Sandhya Sood is an East African-born Indian American architect, author and educator focused on sustainability. She is the owner and principal architect of accent architecture+design, based in Berkeley, CA for over two decades. Sandhya meets the Secretary of Interior's Professional Qualification Standards for Historic Architecture & Architectural History.
The capacity of design to nurture people and foster meaningful connections to their lives, built spaces and nature is powerful. Using design approaches embedded in functionality, wellness and craft, Sandhya incorporates passive solar energy with spatial configuration to create appropriate solutions. Her work ranges in scale, context and type; from multifamily to single family residences and renovations; rehabilitation and preservation planning; community and interior design; HRE's and Mills Act applications. Knowledge of material re-use, building technology and typologies has enabled fresh, affordable and nourishing spaces.
Prior to establishing accent, Sandhya worked with acclaimed architecture firms in San Francisco, North India and Oakland's non-profit, Urban Ecology. Indigenous construction in the Himalayas, European modernism in Paris and sustainable design research at UC Berkeley rounded off her global perspective. While serving on the board of DOCOMOMO NoCA, she documented 20th century historic buildings in the Bay Area. These diverse settings spurred engagement with history, climate response and transformative environments. They also deepened her understanding of enduring qualities of people focused architecture.
Pursuing an advanced degree entailed a multidisciplinary program at the College of Environmental Design (CED), UC Berkeley, in building sciences, structural design, architectural history & theory, design studio, planning and landscape. Using this integrated approach with cultural wisdom facilitated successful collaborations with clients, allied professionals, builders and agencies, honing her critical thinking, listening and public engagement skills. Sandhya's work has been well recognized through exhibitions, lectures, preservation award and a proclamation by Berkeley's mayor. She has taught architecture in India and been invited to design critiques at CED and University of Washington, Seattle. Her primary research has been published in academic journals and presented internationally at professional conferences.
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