The Puerto Rico chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIAPR) will hold its Annual Convention on November 20 and 21 under the title "AIA Puerto Rico: 60 Years Present," at the Condado Plaza Hotel and Hilton Garden Inn in San Juan, with architects from Cuba, the Dominican Republic and the United States taking part. The keynote talks begin Friday, November 20 at 5:30 PM with "La maldita circunstancia del agua por todas partes" by architects Fernando Martirena and Anadis González of Infraestudio, a firm based in Havana, Cuba.
They will discuss their recent projects and how their design decisions respond to Cuba’s energy and infrastructure crisis, moving toward greater autonomy from supply networks through photovoltaic systems, rainwater collection, reduced energy consumption, and passive natural ventilation, shading and daylighting strategies. On Saturday at 9:00 AM, Dominican researcher and cultural manager Alex Martínez will give "De Isla a Isla: Architecture, Politics and Modernity in the Caribbean," focused on modern architecture and heritage in the Caribbean; his projects include Arquitectura en el trayecto del sol, Bitácora Moderna and Jaragua no cae, and he belongs to Docomomo Dominicano, ICOM and Fundación Palm and sits on the editorial board of the magazine Arquitexto.
Also on Saturday at 6:00 PM, Anne Marie Duvall, founding principal of Duvall Decker, and senior architect Shannon Gathings, of the Jackson, Mississippi firm named 2026 firm of the year by AIA National, will join a conversation moderated by Ambar Margarida, principal of New York’s Spacesmith. The local chapter, established in 1966, has about 425 members.