Grassroots 2025

Opening Keynote

Making her hard hat wearing debut on the AIAS stage in 2018, Lauren Cantrell is honored to return as keynote speaker for the 20th anniversary of Grassroots! Lauren has a deep passion for service and is a steadfast advocate for home affordability, sustainable building and advancing equity in homeownership. She loves bringing people together and using creativity to foster genuine connection. 

In her youth, Lauren completed three service terms with AmeriCorps and a brief stint as development manager with a Habitat affiliate in Florida, before diving headfirst into her current and eternal gig with Habitat for Humanity International.  Over the years, Lauren has worn many hats across the organization, hosting international service trips through Global Village, welcoming thousands of advocates to the Hill to connect with members of congress, and creating a more accessible workspace for all as Chair of DiversAbility.  

Lauren now leads Home is the Key, Habitat’s annual fundraising and awareness campaign bringing national attention to the need for equitable and affordable housing each April. The campaign has educated millions (over 1 billion impressions in 2025 🥳) through cross-sector collaboration, earned and paid media, influencer engagement, storytelling and service.

Lauren holds a Bachelor of Science in Sociology, a Master of Public Administration, a Master of Nonprofit Management and is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP). Outside of work, Lauren channels her passion for movement and community as an F45 coach and yoga instructor – side gigs that fund her insatiable need to travel.

Keynote Panel

Yu-Ngok Lo, FAIA is the principal of YNL Architects, Inc. and the president of the Immigrant Architects Coalition, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to advocating for immigrant architects. He has held numerous leadership roles, including At-Large Representative on the AIA Strategic Council, Communications Director for the AIA YAF, Editor-in-Chief of NOMA Magazine, and member of the AIA Global Practice Committee.

Appointed by the mayor, Yu-Ngok currently serves as Chair of the Building and Life Safety Commission for the City of Santa Monica and is also a member of the Culver City Disability Advisory Committee.

His work and leadership have been recognized with numerous honors, including the American Institute of Building Design’s Designer of the Year, the AIA Presidential Citation, the AIA Young Architects Award, the NAHB Young Professional Award, BD+C’s 40 Under 40, and ENR’s 20 Under 40. In 2020, he was elevated to the AIA College of Fellows.

Christina is an AICP-Certified Planner with over 15 years of combined experience in architecture, urban design, development review, community planning, and placemaking. Prior to joining NDC, she worked for the Prince George’s County Planning Department of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, where she developed and executed placemaking projects and planning studies. She also worked for the Baltimore City Planning Department providing design and zoning guidance for small- and large-scale developments. She enjoys being an agent in creating welcoming public spaces that evoke joy, comfort, and peace of mind and is skilled at developing collaborative partnerships to implement community-led plans. Christina received her Bachelor of Architecture and Master of Urban and Regional Planning degrees from Virginia Tech.

Julian Owens is an architect with a strong commitment to community-driven design. With a Bachelor’s and Master’s in Architecture from Clemson University, Julian is deeply involved with NOMA, co-founding Clemson University’s NOMAS chapter and serving on NOMA’s National Executive Board in various roles. His contributions to the industry were honored with the 2022 AIA Associate Award.

In 2020, Julian founded Pledge of Excellence Inc., a nonprofit that aims to acknowledge and amplify the existing excellence that lives in overlooked communities. As an Adjunct Professor, Julian has mentored students at Howard University, Florida A&M University, and the University of the District of Columbia, focusing on equitable design practices and the development of architectural advocacy tools.

In practice, Julian is an Architect and Director at Partners of Place and a Project Manager and Architect at Jacobs, gaining international experience from Washington, D.C. to Melbourne, Australia.

Jaren Hill-Lockridge is an environmental activist based in southwest Washington, D.C. Hill-Lockridge studied Mass Communication and Media Studies at Middle Tennessee State University. With a robust policy background, specifically in energy and natural resources. she works with several organizations, such as the William O. Lockridge Community Foundation, Woman at the Well, and the Ward 8 Health Council. 

Jaren is passionate about connecting her community with opportunities and using food as an entry point to transfer resources, prioritizing community and cultural wellness in Southeast Washington, DC. As the Woman at The Well, she built an intergenerational education farm that serves the Congress Heights, Washington Highlands, and Bellevue communities, providing access to fresh produce, environmental education, and financial literacy. With the help of her team and partners, she created a little piece of heaven tucked into Oxon Run Park, where people of all ages can learn, grow, and thrive together.

She is also the Chair of the Ward 8 Health Council, where she leverages her background and knowledge to advocate for health equity and social justice in the District. She works with various stakeholders, including government officials, healthcare providers, and community leaders, to identify and address the health needs and challenges of Ward 8 residents. Additionally, she is pursuing a degree in Urban Sustainability and Leadership at the University of the District of Columbia—the ONLY urban public land-grant university—where she aims to deepen her knowledge and skills in creating positive and sustainable change in her community.

Jaren joined Dreaming Out Loud as the Director of Strategic Partnerships in the spring of 2024, and has been instrumental in launching this year’s AIAS Day of Service.

Closing Keynote

Dena Prastos, AIA, is a licensed architect, civil engineer, and the visionary Founder and CEO of Indigo River—a pioneering firm at the intersection of waterfront infrastructure, resilient design, and future-focused policy. With a rare blend of technical fluency and bold creativity, she leads a team dedicated to shaping the built environment where land meets water—and where innovation meets urgency. Her work is as rooted in technical rigor as it is in poetic design—bridging infrastructure and ecology, policy and practice, vision and action.

A trusted advisor to major public agencies including the NYC Economic Development Corporation, the Trust for Governors Island, and the Hudson River Park Trust, Dena has delivered transformative projects throughout New York and beyond. Her portfolio spans from large-scale coastal resilience plans to climate-adaptive infrastructure, including the redevelopment of iconic urban shorelines, the advancement of resilient marina design, and the engineering of next-generation waterfront codes.

Nationally, Dena chairs the Futures Collaborative at the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB), where she works to align licensure with emerging technology and the shifting demands of climate adaptation. Her leadership in this space has included collaboration with NASA on scenario planning and space-based analogs for architecture regulation. She also served as a subject matter expert and lead author of the architectural chapters for New York City’s first-ever Waterfront Code, embedding equity and climate foresight into municipal regulation.

Dena is a Planning Board Member for the historic village of Grand View-on-Hudson and has served on the American Institute of Architects’ Resilience and Adaptation Advisory Group.