HNR 254 Place and Placemaking
How often do you take the time to stop, observe, and think about the spaces and places that you walk by, study in, and inhabit on a daily basis? All too often, we see place as the static stage upon which we play out our lives. Though we take place for granted, designers, developers, architects and other planners inscribe their values, identities, and assumptions upon particular places and, consequently, shape our experiences and ideas. This course will examine how the social design of place shapes individuals and communities. In this course, students will learn to look at and think about place in a new way, examining how place design shapes individuals and communities. Using a variety of methods, including ethnographic interviewing, the collection of oral histories and digital story-telling, together we will analyze everyday places and how they came to be. We will use participatory design practices to work with communities to imagine how places could be in the future. Throughout the semester, students will conduct community-based research with the aim of uncovering the hidden histories of forgotten places and reimagining how places in the community might look instead. Civilization.