Cocktails & Conversation: Michael Sørensen

Cocktails & Conversation is a series of dialogues about design that joins an architect with a critic, journalist, curator, or architectural historian to discuss current architecture design issues. Each program includes a custom-crafted cocktail—one inspired by the architect’s work and created especially for this event. This program will feature Michael Sørensen, Design Director for North America for Henning Larsen sitting down with Joel Towers, Professor of Architecture and Sustainable Design at Parsons School of Design.

Speaker:
Michael Sørensen, Design Director North America, Henning Larsen

Moderator:
Joel Towers, Professor of Architecture and Sustainable Design, Parson School of Design

About the Speaker:
Michael Sørensen is a Partner and Design Director at Henning Larsen, and co-leads the firm’s US design studio in New York City. With nearly 20 years of experience leading projects from Henning Larsen´s offices in Copenhagen and New York City, Michael has been at the helm of several notable buildings and masterplan throughout Scandinavia, Europe, and North America, including the Minneapolis Public Service Building – winner of the 2023 AIA Architecture Award, and the Downsview Framework – Canada’s largest development, and winner of the 2023 Urban Design Award. Bringing Henning Larsen’s DNA to life, he leads co-creative design processes defined by research and dialogue to drive innovative, inspiring spaces and places rooted in the communities they serve. A truly global citizen, Michael was born in Australia, raised in South Africa, and returned to Denmark to complete his architectural studies at the Aarhus School of Architecture before joining Henning Larsen’s practice in Copenhagen in 2006. In 2019, Michael and his family relocated from Copenhagen to Brooklyn. Having lived, studied, and worked in such diverse cities around the world, Michael is inspired by a uniquely global perspective and deep appreciation of the specific contexts, cultures, and climates we work within.

Joel Towers is Professor of Architecture and Sustainable Design at Parsons School of Design. He is also the Co-Director of The Tishman Environment and Design Center and a University Professor at The New School. From 2009-2019 he was the Dean of Parsons School of Design.

Towers is currently a co-Principle Investigator of the Climate Vulnerability Impact, and Adaptation Analysis, a City of New York sponsored research project. He is a member of the Urban Climate Change Research Network, and a lead author in the 2018 “Climate Change and Cities Second Assessment Report” as well as the upcoming Third Assessment (2023). Towers has published on sustainable design throughout his career as an architect and academic and completed award-winning built projects that advance sustainable design practices in the field. He is co-chair of The New York City Panel on Climate Change (NPCC), working on the 4th NPCC report (2024). NPCC is an independent panel mandated, by Local Law, to periodically provide the NY City Council with authoritative, actionable information that will help the City adapt to climate change, take actions to mitigate its future impact, and build a more equitable and resilient future.

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