With a passion for the finished product and an aptitude for delivery, Monica has demonstrated her versatility as a project architect with experience leading education, residential, civic, sport and health projects.

With a career spanning over 25 years, Monica has worked part time for most of this period. This work life inspired a spirit of advocacy to agitate for structural reform of the profession. Monica is keen to see architecture move away from traditional hierarchies where design outcomes are influenced by status or availability, towards a process which sees design cultivated through the robust testing of ideas via collaborations which mirror society, assembled on diverse capabilities and life experiences. Part of the team at SJB, Monica embeds representation in her design practise, seeking for a sustainable, dynamic built environment which facilitates the on-going adaption of space by users, well after the initial contribution of the architect.

A foundation member of the Australian Institute of Architects NSW Chapter Gender Equity Taskforce (GET), Monica reasons that authentic change in the profession is best enabled using a top down bottom up approach. Instrumental in the team that brought the Champions of Change to architecture, Monica has maintained a close affiliation with the program. She has witnessed the transformation of each Champion as they uncover the structural inequities within their practice to become committed advocates through targeted modifications of their business, ultimately influencing the wider profession. Alongside this, Monica also prepared and coordinated a cross-generation cross-practice mentor program for the Institute’s NSW Chapter. The program aimed to foster proficiency in career planning for architects over the career spectrum whilst providing a secure scaffold as they navigate the unwritten rules of practice.

Monica is a regular tutor, guest critic and guest lecturer for undergraduate courses in NSW. She is a passionate advocate for building a profession that not only looks up, seeking continual personal improvement; but also looks down and sideways, shaping resilience to adapt to a future which fully embraces the potential of all participants.