August 2020 Member of the Month: Stefanie Brodie

Meet Stefanie Brodie

Where do you work?

Toole Design Group

What is your title?

Senior Researcher | Associate

What is your preferred way to get around the District? 

Some combination of Metrorail, Metrobus, and Capital Bikeshare.

What is your favorite part of being a YPT-DC member? 

I've met so many people that I enjoy nerding out with at happy hours, and every now and again, I get to work with them on a project! As cliché as it sounds, I love the network.

What inspired you to pursue a career in transportation? 

I spent some months working at the Maryland Transit Administration and it became clear to me how important transportation is for people to engage in society and how disparate options can limit people's quality of life. I got interested in urban planning and made a career shift from a structural engineer to a transportation planner/engineer.

Describe a job or project that you are most proud of: 

My dissertation. I've never worked so hard on a single project and it was incredibly rewarding. Turns out, it's useful too. I've been translating the fundamentals of my research for cities that are rethinking how they evaluate transportation equity.

What is the best professional advice that you've received? 

"If you love what you do you'll never work a day in your life." It lacks some nuance -  you'll still work - but it's helped me find a career path that is fulfilling and energizes me. You spend so much of your life working, I'm so grateful to enjoy what I do every day.

Share a non-transportation fun fact about you!

I have a portfolio of art works in progress that I have been steadily completing during our time of social isolation.