GSD Alumni Council 2026 Newsletter
Dear GSD Alumni and Friends,
The 50-member strong GSD Alumni Council represents a multigenerational, diverse community of graduates who work to engage GSD alumni, current students, and the wider Harvard community.
The Council remains committed to creating meaningful opportunities for the GSD community to come together, fostering a culture of inclusion and excellence through special programs, events, and partnerships.
Learn more about last year’s initiatives and the opportunities that lie ahead.
In this newsletter:
News and Announcements
GSD Alumni Features
Upcoming Events
More Opportunities to Connect!
News & Announcements
Alumni Council Member Transitions
Please join us in welcoming the newest cohort of Alumni Council members, who started their term on July 1, 2026:
- Ricardo Alvarez-Diaz (AMDP ’20)
- Shana Bonstin (MUP ’01)
- Fauzia Sadiq Garcia (MArch ’03)
- John Gendall (MDes ’06)
- Alice Hintermann (MUP ’18)
- Shelagh McCartney (MDes ’07, DDes ’12)
- Ilias Papageorgiou (MArch ’08)
- Stacy Passmore (MLA ’18)
- Naksha Satish (MAUD ’22)
- Pau Sola-Morales (MDes ’97, DDes ’00)
We would also like to thank these departing members for their service:
- Mari Balestrazzi (MArch ’97)
- Hugh Clark (MDes ’12)
- Hazel Edwards (MAUD ’89)
- Judith Heintz (MLA ’78)
- Dara Huang (MArch ’07)
- Alicia Gomez Jimenez (MLA ’14)
- John Mann (MUP ’01)
- Euneika Rogers Sipp (LF ’16)
- Adriana Rojas (MAUD ’01)
- Paul Tange (MArch ’85)
- Ming Thompson (MArch ’10)
- Zenovia Toloudi (DDes ’ 11)
- Ole Wiig (MArch ’73)
We are accepting new member nominations for the July 2026–June 2029 term. Learn more about our member expectations and apply by November 30, 2026.
2026 Unsung Heroes
In March, the Alumni Council and the GSD’s Frances Loeb Library celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Unsung Hero Book Prize. This annual award recognizes students who act in selfless ways to make the GSD a better place.
The 2026 Unsung Hero Book Prize honorees are Genesis Solano (MArch ’26), Kiki Cooper (MDes/MLAUD ’27), Robin Albrecht (MArch ’26), and Ryota Sunakawa (MLA ’26). Read the full announcement to learn more about these remarkable students.
Read the Full Announcement
Design Impact
Design Impact is a global design leadership speaker series hosted by the GSD Alumni Council. These virtual events bring together outstanding global leaders; create a forum for sharing past work and visions for the future; and challenge us as a global community to use design as a tool for actionable, transformative change and healing.
In 2026, the GSD Alumni Council hosted two webinars reflecting on the theme “Places Left Behind,” presenting alumni and friends with an opportunity to engage in critical conversations and earn coveted continuing education credits.
GSD Class Day
Allyson Mendenhall (AB ’90, MLA ’99), former co-chair of the GSD Alumni Council and winner of the 2026 John P. Reardon Jr. Alumni Award for Outstanding Service, addressed our newest alumni during the 2026 Class Day celebration, where she emphasized the enduring network of the GSD alumni community.
The GSD is here and will be here for you whenever you wish to return, to reflect, or to re-engage with this community. But the GSD is also out in the world—in every city you land in, in the places you choose to live, work, visit, or simply pass through. Whatever your plans, wherever your path leads you, today, tomorrow, or decades from now, chances are you will find yourself in a GSD alumni neighborhood, connected by a shared language of design, a shared commitment to the public realm, and a shared belief in the power of ideas to shape the world.
Allyson Mendenhall, 2026 Class Day Address
2026 GSD Alumni Award
We are pleased to announce Christopher Benninger (MArch ’67), Joan Blumenfeld (MArch ’79), Michael B. Lehrer (MArch ’78), and Alan Ricks (MArch ’10) as the winners of the sixth annual Harvard GSD Alumni Award.
These extraordinary alumni will be honored at the GSD Comeback: Alumni & Friends Celebration, September 25–26, 2026, alongside the 2025 GSD Alumni Award winners.
Read the Full Announcement
Nominations for the 2027 GSD Alumni Award are now open. Learn more.
GSD Alumni Features
Upcoming Events
GSD Comeback: Alumni & Friends Celebration
The GSD Comeback: Alumni & Friends Celebration returns to campus on September 25–26, 2026. More than 300+ GSD alumni from around the globe will be in attendance. When this community comes together, the transformative impact of design is palpable and powerful.
Enjoy two full days of mini-courses, tours, and celebrations, from panels on housing and AI to evening gatherings like Beer ’N Dogs and the Alumni Award Ceremony.
Online registration closed on September 18, 2026, but walk-ins are welcome to register on site. Don’t miss this chance to engage in critical conversations, earn CEUs, and form new connections!
Professional Association Annual Meetings
The Alumni Council Ambassadorship Committee, in partnership with the GSD Office of Development and Alumni Relations, organizes an alumni reception in conjunction with each professional association meeting; these annual events are one of the best ways to connect in-person with alumni nationally.
- ULI Fall Meeting Miami | October 26–28, 2026
- ULI Spring Meeting Seattle | May 11–13, 2027
- APA Houston | May 15–18, 2027
- AIA Philadelphia | May 19–22, 2027
J-Term Regional Gatherings
The Alumni Council will host regional events during J-Term, January 4–16, 2026, for current students and local alumni. Stay tuned for more details!
Students and alumni gather at the 2026 J-Term Gatherings.
Refer to GSD Alumni & Friends Events for the latest information about GSD gatherings near you. If you’re interested in helping coordinate an alumni reception around a professional association meeting or want to host a gathering in your city, please contact Development & Alumni Relations.
More Opportunities to Connect
Update Your Contact Information
Don’t miss out on important news, updates, and regional event invitations from the GSD. To update your preferred email or mailing address, please contact us.
Refer a Student
As a GSD alum, you may have a knack for identifying potential applicants who would thrive in the GSD community. Many of our students have shared that it was conversations with alumni that inspired them to apply to the GSD.
Do you know someone interested in applying? Fill out the Alumni Referral Form. Once GSD Admissions receives your referral, they will reach out to the prospective applicant and invite them to chat about the GSD, providing them with an opportunity to learn about our degree programs and how their interests might align with what the GSD has to offer.
Share Professional Updates
The GSD’s extraordinary alumni community is made up of thought leaders who continually innovate across disciplines. Alumni are encouraged to share their professional successes via GSD Alumni Updates.
Stay in Touch
We invite you to connect, engage, and join us in creating opportunities to positively impact places, people, the environment, and the design industry.
Follow the GSD Alumni Council on Instagram and LinkedIn to stay informed about alumni events and engagement opportunities.
Questions on how to get involved? Contact us.
Once GSD, always GSD!
Your GSD Alumni Council Co-Chairs,
Alpa Nawre (MLAUD ’11)
Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture, University of Florida
Gregory Haley (MAUD ’98)
Associate Principal, Henning Larsen