THRIVE Collaborative is an Ann Arbor, MI based real estate development, design, building and consulting firm dedicated to creating the life enhancing communities and cities needed for the 22nd Century.  

We use intellectual rigor combined with expert collaborations to create transformative solutions to meet the UN Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.  We take a holistic approach to addressing critical community needs and fostering connectivity by using the framework of the seven performance categories of the Living Building Challenge and the Living Community Challenge: Place, Water, Energy, Health & Happiness, Materials, Equity and Beauty. THRIVE’s work has been featured in seven books on urban planning, net zero energy and sustainable design and building.  

Our Mission:

To accelerate the shift towards beautiful, healthy, and environmentally responsive design and lead the transformation to a truly sustainable human-built environment that is socially just, nature rich and ecologically restorative.  

Matthew Grocoff, Esq, LEED-GA, LFA

Matt is the founder of the THRIVE Collaborative and considered one of the world’s net zero energy building leaders. Green Building Elements magazine called him the “proven Zero Energy Master” and MyFord Magazine one of “Greater Detroit’s most progressive personalities.” With the Biomimicry Institute he’s worked with Ford Motor Company, Procter & Gamble and Bosch to instill cultures of biologically-inspired design and engineering. He was an adviser to the University of Michigan College of Engineering, BLUElab. His 1901-built Ann Arbor home was the world’s first home in a cold climate to achieve Net Zero Energy Certification. Matt is an internationally sought-after Keynote speaker, a frequent source for journalists and a leading advocate on the topic of regenerative systems design and systemic solutions for tackling climate crisis.

Joey Jonna

Joey Jonna’s enthusiasm for real estate, construction, and development dates back to his family roots at Jonna Construction. Uncle Jimmy Jonna’s fearless passion for dealmaking since 1955, along with his father Frank Jonna’s quiet intensity and outstanding people skills sculpted Joey as a leader in the industry.

In 2019, Joey returned to Jonna Construction as partner and CEO to lead the transition and guide Jonna Construction into the future. Strong core values and an ability to generate value through multiple channels are the foundation of his leadership style. For the last half century, the family has built and developed numerous projects primarily in Southeast Michigan. Joey started in the industry at age 14 as a general laborer, learning the Jonna work ethic pushing a broom and cleaning up trash on jobsites.

Joey is also founder of Jonna Facility Services and Jonna Luxury Homes in Birmingham and Bloomfield Hills, MI. His reputation in the industry earned Joey a spot on the prestigious dBusiness 30 in Their Thirties list for leading young entrepreneurs.

DAvid eifrid, leed-ap

David Eifrid is a pioneer in sustainable residential and commercial building and consulting utilizing the USGBC’s LEED Certification, EPA Energy Star, BPI Certification, Net Zero Energy and EPA Lead-Safe Certification. David founded Greenlife Building and Greenlife Energy Services, an elite group of energy experts from around the nation who increase energy efficiency and renewable power for government, education, and business facilities. Greenlife Energy Services conducts energy audits, performs extensive commissioning, and offers performance-based contracts for upgrade implementations. David is an active member of the USGBC Detroit Regional Chapter (DRC).

Sara hammerschmidt, PhD

Sara comes to THRIVE from the Urban Land Institute where she worked as part of the Building Healthy Places Initiative, developing content and programs focused on improving public health, sustainability, and social equity through changes to the built environment. Sara has spoken about how real estate development can improve health outcomes and the role of developers and other land use professionals in improving health and sustainability at several national conferences.

Sara holds an M.S. and Ph.D. in Community and Regional Planning from the University of Texas at Austin, and a B.S. in Industrial and Operations Engineering from the University of Michigan. She has served on the Ann Arbor City Planning Commission since 2019.

John Bello, PE, LEED AP, WELL AP, ENV SP

John is a licensed Professional Engineer originally from New York. He joins Thrive after working for Skanska as a sustainability-driven Field Engineer and Construction Project Manager. His work experience has taken him to the Financial District of New York, underground subways in Los Angeles, a mass-timber airport in Oregon, a soviet-era laboratory in Prague and the jungles of Costa Rica. His global perspective on sustainable engineering, construction and resource management will be an asset during the execution of the Veridian at County Farms project, and towards future business development. 

While building a light-rail train in Los Angeles, John successfully led the certification team for what would be the US’s first Envision Platinum transit project. This achievement and his research on carbon-negative building materials, led to his recognition by GreenBiz magazine on their list of 30 Under 30 business leaders driving sustainable business.  

John holds a Masters in Green Technology from the University of Southern California and several sustainability certifications, including; LEED AP, WELL AP, ENV SP and an accreditation for rainwater catchment from ARCSA.