The Building of Community: Farida Abu-Bakare on Her Growth in the Industry, Engaging with Youth, and Affecting Change

By Julia Gamolina

Farida Abu-Bakare is an Associate and licensed Project Architect at the global architecture, design, engineering and planning firm, HOK. Farida has lived and worked with HOK internationally to build an extensive portfolio including workplace, corporate headquarters, higher education, aviation, justice, science and advanced technology projects. At HOK, Farida is board member of the HOK Diversity Council, which aims to promote an equitable and inclusive work environment where everyone can thrive.

Outside of HOK, Farida is the emeritus Community Affairs Director of Atlanta’s NOMA Chapter (National Organization of Minority Architects) whose mission is to champion diversity within the design profession. Her work with NOMA led her to found BAIDA (Black Architects and Interior Designers Association) which promotes diversity, equity and inclusion in the profession of architecture and interior design in Canada. In her interview with Julia, Farida talks about navigating the culture of architecture, advising those just starting their careers to embrace failure on the path to growth.

JG: How did your interest in architecture first develop? 

FAB: My interest in architecture developed early when I was in middle school in Canada. My mother is an artist but had a career in accounting and banking most of her life and later managed the business and finances of my father’s medical practice. She taught me the value of developing both my creative talents and their connections to empirical science and math. She enrolled me in every arts and science after-school program she could find focused on math - like KUMON – as well as drawing and painting classes.

As I grew older, and more focused I told my parents and anyone that would listen that I was destined to become an architect. My parents immediately sought out close and extended family and friends who worked in architecture to provide me with guidance and insights. These interactions were especially impactful as I had real examples of what working for a large architecture firm or practicing as a sole proprietorship would look like even before I began my undergraduate studies in architecture.

NOMAtlanta Project Pipeline Camp at Ralph J. Bunche Middle School in Atlanta, Georgia, USA pictured with the middle students, parents, teaches and HOK Design Principal Todd Bertsch .

What did you learn about yourself in studying it?

I learned a lot about myself. I had excelled and overachieved in high school, but I struggled a lot throughout my undergraduate and graduate studies. This new architecture studio environment was hyper-competitive and overly critical, and I found it difficult to find my own voice and keep up with my classmates. I would often fall victim to impostor syndrome. Despite all this I was determined, resilient and eventually found my footing and began building a strong foundation for my professional career. 

How did you get your start in the field?

In my final years of undergraduate and graduate studies I worked as an intern at small architecture firms in Thunder Bay and Toronto, Ontario. When I completed my graduate studies in 2012 in Toronto, Ontario I started to look critically at the advice and feedback I had heard from other black architects I’d met through NOMA (National Organization of Minority Architects). I had met several architects practicing and thriving in the HOK US offices at the 2011 Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. I felt HOK was the best fit for me, seeing the diversity of representation and the global reach of 24 offices worldwide. I applied for every role possible to get into the door and was eventually hired as a Receptionist – this after earning my Master’s Degree in architecture. While on reception, I was able to slowly negotiate my way into the architecture studio with my portfolio and strong software skills from my studies. After just six months, I applied for an Intern Architect position in Calgary, Alberta and moved to HOK Calgary office to begin practicing in unrest and logging hours to achieve licensure.

“I can remember as a graduate student the immense joy I felt when I met a black female architect for the first time, so I can only imagine the validation I would have felt if I had met one as a young child.”

I know you also worked in the Atlanta office – how did that come about? 

The downturn of the oil and gas market was a springboard to my move to the HOK office there in November of 2015. I parleyed my technical experience working in the oil and gas fields to working with HOK’s Science and Technology group. I reveled in the commitment to science this group has and was continually in awe of how we were able to create spaces that not only advance innovative scientific discovery but that are the homes of discoveries shaping our world.

I left HOK Atlanta in July of 2017 for love - my now husband was in Canada and I wanted to be back home with him. My first project was in New York, Terminal B at LaGuardia Airport. I had been travelling to New York since I was 16, often through LaGuardia Airport so to be able to contribute this massive public infrastructure redesign felt personal. As an architect I find myself always searching for the inherent harmony that exists between architecture and the people who experience it and experiencing this airport firsthand as a traveler left me full of joy.

Where are you in your career today?

Today I am an Associate and licensed Project Architect, and believe that architecture and design are tools to support and empower the communities that we live and work in. Within HOK I have found opportunities to contribute by running local initiatives for HOK Impact, a volunteer arm that organizes involvement in local charities.

I am also a board member of the HOK Diversity Council, which aims to promote an inclusive business environment and a culture where people with varied backgrounds, perspectives, skills and experience can work to meet global client needs with creative and innovative solutions. Continuing a long tradition of mentorship within the profession I have spearheaded the HOK Mentoring Program in multiple offices. These programs aim to empower emerging professionals within the firm to seek out opportunities to build leadership skills.

