TUCSON250

Tucson250 unites professionals who steward life on our planet through the built environment. Our mission is to celebrate the beauty and talents born of the Southwestern USA, while cross-pollinating knowledge from around the world to ensure a thriving ecosystem 250 years from now.

We believe in creating safe, integral spaces that honor the presence invested by creators in enhancing our lives. Learn more about building with an expansive consciousness at our inaugural Summit.

Join us October 24-25 to co-create systems, designs, and spaces that elevate the wellbeing for humans and the planet.

Mission

TUCSON250 invites you into a resilient, healthy future that already exists: built environments developed locally, leveraging universal knowledge, that uplift the health and wellness of humans and nature. 
We envision a peoples who steward life with the wisdom of the land, demonstrating harmony and joy to spread across the world.  We support individuals who strive for excellence in co-creating nature-aligned spaces.

Vision

TUCSON250 (T250) was inspired by Alexander Sexsmith, a Tucson transplant and architect whose love of nature and design took him to different locations within the city and surrounding mountains and desert, finding beauty wherever he went. He recognized the vibrancy of this land while witnessing the devastating disregard and elimination of natural landscapes and communities who have stewarded culture and land.

He began envisioning a vibrant community with thriving, healthy buildings and spaces that would benefit future generations - 250 years from now - ensuring they, too, can experience and appreciate the beauty of the land.

T250 is a unique initiative dedicated to transform and enhance natural building processes. We bring together key stakeholders and change-makers to accelerate the creation of healthy built environments in Tucson and beyond. Established through the collaboration of Heart of New Earth LLC (HNE), Sexsmith Architects, and Vali Homes, our goal is to support individuals who steward life and demonstrate co-creative leadership.

Just as seeds need the right conditions to thrive, we recognize that ideas need the right ingredients to succeed. HNE provides the catalytic energy to bring T250 into form. By fall 2025, we plan to achieve 501(c)(3) status and secure funding to hire an executive director and staff. Our vision is to unite Tucson’s residents—professional creatives, visionaries, and doers—to a global network and collaboratively shape the city’s future in harmony with the spirit of the land.

Program

This gathering is designed to be highly interactive and engaging. We strongly encourage attendance on both days to fully benefit from the insights, connections, and experiences that build upon each other.

In addition to featuring heart-centered built designs tailored to what we call a 'different kind of hot' that's unique to Southern Arizona, you'll also hear from professionals and land stewards across various regions of the world who bring holistic practices that nurture and heal communities.

Presentation format includes:

Experienced based educational content
Fireside chats
'World Cafe' workshops

Each segment of this Summit includes an integration process. Our goal is to ensure that each participant gains exactly what they need for their current professional and personal journey.

Arrive with an open and curious mind to fully experience the magic of this gathering.

Registered and sponsoring participants will receive updates to the program with greater detail. For any questions or concerns, please reach out.

We’re excited to share this exceptional gathering with you.

1 / Heart

We connect to the land - and nature - through the heart. In order to understand what we are creating, we must begin from the self through the heart. This pathway has allowed people from across continents to steward life for thousands of years while life, in turn, nurtured them.

We study and learn this way of creation, honoring the people that enabled us to build on their wisdom and knowledge to advance civilization. They were not meant to be forgotten, and we are seeing a resurgence of their wisdom help us in a time of need.

This immersive experience requires all to participate and witness simultaneously.

2 / Contemporary Contemplative Architecture

Contemplative architecture goes beyond functionality to inspire a deep sense of interconnectedness and harmony with the human spirit. It transforms everyday spaces into vehicles for transforming consciousness, blending ancient wisdom with modern design to enrich our human experience and deepen our understanding of our place in the cosmos.

In this presentation, we will explore various examples and definitions—contemplative, sacred, and profound—to refine our personal understanding of spaces that move us. Our aim is to integrate these insights into contemporary culture and shift our perspective on spaces often seen as separate from daily life.

3 / Land & Fashion

Fashion touches nearly every aspect of our lives—from the clothes we wear to the carpets we walk on, the furnishings we sit on, and the bedding we sleep in. But what happens to these materials when we move or redecorate? In this talk, you'll uncover the hidden truths about these products and their environmental impact. Discover the toll of fast fashion on land and water, and learn how innovative young entrepreneurs are tackling these issues with modern, regenerative solutions. Sheyenne Sky Lacey will share her vision for a sustainable future, blending ancient wisdom with contemporary practices to create an interconnected world. Hear how she builds on traditional, symbiotic relationships between people, animals, and the land to reclaim harmony and forge a new path toward sustainability.

4 / Creative Cooridors

Creative corridors throughout urban areas are essential for a thriving economy: they foster innovation, attract talent, and inject creative energy. Our discussion highlights the critical role creative districts play in enhancing urban resilience, creating a culture that adapts to changing economic conditions and contributes to long-term sustainable development. By ensuring a robust system that supports artists, designers, and creative businesses in dedicated areas, these spaces stimulate a dynamic environment where new ideas naturally flourish and cross-disciplinary collaboration is the norm. This creative synergy not only enhances the cultural vibrancy of a city but also draws visitors and investments, revitalizing neighborhoods and raising local economies. Join this discussion that integrates different initiatives from visionary local artists and creatives.

