I recently joined the Heber Valley Life Podcast to talk about something that affects all of us: why our valley looks the way it does—and what we can do about it.

We discussed growth, affordability, city codes, and the tension between single-family living and higher density. I shared why “timeless” is really another word for beautiful, why trend-driven design fades fast, and how simple massing, natural materials, proportion, and order still matter. We also dove into how zoning quietly acts as the DNA of a city—and why if we don’t get the code right, we won’t get the outcome right.

If you care about how Heber Valley grows, what replaces open land, and whether new development becomes a contribution or a detraction, this is a conversation worth hearing.

Tune in to Heber Valley Life and let me know what you think.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/heber-valley-life-building-community-with-rachel-kahler/id1830594627

Episode 3 of 3 in our Education Series In this final episode of my three-part conversation with Paul Monson, Director of Architecture at Utah Valley University, we turn to the practical question of how. How does a student become better prepared for the profession, and how can any of us become more attentive and informed observers of the built environment. We begin with Vitruvius and his description of what an architect should know. It is a demanding standard, but Paul uses it to make a grounded point. Architecture requires breadth, humility, and lifelong learning. The goal is not to master everything at once, but to steadily develop judgment, skill, and clarity. From there, we discuss:

• what is missing in many programs when architecture is taught as theory rather than craft
• how to evaluate an architecture school, including the right questions to ask on a visit
• why UVU is built around accessibility, affordability, and real-world preparation
• why hand drawing remains essential and how it supports clear thinking and design freedom
• how digital tools can shape outcomes if students become limited by software assumptions
• how non-architects can begin training their eye and building design vocabulary
• where to start with resources such as the Institute of Classical Architecture and Art
• and why the built environment is not fate, but choice

We also talk about curriculum, accreditation, learning through making, community-engaged studios, and the importance of developing both technical competence and a refined sense of proportion and beauty. We close with a larger reminder. Beauty is not a luxury. It is deeply connected to human wellbeing, meaning, and culture. Wherever you are, improvement is possible, and it requires participation from everyone involved in building our world.

Episode 2 of 3 in our Education Series

In the second episode of this three-part conversation with Paul Monson, Director of Architecture at Utah Valley University, we move from the foundation of education to the deeper question of why traditional architecture matters at all.Paul and I talk about the origins of the UVU architecture program and why it was intentionally built around craft, practicality, and time-tested principles rather than purely conceptual theory. From there, the conversation widens into the cultural, environmental, and moral implications of how we build.To explain it, we begin with a simple idea: sustainability is not about novelty or technology alone, but about durability, repairability, and stewardship. From throwaway buildings to throwaway materials, Paul makes the case that much of what we call “progress” has quietly eroded our built environment and our sense of place.From there, we explore:

• why traditional architecture is a teachable and learnable language
• how modernism became the default way of building in the twentieth century
• what true sustainability looks like when you consider an entire building’s life cycle
• why local materials and local identity matter more than global sameness
• how tradition can produce diversity rather than imitation
• why the accusation that traditional design is “just copying” misses the point
• and why architects and designers cannot be neutral in shaping the civic realm

We also discuss processed materials, authenticity, modern construction constraints, and how designers can work toward something better even when budgets and systems are imperfect.This episode asks a difficult but necessary question: Are the places we are building today making life better or worse for the people who inhabit them?If you have ever felt uneasy about the way modern buildings age, or why so much of the built world feels disposable and placeless, this conversation puts language to that intuition and explains why the past still has something to teach us.