Resilience Beyond Control

Please join us for the last Spring 2026 Urban Design Seminar II Guest Speaker Series.

Guest Speaker- Andrew Leung, AICP (Associate Principal - Skidmore, Owings & Merrill)

Moderated by Jun Seong Ahn

The seminar runs in tandem with the core Urban Design Lab studio, which is focused on the Vishwamitri River in India, near the city of Vadodara. The studio is aligned with the Designing Resilience Global (DRG) 2026 framework, and the lecture will focus on the "connective tissue" that makes urban environments actually function over time, and bridging the gap between visionary master planning and the practical realities of city and building. This lecture will look into their expertise on urban design and resilience strategies, drawing from their transformative work at SOM and their distinguished professional backgrounds.

Andrew Leung is an Associate Principal and Urban Designer with SOM’s City Design Practice in New York. He has played a crucial role in planning projects around the world. This experience spans urban revitalization projects in North America, with a focus on institutional, government, and non-profit clients, including campuses for leading universities, and international districts and cities in the Middle East. Notably, he led the urban design and site development of The New York Climate Exchange campus on Governors Island. This first-of-its-kind international hub for climate solutions embodies its mission for sustainability through resilient planning ambitious targets for net zero energy, water, and waste. Andrew is also actively engaged in New York City civic and engagement. He has worked with the Chinatown non-profit community to revitalize post-pandemic commercial streetscapes. He also served as a fellow with the Urban Design Forum through their ReWire program that focuses on developing design and policy proposals for remaking our buildings and public spaces into engines for a climate positive city. He holds a Master’s of Architecture and Urban Design from Columbia GSAPP, and a Bachelor’s of Architecture from the Rhode Island School of Design.

In-person | Free | Open to the Public