Sign up to be a design advisor here.
Design Advisor Role
Design Advisors are professionals who help every student team get in the game. Your role is like a coach on the sidelines — encouraging teams, teaching them the right plays, and helping them see the path from bold idea to practical design.
Through short, virtual conversations, you’ll guide students in sharpening their concepts with feedback on feasibility, usability, sustainability, and community impact.
This is designed to be a light-touch but high-impact role. We ask Design Advisors to commit at least 1 hour per week between October 15–December 19 to host virtual office hours, open to all student teams.
By joining Shade Zones as a Design Advisor, you will:
- Empower the next generation of climate-conscious designers
- Champion access to professional mentorship for all students
- Amplify your public impact through recognition in competition materials, our website, and exhibitions
Design Advisor
Time Commitment & Structure
Shade Zones aim to ensure all teams have access to professional expertise by using a structured “office hours” model:
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- Design advisors commit to a minimum of 1 hour per week, virtually (Oct 15 – Dec 19)
- Design advisors offer 30-minutes per team; advisors may offer more sessions if their availability allows
- Advisors host office hours via their preferred scheduling tool (e.g., Calendly)—visible only to registered teams
- Students book directly with the advisors they want to meet with that week
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Role of Design Advisors
The main responsibility of a Design Advisor is to make yourself available for student teams once a week during the competition period.
Advisors provide flexible, supportive guidance — more like a coach on the sidelines than a supervisor. Instead of being assigned to a single team, you’ll meet with any student group that signs up for your office hours. This structure creates a level playing field, giving all teams the chance to connect with professionals and learn from a wide range of perspectives across the industry.
The role is different from a studio project advisor, who typically works with one team throughout a semester. It also differs from faculty mentors — each team will choose a faculty mentor at their home institution to oversee their work for the duration of the competition.
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Competition Timeline
August 28: Informational Webinar for Students (watch the recording here)
September 2 – October 15: Student Team Registration – Deadline for registration is Wednesday, 10/15/25 at 11:59 PM PST
September 24: Design Advisor Webinar (register here)
October 16 – December 19: Design Advisor Support & Office Hours
November 3, 2025 – January 15, 2026: Accepting Submissions — Deadline for submissions is Thursday, 1/15/26 at 11:59 PM PST
January 16 – January 30: Jury Review
February 2026: Winners Announced
April 2026: Exhibition during LA Climate Week at AIA Los Angeles
Frequently asked questions
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Architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, engineering, construction management, fabrication, sustainability organizations and more are all welcome. Participation is organized at the firm or organization level, with one point of contact coordinating your team’s involvement.
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Yes! Firms can provide multiple advisors. Each advisor can set up their own booking link, and all will be listed under your firm in the central student directory.
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Each advisor sets up virtual office hours using a platform like Calendly. ShadeLA will share a central directory of all participating advisors and booking links with registered student teams.
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ShadeLA has put together this guide that walks you through setting up a Calendly account.
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ShadeLA will provide each firm with a list of all registered teams so that you can track your meeting requests. Firms should prioritize meeting with teams they haven’t met with yet, seeking to meet with each team once before scheduling additional calls with a team.
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Firms are asked to offer 1 hour per week from October 15 to December 19 (about 9 hours total). Fewer sessions are fine—just make sure it’s reflected in your scheduling link.
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No problem. The model is flexible—participate as your schedule allows. Just keep your availability up to date in your booking system so teams know when sessions are open.
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Yes. ShadeLA will host a short webinar on September 24, 2025 at 11am PT to walk through expectations, tools, and logistics. It will also be recorded for later reference. Register for the webinar here.
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You can reach out to shadezones@usc.edu with any questions.
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Sessions are informal and student-led. Topics may include feasibility, modularity, materials, site design, accessibility, or implementation. No prep is required—just your insight in response to students’ questions.
If students are struggling to identify challenges, you can guide them by asking probing questions, such as:
- How will your structure perform at different times of day as the sun shifts?
- Will the shade created be consistent and comfortable for users?
- Who do you imagine using this space, and for how long?
- Does the design invite gathering, resting, or circulation—and is it accessible to all users?
- How might materials, modularity, or assembly choices affect cost and feasibility?
- If resources were limited, what elements are essential and what could be scaled back?
Your role isn’t to solve design problems but to help student teams think more critically and refine their ideas.
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No. The design advisors are not jury members. Your role is to support and guide students, not score or assess their entries.
If your firm also has a representative serving on the jury, other members of the firm may still serve as a design advisor. The jury members will not serve as advisors to avoid conflicts of interest.
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Yes. Participating firms will be recognized on the ShadeLA website, in design competition materials, and at public exhibitions related to the campaign – unless you opt not to be recognized.
Registration
Coach the Teams
Review the role, sign up to advise below, and we'll connect you with student teams.
More questions?
We’ve got you covered. Reach out and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.