Suni Dillard, AIA

Suni Dillard, AIA

A first-generation college student, Dillard was drawn to the University of Oregon because of its leadership and research in the realm of sustainability. There she discovered a passion for integrating social and environmental challenges into design solutions at all scales. During her studies, Dillard co-authored a master plan for Salem, Oregon, a response to the Sustainable Cities Initiative, that took a cross-disciplinary approach to address its sustainability issues. The plan was officially adopted by Salem in 2011. Following her graduation, Dillard moved to Vermont to direct a state-funded project that developed models for resilient manufactured homes. The first of these homes was built in 2013 as a response to Tropical Storm Irene.

Today, Dillard is based in Boston, where she leads numerous education projects for HMFH Architects’ Cambridge office. She was the project architect for Bristol County Agricultural High School in Dighton, Massachusetts, which avoided approximately 221 total metric tons of carbon through its three new timber buildings. The project was also the first state-funded project to include composting toilets in Massachusetts. Her influence there is not limited to her design talents, and she guides HMFH’s Sustainability Committee as it develops new strategies for advocating for resilience in the built environment. In addition, Dillard is a supportive voice for emerging professionals in her role as HMFH’s licensing advisor.  

Dillard has been the driving force behind HMFH’s sustainable design initiatives and its participation in the AIA Materials Pledge and 2030 Commitment. She has developed systems and processes to guide client engagement and decision-making, which have been adopted as office-wide standards.

Outside of her firm, Dillard is eager to engage in leadership roles, and she has led the Carbon Leadership Forum Boston chapter’s education committee since 2020. In that role, she has created and shared educational content focused on embodied carbon. She also curates the nationally recognized Carbon 101 series, now a staple resource of AIA University, that explores the implementation of carbon reduction strategies. An active participant in the Massachusetts chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council, she was a conversation leader for the 2020 Municipal Summit, which engages government officials in the profession’s goal to reduce carbon emissions in New England.

As industrious as she is innovative, Dillard is a vital leader in the profession. Her important contributions to sustainability, coupled with her eagerness to share her knowledge with her peers and clients, will no doubt continue to have a positive effect on the built environment.