Romanis Hot! - Michelle

At Cambridge (2000‑2002), Romanis completed an MPhil in Architecture and Landscape, focusing on Her dissertation, titled “From Decline to Resilience: The Role of Community Memory in Re‑appropriating Industrial Sites,” was later published in the Journal of Urban Regeneration and remains a frequently cited source in contemporary debates about heritage‑driven sustainability. 2. The Professional Trajectory: From Researcher to Practice Leader 2.1 Early Career – The Research Lab After returning to the United States, Romanis joined the MIT Media Lab’s City Science Initiative (2003‑2008) as a research associate. Here, she collaborated with William J. Mitchell and the late Catherine L. Ross , developing data‑driven models that linked micro‑climatic patterns to street‑level pedestrian comfort. Her work on the “Urban Heat Island (UHI) Mitigation Index” was adopted by several municipal planning departments, including the City of Boston, as a decision‑support tool for green infrastructure investments. 2.2 Practice Launch – Atelier Romanis In 2009, armed with a growing portfolio of research‑backed projects, Romanis founded Atelier Romanis , a boutique design studio based in Brooklyn, NY. The firm’s charter was simple yet ambitious: “Design with the planet, for the people, and through the people.” Early commissions included:

| Year | Project | Location | Core Innovation | |------|---------|----------|-----------------| | 2010 | | Albany, NY | Integrated floating wetlands to treat stormwater runoff. | | 2012 | Community Learning Hub | Detroit, MI | Adaptive reuse of a 1920s textile mill into a mixed‑use education center. | | 2014 | Solar‑Powered Co‑Working Space | Portland, OR | Net‑zero energy building using BIPV (Building‑Integrated Photovoltaics). | michelle romanis

Romanis earned a B.A. in Environmental Studies from Cornell University in 1999, where she was introduced to the concept of “ecological urbanism” through the work of architect‑theorist Peter Calthorpe . A pivotal moment came during a senior‑year studio project that re‑imagined the abandoned Ithaca Commons as a “green corridor” linking the downtown core to the surrounding farmland. The project won the university’s Sustainable Design Competition and caught the eye of a visiting professor from the University of Cambridge , who later invited her to pursue a Master’s degree abroad. At Cambridge (2000‑2002), Romanis completed an MPhil in