5 / contemporary Natural Building Science

Green building has failed us in many ways: It's poorly defined, politically weighted, corrupted by greenwashing, and overly focused on energy efficiency instead of creating human joy. Natural building addresses these issues by revolutionizing the materials used in construction. Despite its potential, natural building has often been dismissed as a niche approach incapable of scaling. After two decades of working in both green and natural building sectors, we have developed a scalable solution known as Good Building—a framework for creating healthy, low-carbon, high-performance structures. Learn the development of the 5 Factors of Good Building and how this approach can drive the transformative change our industry urgently needs.

6 / Ancient future technologies

In modern development, the practice of honoring the creative process, land, place, and individuals has been overtaken by the emphasis on maximizing profit and square footage. Tuning into the land from the moment you walk upon it is an art; designing in harmony with both the land and its residents requires another level of skill beyond mainstream academic education. Discover how one visionary architect is revolutionizing this approach by integrating Mayonic Science and Technology into an already holistic design process. This innovative method harnesses the frequencies of sound and light within the quantum fields, creating designs that resonate with the natural environment and enhance human well-being. By blending these ancient teachings with contemporary practices, this approach offers a holistic blueprint for sustainable and harmonious development. Learn how architects and builders of this tradition are reshaping and rehabilitating communities across the world.

7 / Community & Industry Connections

Team

Heart • earth • Build

We came together with our love + respect for nature + vision of designing modern, healthy, beautiful built environments that amplify life.

CEO, Heart of New Earth

Junko Nagao

Junko is the producer of the podcast, Return to Wonder, and founder of Heart of New Earth, an educational platform to accelerate human evolution. With over 20 years of international leadership, fundraising and organizational development, she's supported blockchain, ed/fin tech, energy, anti-trafficking, workforce development, and peace and security solutions around the world. Junko guides people to integrate inner development in businesses and systems, seamlessly connecting spiritual practices with practical applications that expand consciousness. Through TUCSON250, she aims to build authentic relationships among industry professionals and local residents that enhance the resilience of people and place. She received her M.Ed. from Harvard University and B.A. from Barnard College, Columbia University.

Sápmi Wisdom Keeper

Helene Lindmark

Helene Lindmark is a distinguished Wisdom Keeper, a GrandMother from the Sami People. She walks with her knowledge as a voice for Mother Earth, her people and the ancestral wisdom that is stored in her Indigenous People’s lands. She is mentoring the next generation of Sápmi and helping government and business executives across the world re-align their relationship with self and nature. With a unique perspective based on ancestral knowledge, she is bridging the gap between traditional indigenous knowledge and the contemporary systems to inspire sustainable practices. Her role as a global bridge builder for a sustainable future highlights the significance of reciprocity with nature, and promotes innovative solutions for climate adaptation and social resilience.

Principal, Sexsmith Architects

Alexander Sexsmith

Alexander is a licensed Architect in AZ, CA, CO, LA and NM. He established Sexsmith Architects in 2021, applying 15+ years of architecture and 10+ years practicing Kundalini Yoga. His goal is to create toxic-free spaces that transform and elevate humanity. He is a member of American Institute of Architects and US Green Building Council, and Director-at-Large of the US Hemp Building Association. He received his Masters in Architecture from the Southern California Institute of Architecture, and a BA in Art History from Northwestern University. MArch, AIA, NCARB, LEED

Chief Building Nerd, Vali Homes

Lucas Johnson

Lucas holds degrees in Physicochemical Biology, Environmental Science, and Business Management. He has contributed as a scientist, builder, utility program manager, and materials supplier to deliver over 10,000 high performance building projects ranging from deep energy retrofits of large commercial buildings to Net Zero Passive Houses with natural materials. He began this work to reduce our collective carbon impact, but now focuses equally on resilience to a changing climate while pushing for the right to healthy homes. As the Chief Building Nerd at Vali Homes, Lucas collaborates with homeowners, developers, designers, and builders to make their projects an enjoyable and smart investment by providing scientific knowledge and specifications during the design phase followed by installation guidance and verification during the construction phase.

Founder, Land + Object

Sheyenne Sky Lacey

Sheyenne Sky Lacy, Founder of LAND+OBJECT, is a Diné writer, designer, and serial entrepreneur dedicated to discovering peace, harmony, balance, and beauty in the symbiotic relationships between people, animals, and the land. A proud member of the Navajo Nation, Sheyenne's work supports indigenous lifeways that have been practiced for thousands of years. With a deep commitment to applying her research and sharing her vision, Sheyenne aims to create a sustainable and interconnected world where every element thrives in unity. Her work at LAND+OBJECT reflects this ethos, as she continuously explores and promotes the intricate connections that bind us to our natural environment. Sheyenne holds a B.A. from Fashion Institute of Technology and Masters in Management from Harvard University.

Co-Founder, Terra Cura Inc.

Eva Leung

Eva is dedicated to profound transformation of people and place by integrating inner/outer practices. Living in Hong Kong, Singapore, NYC, and Boston affirm her belief that true sustainability requires consistent engagement of self and collective will, aligning diverse fields to foster generational health. Her global projects, such as a Siem Reap master plan and the Salton Sea remediation project, focus on regenerative impacts for land and people. Eva’s approach includes urban strategies for environmental challenges and innovative phytoremediation technologies. She has held roles at Peter Rose + Partners, Perkins+Will and Regenesis Group. Currently integrating Vastu Science into design, Eva balances her life with Vipassana and MMA. She holds a B.A. in Architecture from the National University of Singapore and a Master’s in Architecture from Harvard University.