Home Territory: Studies for the Democratization of Civic Space

This advanced design-research studio studied the problematics of homelessness in Los Angeles by asking critical questions focused on the evolution of a more hospitable civic landscape. Students refined individual design inquiries relative to focused communities within LA’s unhoused population in order to design with a critical, hopeful and empathetic lens. The group re-envisioned the urban landscape as the context for living and as a material for social advancement so that they could reveal potential equitable futures for our shared environment. We are grateful for the commitment of the many organizations and individuals who support Los Angeles’ unhoused communities and for their generous and compassionate feedback shared in response to student outreach.