Ivory Innovations Hosts Annual Summit on Housing Affordability

TEMPE, Ariz., Oct. 12, 2026 /CourierPR/ -- Ivory Innovations, an operating foundation and academic center based at the University of Utah, is set to host its annual Ivory Prize Summit on October 14 at Arizona State University in Tempe. The event, which brings together housing innovators, policymakers, and developers, aims to advance housing affordability by sharing knowledge and fostering collaboration across sectors.

The summit, held at Memorial Union, 301 E. Orange St., Tempe, will feature a lineup of industry experts and housing advocates. Featured speakers include Clark Ivory, CEO of Ivory Homes and co-founder of Ivory Innovations; Chris Herbert, managing director of Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies and chairman of Ivory Innovations' advisory board; Eric Kronberg, principal at Kronberg Urbanists + Architects and co-founder of Inc Codes; and Laurie Goodman, founder of The Urban Institute's Housing Finance Policy Center. Other notable attendees include Jonathan Lawless, head of homeownership at Bilt Rewards; Dennis Steigerwalt, president of the Housing Innovation Alliance; and Alison Cook-Davis, research director at Arizona State University's Morrison Institute for Public Policy and co-director of the Arizona Research Center for Housing Equity and Sustainability.

The event will also honor the winners of the 2026 Ivory Prize for Housing Affordability, which recognizes innovative solutions in three categories: Construction & Design, Finance, and Policy & Regulatory Reform. This year's winners are TradesFutures, the City of Boston's Boston Acquisition Fund, and the City of Chattanooga's Affordable Housing PILOT and the City of New Rochelle's Downtown Development initiative, which will share the co-winners' title.

In addition to the prize winners, the summit will include presentations from the three teams that won Hack-A-House, an annual competition where college students nationwide propose innovative solutions to housing affordability. These presentations will be livestreamed, followed by a round of voting for the competition's Grand Prize.

The Ivory Prize Summit is presented in partnership with MOD X, the Housing Innovation Alliance, the Arizona Research Center for Housing and Economic Solutions, and the Morrison Institute for Public Policy at Arizona State University. The event is open to the public, and registration and event information are available at ivoryinnovations.org/ivory-prize-summit.