SLU news

Call for projects: Urban Forum - Practice meets Academia - Deadline 12 January

Published: 25 November 2020

An invitation to reflective practitioners, practice-oriented researchers, and design critics to present and discuss experiences, case studies and practices from a variety of backgrounds, in view of developing sustainable cities and communities.

At this upcoming Urban Forum, which will take place in February 2021, we are interested in hearing about built or drawn work, practice-based or -oriented, speculative or actual, contemporary or historical, raising the question of the responsibility of design.

5 February 2021 - Online Urban Forum # 1

Convinced that valuable action-oriented knowledge arises from the exchange of practice and academia, two research platforms sharing a concern for professional practice and the built environment – Urban Arena, at Lund University, and SLU Urban Futures, at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences – have been joining forces since 2019 to arrange a particular format of encounter: the Urban Forum | Practice meets Academia (see previous events here).

Urban Arena/Lund and SLU Urban Futures believe that cluster problems manifest more in the urban realm and that this realm is also the place where sustainability efforts can multiply exponentially and almost overnight. This digital version of the Urban Forum offers a rare opportunity, to thrive on the exchanges between practitioners and thinkers sharing the same vision of the responsibility of design in the face of the spatial challenges of contemporary societies. In the times of multiple crises that we are facing, design – as an activity, a process and a result – should contribute to building more sustainable, safe, healthy, democratic and socially inclusive living environments. But what defines conscious and high-quality design and how can it be achieved?
Practitioners and thinkers of architecture, urbanism, landscape architecture, urban studies and the construction industry are invited to discuss their designs (realised or not) and research endeavours (practice-based or -oriented) in an online Urban Forum. Sessions (in English – 5 February 2021 - online) dedicated to each project will allow the authors to discuss burning questions, critical aspects, inspiring findings they wish to bring to light and get feedback on, in a collegial atmosphere. Project authors present their work in a 7x7 format (7 slides – 7 minutes), followed by a moderated discussion of 14 minutes.

Submissions

Submissions are welcome from practitioners, researchers, and design critics. Please submit an abstract / a project description (max 500 words and imagery, see submission template) before 12 January 2021 to urbanforum.info@gmail.com.

The submissions will be reviewed by the committee by 22 January 2021. Selected project authors will be invited to prepare a 7-slide pdf presentation, due on 29 January 2021, for their digital presentation.
Submission and participation are free of charge.

Important dates 

12 January 2021 Deadline for submission of abstracts/project descriptions
22 January 2021 Notification of acceptance
29 January 2021 Deadline for submission of slideshow
5 February 2021 Screen talks - Urban Forum | Practice meets Academia
Online | 14:00 - 18:00 CET
The online Urban Forum is planned as a recurring event and will be held regularly during 2021.

Further information | Submit your abstract

See the submission template.

Send an e-mail to urbanforum.info@gmail.com

Organisers

SLU Urban Futures, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (Prof. Lisa Diedrich, Dr Sonia Curnier, designCONTENT/Andrea Kahn)
Urban Arena, Lund University (Assoc. Prof. Per-Johan Dahl)

Supported by

Tankesmedjan Movium/ Think Tank Movium, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences


Contact

SLU Urban Futures
urbanfutures@slu.se

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