Beyond Design

Blog Prompt # 4: “If you were completely released from the constraints of the ‘architecture school’ program, what would you do architecturally, artistically, bodily, lyrically, etc that would still have an impact on your environment. Describe a real or imagined place which might allow you to do this. Explore through images and text

What an interesting, and, at the same time puzzling question. To be completely honest this kind of thought had never crossed my mind until now. Thus far I haven’t felt the constraints of so-called ‘architecture school’ but in some ways I’ve come to realize that there could be so many other things I could be doing at this very moment. Things that would greatly benefit an architectural education and positively impact the environment around me….

1.Travel…but not quite study abroad: This type of travel would consist of roaming from place to place or staying put in a centralized area for great lengths of time, whatever feels right. For me, travelling to foreign lands and interacting with people of completely different cultures is an experience like no other; spending months at a time trying to speak different languages, seeing things you only read about, eating different cuisines, take a small glimpse of a local culture and most importantly meeting the people. I think we could all benefit enormously if could see things from a different side of the world and gain entirely new perspectives.

2.Read everything I can get my hands on: As of right now free time is not something I’ve had a lot of in recent months. What couldn’t be better than reading every book you’ve planned to read but didn’t, were recommended by a teacher or the one you never finished but should’ve for a class last semester. I think this knowledge gained will impact you in a similar way to #1, opening ones mind to endless possibilities, otherwise not imagined. And hopefully that newly acquired knowledge can be used to generate positive outcomes for the community as a whole, and with that comes #3.

3.Designing and partnerships across the globe: There are billions of people in need and cannot otherwise help themselves. Starvation, natural disaster, pollution, poverty, oppressive governments, war, disease, all plague our earth and kill millions upon millions of people. What better experience could one have helping those in need and finally see their creative minds being put to good use. But in order to expand our ability to help these people we must become more universally tied and aligned in partnerships. A body of minds closer to the site could mean a great overall impact through federal legislature, or what have you. No other single experience can be as memorable and as though-provoking as helping those in need.

4.Do what I love….but more: There are many things I love to do: take long walks, play soccer, paint, eat cookie monster ice cream at the Grand Old Creamery, driving around till I get lost, and of course crosswords. I think the joy gained from these experiences should be reflected upon, discussed and used to draw inspiration.

After writing this I’ve realized that so many of the things I’ve talked about can be done on a much smaller scale; there’s volunteering in the community, finding time to read, continuing to do what I love and incorporate it into design projects or ideas. These thoughts aren’t that much different from what we’re doing now, so many the so-called ‘architecture school’ doesn’t have as many constraints as I had originally thought.

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Blog Prompt 3: Propose a set of images, quotes and a playlist of songs that influence your values with
regard to your selected Research Project Millennium Development Goals. Explain

Millennium Development Goal: Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger (#1)

By 2015. . .
Reduce by half the proportion of people living on less than a dollar a day.
Reduce by half the proportion of people who suffer from hunger.

"We will have time to reach the Millennium Development Goals – worldwide and in most, or even all, individual countries – but only if we break with business as usual.
We cannot win overnight. Success will require sustained action across the entire decade between now and the deadline. It takes time to train the teachers, nurses and engineers; to build the roads, schools and hospitals; to grow the small and large businesses able to create the jobs and income needed. So we must start now. And we must more than double global development assistance over the next few years. Nothing less will help to achieve
the Goals."-United Nations Secretary-General

“Every year nearly 11 million people go to bed hungry every day,� that’s more than twice the population of Minnesota. It’s a number so immense, so inconceivable that it almost doesn’t seem real. Living here in the Twin Cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis most of us are so fortunate and so well off that poverty is never anything we will ever have to think about. But for the billions of people around the globe it’s a reality.

“Poverty is the worst form of violence�
-Mahatma Ghandi

By helping to alleviate the poor and eradicate extreme poverty and hunger throughout the world than we can end the brutality against billions of starving people. The ones most heavily affected are the children of poverty. They are malnourished and often times not immunized so they are especially susceptible to diseases including rampant HIV/AIDS. “Every year nearly 11million children die before their fifth birthday.� (UNICEF). No one deserves to struggle everyday to survive, especially when they have their whole lives before them. They shouldn’t have to worry about how their going to eat or watching people around them die. These children deserves all the opportunities and freedoms the rest of us experience around the world including education, play and hope.

