Estefania Soto

Estefania Soto is an incoming first-year Master of Architecture student at Rice University. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the Texas Tech Huckabee College of Architecture at El Paso. Her passion for architecture was sparked by observing how communities in Ciudad Juárez creatively build spaces from available materials like cardboard, forming environments that nurture connection and resilience. Estefania is committed to designing spaces that shape and strengthen communities, families, and cultures. She believes architecture is a powerful tool for empowerment and community growth. While working at Texas Tech University's Project for Operative Spatial Technologies (POST) with her professors, she contributed to research addressing the environmental and social inequities experienced by border communities. Through this work, she deepened her commitment to architecture as a means of advocacy and change. Estefania aims to continue researching and developing design strategies that support communities in need, creating spaces that not only offer opportunity but also respond to social disparities. Her work is driven by a desire to create a framework where architecture catalyzes understanding, healing, and progress within underserved communities.