Kira Gould speaks with AIA CEO Robert Ivy about a new initiative being led by the Institute to help quantify the relationship between architecture and public health, and demonstrate the value design can bring to affecting a community’s health.
Announced at this year's Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting in New York, the American Institute of Architects' new "Decade of Design" initiative is "a 10 year commitment to develop design and technology solutions for cities addressing public health, sustainability, and resiliency challenges," writes Kira Gould. Focused on funding three areas of innovation at the moment - university research, community planning collaborations, and hackathons - the initiative seeks "to demonstrate the link between building design and the health of people who live or work there."
According to Gould, the first three recipients of research grants were announced recently: "Texas A&M University’s project, Evaluating Health Benefits of Liveable Communities is a toolkit for measuring health impacts, which will include an empirical study of a LEED for Neighborhood Development project in Austin. The University of Arkansas’s Fayetteville 2030: Creating Food City Scenario Plan will study pathways to creating a local food infrastructure amid rapid growth. The University of New Mexico has a pilot program, Establishing Interdisciplinary Health-Architecture Curriculum."
This month, the AIA published a new report in the Local Leaders series titled "Healthier Communities Through Design," which uses several case studies to provide a toolkit for utilizing "architecture to improve public health with policies that promote active living, accessibility, transit options, and better indoor air quality."
FULL STORY: Architects and the Public Health Imperative
Oregon Passes Exemption to Urban Growth Boundary
Cities have a one-time chance to acquire new land for development in a bid to increase housing supply and affordability.
Where Urban Design Is Headed in 2024
A forecast of likely trends in urban design and architecture.
Savannah: A City of Planning Contrasts
From a human-scales, plaza-anchored grid to suburban sprawl, the oldest planned city in the United States has seen wildly different development patterns.
Washington Tribes Receive Resilience Funding
The 28 grants support projects including relocation efforts as coastal communities face the growing impacts of climate change.
Adaptive Reuse Bills Introduced in California Assembly
The legislation would expand eligibility for economic incentives and let cities loosen regulations to allow for more building conversions.
LA's Top Parks, Ranked
TimeOut just released its list of the top 26 parks in the L.A. area, which is home to some of the best green spaces around.
City of Rochester
Boston Harbor Now
City of Bellevue
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Birmingham, Alabama
City of Laramie, Wyoming
Colorado Department of Local Affairs
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.