Big Ideas

Urban Design Perspectives celebrated the Summer Solstice this year by observing how far we have come on our journey to sustainability and carbon neutrality, and analyzing how far we can continue to go. Our practice which is based on equity in design in the built environment, has continued to focus on our role as environmental ambassadors and educators of the public.

As we continue to plan for our future, we understand that continuing to educate ourselves is a great first step in building the foundations of an equitable practice. For this reason, UDP has continued to use our Book Club as a source of information gathering, as well as fellowship, inviting others within the community to join.

This Summer’s book of choice is called “A Better Planet: 40 Big Ideas for a Sustainable Future”. It is a collection of Essays which challenge our ideas of sustainability and what is possible for our future. This book is an inspiring read which helps us to reimagine the relationships between politics, private-sector innovation, policy and public engagement. As designers our role is not only to advocate for better environmental standards, but also to put this knowledge into action as we pave the way for the next generations to come.

We hosted our book club this year at All Square, a Minneapolis-based restaurant and non-profit social enterprise. This organization invests in a 12 month fellowship for formerly incarcerated citizens which is anchored in mental health, wealth and entrepreneurship. It only seemed fitting to host our book club which is based on principles of equity and environmental and social justice at this location.

Our discussion was centrally focused on each of our “Big Ideas” for a more sustainable future and inspired conversation around how we can all improve our practice by living in alignment with our goals. We can move beyond the fear of taking the first step and decide to step up and take the necessary action we feel is needed. This can collectively help us as a design profession move towards change at a much faster rate.

Our biggest take away is that many of us have similar goals and want to see our planet’s health improve. UDP plans to take responsible action towards sustainability by pursuing projects in alignment with our long-term goals.

We invite you to ask yourself, what are your “Big Ideas” for a more sustainable future? And how will you align with them to generate change?