Renaissance stood out to
Maya because of her interest in our wide range of projects and our commitment to holistic and community-oriented planning.
This January, Renaissance hosted Maya Claggett as part of the University of Virginia’s week-long Externship Program. Maya is in her final year of the Masters of Urban and Environmental Planning program at UVA with a concentration in Justice and Equity. She has experience conducting public sector research for municipalities and large transit agencies in the Mid-Atlantic. While Maya has engaged with a variety of projects, her background in Environmental Policy and Sustainability has informed many of these projects.
Renaissance Planning stood out to Maya because of her interest in our wide range of projects and our commitment to holistic and community-oriented planning.
As an extern Maya met with staff, sat in on meetings, and had the opportunity to work on a few projects. These projects included conducting agrivoltaic research while supporting our work on two EPA community assistance programs titled Rethinking Highways for Healthy Communities program and the agency’s Local Foods Local Places program as well. Maya found this externship extremely rewarding and reflected on some of her takeaways from the experience.
A Foundation of Relationships
During her week-long experience, Maya says she was struck by the company’s strong commitment to building relationships -- both within the team and with the communities they serve. Staff at Renaissance were incredibly welcoming, taking the time to meet with her, share insight about their projects, and discuss the broader field of planning. Through these conversations, Maya observed how Renaissance prioritizes trust and connection as the foundation for their work. She was particularly impressed by the firm's expertise in storytelling, which she saw as a key tool for engaging communities and fostering relationships to create vibrant, functional cities.
Maya says that her program at UVA and her concentration in Justice and Equity have impressed upon her that “forming strong relationships is crucial for planners to understand community needs, gather valuable insights, and create beneficial long-term changes at every scale.” Getting to witness the many ways Renaissance practices collaboration and relationship building was a highlight for Maya.
Dynamic Projects
Another highlight for Maya was learning about and working on innovative projects. Maya says she found that “the planners at Renaissance come to projects with a holistic and outcome-oriented approach while also constantly thinking about the bigger picture and the long-term implications of the work they do.” The field of urban planning is always advancing and dealing with changing environments, “maintaining a vision for the future can make all the difference in the quality of work being done.”
Maya found her externship inspiring because she was able to see practitioners “approach projects with the utmost care and respect for what they do.” She is excited to continue following Renaissance’s work and take the lessons-learned from her Externship into her final semester at UVA.