Fingerhood
sarah@scaf.holdings
A critical through-line of my professional journey has been the ability to bring creative, interdisciplinary perspectives into new fields and modalities. I have been involved in fields of architecture, landscape design, art, digital studies, and education. My roles within these fields have varied from researcher, editor, project manager, creative director, teacher, and student.
My current preoccupation with printed matter stems from a deep-seated value for education in all its forms. Ultimately, I see storytelling as a tool to foster access, belonging, and an expanded imaginative capacity to envision change.
B.A. in Media Studies | Concentration in Advocacy & Activism
2018-2022
Summa Cum Laude
Thesis: “Societal Implications of Future Internet Infrastructure: A Critique of Web3”
University of California, Berkeley
College of Environmental Design | Certificate in Landscape Architecture
2022
National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS)
2017
Completed 3-month mountaineering course, earning Medical and Wilderness First Aid certifications (WFA)
Full CV
Axiomatic Editions, an imprint of ORO Editions
2024 - Present
Adjunct Lecturer
University of Arizona, College of Architecture, Planning & Landscape Architecture (CAPLA)
2025 - Present
Environmental Consultant
Center for Creative Land Recycling (CCLR)
2025- Present
Senior Project Associate
Center for Creative Land Recycling (CCLR)
2022 - 2025
Design, Architecture, and Planning Intern
San Francisco Parks & Recreation Department (SFRPD)
2023
New York, NY | 2024 - Current
San Francisco | 2001 - 2024
Warmest Temp: 80°F
Coldest Temp: 33°F
Featured in 2025 Byline Risk Issue, “The Spirit of Surf”
Speaks Truth to Power
Various locations | 1999 - Present
Youngest of 3 sisters.
Responds Well Under Pressure
Omaha, Nebraska | October 2024
Diagnosed & Fixed My Own Car
Philadelphia, PA | May 2022
1995 Toyota Pick Up
Faulty Mass Air Flow Sensor
Leo Zodiac Placement
San Francisco General Hospital | July 1999
Reimagining Architectural Drawing: Print & Process
Architects & Furniture
Staged: Architecture for Performance, Exhibition, and Fiction
Creek Restoration & Outdoor Education Center
UC Berkeley
2023
design, research
Full Project Gallery
The final design aimed to daylight Peralta Creek and build an integrated outdoor education center to promote ecological stewardship among young students and convert shared and
underused backyard space into communal gardens for local food production.
Reversing Historic Disinvestment from Advocacy to Funding
Panel Participant at the California Park & Recreation Society (CPRS) 2025 Conference “Connections”
Event Link
Sacramento, CA
March 20th, 2025
Talk & Education
Panelists:
* Linda Hwang, Senior Director, Strategy & Innovation | The Trust for Public Land (TPL)
* John Gibbs, Principal Landscape Architect & Urban Design | WRT
* Sarah Fingerhood, Senior Program Associate | Center for Creative Land Recycling (CCLR)
* Peter Winch, Principal Urban Designer & Planner | WRT
Planning a Creative Funding Strategy for Successful Park Development
Link to PDF
Center for Creative Land Recycling
2025
user research, qualitative & quantitative research, resource lead, project management
As Senior Project Manager for this project, I led this project in all facets: research overview, editorial scope, design review, user engagement, peer-review cycles, and eventual publication and dissemination.
2024
Center for Creative Land Recycling
user research, qualitative & quantitative research, resource lead, project management
Alongside my colleague Sebastian Harrison, Environmental Engineer, I developed a comprehensive campaign strategy, including key timelines, deliverables, partnerships, and outcomes, in order to realize this initiative. The initiative has continued to thrive since I departed from CCLR. Check out this webinar, “From Nature to Nurture: Ecosystem Strategies for Effective Site Clean-Up,” presented on Dec. 11, 2024.
Center for Creative Land Recycling
2024
user research, qualitative & quantitative research, resource lead, project management
Quantifying community needs and inequities is an essential element of brownfield redevelopment and community revitalization efforts. Competitive brownfield grant applications present relevant facts and figures about the areas prioritized for reuse, and this data can also help center community engagement efforts.
The following fact sheet is by no means comprehensive, but it provides a running start for research related to grant applications and educational efforts around land reuse, redevelopment, and environmental justice.
As a project lead for this resource, my responsibilities included comprehensive qualitative and quantitative research, design oversight, editorial scope and review, and partnership efforts to promote and expand the impact of our work.
The following fact sheet is by no means comprehensive, but it provides a running start for research related to grant applications and educational efforts around land reuse, redevelopment, and environmental justice.
As a project lead for this resource, my responsibilities included comprehensive qualitative and quantitative research, design oversight, editorial scope and review, and partnership efforts to promote and expand the impact of our work.
Boosting Land Reuse Grants with Environmental Justice Data
Talk given at the California Land Recycling Conference 2024
Event Link
Los Angeles, CA
Sept. 18, 2024
Talk & Education
Join us for “Demystifying Data: Boosting Land Reuse Grants with EJ Data.” This presentation delves into the power of environmental justice data platforms to create compelling and competitive land reuse grant applications. Learn which tools are available to help quantify community needs and inequities, shape equitable brownfield redevelopment and community revitalization plans, and make your grant application stand out. Gain an overview understanding of where different data resources are best applied to equip yourself with the knowledge to tell a cohesive community story and prioritize impactful goals for project implementation. This session is geared towards those affected by a brownfield or engaged in redevelopment at all stages and with all levels of knowledge.
Project Link
San Francisco Park & Rec Department
San Francisco, CA
2023
design, community engagement, project management
As a project manager working on the renovation, I assisted in the dissemination of critical information to the community, developed key marketing and community engagement strategies, revised schematic designs and presentations, and attended weekly meetings with the Outreach & Engagement team to strategize immediate and long-term efforts.
As a member of the PIEA, I designed and developed outreach materials, maintained our public website with critical updates, attended weekly research meetings to help build the skeleton outline of the PEIA ToolKit Guidebook, helped develop metrics to track the success of social impact, prepared relevant case studies, and attended all community meetings to ensure a collaborative design process with local community members.
Site Analysis and Identification
Project Link
San Francisco Park & Rec Department
San Francisco, CA
2023
design, community engagement, project management
Excerpts from Presentation
As part of this effort, I presented an analysis of my findings that supported the development of a new skatepark, taking into account national comparisons, advocacy efforts, skatepark methodology, site analyses, and local history.
In 2025, SFRPD partnered with The Skatepark Project (TSP), founded by Tony Hawk, and Converse to open the new 2,100 SF park in UN Plaza. Read more in this article, “A San Francisco Plaza Was Down and Out. Then Skaters Moved In” New York Times, 2025