2026 Code Series | Resilience Matters

Behrooz (Ben) Emam is a registered architect, a professional engineer, and a certified facility manager, with over thirty years of experience in architecture and structural engineering, emergency preparedness, and facilities management. He has master’s degrees in architecture and civil Engineering from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Ben was previously the Manager of Civil & Structural Group at AWS and Senior Manager – EU RE Design and Construction for Amazon Fulfillment Operations in Luxembourg. Before joining Amazon for a second time, Ben was the Assistant Vice President and Senior Engineering Manager – Construction Services with Parsons Brinckerhoff.

Ben is a 25-year adjunct faculty member of the University of Washington, Department of
Construction Management.
He regularly teaches classes in Construction and Facilities
Management and conducts seminars on seismic preparedness and disaster planning. Ben was building inspection volunteer after the San Francisco (Loma Prieta), Los Angeles (Northridge), Seattle (Nisqually), Porto Rico earthquakes, and the recipient of the Seattle AIA 2001 – Community Service Award.

Mark Chubb, AssocAIA, CFPS, MPP is managing director of inclusi.us llc, a consulting practice focused on the intersection of public policy, public involvement, public safety, and sustainability. He is a member and former co-chair of the AIA Seattle Code Committee and a former AIA Seattle director. Over a career spanning more than four decades, Mark has worked as a code official, model code staff liaison, technical director, emergency manager, fire officer, and public policy scholar. His public policy work and scholarship have focused on regulatory interventions to promote resilience in the physical and social environment. Mark’s presentation will address what might be called the flip side of our current building regulatory framework — getting people back in buildings as soon as possible after a disaster strikes rather than simply getting them out quickly.

Rachel Minnery, FAIA, leads Infrastructure Risk and Operational Resilience at Amazon Web Services (AWS), where her work spans site risk assessment, data-driven hazard mitigation recommendations, campus master planning, and business continuity. Previously, as Senior Director of Resilience, Adaptation and Disaster Assistance at The American Institute of Architects (AIA), she established design guides, policy, and education programs for their 95,000 members and the broader building industry. Rachel’s career spans mission-driven design, management, and sustainability. She is the co-founder of Architects Without Borders Seattle and has led groups of building safety volunteers to disaster-stricken communities.