FORUM 2021

COMMUNITY

March 03, 2021 @Gather.Town

In 2020, we witnessed systemic failures — such as Healthcare Inequality, Police Brutality, and Housing Insecurity — brought into stark relief. With the government doing little to provide aid to its citizens, people turned to each other, turned to their communities, and found what strength they could. Wherein previous Forums we examined how social issues manifest in architecture, for Forum 2021, we decided to decenter our field and look more broadly towards the unique power of community. The importance of community resilience is not new as it has always been essential for marginalized peoples sustaining themselves under oppression, but the need for it will only become more dire in the face of Climate Change, Wealth Inequality, and Fascism.

We understand that many of the problems that plague us are larger than our communities. We must ask when does a community have the power to solve systemic issues, or can they only mitigate harm? Where have we historically witnessed oppressive systems restrict the growth of communities under the guise of urban progress? Striving towards an equitable social environment is vital and It’s time to voice the power of collective action through community.  

Forum 2021 will challenge our engagement with community; not just as designers, but as educators, students, neighbors, and citizens. We may facilitate the spaces where communities form, but they ultimately develop themselves. The multidisciplinary makeup of a community stems not from one individual, but roots itself in the complex relationships between people, place, and culture, so by opening the conversation beyond the literal “what” of a community space, let us examine the positive social impact that urban placemaking and placekeeping can have on the health of the cities, socio-political systems, and above everything else: people.