On November 17, the GSD hosted the annual fall get together of the four accredited planning programs in Massachusetts, featuring a lecture by Susan Fainstein (senior research fellow), “The Argument for Just Outcomes.”
In August, Jeffrey Mansfield (MArch) was in the Brazilian Amazon with the Portable Light Project, when he realized that the remote areas are increasingly covered by 3G networks. Mansfield was inspired to develop “Taking Charge,” a project to provide tools and training to jungle residents to expand cell phone use and crowdsource knowledge for farming, fishing, trade, weather, banking, health and more. Read about his grand scheme in “Taking Charge with cellphones” in the Harvard Gazette.
The Boston Foundation for Architecture recently announced the 2012 grantees, which include Danish Kurani (MAUD '13) and the Classroom Co-Creators Project. The project involves a participatory design process with Blackstone Elementary School in South Boston to engage students and teachers in the creation of their learning environment.
Krzysztof Wodiczko (professor in residence of art, design and the public domain) has animated the statue of Abraham Lincoln in NYC with the stories of contemporary veterans for “Abraham Lincoln: War Veteran Projection.” The Wall Street Journal has the story.
GSD students transformed a parking space on Cambridge Street into a miniature park for national Park(ing) Day on September 21. It quickly filled with community members who stopped to talk, play music and eat free ice cream.
Krzysztof Wodiczko creates memorials that evade closure on painful history. This fall his work is giving voice to forgotten, hidden and marginalized members of society in numerous venues in the U.S. and Europe.
Michael Hooper, assistant professor of urban planning, recently published the results of a study of forced eviction and resettlement in Tanzania.
GSD students brought their design and research skills to address practical community needs this summer through the Community Service Fellowship Program. Their internships took them to government agencies and nonprofits in Boston and other cities.
Elizabeth MacWillie (MDesS ’14) and colleagues from Harvard, MIT and Tufts presented their ICE-POPS project at the prestigious Architecture Biennale in Venice.
Wang Shu starts his day reading 17th C poetry and writing Chinese calligraphy. The first Chinese architect to win the Pritzker prize spent the last couple of years at the GSD and is showing China the way to bring the traditional in harmony with the modern.