Urban Planning & Design

A technical and political process concerned with the development and design of land use and the built environment, including air, water, and the infrastructure passing into and out of urban areas, such as transportation, communications, and distribution networks.

Activism
Architecture
Artists
Campus Planning
Civil Rights
Community
Conceptual Work
Cultural
Development
Diaspora
Education
Fabrication
Government
Historical
Innovation
Installation
Landscape Architecture
Materials
Ne
Public Space
Research
Revitalization
Science
Social Equity
Sustainability

Nexus Podcast

Dana McKinney

Season 2, Episode 8: We learn from Dana McKinney how her commitment to activism has been integral to her architectural practice and education.

Nexus Podcast

Tiara Hughes

Season 2, Episode 4: Tiara Hughes calls for equity across the architecture community, with an emphasis on increasing initiatives that focus on education and mentorship.

StoryMaps

Twin Cities StoryMap

This AADN StoryMap reckons with the spatial contexts of the police killings of Philando Castile in 2016 and George Floyd in 2020 and investigates the structural role of the built environment in the Twin Cities.

Nexus Podcast

Isabel Strauss

Season 1, Episode 7: Isabel Strauss, a current GSD student, discusses her thesis, which takes the shape of a Request for Proposals to address paths to reparations for Black communities in Chicago's South Side.

Announcements

Architects of Black Harlem

The AADN's Thandi Nyambose surveys some of the places where Black designers have made space for domesticity, creativity, and community, and built a Harlem of bricks and of the imagination. 

StoryMaps

Walter Hood StoryMap

This AADN StoryMap investigates Places through the lens of the work of Walter Hood and social art and design practice Hood Design Studio, Inc.

StoryMaps

Harlem, NYC StoryMap

By tracing Black-designed places in Harlem, this StoryMap highlights the importance of Black urbanists in shaping Harlem’s historical and contemporary identities.

Nexus Podcast

Toni Griffin

Season 1, Episode 6: Urbanist, architect, and GSD Professor Toni Griffin shares her experiences transitioning from working in the private sector to the public sector and starting her own design research initiative.

Nexus Podcast

Stephen Gray

Season 1, Episode 5: Urban designer and GSD Professor Stephen Gray examines ways in which we can bridge the gap between academia and real-projects.

Feature

Kimberly Dowdell

Kimberly Dowdell, AIA, NOMA is an architect and real estate developer born and raised in Detroit.  She is the president of the National Association of Minority Architects, the Director of Business Development for HOK’s Chicago Office, and a partner of...