A Black architect calls on designers to recommit their training and expertise to account for the health and safety of all, especially those who have been most harmed by the status quo of the built environment.
Multiple public health crises are disproportionately killing Black Americans—police brutality has been at the forefront of the public discussion for several weeks, but the disparate effects of the coronavirus are lingering in the background, killing thousands in this country every day.
The disproportionate health effects of COVID-19 on Black Americans is connected to the work of architects, according to Kimberly Dowdell, an architect who writes thusly in a guest column for Fast Company: "This isn’t just a public health problem; it’s a design problem."
Dowdell, who is the president of the National Organization of Minority Architects, calls on architects not only to acknowledge their role in designing the spaces and places that are killing Black Americans in greater numbers during the pandemic. "When it comes to addressing how to safeguard all communities from future health crises, architects bring a myriad of skills to the table," according to Dowdell. Those skills include interdisciplinary expertise, best practices for public health, and a diversity of perspectives.
"We must pledge ourselves to truly design for life," writes Dowdell to conclude.
Read the full story: Racism is built into U.S. cities. Here’s how architects can fight back
The Legacy of Redlining Made Clear by the Coronavirus
Covid-19 deaths track closely to the discriminatory boundaries set by housing lenders, sponsored by the government, in the 20th century.
The Shifting Demographics of Covid-19
For most of the Covid-19 pandemic, Black Americans died at much higher rates than White Americans. That trend has reversed at times during the past year.
Racial Disparities in Life Expectancy Are a Place-Based Problem
New research from the Brookings Institution illuminates the racial disparities of public health outcomes both during and before the pandemic.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Chicago voters approve permanent festival grounds, penalty for vacant property owners
Currently, major summer and fall festivals take over public parks for weeks at a time, drawing criticism from nearby residents
NYC votes to cut outdoor dining red tape, speed up permitting
New York City also voted to allow the Department of Transportation to begin work on urgent projects before notifying elected officials.
California appears to reject Prop. 45
The proposition would have expanded the projects that qualify for a streamlined environmental review, effectively paring down the California Environmental Quality Act.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority