DRN 1992 Vol 23 n 2 - Environmental Design Research Association

Transcription

design research news
environmental design research association
volume xxiii, number two 1992
In this Issue ...
EDRA 23 in Boulder
EDRA 23 in Boulder..... ......................... 1
Letter from the Chair............................. 3
EDRA 1992Awards ............................. .4
Equity, Sustain ability,
and Issues of Power.............................. 6
JobAnnouncement. .............................. 9
Power by Design: EDRA 24 ........ ....... 10
Political Action at EDRA 23................ 12
Design Research Application:
Urban Excellence ................................ 18
RAM Reports ............ ..................... ..... 20
Student Work:
The Stories that Buildings Tell ... ......... .22
The EDRA 23 meeting in Boulder. Colorado. April 8-12. was organized around the
theme of "Equitable and Sustainable Habitats." The conference attracted over 250
participants from around the world to present papers and to participate in workshops.
working groups, and poster sessions. Two papers tied for the most intriguing titlc:
Using computer inUlge processing technology to visualize environmentally and
culturally sustainable opportunities for resource-based development in distressed
railroad towns (Wendy McClure. University ofIdaho) and Better than a Mexicanjai/:
Post occupancy evaluation of a direct supervision facility dormitory (Michael C.
McNamara, Kansas State University).
Two plenary sessions highlighted important issues in environmental design research
of the future. The first plenary session. Research in aging and environmental design.
featured three discussants: David Hoglund, Jerry Weisman, and Polly Welch, all well
known in the EDRA community. The second plenary session. Equity, suslainability.
and issues of power, featured political scientist and Green Party organizer John
Rensenbrink. Audio tapes of these plenary sessions are available upon request: the
plenary sessions will also be represented in the Conference Proceedings. A series of
field trips introduced EDRA conferees to interesting aspects of the local Boulder
environment. A field trip led by Allison Peck visited the Colorado
(ConI. on p. 5)
Class Notes ........................................ 23
Membership Update ............. .............. 23
Bulletin Board. ........................... ....... .24
Towards a Multi-national EDRA. ....... 26
Network Directory. ............................. 28
NetworkNews ..................................... 29
RAM Assignments .............................. 32
Financial Report..................... ............. 33
Datebook..... ....................................... 34
EDRA 23: Boulder. Colorado. (Courtesy of University of Colorado at Boulder)
volume xxiii, number two, 1992
a
Purpose. Design Research News reports on current developments in the field of
environmental design research. It serves a~ a communications link between the
EDRA Board and EDRA members, among the many diverse disciplines and
professions that compose the Association's membership, and among the various
other professional associations related to EDRA's area~ of interest.
Contributions. The following materials are appropriate for Design Research
News: notices of meetings, abstracts of research/projects completed or in
progress, publication notices, requests for information, personal reports on
meeting or projects of general interest, ete. Rates on advertisements and job
placements can be obtained from EDRA's Business Office. Material on PC
diskette in ASCII or WordPerfect, or on MAC diskette in WORD, is encouraged.
Send material to DRN Editors.
Editors:
Kimberly Devlin
Department of Architecture
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Milwaukee, WI 53201
Phone: 414/276-2147
Fax: 414/229-6976
E-mail: drn@csd4.csd.uwm.edu
Assistant Editor for Publications:
Julia Gelfand
Applied Sciences Librarian
University of California, Irvine
Irvine, CA 92713
Fax: 714/856-5740
EDRA Board of Directors
Graeme Hardie, Chair
Nutley, NJ
Carol Werner, Vice Chair
Psychology Department
University of Utah
Salt Lake City. UT
Roberta M. Feldman, Secretary
School of Architecture
University of Illinois
Chicago, IL
Gary Winkel, Treasurer
Environmental Psychology Program
CUNY Graduate Center
New York, NY
Jim Potter, Ex-officio
University of Nebraska
Lincoln, NE
Jamie Horwitz
Architecture Department
University of Califomia at Berkeley
Berkeley. CA
Kristen Day
Milwaukee, WI 53201
Phone: 414/962-2315
Fax: 414/229-6976
E-mail: drn@csd4.csd.uwm.edu
Cheryl Parker
University of California at Berkeley
Berkeley, CA
About EDRA. The Environmental Design Research Association is an intemational, interdisciplinary organization of design professionals, social and behavioral scientists, educators, and facility managers dedicated to improving the
quality of human environments through research-based design. EDRA was
launched in 1968 and is now the largest organization of its kind in North America.
