationally-renowned school of Architecture and Design at Virginia Tech who go on to practice green. In programs with the National Building Museum and New York’s Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum, he has engaged hundreds of secondary school students.
A pioneer of the movement toward sustainability, Rick builds capacity and mainstreams green design with the AIA COTE and the US Green Building Council. Rick developed a vision of Washington DC as a city of the future which was presented to the US Congress and featured through the History Channel and Washington Post. He embraces civic engagement to address climate change, efforts which have helped the nation’s capital go green. The Mayor of Washington DC honored his work in 2020 with a District Sustainability Award.
“…a model architect – a rare combination of committed practitioner, design talent, and leader within the profession, community, and the academy… a credit to our profession.”
- David Haresign, FAIA
ISTUDIO Architects is a mission-driven practice dedicated to creating artful, sustainable communities. Design shapes our cities and towns physically, culturally, and emotionally. For over 20 years, we at ISTUDIO have dedicated ourselves to the issues of design, architecture, and urbanism. We have collaborated with clients and communities around the globe to increase access to beautiful places and spaces — where we live, work, learn, play, and dream."