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Adriana Chávez, Victor Rico, and Elena Tudela founded ORU – Oficina de Resiliencia Urbana in Mexico City in 2018. Working across the academic, public, and private sectors, the practice advocates for “scaled-up architectural thinking to foster new futures of interconnected urban regions, strengthened ecological structures, and resilient human and non-human communities,” in its own words. With a profound sensitivity to each project’s environmental and social context, ORU produces a broad spectrum of work, from regional analyses and strategic plans to landscapes, buildings, and exhibitions.
ORU won a 2021 World Landscape Architecture Award and was shortlisted for the 2022 Mies Crown Hall Americas Prize. The practice has participated in the Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism and the Venice Biennale of Architecture.
Adriana Chávez holds a BArch from Ibero-American University (IBERO), a diploma in sustainable architecture from the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, and an MArch and master’s in design studies from Harvard University GSD. She is an adjunct assistant professor at both Columbia University GSAPP and Syracuse University.
Victor Rico holds a BArch from Anahuac University, a diploma in public space and safer cities from IBERO, and a master’s of architecture in urban design from Harvard University GSD. He has taught at Anahuac University and the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).
Elena Tudela holds a BArch from UNAM and a master’s of architecture in urban design from Harvard University GSD. She is an associate professor at UNAM.
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ORU - Office of Urban Resilience is a women and minority-led urban and landscape design practice focusing on building resilience to climate change.
We believe in the transformative power of urban design and landscape infrastructure to shape new futures of interconnected urban regions, strengthened ecological structures, environmentally integrated cities, and resilient communities.
They design processes for integrating urban and environmental dynamics at different scales and within multiple social, economic, and political contexts. Their projects seek to generate socio-environmental impact through applied research and collective processes.
ORU's team brings together more than ten years of experience in the academic, public, and private sectors and multilateral organizations. ORU works from a collaborative approach, forming interdisciplinary teams to connect the best solutions to the most pressing needs of regions, cities, and communities.
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The Architectural League’s annual Emerging Voices award spotlights North American individuals and firms with distinct design voices that have the potential to influence the disciplines of architecture, landscape architecture, and urban design. The jury reviews significant bodies of realized work and considers accomplishments within design and academia.
The work of each Emerging Voice represents the best of its kind and addresses larger issues within architecture, landscape, and the built environment.