David Saile
CSPA
School of Architecture/!nterior Design
University of Cincinnati
Cincinnati, OH
Environmental Design Research Association, Inc.
P.O. Box 24083
Oklahoma City, OK 73124
Phone: 405/843-4863
Andrew Seidel
College of Architecture
Texas A & M University
College Station, TX
ISBN NUMBER 0-939922-07-X
© 1992 Environmental Design Research Association
Javier Urbina-Soria
Mexico City, DF
Publishing Schedule:
DRNIssue
Due Date for
Contributions
Issue Mailing Date
v.23,#3
v.23,#4
July 15, 1992
October IS, 1992
September 1, 1992
December 1, 1992
•
Letter from the Chair
Graeme Hardie, fORA Chair
EDRA 23's theme, "Equitable and Sustainable Habitats,"
generated much discussion in all conference sessions. It also
raised questions of the organization itself. In what mode do we
continue to operate so as to be both sustaining and equitable for
EDRAandindividualmembers? ThisissueoftheDRNfeatures
much of that energy, and we on the Board seek your response
and guidance as to how we, as an organization, can find our way
at this time (See page 14).
The energy generated at EDRA 23 was not simply a result of the
theme, but came also from the desire of many that we as
individuals and as a collective must find ways for our current
research to be of greater service to humanity and the betterment
of all. If of value, our research will show that humanity cannot
make the same demands on the environment that we have in the
past, but must rather find ways in which it is possible to be in
concert with the environment. This notion challenges research
that is intrinsically of value only in and of itself.
We live in tirnesin which old forms all over the world have been
found wanting. These are being challenged in Eastern Europe,
Russia, and South Africa. Having just visited South Africa, I
was struck by how everyone-business people, politicians,
teachers, academics, and more-all know that the old forms
will not suffice, and seek new ways appropriate to the times.
White South Africans voted an overwhelming "Yes" for continued reform in their recent referendum. In South Africa, old
forms have been born out of old thinking and no longer hold
appropriate. Here in the U.S.A., old forms are also found
wanting, and lead us to further debt and decay.
As Chair of the Board for the next year, I plan to see that we keep
afloat financially and as an organization. EDRA is a container
of great diversity. The links sometimes seem fragile and
tenuous. However, we are also robust, and with time have been
well-weathered sufficient to the day. I am excited that, within
the Board, there is much energy, an openness to new forms, and
a readiness to act. The next EDRA-"Power by Design" -will
be an important meeting for us. It is OUR meeting. We are
hosting it for ourselves, and there is a call for your direct
involvement (See page 10). Much willbedifferentaboutEDRA
24, and I feel certain that the energy and collective action that
has already been put into place from planning discussions in
Boulder will make it an event not to be missed.
Then we look ahead to EDRA 25! Maybe you, with a committee, a network, or your institution would agree to be host and
coordinate the program of the meeting, knowing that the actual
managementofEDRA 25 will be handled by EDRA's Business
Office (See page 24). This is an excellent opportunity for new
ideas and new themes to be put forward by the membership.
Our membership is also changing, and we are encouraged that
EDRA is called to find new ways to communicate that arc not
exclusionary (See page 26). The Board must determine how to
implement these proposals in order to accommodate the changing mem bership. If you have ideas on this or other aspects of the
organization, do not hesitate to call me or to send your suggestions to the DRN and make them public.
