Stephanie Firestone is a global thought leader advancing livable communities for all people of all ages and abilities. She is a Senior Strategic Policy Advisor with AARP International, where she leads global initiatives to advance the planning, design and development of enabling & equitable housing and multigenerational communities. Stephanie leads the Equity by Design initiative, which engages built environment professionals from around the world to incorporate aging and equity considerations in their work and explores replicable innovations through the Principles in Action case study and innovator interview series. Stephanie has worked internationally on sustainability issues and holds a Masters of Urban & Environmental Planning.

Matt is senior director at the Urban Land Institute, where he supports the organization’s Healthy Places program and other initiatives. Through the Healthy Places program, Matt advances efforts to leverage the power of ULI’s global networks to shape projects and places in ways that improve the health of people and communities. He is the primary or contributing author of eleven major ULI publications, including Reshaping the City: Zoning for a More Equitable, Resilient, and Sustainable Future and Parking Policy Innovations in the United States. Matt has presented original research at 30+ national conferences, workshops, and webinars.

Dan is an architect, urban designer, and the founding principal of Opticos Design, which has grown into a nationally sought-after company of thought leaders in urban placemaking, innovative housing design and policy, and zoning reform. He has been featured in many high-profile publications including The New York Times, The Washington Post, NextCity, and Professional Builder. Dan coined the term “Missing Middle Housing” and is a champion of the now-international Missing Middle Housing movement.

Rachel MacCleery is Co-Executive Director of the Lewis Center for Sustainability in Real Estate at the Urban Land Institute, where she leads the real estate industry in creating places and buildings where people and the environment thrive. In this role, Rachel provides strategic direction for the Lewis Center’s programs on sustainability, resilience, health and the built environment. Between 2013 and 2022, she led ULI’s Building Healthy Places program, which leveraged the power of ULI’s global networks to shape projects and places in ways that improve the health of people and communities, and prior to that she led ULI’s Infrastructure Initiative.