How are designers building more inclusive practices?
  1. Home
  2. What's On
  3. How are designers building more inclusive practices?

How are designers building more inclusive practices?

THE PLAN JOURNAL LOOKS AT DESIGN FOR SOCIAL IMPACT

How are designers building more inclusive practices?
By Editorial Staff -

We are presenting some intriguing ideas from The Plan Journal’s themed issue “Design for Social Impact.” In the first article “The Pursuit of Inclusion in Unequal Contemporary Cities, Learning from Cape Town Desegregation,” the author Miriam Bodino argues that “public spaces play a key role in contrasting the process of this growing marginalization.” In the second article “Many Voices, One Project: Participation and Aesthetics in Community-Built Practices,” the author Katherine Melcher explains that “community-built practices suggest that designers in fields such as architecture, landscape architecture, and urban design, should not think of participation and aesthetics as trade-offs but, instead, consider participation as an opportunity to bring new ideas into their work and to develop an aesthetic that reflects the richness and complexity of the participatory process.” In the third article “Unconventional Engagement: Reviving the Urban Marketplace,” the author Ahmed K. Ali explains that “an ease of communication and personal interactions in their shopping experiences are increasingly sought by customers. Farmers’ markets have become both a shopping destination and a preserver of such interactions.”

Finally, we share some thoughts about Design for Social Innovation

>> We encourage you to browse The Plan Journal and investigate for yourself. 

 

Making a difference

In the article ““The Pursuit of Inclusion in Unequal Contemporary Cities, Learning from Cape Town Desegregation,” the author Miriam Bodino explains:

In the past two decades South Africa has been the subject of many studies regarding inequality and segregation, because of its entrenched history of apartheid and its severe imbalanced income distribution.

 Miriam Bodino, photo of the Manenberg Human Settlement Contact Centre’s main façade – on the left – and of the “eco-beam & sand technology” used – on the right. Courtesy of © the Author.Miriam Bodino, photo of the Manenberg Human Settlement Contact Centre’s main façade – on the left – and of the “eco-beam & sand technology” used – on the right. Courtesy of © the Author.

 

Bodino continues to explain:

The desegregation process of Cape Town has been attempting to use public space as social infrastructure to bridge its divide. Firstly, the shift towards a more inclusive city happened in academic writing. Secondly, the shift also occurs in municipal public space programmes. And lastly, the shift materialized in several innovative projects, which have been carried out mainly in township areas. 

>> The article is available in THE PLAN Journal vol. 1/2016, no. 2 (in English)

 

In the article “Many Voices, One Project: Participation and Aesthetics in Community-Built Practices,” the author Katherine Melcher describes the role of the professional designer as:

In addition to being a facilitator, a community organizer, and a social scientist, they should strive to be experts in developing a creative synthesis that is expressed in a beautiful or inspiring form.

 Katherine Melcher, Sunnyside Piazza Intersection Repair, Portland OR, USA. Designed by the neighborhood in collaboration with City Repair. Courtesy of © the Author.Katherine Melcher, Sunnyside Piazza Intersection Repair, Portland OR, USA. Designed by the neighborhood in collaboration with City Repair. Courtesy of © the Author.

 

Melcher continues to explain that “the last part is where designers can truly distinguish themselves as aesthetic experts.”

>> The article is available in THE PLAN Journal vol. 1/2016, no. 2 (in English)

 

In the article “Unconventional Engagement: Reviving the Urban Marketplace,” the author Ahmed K. Ali’s research includes two case studies: “[the] case studies [are] in the design and construction of two urban markets in Central Texas, one in the state capital of Austin (population 932,000), and the other about 100 miles to the northeast, in Bryan (population 76,000 and adjacent to College Station, population 106,000).”

 Ahmed K. Ali, rainwater collection, outdoor food boulevard, and temporary stalls. Image by Zach Wise. Courtesy of © the Author.Ahmed K. Ali, rainwater collection, outdoor food boulevard, and temporary stalls. Image by Zach Wise. Courtesy of © the Author.

 

Ali concludes:

Unexpected solutions to complex problems are offered by architecture in the facilitation of unconventional social engagement. Whether in a major city such as Austin, or a smaller town such as Bryan, the architecture of the marketplace encourages and cultivates inherent social dynamics, provides the opportunity for cultural expression, and promotes community cohesion and economic development.

>> The article is available in THE PLAN Journal vol. 1/2016, no. 2 (in English)

 

Design for Social Innovation

The recently released, Design for Social Innovation tells the stories of forty-five case studies across six continents that involve designing for social impact. Each case study chapter starts with a roundtable discussion between renown educators and practitioners who set the stage for the stories that follow. Beautifully illustrated, the text describes the transformational power of design in a wide variety of contexts. 

Design for Social Innovation

About the editors:

Mariana Amatullo – Associate Professor of Strategic Design and Management at Parsons School of Design

Bryan Boyer – Director of the Bachelor of Science in Urban Technology degree at the University of Michigan's Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning and Assistant Professor of Practice in Architecture

Jennifer May – Executive Director for Designmatters, the social innovation department at ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, CA

Andrew Shea – Associate Director and Assistant Professor of Integrated Design at Parsons School of Design, The New School

 

ISBN 9780367898427
Published November 30, 2021 by Routledge
418 Pages 221 Color Illustrations

To learn more, check out: Design for Social Innovation

 

Why support + read TPJ?

The Plan Journal is intended to disseminate and promote innovative, thought-provoking, and relevant research, studies, and criticism related to architecture and urbanism. The journal grew out of an awareness that academia is all too often engaged in research that’s disconnected from the real-world challenges that face different professions, and that research is only possible for a small number of professional organizations, and, even then, with limited platforms for its dissemination. The overarching aim of TPJ is therefore to enrich the dialogue between researchers and professionals so as to foster both pertinent new knowledge and intellectually driven modes of practice.

 

How does it work + why does it matter?

Prospective contributors are encouraged to submit proposals or complete manuscripts to the Editor-in-Chief. Subject to positive feedback, proposals can then be developed into complete manuscripts and submitted for review, using the dedicated portal on the TPJ website. 

After preliminary approval, manuscripts will be forwarded to suitably qualified people for commenting. TPJ is committed to following a rigorous double-blind peer review process using at least two reviewers. The Editor-in-Chief may also occasionally invite recognized academics, critics, or professionals (including members of the editorial board) to contribute to the journal without going through the peer review process, if warranted by the author’s reputation.

Keep up with the latest trends in the architecture and design world

© Maggioli SpA • THE PLAN • Via del Pratello 8 • 40122 Bologna, Italy • T +39 051 227634 • P. IVA 02066400405 • ISSN 2499-6602 • E-ISSN 2385-2054