According to the second law of thermodynamics, things fall
apart. Structures disintegrate. My friend Buckminister Fuller
hinted at a reason we are here: by creating things, by thinking
up new combinations, we counteract this flow of entropy. We
therefore create new structures, new wholenesses, so that the
universe "comes out even." As an organization, we are not
immune to these challenges and processes. It is in this spirit that
we look at ourselves.
Perhaps there is also a change in the source of our truth or truths.
One new tide appears to be a growing desire ofEDRA members
to acknowledge intuition and feelings from the levels of impression, as people become more aware of their own inner abilities.
This too will express new forms, for there is in the idea of design
that which will attempt to express what comes from the inner
impression. Not surprisingly, therefore, at EDRA 23, a large
group clustered in small spaces to think on the theme "Feelings
and Places." Is this evidence of a new direction for EDRA
coming into being?
Graeme Hardie, new EDRA Chair, and James Potter, EDRA
Chair ex-officio. (Courtesy of University of Colorado at Boulder)
II
EDRA 1992 Awards
Thel992 EDRA Awards Banquet recognized the talents and
achievements of many special members and organizations.
Awards were given for Career, Service, Distinguished Achievement, Student Papers, and Student Designs.
Career Award Citation
Rachel and Stephen Kaplan were the recipients of the EDRA
Career Award Citation. As committed teachers, scholars, and
citizens, Stephen and Rachel Kaplan have made fundamental
contributions to the development and vitality of environmental
design research and to the process of positive environmental
change. As teachers, they have both broadened and sharpened
the vision of numerous students in diverse fields; among these
students are many now recognized for their own accomplishments in environmental designresearch. As scholars, the strong
and fertile theoretical framework that the Kaplans have developed over two decades has yielded an understanding of the
important ways in which designed and natural environments
can respond to the informational and emotional needs of humans functioning in an uncertain world. These ideas have been
conveyed with both clarity and elegance in all of their carefully
crafted written works. Finally, as concerned and committed
citizens, they have provided concepts and methods supportive
of the meaningful participation of all people in the planning and
design of their own environments.
Service Award Citation
The EDRA Service Award Citation was awarded to the Rudy
Bruner Award in Urban Excellence. The highly competitive
Rudy Bruner Award honors the project that best demonstrates
the successful interaction of social, economic, and esthetic
values. The award brings recognition to excellent urban places
and encourages learning about their inevitably complex creation. It celebrates projects that prove that urban developments
can be made physically pleasing, economically viable, and at
the same time, provide effective social support systems. These
projects cover a wide range of ohjectives and methods, from
helping tenants rescue abandoned buildings, to making a downtown into a vibrant urban center, to connecting diverse neighborhoods by means of a greenway or a transportation project.
Roberta Feldman accepts the EDRA Achievement Award for
JAPR. (Courtesy: University of Colorado at Boulder)
from its beginnings. We couldn't have done without them. We
drew on your membership during the 1985 conference in New
York to explore the RBA idea. We engaged EDRA members
Bob Shibley and Polly Welch in 1986 to develop and implement
the Award. In the first year of the Award, Clare Cooper-Marcus
served as EDRA representative to the review board.
In 1990, Bruner Trustees, staff, and consultants came to the
EDRA meeting in Champaign to gain a mid-course assessment.
Current site visitors and lead consultants for the Award are Jay
Farbstein and Richard Wener. Min Kantrowi tz and Bob Sommer
serve with distinction on our Advisory Committee. We believe
we have learned from your organization in many ways and are
deeply appreciative."
EDRA Achievement Award
The Journal ofArchitectural atUi Planning Research was the
reeipient of the EDRA Achievement Award. The Journal of
Architecture and Planning Research (JAPR) provides a unique
contribution to the field of environmental design research by
explicitly emphasizing research in the design and planlling of
the built environment. With its international and interdisciplinary emphasis, the Journal has encouraged development of
work hy Ilew scholars, a~ well as publishing research by estab,
lished leaders in the field. JAPR has forged important relationships with a host of professional organizations to serve as a vital
link between research, practice, and policy making.
