top of page

Our co-creation model involves a mix of full-time and part-time collaborators and contributors from a variety of fields including architecture, planning, geography, ecology, graphic design and media.

team

Scott Francisco

Founder and Director

Scott is a designer and systems thinker with a focus on infrastructure that supports long term cultural goals in cities, organizations and ecosystems. Scott's background in architecture, urbanism, construction, and consulting inform the high value he places on engaging stakeholders directly in the design process—particularly in the midst of today's overemphasis on efficiency and quantification. Scott has taught at the McGill School of Architecture, Michael Graves College, Parsons The New School for Design, Stanford in New York, and The University of Kentucky School of Architecture. He speaks regularly on systems thinking, wood and forests, workplace design, organizational culture, and sustainability. He holds architecture degrees from the University of Toronto and MIT.

Scott_Francisco_Headshot_BW_Nepal.jpg
linkedin.png

Dr. Sarah Jane Wilson

Director of Nature-Based Projects

Sarah is a forest geographer with a background in ecology (MSc, BSc), human geography and tropical forests (PhD). Her research and practice connect culture and ecology in landscapes urban and rural, including conservation and restoration strategies, education, and community engagement. She has worked with community-based forest restoration and conservation enterprises in montane cloud forests in Andean Ecuador and the Nepalese Himalaya, and in lowland jungle in Guatemala’s Peten. Recent postdoc work with the University of Michigan and with the PARTNERS reforestation network focused on understanding the social and ecological drivers and outcomes of community forestry and restoration - and on crafting action-oriented research for the field. She has also served as a consultant and reviewer for many organizations, including the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, International Tropical Timber Organization, The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, and Conservation International, and multiple academic publications. A recipient of the prestigious L’Oreal Women in Science Mentorship Award, she is dedicated to teaching and developing communities of practice around pressing social and environmental challenges.

Scott_Francisco_Headshot_BW_Nepal.jpg
linkedin.png

Mack Phillips

Programs Lead

Mack is a strategist focusing on the design and implementation of innovative connections between urban, exurban and rural issues. With Pilot Projects he has helped lead the development of the Forest Footprint for Cities, the Partner Forest Program, and the Sustainable Wood for Cities guide. Mack’s research work centres around urban, exurban and rural intersections of architecture, sustainable development, land use, and resource theory. His prior research has been supported by SSHRC and MITACS and has covered topics such as optimal urbanization in suburban Montréal, the development of transit-oriented landscape amenities in exurban Sweden, and now focuses on the impact of urban consumption – including construction – on tropical forests and the global south. Prior to Pilot Projects, Mack has worked in various architecture offices in Canada and the Netherlands since 2014.

Scott_Francisco_Headshot_BW_Nepal.jpg
linkedin.png

Michael Southwood

Project Manager

Michael develops, plans and delivers strategic projects that strengthen the ties between urban environments and sustainable landscapes. Michael holds a M.Plan. Planning and Sustainable Development from University College Cork, Ireland, and a B.A Urban Planning from Concordia University, Montreal. He has worked as a planner in both Ireland and Canada. His academic interests are also shaped by a childhood spent in post-apartheid South Africa, a country he deeply loves. An outdoors enthusiast, Michael enjoys woodworking, drawing, and growing his own food. Ask him about growing gourmet mushrooms—a passion he is keen to share.

Scott_Francisco_Headshot_BW_Nepal.jpg
linkedin.png

Valeria Romano Lara

Sustainable Development Consultant

Valeria graduated from The London School of Economics and Political Science with a Master's Degree in Development and Anthropology. She has worked on many projects both in the private and public sector, focusing on design, management, and evaluation. She has also experience in building strategic partnerships for project development. Currently, she directs a social outreach project at Universidad San Francisco de Quito, where she is a course leader.

Scott_Francisco_Headshot_BW_Nepal.jpg
linkedin.png
bottom of page