Robyn T. Emerson, or simply Robyn to her friends, is a well-known figure in housing and real estate. Her passion for urban planning and doing things right has seen her lead several organisations and forums. But did you know she once aspired to be a pediatrician? We had a Q&A with her.
Let’s clear this first: are you Kenyan or American?
I am AmeriKen. I am an American citizen who has visited, volunteered, worked and raised a family in Kenya for 17 years.
What does the “T” in your name stand for?
My full initials are R.T.E. My sister and I share my father’s initials. My middle name is Tania.
On your Twitter handle, you identify with Democrats Abroad; are you interested in US politics? If yes, to what extent are you involved?
I’m very interested in the power of people’s agency and institutions serving the will of the people. That draws in me into politics, which is about the negotiated distribution of resources. I am the Chair of Democrats Abroad Kenya and have been supporting American Voters in Kenya for almost 10 years to vote from abroad. I wake up and go to sleep watching, reading, strategising politics – US, Kenya, Africa, global. The work of an urban planner is very political and if one tries to shy away from it, one can’t be effective.
Give us some background to Robyn.
I was born October 1971, during the time of US Civil Rights and the Vietnam War. My father was a soldier in the war; I’m grateful he was able to be at my birth on the army base. He was honourably discharged and we moved back to my parents shags, Kentucky, where I spent my formative years.
Where did you go to school and college?
I did my undergraduate studies at two historically black colleges/universities – Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana where I began pursuing a pre-med degree hoping to become a pediatrician, and then transferred six years later to Huston-Tillotson University in Austin, Texas (my home city) earning a bachelor’s in business administration. Six years later, I enrolled in a master’s degree program in urban and regional planning at the University of Texas at Austin.
You seem very passionate about real estate matters. How did you get interested in Kenya’s real estate sector?
I’m specifically interested in people living life well. The built environment is an access to impact every aspect of life. I found myself in the Kenya real estate sector when I worked at the Kenya Property Developers Association (KPDA).
You are the co-author of Building in Kenya: A Real Estate Developer’s Tool Kit and have served in many other organisations. You are heavily involved in Women in Real Estate (WIRE), Buildher, Kilimani Project Foundation, KDI, Nairobi Forum, Women’s Baseball Federation of Kenya, among others. What are your roles in these organisations and how do you manage to juggle all these?
It’s exciting to have so many innovative, bold organisations shaping various facets of the built environment. Some that I have the honour to be on their leadership teams range from resident associations – empowering residential agency and modeling participatory engagement; gender equality – policies, systems and capacity building as well as community organising. I’m the Founding President of WIRE, leading for almost seven years and will be handing over to its second president at next year’s AGM. I’m a founder or Board Member of the other organisations.
You worked with Emma Miloyo on the handbook Building in Kenya: A Real Estate Developer’s Tool Kit. What inspired you two to write the book? How was it like working with Emma?
Emma and I were lobbying Nairobi City County in 2015/16. She was Vice President of the Architectural Association of Kenya (AAK) and I was KPDA CEO. We realized the knowledge sitting in one stakeholder’s hands limits accountability and also opens the door for mischief. We took it as our personal social responsibility to make the building process and regulations easy to comprehend and open source. It’s our labour of love, a complete social enterprise with every shilling poured back into the expansion of its offering with Mjengo Clinics and online courses. We’re now working on writing the second edition with updates. We’re fueled by the feedback we’ve received from developers – new and seasoned – who’ve shared with us testimonies about how the information empowered them.
Tell us about your family. Are any of them in Kenya and are they interested in real estate or urban planning?
I’m married to a Kenyan human rights defender, and our blended family consists of seven adult children. We have a sister and a son who are both excellent real estate professionals. Others work in a variety of fields, including economics, law, and renewable energy, acting, hospitality, environmental engineering and interior design. While we are extremely proud of them, we are overjoyed with our four grandchildren.
What is a typical day for you like?
There isn’t one. My workdays are focused on Habitat for Humanity Africa programs – managing Africa Housing Forum and Urban Policies. With a team of people, we convened housing stakeholders for the inaugural Africa Housing Forum with over 750 people attending the hybrid event. From that I am expanding partnerships and supporting urban programmes of our national offices.
Before and after work you can find me meeting Emma super early going over book edits, meeting partners and revising our courses or working with other lovers of Nairobi to evaluate submissions for community leaders’ awards. One night a week I lead a transformational seminar coaching people on creating and living lives they love, or I’m hanging out with my husband driving to random places to explore Kenya.
What do you do outside work especially to unwind?
Call my mama; she’s a hoot! Laughing with her takes the significance out of whatever I consider to be so significant.
What does the future look like? What else would you like to do before retiring?
I don’t have plans to retire; if I’m breathing, I’ll still be causing! So, the future looks like more good trouble.