Outside of HOK, I am the emeritus Community Affairs Director of NOMA Chapter NOMAtlanta whose mission is to champion diversity within the design professions. My work with NOMA led me to found BAIDA (Black Architects and Interior Designers Association) which promotes diversity, equity and inclusion in the profession of architecture and interior design in Canada.

Farida Abu-Bakare pictured in HOK office in Atlanta, Georgia

HOK Diversity Council x Building Equality in Architecture Toronto (BEAT) panel talk at HOK office in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Looking back at it all, what have been the biggest challenges?

The biggest challenge has been navigating the culture of architecture. The field of architecture is structured in such a way that it keeps the status quo - white, economically privileged men firmly in place. In the year 2020 Black women make up just 0.4 % of the architecture and design community. Underrepresentation, racial discrimination, and combating negative racial stereotypes about intellectual inferiority can really cause Black women to feel like impostors despite having remarkable resumes and important perspectives.

Admittedly there have been a lot of moving parts to our communities over the past few months, but beyond these new conversations we live in a society that consistently communicates to Black women that they are not worthy of corporate professional success. Studies show that Black women have less access to supervisory support, professional development, and are also paid less than their colleagues.

I have been very lucky and sought out mentorship from leaders within our firm and trailblazers within our community to guide me. I have seen firsthand the positive effects of building your own community, proactively expanding your network and focusing your energy on projects and communities that value you.

What have been the highlights?

The highlights of my career have been the opportunities to give back to the communities I have lived in. As Community Affair Director of NOMA Chapter NOMAtlanta, I curated and hosted a Project Pipeline camp for a group of middle school students during their Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (S.T.E.A.M.) week. Project Pipeline was started at a NOMA conference in 2005 with the hope of introducing middle school aged BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) students to architecture and inspire them to pursue an education in the Architecture and Engineering fields.

I believe that representation is part of inspiring and empowering the pipeline of the architecture and design community and a way to affect real change in the culture of architecture. Any opportunity to engage with youth is a highlight as any chance encounter or interaction could be the moment of validation needed for them to commit to pursuing your profession. I can remember as a graduate student the immense joy I felt when I met a black female architect for the first time, so I can only imagine the validation I would have felt if I had met one as a young child.

“The building of space is the building of community, the two are not interchangeable so we must begin to approach design this way as architects.”

Who are you admiring right now and why?

I am always admiring the architects of the continent of Africa. They are steadily cultivating new traditions in and rebuilding whole countries and cities into a new architectural typology of African Architecture.

Alongside prolific icons like Pierre Goudiaby Atepa, are trailblazers like Francis Kéré and David Adjaye who have inspired a whole new generation of talent like Kunlé Adeyemi of NLÉ and Mokena Makeka of Makeka Design Lab. Notably the lack of female representation in architecture is very apparent in Africa, so it has be incredibly inspirational to see the emerging talents of Mariam Kamara of Atelier Masomi and Tosin Oshinowo of CmDesign Atelier.

I am inspired by architecture that is being done separately from Western Classicism and Modern traditions. The continent is full of so many possibilities and there are plenty of opportunities to create, contribute and participate to its development. With all this untapped potential, it is incredibly important that Africans in the diaspora find ways to work, visit and invest in Africa.

What is the impact you’d like to have on the world? What is your core mission?

I would like to leave an impact that redefines the role of the architect in our communities. As architects and designers, we can find ourselves only surrounded by likeminded individuals. There is no progress, growth, or diversity in thought by networking within just the architecture and design community.

My core mission is to find ways to engage an inspire communities to not just pay attention to good design but to understand its value and constantly seek it out. Architecture is ambitious and if we strive for inclusive built environments and design we will contribute to a sustainable, equal and less segregated society. The building of space is the building of community, the two are not interchangeable so we must begin to approach design this way as architects.

Downtown West Development District in Dubai, UAE.

Finally, what advice do you have for those starting their career? Would your advice be any different for women? 

For those starting your career I would advise that you be open to failure. Failure is not something you should avoid but something you should embrace, give yourself the space to fail. By its very nature creative endeavors come with a lot of rejection and my career is not unique in that aspect. Architecture is about problem solving and a mistake or misstep is just another puzzle. I say this because those mistakes were lessons that made way for growth and growth is what continues to propel my career forward.

The only difference in my advice to women and gender non-conforming people would be to resist the push to diminish or compromise yourself to fit into studio culture. Select a firm and school that celebrates you, and listens to all your unique insights, skills, talents, and attributes. Women belong in conversations about the built environment and can be the catalysts of a more inclusive physical world. The future of inclusion depends on us to amplify our voices and to trust in our own expertise and talents. In doing so, we are building safe and healthy spaces for everyone to excel and inspire others to follow.