2024 S6: Community Engagement

With Summer Break in full swing, session 6 scholars Fijoy Fisiy, AIA and Dainlong Ma, Assoc. AIA broke down the components of Community Engagement through our industry. The session kicked off with David A. Rubin, PLA, FASLA, FAAB defining the core of community engagement. Through case studies and personal anecdotes David stressed the value of - engaging constituents. Seeing themselves visualized, self identifying, given prominence and respect and identify of the process. Communication with constituents, setting up in their environments, they know their neighborhood the best.

For any design, he starts with the essential question “What does success look like to you.”

Second part of the session was a panel discussion comprised by Mark Hamala Senior Zoning Specialist from the DC Department of Buildings, Bill Spack, principal of CGS Architects and Anna McCorvey of River East DC, including David A. Rubin.

Wrapping up today’s session, Anna McCorvey engaged the scholar by going through tools and processes on how to engage the community. By providing us with the tools hopes that “Community Design in the future becomes obsolete, as architects, we are already doing the work.”