The Engineer's Role in Equitable Design - Panel Event

Event Recap


On February 22, 2022, the SEAONC SE3 committee hosted a panel event on the topics of justice and equity in the design industry. During this 90 minute event, the panelists discussed two central questions:
  • How can engineers and other design professionals bring their values to work with them?
  • What agency do we have as professionals to enact positive change in our communities?

Event Description

What role can an engineer play in a project’s impact on the surrounding community?

The SEAONC SE3 Committee is excited to be hosting a panel on the important role that engineers can play in equitable design practices. In this moderated session, panelists from across the A/E industry will discuss how engineers and their firms can take steps beyond their own office culture and into their project work to be more conscious of and support equity in our communities. This includes intentional project or client selection, support of access to housing and community spaces for marginalized communities, solicitation of community input, and cultivation of a design team that seeks equitable solutions to complex problems. 

Panelists

Thuy Fontelera, P.E., S.E. LEED AP | Founder & Principal, Element Structural Engineers - She/Her/Hers
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Thuy Fontelera is a passionate entrepreneur and seasoned professional engineer with two decades of experience in structural engineering. Thuy founded Element Structural Engineers (ESE) in 2011, which quickly became a Certified Women and Minority-Owned Structural Engineering Firm in the Bay Area. 

Thuy takes great pride in her firm’s outstanding reputation and continued success. Her fondness for architecture and its beauty cultivate her enthusiasm to provide the most cost-effective and efficient buildings possible. Thuy works on a wide variety of projects, including housing, commercial, and educational projects. 
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Thuy also walks the walk for the future of our industry. She is involved in leadership programs that encourage future engineers such as SEAONC's SE3 Mentorship program, regular engagements as an Adviser in the local High Schools' ROP and STEM classes, and advocating for future High School engineering programs.
Khalid Kadir | Continuing Lecturer at University of California at Berkeley - He/Him/His
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​Khalid is a Continuing Lecturer at UC Berkeley, teaching courses in the Global Poverty & Practice (GPP) program, Political Economy, and Civil and Environmental Engineering. He received his PhD in 2010 from Berkeley in Civil and Environmental Engineering, where his research focused on pathogen removal in natural water and wastewater treatment systems. While completing this research, Khalid was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to work on water and wastewater treatment systems in Morocco. During this time, he began studying the complex role that engineering expertise plays in the politics of international development and poverty alleviation. His current research focuses on engineering pedagogy, the political economy of public higher education, and the design of water and sanitation systems for humanitarian contexts.
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In 2013 Khalid was selected as a Chancellor’s Public Scholar to create and teach an innovative interdisciplinary engineering course that combines community-engaged scholarship with classroom learning to train future engineers to engage with the social and political roots of their technical work. In recognition of his work on this unique course and of his teaching in the GPP program, Khalid was awarded the 2014 Chancellor’s Award for Public Service for Service-Learning Leadership. More recently, in 2017 Khalid received UC Berkeley’s Distinguished Teaching Award, the campus’ most prestigious honor for teaching.
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Rafael Sabelli, S.E. | Senior Principal, Director of Seismic Design at Walter P Moore - He/Him/His 

​Rafael Sabelli is a structural engineer with recognized expertise in seismic design and steel structures. His experience includes design of new structures, retrofit of existing buildings, nonlinear seismic analysis, and the development of new structural systems. He participates in several national committees responsible for building-code development, including the AISC committee on the Seismic Provisions for Structural Steel Buildings; and the ASCE seismic subcommittee on Minimum Design Loads for Buildings and Other Structures.

In 2020, Rafael was awarded the AISC Lifetime Achievement award. He is a past president of both SEAONC and SEAOC, has served as the chair of the SEAOC Seismology Committee, and led the writing of the SEAOC Seismic Design Manual.

Manan Shah, AIA, LEED BD C | Principal/Managing Director at Gensler, Focused on Commercial Development for Office and Life Sciences - He/Him/His 
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Manan is a Principal and Managing Director of the Oakland office at Gensler and an officer on the Executive Board of SPUR. Manan’s strength lies in navigating the complex path of building world-class projects in the San Francisco Bay Area — balancing high-value design solutions, stakeholder interests, and local needs to spearhead projects that become a showcase of inclusivity, sustainability, and forward-thinking. 

His portfolio consists of diverse projects totaling more than $1 billion worth of construction to date. In Oakland, Manan oversees the large-scale developments of 1100 Broadway and Eastline, both of which are slated to bring over 2 million square feet of Class-A office, retail, and community space to downtown. He also oversaw the design and completion of NVIDIA’s award winning Headquarters in Santa Clara. Manan challenges his teams to align impact with market conditions, engage with local groups, and design in response to community needs. This results in the delivery of projects that bring immense opportunity, positively impact their communities, and provide far-reaching benefits.

Moderator

Kaat Ceder, P.E. | Engineer at Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc. - She/Her/Hers
Kaat is a staff level engineer at WJE in Emeryville and one of the vice-chairs of SEAONC’s SE3 committee. She co-leads SEAONC SE3’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion task group and is active in the Racial Equity task group. Kaat also helped start WJE San Francisco’s DEI initiative and leads the sub-group focusing on higher education outreach.