“The RIBA President is a unifying voice for the profession. Leadership is about bringing people together around shared purpose.
My simple promise in this position would be to lead from the front and be your ambassador, your influencer and your supporter.”
Caring and collaborative in spirit, bringing people together is Chithra’s get-out-of-bed purpose. As a former National Chair of Women in Property (WiP), she hopes to leave an indelible mark on the property industry with her commitment to ‘bringing people into focus’.
Chithra reflects:
“Too often, our expertise as architects is taken for granted. Our role is questioned – by regulation, by fee pressure, and by the pace of change across the profession. Yet the value we bring has never been more critical.
“We operate amid constant noise: within our industry, our organisations, our nations and our daily lives. In that environment, it is easy to feel overlooked, undervalued, even under-estimated. However we should never lose sight of this truth: our skills shape the world people inhabit, and our work changes lives. Until we elevate our value collectively, it will remain difficult to confront the challenges that matter most: housing, climate resilience, fair fees, education and the future of our talent pipeline.
She continues:
“The RIBA President is a unifying voice for the profession. Leadership is about bringing people together around shared purpose. My simple promise in this role would be to lead from the front and be an ambassador, an influencer and a supporter.
“This is a moment to strengthen purpose and values for the RIBA and its members. To improve how the RIBA communicates, internally and externally. To become an organisation people don’t simply belong to but actively want to be part of. We must build a culture of belonging – and a shared advocacy for why architects matter.”