Panel discussion: Transforming Cities / Transforming Practice

Aseem Inam:  On December 12, 2013, the Urban Colloquium at Parsons The New School for Design presented "Transforming Cities / Transforming Practice" in New York City.  On the occasion of the official release of Designing Urban Transformation, there was a book signing and reception, presentation, and panel discussion around the following questions: How can we transform cities by transforming the practice of urbanism itself?  What are the kinds of truly creative strategies needed to generate fundamental urban change?  The panelists included Christine Gaspar, Executive Director of Center for Urban Pedagogy, Shin-pei Tsay, Research and Development Director of the Transit Center, Matthew Delsesto, Urban Activist and Scholar-Practitioner at Parsons , and Aseem Inam, Director of Graduate Program in Urban Practice at Parsons.  The event was extremely well attended, with excellent questions and comments from the audience.  The discussion demonstrated that there is a real hunger for truly transformative modes of practice that extend far beyond the sometimes facile tropes such as technology, innovation, sustainability, resilience, or community participation in design.  There is a lot of truly hard--and rewarding--work to be done.  AI

Poster design:  Anze Zadel

Book release: Designing Urban Transformation

The book is now available for purchase as a paperback and as an e-book.  Designing Urban Transformation has received high praise from a range of urban practitioners and scholars.  For reviews as well excerpts from the preface, please click here.  To celebrate the release of the book, the publisher--Routledge--is offering a 20% discount and free shipping.  Please click here for details about this limited time offer.

Cover design:  Sally Beesley, Namkyu Chun and Aseem Inam.

Practicing Sustainability at the Connecting for Change conference

Matt DelSesto:  I attended the the 9th annual Connecting for Change conference this past weekend in New Bedford, Massachusetts. Sponsored by the Marion Institute, Connecting for Change is a three day solutions-based gathering that seeks to bring together a diverse audience to create deep and positive change in their communities.  More than 2000 people gathered this year to hear 100 presenters in a series of 50 workshops and 12 keynote addresses from speakers including Bill Strickland, Tricia Rose, James Hansen, and many other activists, organizers, business owners, and change-makers.  And this conference walks the talk.  During the entire weekend only six bags of trash were generated (the rest of the waste from meals was composted and recycled).   Marion Institute has made substantial efforts to responsibly contribute to the complexity of the local community based on ideas proposed in the conference--for example they partner with local schools and non-profit organizations year-round to carry out transformative sustainability projects and offer generous scholarships based on financial need. Once known as the "whaling capital" of the world, New Bedford currently faces problems similar to other post-industrial New England cities, including relatively high unemployment and crime.  Connecting for Change demonstrates that there is a powerful role for sustainability in the midst of this changing city and that a conference can contribute lasting positive change to the surrounding city and region.  MJD

Part of Purchase Street is closed for the Connecting for Change exhibition tent and farmers market--an asset for residents and program participants alike--in Downtown New Bedford, Massachusetts.  Source: Matt DelSesto

Urbanists Participating in Community Projects?

Aseem Inam:  My talk at Swarthmore College lead to excellent discussions before, during, and after the talk.  At dinner before the talk, the subject of Detroit came up.  I described how during my work in Detroit in the 1990s, I discovered that at the time two of the only neighborhoods that were either relatively stable or were actually growing were Mexicantown and Chaldean Town.  In Mexicantown, for example, immigrants (including many from Central America) came in and fixed abandoned houses and started small businesses.  The neighborhood grew with virtually no support from the city or state governments, corporations, or foundations.  As urbanists, we have to seek and support such initiatives.  In other words, what if we--urbanists--participated in community projects rather than the other way around?  AI.

Mexicantown Bakery in Detroit.  Source:  Wikimedia Commons