Hafsa Burt, a seasoned architect with 24 years of experience, leads hb+a Architects, a studio she founded in 2006. A graduate of SCAD with a Master of Architecture, her diverse portfolio spans from the San Francisco Airport to multifamily and medical office buildings.
As an environmental advocate, Burt champions carbon-neutral and regenerative building designs, focusing on indoor air quality and eliminating toxins. She’s a recognized expert in “Healthy Building Practices,” actively contributing to state-level legislation on the built environment and climate change.
Burt, a member of the AIA California Climate Action Committee, is involved in policy advocacy for decarbonizing construction and addressing Embodied Carbon.
Her accolades include ENR’s 20 Under 40, AIA Young Architects’ Honor Award, and design awards from Fast Company and the German Design Council.
A LEED Fellow with USGBC and GBCI, Burt’s leadership extends to her development arm, Box Lab, dedicated to zero energy/carbon building projects.
Success Story
Reshaping an industry requires much more than a vision. It also takes passion, resilience, and a tireless commitment to pursuing new solutions.
Hafsa Burt knows this well. She is the founder of hb+a Architects, a pioneering architecture firm that has led the way for nearly two decades in the area of eco-conscious building design.
Her passion for healthy buildings and environmental sustainability is reshaping the building industry and, in turn, creating a better world for all.
“Our planet is facing an existential crisis, with biomes declining and ecosystems at risk,” Burt shares. “Individually and collectively, we must take steps toward regeneration.
My profession plays a big role in environmental health, especially in the area of global greenhouse gas emissions. Consequently, I have a moral obligation to be a part of the solution, leaving the planet a better place for future generations.”
The obligation Burt feels for sustainability has inspired her to bring about meaningful change in the building world, initiating green building ordinances and elevating design standards.
She has become a trusted advisor to many seeking greater environmental balance, offering localized expertise with a global perspective. She also worked on the CalGreen Embodied Carbon Reduction measures, which go into effect on July 1st, 2024.
Yet Burt’s journey to success wasn’t without challenges. From dealing with burnout to protecting against plagiarism, she has learned many lessons that offer valuable insights to others in the business world.
Acknowledging the connection between passion and burnout
Burt’s success has been driven in large part by her passionate commitment to hard work. “Working hard is part of my nature,” she says. “I am driven by fervor more than by recognition.”
Burt has also experienced firsthand how burnout can impact one’s work. “Early in my career, I was too reserved to ask for help and seek mentorship,” she confesses.
“I assumed everybody who might be able to guide me was too busy. Instead of networking and connecting with mentors, I relied strictly on hard work, which sometimes led me to burnout.”
Giving credit where credit is due
“I strongly believe in giving credit where it is due,” she says. “If you take credit without deserving it, at some point the seams will show and credibility will be lost. Taking credit or downplaying others’ role is a pet peeve of mine and unfortunately is quite common.”
Her experience in the industry has taught Burt the importance of patent protection for her innovations. Box Lab — an arm of her firm that develops scalable, low carbon/zero energy prototypes for the real estate development sector — has produced several innovations protected by patents and copyrights.
Empowering small businesses to make big impacts Small businesses have concentrated, niche expertise which Burt feels strongly advocating for. “Many small businesses offer the perfect solution for challenging projects,” Burt shares.
“Their qualifications and knowledge are excellent on account of hands-on management and they can work with higher levels of efficiency than larger firms, delivering results without demanding excessive resources.”
Burt built hb+a Architects from the ground up, amassing an impressive portfolio in both the public and private sectors. The firm’s projects include work for prestigious entities including the San Francisco International Airport, the University of California at San Francisco, Warner Brothers/Super flyX, and YCS Investments.
Their current portfolio of completed projects and “onboarded” work spans from Sacramento to the South Bay with a presence also expanding in Los Angeles.
“I’m proud to say that our portfolio has been built on merit,” Burt says. “My clients know they will get quality based on depth of knowledge and experience, which has inspired them to trust us with their projects again and again. For a small business to have that kind of reputation is quite impressive.”
Burt also points out that small businesses bring the benefit of being hands-on problem solvers, which is especially important in her field. “There is always more than one solution to a problem,” she says. “I don’t believe in settling for the first idea that will work.
Experimentation allows you to explore a wide variety of solutions, identifying the best possible option after carefully studying and thinking through all aspects of the problem leads to innovation.”
Building character as you build your business
Undergirding all of Burt’s success is a commitment to deliver on her promises.
“A good friend of mine who is a highly reputable name in the real estate world once told me his success flows from a simple commitment to always do what he says he will,” Burt shares. “Conduct shows character. It is quite important to talk about your well-earned successes, but they need to be earned. Integrity and ethics above everything else go a long way in all business dealings.”
Burt’s commitment to integrity and ethics has fueled a 24-year career in architecture that has earned countless accolades. She has been named to Engineering News-Record’s 20 Under 40 and received The American Institute of Architects Young Architects’ Honor Award. She also was presented with innovation awards from “Fast Company” and the German Design Council and a sustainability award from Metropolis Magazine
Even more exciting is the impact that Burt’s commitment to integrity and ethics has had on sustainability in the building and design industry. “It is exciting to see architecture firms of all sizes taking steps to reduce embodied carbon and pursue zero energy solutions,” she says. “Very few firms thought along those lines when we started our journey.”
Hafsa Burt’s journey shows that passionate business leaders have the potential to reshape their industries, regardless of the size of their business. By working with fervor, you develop the solutions needed to become a catalytic force in the business world. By working with integrity, you earn the right to bring those solutions to life.
If you would like to get in touch with Hafsa Burt or her company, you can do it through her – Linkedin Page
