Upcoming Events

Movements, research, and design for another world
WATERLOO ARCHITECTURE ARRISCRAFT 2020-2021 ONLINE SPEAKER SERIES

BREAKING THE CODE

Luke Anderson, Executive Director at StopGap Foundation
Aimi Hamraie, Associate Professor of Medicine, Health, & Society and American Studies, and Director of the Critical Design Lab, Vanderbilt University
Susan Stryker, Barbara Lee Distinguished Chair in Women’s Leadership at Mills College

Moderated by Fiona Lim Tung (she/her), Lecturer, Waterloo Architecture; with
Vic Mantha-Blythe (she/her), Master of Architecture Candidate, Waterloo Architecture

In 2017, the Waterloo School of Architecture underwent an accreditation evaluation. Of the thirty-one criteria which accessed the curriculum, the school did not meet the requirements in only four areas. Accessibility was one of them. Often in both architectural education and in the broader profession, accessibility is not prioritized as a guiding design principle – and yet it directly dictates who is afforded privilege and access to space. As architects and designers, we repeat design standards that reinforce existing power structures. How can we work with consultants, communities, and activists to design spaces that better serve the goal of social equity and inclusion? This conversation explores how architects can work in solidarity with disability and gender rights movements to challenge existing design standards and understand what tools our architectural education affords to create a more inclusive and accessible future.

*Please note that attendees will have to have access to Microsoft Teams to attend this event.