About architect

Segene Park, AIA

• AIA International Board of Directors since 2022 • 2025 First Vice President • 2026-2027 President-Elect • 2023-2024 Secretary • Chair of 2022 AIA International Spring Conference (held with UIA and ULI Japan) • Chair of AIA International 2025 Osaka Expo Event

• AIA Japan Board of Directors since 2016 • 2021 President  • 2022 Chair of Honorary Fellow Council and Strategic & Accreditation • Design Awards Chair since 2022

• Urban Land Institute (ULI) Japan / Urban Plan Workshop Committee Member since 2021 • Instructor since 2025

• The Cliff Dwellers member since 2005 • 2008 – 2010 Arts Foundation Committee Member

• Nikken Sekkei Senior Architect • Masterplanner • Project Manager since 2015

• Nihon University, College of Science and Technology, Nihon University, Department of Oceanic Architecture and Engineering Adjunct Professor since 2025

• RenoVolt 2009 – 2012 Partner

• Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill (SOM) Chicago, 2006 – 2009 Regional Representative

• Epstin (Annex5) Chicago 2003 – 2006 Project Designer

• Defense Security Agency (DSA), Ministry of Defense Republic of Korea 1998 – 2000 Chief`s Assistant (General Officer)

Segene Park, AIA, born in Seoul, Korea in 1973, is a distinguished architect and urban planner with a rich and diverse professional journey that spans the United States, Korea, and Japan.

He began his education in the U.S. in 1990 at Lake Forest Academy, later transferring to Mather High School in Chicago. He earned recognition at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) in 1996, received the John E. Walley Memorial Scholarship in 2002, and completed his bachelor’s degree in architecture in 2003. Between 1998 and 2001, Segene served with Korea’s Defense Security Agency (DSA), where he was honored with the 2001 Excellence of Duty Award while serving as the chief’s private assistant.

After graduation, he joined Epstein’s Annex 5 in Chicago as a project designer, contributing to award-winning projects widely published in Architectural Record, The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, and other major outlets. In 2007, he joined Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), where he gained international experience and contributed to landmark projects, including a 354-meter tower in Russia showcased at the Venice Biennale in 2008 as a symbol of Russian modern architecture.

Following his marriage and relocation to Tokyo, Segene joined Nikken Sekkei in 2015, Japan’s largest design firm, where his focus expanded to urban planning. He has led teams to three major international competition victories and, between 2020 and 2023, won four consecutive Architecture and Urban Planning Awards in Moscow, selected from 1,513 nominated residential complexes and judged by over 400 independent experts. His expertise spans architecture and urbanism across residential, office, hospitality, museums, convention centers, supertall towers, TOD, smart cities, IT campuses, mixed-use developments, and landscape design.

Beyond practice, Segene has actively contributed to education and professional organizations. Since 2020, he has hosted lectures and facilitated academic exchanges, most recently between universities in Japan and China. As an instructor and committee member for ULI Japan’s UrbanPlan program, conducted jointly with AIA Japan, he has collaborated with leading universities in Japan. He also serves as an adjunct professor at Nihon University and a guest design critic at institutions across Japan, mentoring the next generation of architects.

Segene has shared his expertise globally as a keynote speaker at the United Nations High-Level Political Forum, a panelist at the ULI Asia Pacific Summit, and a lecturer across APEC countries. His leadership extends to AIA Japan, where he served as President (2021), Vice President (2020), Secretary (2019), and Board Member (2017–present). During his presidency, the chapter grew by 150% and formalized partnerships with the Japan Institute of Architects (JIA) and ULI Japan. He represented the chapter in international forums, including AIA Capitol Hill Day in Washington, D.C., where he advocated for sustainability and advanced the profession at the legislative level.

At AIA International, he currently serves as First Vice President (2025) and previously as Secretary (2023). He chaired the AIA International Spring Conference, the first joint conference with the UIA and ULI Japan, and later chaired the 2025 Osaka Expo, which drew nearly 900 participants and global partners. Under his leadership, participation and collaboration have expanded significantly, establishing strong relationships with JIA, KIA, HKIA, ASC, SGBF, GBJ, SAME, ULI Asia Pacific, and other organizations worldwide.

Segene is also dedicated to the arts and cultural exchange. Since 2005, he has been a member of Chicago’s historic Cliff Dwellers Club and served on the CD Arts Foundation Committee (2008–2012), supporting grants for artists, cultural events, and music competitions.

Through his creative work, academic contributions, and leadership, Segene Park continues to shape architecture and urbanism globally, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and promoting innovation in design and professional practice.