Women in Timber Power Hour at the 2024 International Mass Timber Conference – Empowering Timber Trailblazers and Building Connections with the Women’s Forest Congress

By: Whitney Geier, LEVER Architecture and Erin Walker-Anderson, Swinerton

One of the most in-demand, highly anticipated activities at the 2024 International Mass Timber Conference (IMTC) – Women in Timber Power Hour – is just around the corner, and we couldn’t be more excited about it.  We want to extend an invitation to everyone who is attending the IMTC to join the event, and especially conference attendees who are also members of the Women’s Forest Congress community and work in the sector from the forest floor to manufacturing to the built environment – we are all Women in Timber!

Hosted by LEVER Architecture, Swinerton, and Timberlab, we’ve pulled out all the stops to make this year’s gathering even more incredible, including hosting it in the beautiful, naturally-lit atrium of the Oregon Convention Center. It’s an opportunity you won’t want to miss!

The Women in Timber Power Hour is an inclusive space to connect women, non-binary, female-identifying individuals, and allies in the timber industry. Whether you are a seasoned professional or just starting your career, our goal is to network, spark meaningful conversations, learn from one another, and build a more sustainable future together. 

Mark your calendars for Thursday, March 28, from 9 A.M. to 10 A.M., immediately following the opening keynote by Ted Talk speaker Emily Pilloton-Lam. Her insights on inclusion, diversity, and opportunities for women in the Architectural/Engineering/Construction (AEC) community will set the stage for an unforgettable day of empowerment and learning. 

We feel it’s critical to take a moment during the busy week of IMTC and carve out space and time for the growing number of women, non-binary, and female-identifying individuals in the industry. What better way to close out the week than with several hundred of your newest friends championing one another in a traditionally male-dominated industry?! 

With nearly 250 registered, spots are filling up fast! Don’t miss your chance to be a part of this industry-impacting event. Registration is free to IMTC attendees, but space is limited, so secure your spot today. 

At this year’s event you can expect delicious pastries and coffee, inspiring conversations, and unique swag bags filled with goodies you won’t find anywhere else. 

When we envisioned this event last year, we decided the opportunity for women, non-binary, and female-identifying individuals to have an inclusive space to network and share stories was paramount, and that remains our vision. 

We couldn’t do this without the incredible support of our sponsors, and we thank MiTek, Inc., Holmes, LEVER Architecture, Timberlab, Swinerton, KPFF, Smartlam, and WoodWorks for their generous giving and impact. We are committed to keeping this event free for attendees, and all sponsorship dollars will go towards the cost of the event. Any additional proceeds will be donated to The Women’s Forest Congress to continue supporting women in the industry.

So come join us in Portland next month and let’s continue to grow together at the Women in Timber Power Hour! 

About the authors:

Whitney Geier, LEVER Architecture
Whitney leads marketing and business development for the Pacific Northwest Region at LEVER Architecture. Since the very start of her career as an AEC marketer she has been passionate about diversifying the industry through building authentic connections and creating opportunities for small, BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and women-owned firms in the Pacific Northwest and beyond. She has been directly involved with LEVER’s equity initiatives to date and regularly works alongside project teams to increase the firm’s diverse business participation goals. Whitney was also an inaugural board member on the SMPS Oregon JEDI Committee, which was established with a similar goal: to increase justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion in the AEC industry. LEVER, who is a pioneer and leader in mass timber research, design, and construction, has always had a strong presence at the International Mass Timber Conference—which is what sparked Whitney’s interest in creating and hosting a womens-focused event there. The International Mass Timber Conference has historically been representative of the industry (male-dominated), but in recent years more and more women, non-binary, female-identifying individuals, and allies have come to the forefront. The idea behind Women in Timber is to not only create an inclusive space for women and allies to network, share stories, and celebrate one another, but to also communicate that women are leading innovators in mass timber and always have been. Whitney is looking forward to seeing how this event will grow, evolve, and spark new developments in the future of mass timber.

Erin Walker-Anderson, Swinerton
Erin began her AEC marketing career at the start of 2020 leading the national conferences and events at the construction firm Swinerton.  Prior to joining the Swinerton team, she worked in a variety of different tech startups in Silicon Valley helping companies identify and find their brand voice and target audiences as they emerged into their markets.  The entirety of her career has been on focused developing unique, inclusive, and positive experiences through the power of gathering people together.  One of the things that has always been a constant over the years in her career is the lack of diversity within the corporate world.  When the opportunity presented itself to help co-create an inclusive space for the women, non-binary, female-identifying individuals within the mass timber industry, she was excited to join the team to carve out space and make an impact in male dominated market.  The idea behind the Women in Timber gathering is to show how powerful women are not only within the mass timber industry, but anywhere they land, and to provide those that attend a safe space to share the experiences that led them there.