What excites you about your career here at CLR?

It still putters on and on… thought I would go over the cliff years ago. Maybe I did and just never remembered?

What do you like about exhibit design?

Difficult to understand ecologies… Presented in a FUN way… And they force me to travel to exotic places.

What do you enjoy doing on the weekend?

Usual stuff… wildlife walks, reading, tv, sports.

Tell us something fun or funny about yourself that most people don’t know.

You already know. I Hate Pizza, Long Meetings, Bad Movies or Books.

What excites you about your career here at CLR?

I’ve always loved animals and wildlife, and I’m excited that working at CLR brings me closer to that interest through design. Little Nicole would have never imagined a career like this, and I’m excited to keep learning and growing here. I’m also grateful to be part of such a supportive team.

What do you like about exhibit design?

I love that exhibit design goes beyond aesthetics and requires a deep understanding of how animals live and thrive. That knowledge directly shapes environments that support their wellbeing. I also enjoy integrating those needs into engaging spaces that help people connect with animals in ways that are meaningful and impactful.

What do you enjoy doing on the weekend?

I enjoy experimenting with baking and cooking. I especially love making bread because I find the fermentation process interesting, and I’d like to eventually branch into brewing beer and wine.

Tell us something fun or funny about yourself that most people don’t know.

I have a convincing kid voice. From my teens into my early 20s, when I answered the phone, people often thought I was a well-spoken 10-year-old. In high school choir, there was a Christmas song with a brief narrative part where a child asks when Santa Claus is coming. After hearing me read it once, the director gave me the part without needing an audition.

What excites you about your career here at CLR?

The opportunity to work with some pretty brilliant people. Learning something new about the natural world every day…it doesn’t get much better than that.

What do you like about exhibit design?

After spending 2-3 years with a client and design team…dreaming up a vision, testing new ideas and thinking through every detail, then, seeing an animal step foot in a new environment for the very first time…pretty spectacular and one of the most gratifying things you can experience in our industry.

What do you enjoy doing on the weekend?

I love watching my kids play sports…and if I’m not doing that, surfing, running, or anything else outdoorsy with family and friends.

Tell us something fun or funny about yourself that most people don’t know.

I’m obsessed with good Mexican food. Actually, pretty average Mexican food will suffice. When I retire, I’m going to write a book on where to find the best nachos in the US.

What excites you about your career here at CLR?

I love the sense of purpose here, the work ethic, and the continual push for improvement and innovation.

What do you like about exhibit design?

The incredible opportunity for a designer to see their creations come to life and be a source of joy and wonder to people and animals.

What do you enjoy doing on the weekend?

Feeding people.

Tell us something fun or funny about yourself that most people don’t know.

I can impersonate a frog. I’m not expecting this to come as a surprise to people though.

What excites you about your career here at CLR?

I’m excited about the opportunity to work on these large public projects with conservation minded clients and some extremely talented people here at CLR.  Sustainable architecture is one of my primary interests and having clients who prioritize that make it possible to deliver on a successful project incorporating those concepts.

What do you like about exhibit design?

Exhibit design creates unique architectural challenges compared to other project types I’ve worked on.  Guest experience, animal well-being, and employee operations need to be approached thoughtfully, and I enjoy the way that the team at CLR works with clients to find design solutions.

What do you enjoy doing on the weekend?

I spend a lot of time outdoors; snowboarding, hiking, swimming, wakeboarding, mountain biking, camping… the list seems to keep growing.

Tell us something fun or funny about yourself that most people don’t know.

I don’t talk a lot about how much I enjoy art, sculpture especially but I try to see a lot of live music and stand-up comedy.  Luckily there’s a lot of it available in Philadelphia.

What excites you about your career here at CLR?

As an Architect, I love that our clients are making a difference in the conservation of our natural world and that our design work is always focused on supporting that effort.  It is inspiring to work with such dedicated people in many different professional realms and I am constantly learning something new!

What do you like about exhibit design?

Exhibit design requires creative solutions to so many unique challenges. I enjoy working through these challenges and solutions with a team of people that are deeply engaged in creating amazing, functional, inspiring, comfortable, and educational habitats for animals and humans alike.  Every project is incredibly unique and as a designer, I never see quite the same thing twice!

What do you enjoy doing on the weekend?

Getting outside in any way possible. My wife and I can often be found hiking, camping, gardening, or riding our bikes. On a long weekend we might combine activities and do some backpacking.

Tell us something fun or funny about yourself that most people don’t know.

I have had a lifelong fascination with insects.  My childhood bedroom was thoroughly decorated with “bugs”, bug lamp, bug sheets, bug sculptures… I even attended Bug Camp at our local university and ran an experiment on food preferences of carpenter ants.  Today I love to see what local insects are visiting the native pollinators we have planted around our house.