Joyce Vela is a licensed architect with over 15 years of professional experience in multi-family residential, educational, and mixed-use development. She has a passion for social impact work, and believes that we can create greater equity through good design. Joyce holds a Bachelor of Architecture from the Illinois Institute of Technology and has worked on architectural projects nationwide.

Joyce was born in Zambia, spent her childhood in Tanzania and Kenya, and her late teenage years in Singapore, where she started her Architecture degree at the National University of Singapore, before moving to Chicago in 2001. These experiences have given her a unique cross-cultural perspective and a deep commitment to be a part of meaningful social change in whatever context she is in.

Joyce currently serves on the Board of Directors for Habitat for Humanity, Chicago. She also enjoys participating in local design juries.