What drew you to architecture in the first place? 
I grew up between two cities: Philadelphia and Surabaya, Indonesia. Each holds a big piece of its nation’s history, and each keeps that history in its buildings. I lived in Philadelphia Rowhouses and Dutch Colonial houses in Indonesia. Two very different homes taught me the same lesson early: buildings are how people gather, belong, and carry their stories forward.

Architecture was practically the family dinner conversation. My grandfather was a contractor, my uncle is an architect, my aunt and mother works in real estate, and my father is a businessman and home builder with a sharp eye for design. I was the daughter who loved sketching people in spaces, and by 6th grade, exposure to early architecture education in Surabaya had me thinking like an architect. It changed my life entirely. I got a head start, and I’ve never looked back.

The nomination highlighted Emerging Professional Design Award. What shaped the development of your career?
The 2+4 program at Drexel University put me in professional practice early, which meant learning to balance deadlines, design, academia, work, life, and your wellbeing all at the same time. What kept me grounded was remembering to stay hopeful, keep your purpose in sight, and trust that during hard times, it is okay to put the pencil down and start again tomorrow. Architecture has taught me patience and slow gratitude.

How did working across planning, landscape, and architecture at WRT shape your approach on projects? 
Working across disciplines keeps me humble, and it reminds me there’s always something to learn from the person at the next desk. I’ve built renderings with our landscape team, and I’ve leaned on the report tools and studies our planners publish, which set the stage for everything architects do next. The results of master planning frame initial conversations, guide programming needs, and give a place a direction for the next decade or more years. By the time I start designing, the big questions have already been asked. Our work is interdisciplinary, and it works.

What have you learned from the communities you've worked with that you couldn't have learned in school?
School taught me how to design a building. Communities taught me how to design for the people who will use it. The neighbors around a park or garden know things no drawing set can show you: where people gather, what feels welcoming, and what has been missing for years. Listening to them has made me a better designer, because the best ideas often come from the people who will live with the result. A building only works if it feels like it belongs to the community.

This award is about the future of design. What do you think the next generation of designers needs to do differently?
Listen first and design second. The next generation will inherit bigger challenges than we did, from climate change to housing to public spaces that serve everyone, and no one designer can solve those alone. They’ll need to bring community members into the conversation early, work closely with expert builders and engineers, and treat sustainability as a starting point rather than an add-on. I also hope they stay curious and stay generous, because the best work happens when we do it together. Our job is to design places that give life back to the people who use them.

What does this recognition mean to you, and who would you share it with?
This award is a reminder of everyone who shaped me along the way: the professors and studio culture at Drexel, the folks from Design Education at DesignPhilly, and the colleagues and mentors at WRT and beyond in the industry who invested in my growth. It also belongs to the people who prayed for me and believed in me.. I share it with all of them.

I hope this moment encourages other designers to give their best in every detail. Architecture was never about us. It’s about creating the spaces people fill with life. 

What are you working on next?
My first project at WRT was the FDR Welcome Center in South Philly. Now I am a part of a team of talented architects and landscape designers working on an Ecology & Education Center project in another of Philadelphia’s great and historic outdoor parks, Bartram’s Garden in West Philly. This wood framed building will feature low embodied carbon materials, geothermal heating, rainwater collection strategies, and edible plantings, and it will house classrooms, office space, and a community kitchen. 

We’re about to begin construction documents and will team up with INTECH Construction to bring it to life. It’s a privilege to design a place that will serve the neighborhood for generations, and we’re grateful to the Bartram’s Garden team for their trust and collaboration. In the meantime, volunteer at Sankofa Community Farm and learn what’s growing! 

Congratulations to Anjel, and to all of this year's DesignPhiladelphia honorees. Her work reflects WRT's belief that design is most meaningful when communities help shape it from the start.