Winter Issue 2022 - 29

Initiative's first comprehensive
research study, Women in Leadership
in the Real Estate and Land
Use Industry, released in 2015,
many polled stressed how establishing
industry relationships outside
of their own companies was
tantamount to their success. Klasson
maintains that the importance
of allies for women is key.
" We're lucky at ULI that we have
men on our executive committee
who are real, true advocates of
women, and I think we just need
more men to really put themselves
in the shoes of women and make
sure that they are giving opportunities
equitably throughout the organizations, "
she says.
Clare De Briere, executive vice
president at Skanska USA Commercial
Development and a member
of ULI's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
(DEI) Committee, says she has
seen improvements in recent years.
When she began in the industry
30 years ago, she recalls being the
" only woman at the table. " Now
she says that is no longer the case,
but WLI still has more work to do.
" I think what the Women's
Leadership Initiative needs to continue
to focus on is to provide the
leadership opportunities within ULI
and ensure that we are constantly
pushing for those leadership
opportunities for women, " says De
Briere, who is also a former chair
of ULI Los Angeles. " That means
ensuring that there are women in
senior levels who have mentoring
opportunities. "
To address this, WLI recently
piloted a mentoring program that
connected women beyond their
immediate geographic region and
provided access to discussions
with and guidance from industry
leaders.
The WLI Circles program,
designed for a small group of
women, provides an opportunity
in which full members of the Institute
are able to meet and have
honest, heartfelt discussions and
get logistical support from ULI staff.
The women meet monthly and are
organized by dedicated leaders.
A total of 52 women, with 20
percent being women of color, participated
in the meetings. Each of
the four circles had a facilitator and
guest speakers.
Ada Chan, a ULI Los Angeles
member and senior vice president
of commercial real estate banking
at Bank of America, says she
missed having female mentors
earlier in her career.
" I didn't have too many women
mentors or peers and wanted
to build camaraderie with more
women in the industry who are
also full members of ULI, " she
says. " It was through Circles that I
really felt there was a camaraderie
within our group, that we had each
other's back. "
Architect Gianna Pigford, who
previously was the WLI chair for
ULI Dallas-Fort Worth, also participated
in the Circles program. She
says it opened up opportunities for
her and that she appreciated being
able to talk freely without fear of
retribution.
" Having the support of someone
who champions you is what helps
a lot of people get ahead, and
being a woman of color, you don't
always have that, " says Pigford,
who is also on the WLI Executive
Committee. " I never thought that I
would. "
Today, WLI is a critical component
of ULI's DEI strategy, and a
team of professionals, working
alongside members, is responsible
for implementing this strategy
toward accomplishing its goals
daily.
Sonia Huntley, ULI senior vice
president of diversity, equity, and
inclusion, says WLI has been at
the genesis of ULI's DEI work and
laid the foundation for infusing
actionable applications across
the Institute. " The value WLI has
contributed to accelerating the
representation of women as members
of ULI in its first 10 years is
immense, " Huntley says. " And
building on what WLI has accomplished
and gleaning meaningful
practices to inform and further DEI
efforts across the Americas region
and the industry puts us at a great
WINTER 2022
URBAN LAND
27
At the 2015 ULI Fall Meeting,
WLI cofounder Kathleen
Carey (left) moderates a
discussion of the ULI report,
Women in Leadership in the
Real Estate and Land Use
Industry.
ULI/VELLUM MEDIA
Winter Issue 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Winter Issue 2022
