For episode three of the Daily Designer podcast, we get to know Courtney Powell, WGI's Urban and Community Planning Manager. Courtney is based out of WGI’s Arlington, Virginia office, where she helps lead our public work initiatives and expand WGI’s regional presence.

From a young age, it came as no surprise that Courtney’s love for cities would help her to become a diligent planner. Courtney breaks down her childhood growing up in various states and countries, which gave her a rounded understanding of what makes a city special.

In terms of her career path, Courtney first started in the public sector, where she learned the systems in place to guide development from start to finish. Later in her career, she decided to join the private sector here at WGI, but after working as a planner for a few years, life took her to Greenville, South Carolina, where her skillset and professionalism helped her grow into the role of Planning Administrator. Eventually, Courtney found her way to Arlington, Virginia, where circumstance and luck brought her back to the WGI team once again!

This episode goes on to break down some of her lessons learned and passions developed during her career and how her experience working for both the public and private sectors shaped her perfectly for the position she is in today.

If you’d like to hear from a planner’s perspective about what makes cities wonderful, plus a couple of interesting stories along the way, then listen to episode three of the Daily Designer now!