About

Brian Moran is responsible for developing Hines’ Ireland projects. He established the Hines platform in Ireland which currently has more than €2.3 billion of retail, office and residential assets under management, in addition to a major development pipeline which includes an additional €500 million of retail development and over 4,000 residential units. He re-joined the firm in 2011 having previously worked with Hines in Russia in the 1990’s.  In between, he ran his own successful development management and investment advisory firm based in Dublin which focused on large urban regeneration, university campus developments and housing PPP projects. Brian is a graduate of Architecture from the Dublin Institute of Technology and obtained an MBA at the University of Chicago. He is a trustee of ULI Europe, a National Council Member for Ireland and chairs the Irish Architecture Foundation.

Brian joined the IAF Board in 2019.

Michael Goan is a registered architect and a director of GOKU. A graduate of DIT, he has also received an MSc in Advanced Environmental and Energy Studies from the University of East London / CAT. As a member and former chair of the RIAI’s sustainability task force as well as a sectoral nominee to Dublin City Council SPC for Climate Action, Environment and Energy, he is an advocate for the mainstreaming of sustainability as an overarching consideration in all aspects of architectural teaching & practice. Michael has received recognition at the RIAI annual awards for his work as well as being shortlisted for the Mies Van Der Rohe European architecture prize. Michael joined the IAF Board in 2019.

Sophie El Nimr is an architect and urban practitioner. She is an Associate on the Autumn 2023 cohort of Public Practice, working as an Urban Design Officer at the London Borough of Havering. Her role involves providing design advice on strategic planning applications, developing policy guidance, and inputting into council-led development projects. She is MRIAI and ARB qualified having completed her architectural studies at the Dublin Institute of Technology and the University of Westminster. In 2024, Sophie was awarded a distinction for her research on the MA Cities course at Central Saint Martins. Her thesis work proposed a new citymaking role that critically challenges the conventions of urban design practices in Dublin.

Sophie joined the IAF Board in 2024.

Scott is a co-founder of brand and digital agency aad.works, strategy and innovation consultancy wove.co, and design community 100Archive.com. As strategic director at wove he works as a partner to those making positive change a reality. His 20 years experience in research, strategy, brand, UX and service design provides a unique perspective to understanding how things work and how they can work better. He’s lead complex strategic projects for clients including – Abbey Theatre, Artsadmin, DCU, RTÉ, Journal Media and Science Gallery International. Helping them see things in new ways, explore new models, define impactful ways forward and implement new strategies, systems and vehicles that drive change. Scott also lectures in IADT and LSAD on topics including design research, strategy, speculative design and design thinking. Scott joined the IAF Board in 2024.

Claire Healy is an award-winning spatial designer specialising in the creation of narrative environments, i.e. spaces that tell stories. Alongside her design practice, she teaches on MA Narrative Environments in the Spatial Practices Programme at Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London. Claire holds a BA in Architecture and an MA in Narrative Environments from Central Saint Martins. She is also the Head of Cultural Strategy for Kennedy Wilson working on a development in the North Docks. Claire joined the IAF Board in 2022.

Francesca Ferguson, CEO of Make_Shift gGmbH is a journalist, curator and process designer for urban change management. She is Founding director of Make-Shift, and founder of www.makecity.berlin – the biggest international trans-sectoral festival on architecture and urban alternatives in Germany. Her expertise is process management – designing cultural and adaptive re-use projects for heritage listed buildings, and developing mixed use concepts in cooperation with municipalities. Formerly director of the Swiss Architecture Museum – S_AM – she is also an honorary member of the Association of German Architects and Trustee of DIViA – Diversity in Architecture. She manages multiple stakeholders: architects, planners, the civic initiatives and city administrators to rethink and solve the urgent issues of empty real estate and to reactivate urban quarters. Francesca joined the IAF Board in 2024.

Aoife Hurley is the Head of Operations with the National Museum of Ireland, where she is also leading on the delivery of major capital projects at NMI Natural History and NMI Archaeology. Prior to this, she worked as a conservation architect in the OPW for 15 years, where she was involved with a range of projects from the Four Courts to Kilkenny Castle. She has been involved in numerous arts and cultural projects across Ireland and has a passion for cultural heritage. Aoife joined the IAF Board in 2022.

Laura Murray is Head of Planning at Lioncor in Dublin since 2022, working on the development of the 37-acre mixed-use Irish Glass Bottle site in Dublin 4, amongst other projects. Before that she worked in the UK, with Argent, now Related Argent, a Property Developer responsible for the regeneration of the 67-acre mixed use King’s Cross development site in central London. Here she spent over 8 years as Planning Manager, working closely with Camden Council in the realisation of the vision for the site, now well known for its architectural diversity, a mix of historic industrial buildings and contemporary architecture, public realm, and art and culture-led placemaking. Laura joined the IAF Board in 2024.

Professor Margaret Barry holds the Established Chair in Health Promotion and Public Health at the University of Galway, where she is also Director of the World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre for Health Promotion Research. She has published widely in mental health promotion and works closely with policymakers and practitioners on the development, implementation and evaluation of interventions and policies at a national and international level. Professor Barry has extensive experience of coordinating international mental health promotion initiatives and has acted as expert adviser on mental health promotion policy and research development in a number of countries around the world. Professor Barry joined the IAF Board in 2024.