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There has been much discussion raised about "Why are women leaving Architecture? and more broadly, Why is the profession losing key talent?"  Both women and men practitioners are disillusioned by the myth of work/life balance: Women are grappling with "have it all" expectations of juggling family time with the demands of full-time work.  Men are struggling to support their families solely on an architect's salary and fall back on asking spouses to maintain their jobs. The lack of affordable childcare and high cost of living only magnifies the challenges.  How did we end up in this modern family dilemma? What can we do to improve the situation?

She's an Architect! Judith Edelman on Sesame Street

The recent New York Times Op Ed "How to Rebuild Architecture" written by Steven Bingler and Martin C. Pedersen on Dec. 15, 2014 raises the question:  At what point does architecture’s potential to improve human life become lost because of its inability to connect with actual humans? 

When I was growing up, public television (in particular Sesame Street) was a big part of our afternoons; learning our numbers, colors, etc. I remember seeing this episode back in the day with Judith Edelman demonstrating what an Architect does. She didn't say much, and kids narrated most of the segment. But by just being part of the video, and showing what she does as an Architect, she inspired many young designers through her appearance on Sesame Street in 1975, including a future employee!

Recently, this video was made public (many thanks to Benjamin Edelman). I thought it was a great reminder to us all of the importance of doing great work; but it is also equally important to share what we do as Architects with children in a connected and meaningful way. 

Written by Rosa T. Sheng, AIA