Abir Ali

Biography: Abir Ali’s career spans architecture, furniture design, grant making, special projects, and real estate development. She is the Director of Design and Culture at The Platform, leading the design and programming strategy across the development portfolio. She is also a Principal and Creative Director at Ali Sandifer, collaboratively designing and curating the studio’s collection of handcrafted furniture. Abir began her architecture career in affordable housing and transitioned to the foundation world where she directed city-wide projects and competitions including 7.2 SQ MI: A Report on Greater Downtown Detroit and NEIdeas: Rewarding Ideas for Business Growth. She has also developed programs for incentivizing design in development. Abir’s work has graced the pages of leading design publications and she serves on a variety of advisory boards and steering committees related to design, craft, and entrepreneurship. She received degrees in Architecture from the University of Michigan and the University of Toronto. Abir was born and raised in Detroit and is a resident of Boston Edison.