Ep 12: Living in the Future

As we record this episode, my phone is still buzzing with updates from family and friends who are cleaning up in the wake of Hurricane Ida, which came ashore Louisiana's coast on the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

As many of us can recall, Katrina devastated the New Orleans region, in some places rendering it almost permanently inhabitable. The social and economic factors of that reality stand side by side with the physical infrastructure of the buildings, roads, and bridges that have to withstand powerful storms in that area.

I remember driving through the rubble of Hurricane Katrina, seeing houses that had been demolished and thinking through the different scenarios that may have given the structures a better chance of survival.

As we face issues like climate change, increasingly stronger tropical storms, sustainability issues in construction, and the ever-present elephant in the room of affordable housing, it can be overwhelming to figure out what to do about it.

Well this is a problem-solving show, so today I have as my guest one powerhouse member of a team that has a really exciting solution to a lot of those problems. We’re going to talk about innovations in building, dignified housing, and the power of collaboration.

Kyndra Light is the CEO of Gulf Coast Additive Manufacturing & Design, a company specializing in the support and application of 3D printing in the construction field. And Precision Building and Renovating.

She holds a master's degree in Leadership and Policy from Florida State University and a graduate certificate in Additive Manufacturing from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In addition, she possesses multiple certifications in community development and has over 20 years of experience in executive strategy solutions. She has been widely recognized for her work in education and community housing development as well as work in the advancement of fair-trade and environmental conservation practices in the construction industry. No matter what the job, she jumps in with passion and excellence as a standard. 

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