What is the Social Impact of Sustainable Architecture?
Panelists at the Metropolis Perspective: Sustainability event in Los Angeles last week bemoaned the challenges of measuring social equity within sustainability certification frameworks.
Social Design
Grappling with the Social Impact of Design
A recent Metropolis Think Tank panel, hosted at Perkins+Will's Atlanta office, fleshed out how architects might take better account of a project’s stakeholders, especially those who aren’t paying for it.
This Glowing Grilled Cheese Restaurant Offers the Formerly Incarcerated a Fresh Start
The Minneapolis restaurant All Square, a pro-bono project by Syracuse-based Architecture Office, operates under the mantra, “Don’t Judge, Just Eat.”
Feilden Fowles Tucks a Fully Functioning Farm Into a Vacant London Lot
The Waterloo City Farm, also home to the firm’s studio, delivers good design—and vegetables and barnyard critters—to communities in need.
Can the Design of L.A.’s New Juvenile Detention Facility Change the Future of Youth Incarceration?
Malibu’s Campus Kilpatrick detention facility aims to be a national model for juvenile justice through a humanizing architecture.
New Talent 2017: Orkidstudio's Dedication to Social Impact and Architecture
Orkidstudio's small Nairobi-based team is equal parts contractor, designer, and educator, and treats each project as an opportunity to innovate and empower.
This Nonprofit Empowers Natural Disaster Survivors Through Makerspaces
International aid organization Communitere proposes an alternative model for disaster relief by linking communities with vital tools and technology.
City Whisperers: Why Designers Are Essential to Demystifying Urban Development
Author Cassim Shepard discusses the concept of the "design city" and how designers can act collaboratively to make cities better.
Designing for the Moment Refugees Become Neighbors
Seattle architect Rania Qawasma has created an award-winning guide for refugees navigating day-to-day life in American cities.
Makers, Users Co-Create Tech Products That Make Disability Manageable
Tel Aviv-based start-up Tikkun Olam Makers (TOM) hosts maker-marathons to brainstorm a new generation of assisted devices.
5 Kickstarter Campaigns To Support Right Now
These innovative projects, all at different points on their timeline, could use a little kick, and a lot of support.
What if...Veterans Could Solve the Farming Crisis?
For his inaugural column, architect and activist Andrew Burdick considers how farming could provide a way to help veterans transition back to civilian life.
Measuring Social Design: The Challenges of Bringing Data Into Design
“Design+Health” showed how data will (and should) inform design. But it also provoked questions about its potential downsides.
Social Design: A Discipline In Its Own Right
Cheryl Heller, the founding chair of the MFA in Design for Social Innovation at SVA, explains why "social design" needs its own graduate-level program, now more than ever.
The New School's New Hire Asserts Design's Role in the Refugee Crisis
Alex Aleinikoff, incoming director of the Zolberg Institute of Migration and Mobility at the New School for Social Resource, hopes to bring together the worlds of social research and design.
Jo Noero on Self-Help Housing, Neoliberalism, & What Patrik Schumacher Doesn't Understand
In this interview, South African architect Jo Noero discusses the importance of dweller control in housing—and how it can make the temporary become permanent.
At Cooper Hewitt, Socially Responsible Design Takes Center Stage
While it may be eclectic in its curation, By the People sets a strong precedent for other design museums—hopefully, they will follow its lead.
The LA Incubator Inspiring A New Generation of Maker-Designers
Founded in 2015, MADWorkshop inspires young designers to just "make things"—be it homeless shelters or modular furniture—and make a difference.
Foster on Using Drones to "Leapfrog" Development in Rwanda
The "droneport" is a humanitarian initiative that seeks to jumpstart and navigate the infrastructural challenges of emerging economies.
Can Fashion Help Refugees? This Parsons Student's Ingenious Line Shows How
“Design for Difference” merges style with utility in multi-functional garments that do more than clothe, but protect, shelter, and carry items.
