terra firma : solid earth
FIRMAH is an Austin-based architecture and design firm dedicated to crafting the grounds for connectivity and engagement across communities and landscapes. We build upon foundational principles of holistic environmental and social wellness, leveraging our unique design expertise in creating innovative, resilient, and inclusive environments for mixed typologies and programs. Committed to building strong community relationships, we design spaces that not only stand firm in their aesthetic and functional excellence, but also uplift and enhance the well-being of the people and contexts they serve. We believe in the transformative power of design to create lasting impact, rooted in the enduring strength and connectedness of the spaces we inhabit.
We are all on one common ground, one shared earth, one terra firma.
Let’s build connections.
FIRMAH is a woman-owned small business.
Team
Collaboration is fundamental to our process. We are deep listeners and quick to iterate ideas. Most importantly, we consider you — whether you are the client, the user, the visionary, the facilitator — to be integral as an active participant on our team, helping progress the vision at every step.
Ashley Heeren | AIA | LEED AP
Principal | Founder
Ashley works to celebrate communities and places with resilient, inclusive design. She believes that powerful connections made through the design of shared architectural spaces can inspire both individual and societal wellness.
Ashley's strengths have been recognized most recently with an AIA Austin Honor Award for Emerging Professional Achievement and as an Austin Under 40 Finalist. Her professional expertise focuses on benefitting communities and ecosystems across diverse scales and typologies, including award-winning development, hospitality, and educational projects. Ashley has leveraged her work experience to advance thought leadership as well; she has been a featured speaker at AIA and ASLA events across the U.S., locally, and on international media. She ardently promotes education and mentorship, especially efforts to amplify female voices, and is a regularly invited school critic and lecturer.
Ashley received her BA from Yale and her M.Arch from Harvard GSD. She has worked extensively at Low Design Office and Lake|Flato, engaging in projects of varied program and scale, aiming to prioritize sustainability and societal equity.
Ashley serves on committees for The Trail Conservancy, ULI Austin, and other local groups working to improve the Austin community. She also remains passionate about learning from varied global perspectives; with experience living abroad and in continuing to work internationally, she strives to design environments that bridge divides and forge connections.