AZUR-Ecotecture has gained the attention of international developers as a result of our longstanding committment to cutting-edge, energy-efficient planning and design practices. The AZUR-Ecotecture Design Team includes the unique talents of several key individuals. Architects who, over the years, have carved out a legacy of ground-breaking, visionary work– collectively spanning decades.
Mr.
Matthew Ackerman, LEED-AP AIA, is
the founding partner of Catalyst
Architecture, an
award winning, sustainable design firm located in Prescott, Arizona
which specializes in public,
cultural, masterplanning, and commercial work, with an emphasis on
high-performance energy-efficient design and construction strategies.
Mr. Ackerman has extensive background in Smart-Growth and Sustainable
Planning, and has been a design team leader on numerous large-scale,
mixed-use masterplans. [Resumé]
Mr. Jeffrey
Zucker, LEED-AP AIA, is the founder and designer of the Manzanita Village Cohousing
Community, the first of its kind in Arizona. A Design Principal at
Catalyst Architecture, Mr. Zucker apprenticed for five years under Dr.
Paolo Soleri at Arcosanti, and is currently the Resident Architect of
this prototype arcology. Mr. Zucker is known for his organic,
neighborhood-focused designs, as well as the use of Biomimicry in seeking solutions
to architectural challenges. [Resumé]
Mr.
Yves Rathle, AIA ASAI, is the founding principal of studioYVESinc, an
internationally recognized design firm, with offices on both the east
and west coasts of the United States. Mr. Rathle has been involved on
numerous large-scale, resource-efficient masterplans all over the
world; including Dubai, Riyadh, Jeddah, Moscow, Cairo, Bangkok, and
Shanghai. Mr. Rathle and Mr. Ackerman worked together in the Boston
based offices of Benjamin Thompson & Associates. [Resumé] 
Dr. Paolo Soleri is the founder and
designer of Arcosanti, a
prototype sustainable city for 5,000 people located in central Arizona.
Dr. Soleri is the creative force and developer of the "Arcology,"
a concept in which architecture is coherent with ecology. Born in Italy
in 1919, Dr. Soleri was awarded a Ph.D. from the Torino Polytechnico in
1946. He came to the United States in 1947 on a fellowship, and
apprenticed directly under Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesin West in
Arizona. [Resumé]
