Co-Founder & Design Principal
Been sketching buildings since I was eight. Spent a decade in Stockholm learning that old doesn't mean outdated - some Norse building techniques beat our modern shortcuts any day.
Co-Founder & Sustainability Director
Started as a structural engineer who got tired of wasting materials. Now I spend my days figuring out how to make buildings that actually give back more than they take.
Met at a conference in 2014 where we both gave talks that basically contradicted each other. Elena was going on about preserving architectural heritage, I was pushing green tech. Turned out we were saying the same thing from different angles.
Grabbed coffee after, talked for four hours straight. Realized there's this huge gap in the market - people want sustainable buildings, but they don't wanna live in sterile glass boxes. They want spaces with soul, with history baked into them.
So we started RuneShard in a cramped shared office on Main Street. The name? Elena's idea - runes are ancient symbols that carried meaning across generations. We wanted to build structures that'd do the same thing.
Opened shop with three employees and way too much optimism. First project was renovating a 1920s heritage home in Kitsilano. Client wanted modern amenities without losing that craftsman charm. Spent weeks sourcing reclaimed Douglas fir to match the original beams.
Landed our first commercial gig - a mixed-use building in Gastown. The developer was skeptical about our "ancient wisdom" approach until we showed him how passive cooling techniques from Mediterranean architecture could cut his HVAC costs by 40%. Changed his tune pretty quick.
Won the BC Sustainable Design Award for the Yaletown EcoLoft project. That one was special - net-zero energy consumption in a heritage district. Press coverage brought in clients we never thought we'd reach. Moved to our current Granville Street studio.
Brought on board six new architects and our first urban planning specialist. Started consulting with the city on sustainable development strategies. Funny how you go from scraping by to advising policy makers.
Launched our heritage restoration division after restoring the old Sinclair Building downtown. That project taught us there's massive demand for bringing old structures into the modern age without erasing their stories. Now we're juggling residential, commercial, and heritage work - exactly where we wanted to be.
Look, we're not gonna pretend we've got all the answers. But after a decade of trial and error, here's what keeps us showing up every day.
Every site has a story. Maybe it's the old growth trees, maybe it's a 100-year-old foundation. We don't bulldoze history - we build around it, with it, because of it.
Not just solar panels slapped on for show. We're talking passive design, local materials, systems that'll still work when the power grid's down. Buildings that breathe.
Every client's different, every site's different. We listen more than we talk in those first meetings. Your space should fit you like a favorite jacket, not feel like you're living in someone else's vision.
We design for your grandkids. Materials that age well, layouts that adapt as life changes, durability over disposable. Yeah, it costs more upfront. But you're not rebuilding in 20 years.
Buildings don't exist in isolation. We think about how they fit the neighborhood, contribute to public space, support local craftspeople. Architecture's a team sport.
Half our team's usually neck-deep in research. Old techniques, new materials, climate data, social housing models from Finland - we steal good ideas from everywhere.
We've got 18 people now - architects, designers, engineers, a historian who keeps us honest about heritage details, and Julia who somehow manages all our chaos. Average age is probably mid-30s, but experience ranges from fresh grads to folks who've been doing this for 30 years.
Everyone here actually likes each other, which isn't something you can say about most offices. We do team hikes every month, argue constantly about design (in a good way), and nobody's too precious to roll up their sleeves when there's a site visit in the rain.
Culture's pretty flat - junior designers pitch ideas directly to clients if they've got something worth saying. Best idea wins, regardless of who's been here longest.
We're always up for interesting projects. If you're thinking about building something that'll matter in 50 years, let's grab coffee and talk it through.
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