“It is poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish�
-Mother Theresa

And so as one of the richest nations in the world we must help those less fortunate. Giving them hope and ability to survive is the least we could do. In John F. Kennedy’s famous line, “If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich�. The world is becoming smaller than ever and with that extreme poverty and hunger becomes ever more evident. The entire world has a responsibility to help those who cannot help themselves.

“You can't get rid of poverty by giving people money�
-P.J. O'Rourke

“The poor themselves can create a poverty-free world.. all we have to do is to free them from the chains that we have put around them�
-Muhammad Yunus

. . . And with that I’d like to say we must make the change in the world we want to see and others deserve.

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Blog Prompt 2: Find a social-design issue - here in the twin cities
Document it.
Become an advocate for it.

While sitting in my geography of the twin cities class today pondering what social-design issue I could discuss, my teacher began to tell us of Sumner Field Housing project. It was the first of its kind, built in Minneapolis’s north side during the Depression in 1938. The local government at the time was barraged by applicants in need of affordable housing, nearly double the capacity of the Sumner Field Project. My professor went on to describe to us how we are in much the same situation right now. However, it hasn’t always been like this. During much of the 70’s there was an increase in interest in the need for affordable housing and the solution was eased for a time. But that time is gone and once again thousands of people are in dire situation are in need of a place to live. Increasing housing costs, average decrease in wages and destruction of current affordable housing has left thousands in the metro area stranded with nowhere to turn.

Chip Halbach, executive director of the St. Paul-based Minnesota Housing Partnership, said the situation is something of a double-whammy. From 2000 to 2005, the number of apartments in Minnesota that rent for $700 a month or less fell by 60,000 units - a 22 percent drop. During that same period the median income of Minnesota renters, adjusted for inflation, fell from $31,588 to $26,755 - a drop of about 15 percent. . . (Bjorhus)

I ran across two startling articles from both the Pioneer Press and the Star Tribune from April 2007. The story they ran was about an opening in the St. Paul Public Housing Agency’s sector 8 division which distributes vouchers for affordable housing. In the short span of time they had the waitlist open, nearly 11,000 people applied; this number was double the 5,000 to 6,000 they had expected. The average wait for an occupant on this list is five years. This very evident example shows all of us that the need is still very much here and more than ever.

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, housing is consider affordable only when it cost the household that occupies it less than 30% of its gross income. Half of all those who rent and a third of all those with mortgages do not live in affordable housing under this definition. Many of these work full time jobs, yet they still have difficulties affording their current homes. Included in such occupations are pre-school teachers, janitors, retail salespersons, medical assistants, nurse aides, restaurant cooks, maids, receptionists and school bus drivers.

Many of these families are forced to sacrifice other necessities in order to have a place to live.
As housing costs consume a growing portion of household income, families have less money left over to pay for other needs. Because families risk losing their homes if they do not meet their rent or mortgage costs each month, they often must skimp on other necessities such as food, child care, or health care. Also, with so few affordable units available, many families are forced to accept any housing they can find, even if it is in unsafe or substandard condition.In the worst cases, individuals and families who cannot afford housing face eviction from apartments or foreclosure on their homes and may become homeless. (Public Education. . .)

