BRACE’s membership and Board of Directors is comprised of a dynamic group of social entrepreneurs that includes architects, designers, engineers, educators and students.

OFFICERS + BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Anthony Piermarini, AIA

Co-Founder + President, BR+A+CE

Principal, Studio Luz Architects

Anthony Piermarini, AIA received his first professional Bachelors of Architecture degree at Cornell University (1997) and post-professional Masters of Architecture II degree at the Harvard Design School (1999). Anthony is a Massachusetts Registered Architect and a recipient of the 2010 National AIA Young Architects Award. Anthony’s approach emerges from a design philosophy that is sensitive to the specific culture and climate in which architecture operates. He seeks to strengthen the interrelationships between design, technology and the environment in which we build. He is an advocate for making design accessible and potent, as demonstrated in his firm’s participation in the 1% Pro Bono program. Anthony is currently an Assistant Professor at Roger Williams University.

Hansy Better Barraza, AIA, LEED AP

Co-Founder + Treasurer, BR+A+CE

Principal, Studio Luz Architects

Born in Barranquilla, Colombia, Hansy L. Better Barraza, received her first professional Bachelors of Architecture degree from Cornell University (1997) and a Masters of Architecture in Urban Design from the Harvard Design School (2000).  As an Emerita Professor of Architecture at the Rhode Island School of Design and as well as a practitioner, Hansy offers an intense focus on design methods that embrace social responsibility as she works with clients to reach their goals for every project. Hansy’s work fuses handcraft and digital fabrication techniques to bridge the advancement of the means and methods of construction with an awareness to the working of materials that ties it to a specific culture, environment, or manufacturing process. Recently, her book Where are the Utopian Visionaries? Architecture of Social Exchange was published by Periscope Ltd., located in Pittsburgh, and distributed worldwide by Prestel Press. The Boston Business Journal and El Planeta highlighted Hansy as one of 20 Hispanic executives making a difference in Boston.

Joshua Ssebuwufu

Clerk, BR+A+CE

Designer + Project Manager, Studio Luz Architects

Joshua is a designer and project manager at Studio Luz, where he works to create spaces where people can live, work, learn and play. His design work is rooted in his passion for justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. Josh has worked on a diverse range of projects including affordable housing projects, TDI MassDevelopment Asset Mapping projects, and the upcoming Dewitt Playground Renovation. Joshua is a graduate from Wentworth Institute of Technology, where he earned both his Bachelor of Science in Architecture and Master of Architecture degrees. 

Peter Robinson

Trustee + Director, BR+A+CE

Founding Director, WorkUrban
Assistant Professor, Cornell University College of Architecture, Art, and Planning

Peter Robinson is the founder of WorkUrban, a design consultancy with the principal mission to promote effective urbanism around the world through community engagement and participatory design. WorkUrban’s recent collaborations include Brownsville Heritage House, Medgar Evers College Preparatory School, Universe City, and My Brother’s Keeper Alliance. As a founding board member of BlackSpace Urbanist Collective — a nonprofit organization that demands a present and future where Black people, Black spaces, and Black culture matter and thrive — Robinson utilizes his strong belief in the power of collaboration to advance student advocacy and create community change. BlackSpace was recognized as one of “The 10 Most Innovative Architecture Companies of 2021” by Fast Company. A native of Kingston, Jamaica, Robinson was raised in both Kingston and New York City, where he graduated from the High School of Art and Design. He earned a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Cornell University and a Master of Science in Architecture and Urban Design from Columbia University. He has worked at a number of noted architectural practices in the areas of design, management, and design strategy, greatly contributing to the successful futures of leading corporate, cultural, religious, and academic institutions.

Kamran Zahedi

Trustee + Director, BR+A+CE

President, Urbanica, Inc.

Kamran Zahedi is the President of Urbanica Inc. Graduating from MIT in 1980 with a degree in Architecture and Civil Engineering, Kamran made Boston as his home base and began his entreprenuerial ventures at a young age. He traveled up north to work on renovating old mills in New Hampshire. For the past 30 years, by happenstance and by strategy, he has worked on more than a dozen renovations and new-built projects of various scale; each unique with its historical contexts and challenges. Driven by a passion for reimagining a new future for urban living, a penchant for progressive design and a respect for existing context, Kamran has created a niche for transforming and revitalizing living, working and playing spaces in Boston. With great energy, Kamran continues to search for new ideas and inspirations in creating great spaces.

Erin Birmingham Anadu, Esq.

Director, BR+A+CE

Founder & Managing Broker, Brum & Co

As a Massachusetts licensed attorney since 2008 and a licensed broker for over 10 years, Erin became a Realtor to put her superior negotiation skills to work for the people of Massachusetts, helping advocate on her clients’ behalf through difficult once-in-a-lifetime real estate decisions. In 2021, Erin brought this vision to life and founded Brum & Company LLC. Erin graduated with honors from Northeastern University and received the Jacobs Burns Medal of distinction upon graduation from law school.

David Tuckey

Director, BR+A+CE

Structural Engineer, LeMessurier

David is a structural consultant at LeMessurier. He endeavors to deliver client-centered service while contributing to and leading the structural design effort on a variety of new and renovation projects. Prior to joining LeMessurier in 2015, David gained significant experience as a licensed residential builder in Michigan, where he owned a successful small business and performed much of the work. David graduated from the University of Michigan Ann Arbor in 2014 with his BSE in Civil Engineering and in 2015 with his MSE in Structural Engineering.

BOARD OF ADVISORS

Antonia Better-Wirz

Advisor, BR+A+CE

CT Director of Network Support & Connections, All Our Kin Educational Consultants

Trained in early childhood education, Antonia Better-Wirz is an educational consultant and parent advocate for various community organizations in Stamford and Fairfield County. She served on the Board of Stamford Achieves to close the achievement gap in Stamford’s public schools (2013-2016). For over 15 years Ms. Better-Wirz has been an advocate, advisor, and community organizer for low-income families, especially those in the Latino immigrant community. She currently works as an Educational Consultant for All Our Kin in Stamford. All Our Kin trains, supports, and sustains community child care providers to ensure that children and families have the foundation they need to succeed in school and in life.  Antonia is originally from Barranquilla, Colombia, and she speaks fluent Spanish. She has been volunteering for BR+A+CE since its founding and in 2010, she authored Children All Over the World Love Hammocks for the Big Hammock Project.

 

Griscel Diaz

Advisor, BR+A+CE

Project Manager, Programming Planning and Occupancy, HRPMO, Harvard University

Griscel Diaz is an architect specializing in the design of High End Residential, Medical and Educational spaces. Her interests include cycling, kayaking, hiking, and camping, as well as sewing, repurposing furniture and building things. Her philosophy as a designer is to attempt understand the culture, values and intentions at play in each design problem she is faced with, in order to reach a more appropriate and meaningful solution. Griscel currently holds a B.Arch from the Boston Architectural College.

 

LEGAL COUNSEL

C. Thomas Swaim, Esq., Holland & Knight

 

ACCOUNTING

Jeanine Dias