CHARISSE JOHNSTON

FASID, LEED AP, Assoc. AIA

After studying Behavioral Biology at Johns Hopkins University and earning an MBA from Columbia Business School, Charrisse Johnston was a Wall Street strategic planning executive before turning to interior design. She is currently a Director of The African Institute of Interior Design Professions (IID) as well as a Principal and Co-Founder of StudioSALT, an architecture and design strategy firm in Cape Town, South Africa.

Charrisse was a Principal and the firm-wide Interior Design Practice Leader at SteinbergHart, an award-winning architecture firm with offices in California and Shanghai. Prior to joining SteinbergHart, Charrisse spent nine years at Gensler, where she designed learning and commercial workspaces and managed a design studio.

Charrisse is a Fellow and former Chair of the National Board of Directors of ASID, the 25,000-member American Society of Interior Designers, and a member of Contract magazine‘s editorial advisory board. She has lectured around the world, juried international design competitions, and contributed to scholarly publications related to interior design. Charrisse particularly enjoys speaking with young designers about the impact of interior design on improving human performance and well-being.