B.Arch, USC; MFA in Design + MS in Energy Systems, UC Davis; AS in Mechatronics, Sierra College

Dan Tran maintains a multidisciplinary art+design practice that emphasizes decarbonization through reconciliation ecology, greywater reuse and materials research. In 2022, he was selected to serve as USC’s 2023-2024 Citizen Architect Fellow. Trained as an architect, organic farmer & public servant, Tran’s projects examine how rural/urban relations and material life cycles shape our climatic, cultural and ecological resilience.

Tran has served as an executive fellow and rural development analyst for the State of California Treasurer’s Office and has previously taught at UC Santa Cruz, UC Davis and Sacramento City College. He regards teaching as an effective tether for multidisciplinary research and crucial to cultivating resilient, multigenerational communities. In 2021, Tran received a Savageau Award honorable mention for his MFA thesis entitled “Recasting Resilience: bio-based alternatives for concrete and ceramics.” Tran’s work has been supported by the Manetti Shrem Museum of Art, RMR Group, DPR Construction, State of California, City of Palo Alto, City of Sacramento and others.