Phoebe Crisman

Phoebe Crisman is a Professor of Architecture and Director of UVA’s pan-university Global Studies program. She also oversees the Environments and Sustainability track of the Interdisciplinary Major in Global Studies. In August 2023, she began her role as Principal of UVA’s International Residential College after serving as Director of Studies from 2019-2023.

Working in overlooked places and with people underserved by design, she employs a model of engaged design research to test abstract ideas and create more sustainable communities. Her current work is focused in three areas: NSF-funded climate adaptation design projects in Norfolk, VA, sustainable water infrastructure and heritage preservation in Cairo, and Indigenous Ecologies research with tribal communities in South Dakota and South Africa. Crisman also led UVA’s India Initiative, which focuses on the specific challenges and opportunities found in the emerging megacities and enduring villages of the Indian subcontinent.