Commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Community
Jensen Architects

We are committed to integrating principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion into every aspect of our practice. Our efforts are rooted in an ethos that celebrates differences, encourages participation, and emphasizes continued education. Ultimately, by embracing these values, we can better design environments that holistically serve our community.

Diverse Perspectives

We believe our studio should reflect the vast diversity of the communities we serve. We start by seeking out architects and designers with divergent perspectives and backgrounds, embracing differences of identity, experience, and thought. We actively strive for inclusive behaviors across our practice, making space to hear and understand each other so that every voice is heard. To better reach and engage designers from underrepresented communities, we utilize the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) job board and encourage referrals from our employees and collaborators.

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Continued Education

In our day-to-day practice, we make it a priority to educate all members of our studio on the impact of systemic injustice, socioeconomic disparities, and educational inequities that have disproportionately affected the most vulnerable communities. This education comes in many forms, including the sharing of resources on our internal website, casual all-staff discourse about current events, as well as more structured quarterly meetings, training, and community outreach. Recognizing the evolving cultural landscape, we continue to find better ways to improve our understanding of social justice issues and how they impact our studio and the communities we serve.

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Culture of Mentorship

We aim to create a positive work experience that encourages a sense of belonging and empowerment. To this end, our practice emphasizes the professional development and training of all members of our studio. Our project team structure allows our designers and architects to experience every phase of the design and construction process and encourages a culture of mentorship. JENSEN also supports training seminars, licensing, LEED accreditation, and building systems research to enable team members at all levels to continually expand their breadth of knowledge and experience. By creating space for new ideas and individual growth, we are a stronger practice.

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Shared Values

As architects, we actively shape the public realm and play an integral role in creating socially and environmentally just communities that act as catalysts for change. For this reason, we approach all of our projects through the lens of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and make it a goal to collaborate with clients, consultants, and builders who share our mission. By seeking collaborations with like-minded individuals and organizations, and selecting projects which reflect our core values, we reaffirm our commitment to shaping a just and dynamic society.

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Community Outreach

We prioritize listening to and learning from the members of the communities in which our projects are located, often involving engagement specialists to better understand how to support each unique community most effectively. This focus on engagement, allows us to deliver projects that more authentically reflect and celebrate the communities they inhabit. Through our work on projects such as Willie “Woo Woo” Wong Playground in San Francisco’s Chinatown, India Basin Shoreline in the Bayview Neighborhood of San Francisco, and the UCSC Bay Tree Bookstore renovation, we have a record of successful community-minded outreach efforts, including surveys, targeted questioning, participatory meetings, and workshops.

Jensen Community Outreach

Full Universal Design

Inclusion is one of the primary goals of our design work. We strive to create spaces that bring people together, welcoming everyone regardless of age, size, ability, or orientation. While statutes such as the Americans with Disabilities Act begin to set such standards, we believe good design can and should go further. Full universal design encompasses a wide range of elements from the shape of a door handle to the incorporation of ramps instead of stairs, gender-neutral bathrooms, wheelchair access, clear graphic signage, and wayfinding that enhance accessibility beyond code. No matter the project, we design spaces that can be experienced and enjoyed by everyone.

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