Liz Ogbu

Biography

Hosted by the School of Architecture, designer, urbanist and spatial justice activist Liz Ogbu is an inaugural University Fellow during the spring 2023 semester.  Ogbu's work aims to transform urban environments for spatial and racial justice. In 2012, she founded Studio O, a design and innovation consulting firm, and has worked with a range of clients, schools and organizations to shape urban design that catalyzes sustained social impact. She has been a featured lecturer and writer for a wealth of outlets, including TED, The New York Times and the Journal of Urban Design.

Ogbu previously worked with UVA as the Visiting Porter Chair in Urban and Environmental Planning for the School of Architecture for the spring 2017 semester and as an advisory board member of the Design Futures Forum, hosted by the school in summer 2022. Since 2015, with Studio O, she has worked closely with Piedmont Housing Alliance on a resident-driven redevelopment strategy for Friendship Court, an affordable housing complex in Charlottesville.  She currently serves on the School of Architecture's Dean's Advisory Board. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in architecture from Wellesley College and a Master of Architecture degree from the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University.

Headshot © Nye' Lyn Tho Photography