In this episode of Investing in Regeneration, Mónica Altamirano de Jong sits down with Illya Azaroff—architect, educator, disaster responder, and President of the American Institute of Architects—to explore how regenerative design can transform the way we plan, finance, and build for a climate-challenged world.

They explore the evolving role of architects as systems thinkers and conveners, capable of bridging communities, ecosystems, and finance. From indigenous knowledge to ecosystem services, from long-term trust to financial fear, this conversation reveals what it takes to move from sustainable projects to regenerative systems.

▶️ President of the American Institute of Architects: The Role of Architects as Systems Thinkers  and Conveners Bridging Communities, Ecosystems & Finance

00:00:00 Introduction to Investing in Regeneration

00:04:32 Architects as Systems Thinkers and Conveners

00:14:08 Personal Journey and Purpose

00:18:31 Investment Planning and  Urban Transformation Processes

00:29:22 From Planning to Implementation

00:37:50  How Do You Conceptualize and Measure Resilience Impacts?

00:44:32 Empowering Participation: The Key Role of Indigenous Communities

00:49:41 Regenerative Economies and Circular Systems

00:59:01 Where Breakthrough Is Needed

Notable Quote:

“The way that we're doing our work, the teams we're doing our work with, and the type of outcome that we are seeing come forward has never been built on this planet ever. That is what regenerative design is. You're seeing things that no one has ever done before.” - Illya Azaroff

Connect with Illya:

📱 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/illya-azaroff-faia-3b11b08/

💻 Website: https://www.aia.org/

Connect with Monica:

📱 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/altamiranomonicaa/

💻 Website: https://altamira-regen.com/

This episode was produced by Ideablossoms