In Minneapolis alone the Metropolitan Council has calculated a need of 4, 088 units (Twin Cities Region. . .)The problem will likely augment in the coming years as the Metropolitan Council has predicted that the Twin Cities metro area will have one million new residents by the year 2020. But the problem does not lie in the inner-cities alone. Nearly half of those in need of affordable housing live in one of the Twin Cities’ suburbs, most notably Shakopee, Woodbury, Lakeville and Prior Lake are predicted to be in need the most in the next ten years. People here, often have hard time keeping up with their more affluent neighbors and finding services they need near them. Below is a link to the Metropolitan Council’s “Twin Cities Region Affordable Housing Units Needed, 2011 to 2020�.
http://www.metrocouncil.org/planning/Housing/AffHousingNeedJan06.pdf

So why hasn’t something been done about this ever-growing problem? There have been some improvements throughout the Twin Cities thanks to legislation which obligates local governments to propose projects that meet that demand of affordable housing increases. In 1995 the Living Communities Act furthered this mission by presenting cities who agreed with various developmental grants. While great strides may have been taken in some areas such as St. Paul and New Brighton, many others are lagging behind their projected goals; some counties have fallen below the 25% marker in terms of progress. There are many factors why local city governments are not meeting the goals they set for to do. “When asked to name the chief obstacles to meeting affordable housing goals, land costs were mentioned by 62% of the respondents, lack of available land for multi-family and low-cost housing was mentioned by 42%, and 36% cited the lack of funding for subsidized housing.� (TC Housing. . .) Other reasons include the oppositions by neighbors who believe it will lower their property value and land use going toward condominiums and townhouses.

In order to create change and invigorate our communities several things must be done utilizing both the public and private sectors in the community. Although local governments cannot control the cost of land they can assist in zoning and what land they do own they could sell off at a lower rate. A much less costlier approach is renovating and expanding existing buildings. In the private sector, businesses could donate some for the good of the community as a whole. The attitude of affordable housing needs to change as well, it should not be looked at as a burden for the city to bear but, “In reality, affordable housing stabilizes families and stabilizes communities.� (TC Housing. . .) There’s still much more to be done so that everyone in need receives the home they deserve.

“Everyone has a right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well being of himself and his family, including . . . housing . . .�
-Universal Declaration of Rights, Article 25

Sources:
Batalden, Karl. "Twin Cities Affordable Housing Need Increases Dramatically." Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity. 2008. 10 Feb. 2008 .

Bjorhus, Jennifer. "11,000 Cram Onto Rent Aid List." Pioneer Press. 21 Apr. 2007. 10 Feb. 2008 .

"Metro Failing to Meet Housing Goals." Star Tribune. 17 July 2007. 10 Feb. 2008 .

"Summary Report: Determining Affordable Housing Need in Twin Cities, 2011-2020." Metropolitan Council. Jan. 2006. 10 Feb. 2008 .

Twin Cities Affordable Housing Policy. 10 Feb. 2008 .

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Prompt: Inspired by Andy Goldsworthy document and investigate, through text and image - this idea of energy, flow and transformation through the city.

This notion that energy flows through city, making it a viable, living entity is not hard to see in the least bit. Sure, you could take the statement at face value, of the real instances of energy transferences found throughout an urban central. The first few things that come to mind are gasoline and electric fueled car engines, heating bills and light switches. But there's so much more going on around us than we wouldn’t be able to see or comprehend all at once. Our climate and weather is dependent on the amount of energy in our atmosphere and the ground below us. Each day we consume energy and use that to function throughout the day from doing every day task such as typing to bodybuilding or my personal favorite, rollerblading. That is to say, however, that the average American consumes many more calories than they could ever use in one day.

But I think there’s so much more happening in a city than you could ever comprehend by standing on the street corner. I often find myself thinking of the concept of a city as a living thing comprising of many parts, similar to the human body. The main arteries are the roads and public transportation, while high-rises are its eyes.

Most importantly, are the people. These people within the city are responsible for keeping the city alive, giving its energy. And through these people, the energy they exude does well to transform the city as time passes and new generation arise. The “heart of the city� is something people talk about casually, not really paying attention to its meaning, but I really think that it does have merit. While watching “While the Levees Broke� in class heart of the city was what stood out the most for me. When the New Orleanians were returning home, they brought back with them a pulse back to the city and its unique culture. Without the citizens moving in and out, living, setting up business, reconstructing, celebrating, it would become an empty shell. Plato says, “This city is what it is because our citizens are what they are�. I’d like to conclude saying that this idea of energy, flow and transformation through the city is a complex system involving many variables but what is known is that its future lives within the people.

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