Archive

  1. Joseph Messana-Croly

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    Joseph is working on community-led design programs at Van Alen. Joseph has focused on the intersection of design and community engagement, municipal land use, and the application of equitable practices in urban planning. Joseph is experienced in working alongside historically underrepresented communities toward design and engagement projects. His past projects include a civic center vision for a transit-rich area in Bellevue, WA; research meant to make businesses in Rochester, NY more accessible to residents with disabilities; and a community-led effort to build housing and public spaces meant to combat displacement in the Central District of Seattle, WA. He has also worked on public space activation, youth engagement, and affordable housing projects.

    A New Yorker at heart, Joseph returned home to Brooklyn after working in the Seattle and San Francisco Bay Areas. Joseph earned his Master of Urban Planning from the University of Washington and a B.A. in Urban Studies from the University of Rochester.

  2. Shiloah Coley

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    Shiloah is an artist, researcher, and cultural worker with experience collaborating with marginalized communities to design and co-create projects, programs, and exhibitions grounded in using the arts as a tool for liberation, agency-activation, and community building. She designed curriculum and facilitated projects with the Madison Public Library, Play Africa, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

    She worked as a researcher with the Billie Holiday Center for Liberation Arts at Johns Hopkins University, where she investigated the implications of digital redlining on cultural preservation in Black communities. She also created educational zines and a database of free digital and tech resources in the city of Baltimore to aid Baltimoreans in their pursuit of preserving their history. Previously, she was a Sherman Fairchild Foundation Fellow at The Phillips Collection, where she collaborated with community partners at their off-site location in Southeast DC, Phillips@THEARC, to support exhibitions and collaborate on creative storytelling and promotional materials.

  3. Pratik Dubey

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    Pratik Dubey is the Strategic Partnerships Associate at Van Alen Institute. Most recently, he served as the Anti-Gentrification Organizer at Nuestra Comunidad in Boston, Massachusetts where he developed community engagement tools to ensure that development projects within the community addressed the needs of residents without exacerbating displacement. Pratik has worked extensively on community-driven planning and development initiatives during his time at the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority and Boston City Council. With a background in policy analysis, he also served as a research associate at The Global Resilience Institute. Pratik received his Masters in Public Policy from Northeastern University in 2022.

  4. Annie Ferreira

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    Annie Ferreira is the Strategic Partnerships Manager at Van Alen Institute. Previously, she worked at CitySquash, a youth development program in the Bronx, where she ran the boarding school and mentorship program, and Brooklyn Law School, where she worked in the Public Service Law Center. Annie graduated from Wesleyan University where she was a History major and wrote her thesis on how coeducation impacted the physical layout of the University.

  5. Kate Overbeck

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    As Director of Strategic Partnerships at Van Alen Institute, Kate Overbeck connects people committed to equitable citymaking with the resources needed to create more livable, healthy, and resilient neighborhoods for everyone. Prior to joining Van Alen, Kate held the position of Associate Director of Strategic Partnerships at 100 Resilient Cities, an initiative of the Rockefeller Foundation focused on helping cities survive and thrive in the face of the physical, social and environmental challenges of the 21st century. She brings extensive experience cultivating partnerships with corporations, foundations, governments and academic institutions to catalyze impact through program development, strategic initiatives, marketing communications and high profile convenings. Kate graduated from Boston University with a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology.

  6. Alisha Kim Levin

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    As Director of Communications, Alisha Kim Levin implements strategic multichannel communications plans that propel forward Van Alen Institute’s mission: to create equitable cities through inclusive design. She oversees all in-house communications channels, collaborates with external digital media producers, and fosters media relations to amplify the impact of Van Alen’s work. Alisha previously held the position of Manager, Global Communications at the Guggenheim Museum, where she led advertising, media relations, and digital media strategies for several of the Guggenheim’s major international and cross-cultural initiatives. She initially joined the museum as part of the project team for the BMW Guggenheim Lab — a multiyear project hosting public programming around architecture, design, and city life across three continents — which sparked a lasting interest in urban design and policy. Alisha graduated from New York University with a B.A. in Art History and English Literature.

  7. Ren Reese

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    Ren Reese is the Director of Finance and Operations of Van Alen Institute. Ren oversees the administrative and financial systems that support Van Alen’s work and is responsible for designing and overseeing institutional processes and strategies that further the organization’s mission. Since joining Van Alen in 2018, Ren has held positions including Director of Finance and Operations and Project Manager, Flatiron Installation.

    Prior to joining Van Alen, Ren worked at the Guggenheim Museum across departments including Finance, Visitor Experience, and most recently Special Initiatives, where he shepherded interdepartmental teams to realize international contemporary art initiatives such as the Hugo Boss Prize and the UBS Global Art Initiative.

    Ren graduated from James Madison University with a B.B.A. in International Business Finance and a B.A. in Spanish.

  8. Andrew Brown

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    As Van Alen’s Interim Co-Executive Director, Andrew oversees programs that mobilize designers to address pressing challenges in communities. Andrew is a researcher trained in empirical analysis of programs and public policy and his work often explores how designers, city leaders, and communities can work together to create healthier, more prosperous neighborhoods. He has developed a wide range of programs: workshops that help U.S. mayors promote shared prosperity through urban design; tours that help people visualize and understand how built environments impact mental health and the brain; and public conversations about the ways design can promote more inclusive, equitable, and beautiful cities. Andrew received his Master of Public Administration from the Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service at New York University. He received his Bachelors in History from Williams College.