In accepting the award, Janet Carter, executive director of the
Rudy Bruner Foundation, states, "EDRA members have been,
both idealistic companions and practical critics to this endeavor
II
Student Paper Awards
First Prize in the Student Paper Award was given to Kathleen
Miller-Stumpf for her paper Architecture and images of the
past, which was completed while she was a student at the
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Cheryl Parker, of the
University of California, Berkeley, received Second Prize for
her paper Battery Park City: A new urban form type, Third
Prize was awarded to Siyu Liu, of the State University of New
York at Buffalo, for her paper Searching for a real home.
Jan Huebner-Moths, Joseph P. FIeber, Kerry L. Paruleski,
and Patrick Rebholtz, of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, for the project Extra-terrestrial space architecture.
Jurorsforthe StudentDesignAwards included Roberta Feldman,
Jamie Horowitz, and Walter Moleski.
Honorable Mention Awards were given to Patricia Taylor,
of the University of Illinois, for her paper, The meaning ofaging
in place: People,places, and needs, and to Frances Kuo, for the
paper Inner cities and chronic mental fatigue: Design for a
fighting chance. Jurors for the Student Paper Awards included
Paul Emmons, Edward Ostrander, Lynn Paxson, and Richard
Wener.
Student Design Awards
Student Design Award Citations of Merit were awarded to
Michael L. Goorevich, of the University uf Cincinnati, for the
project Conmllmity reconciliation isfound at its center; and to
EORA members accept the Service Award Citation for the Rudy
Bruner Award in Urban Excellence. (Courtesy: University of
Colorado at Boulder)
EDRA 23
(COni.
from p. 1)
Co-Housing project, an experimental living arrangement currently under construction, Alice Ware Davidson led a second
field trip to "Easy Street," a rehabilitation environment at
Boulder Community Hospital that simulates a real world setting. University of Colorado faculty members Joe Juhasz and
Spense Havlick each led tours of selected parts of Boulder.
Perhaps one ofthe most successful aspects ofEDRA 23 was the
special sessions organized for students to present their thesis
projects in progress. These sessions gave students the opportunity to hear comments on their work by leading people in their
field, This would be a valuable tradition to establish at future
EDRA conferences. In addition to formal conference activities,
a very important part of EDRA 23 was the opportunity to renew
old acquaintances and [0 meet new colleagues.
Certainly, the success of any EDRA conference depends foremost on the participation of the community of researchers and
practitioners that make up the EDRA community. The organizers of EDRA 23, Mark Gross and Ernesto Arias, wish to thank
everyone who participated in one way or another in making
EDRA 23 an exciting and stimulating event.
Kathleen Miller Stumpf receives the First Prize Award for her
student paper. (Courtesy: University of Colorado at Boulder)
(Submitted by Mark Gross, EORA 23 Conference Organizer,
University of Colorado at Boulder)
II
Equity Sustainability and Issues of Power: An Exploration
I
I
Plenary Session: fORA 23
John Resenbrink, Author, Cofounder of the National Creen Party Organizing Committee
Thank you for corning. I see some friendly faces, which is nice
for a person who is a stranger. ButI also feel a kind of immediate
rapport with all of you, because I think we are all in some ways
journeyers on this road we are taking to a better and greener
world. That journey, as we Greens believe, must be fun while
we are doing it. or at least it must be meaningful while we are
doing it, so that it's not one of those rationalistic things where
you are sacrificing everything in order to reach a goal. That's
sort of the way I feel about this lecture (or keynote speech-I
think you are going to find it halfway between a lecture and a
keynote speech-maybe halfway between being a professor
and an activist.) What I want to do tonight with you folks is to
get you. me, us thinking about what struck me so strongly when
I was called and asked do a keynote address to the EDRA
conference-and that is this matter of equity on the one hand,
and sustainability on the other. After thinking hard about it for
several months (and looking back upon my life as an organizer
and as a professor), I can say that it is absolutely clear that they
are compatible. And I want to struggle with that this evening.
Maybe sometimes during the course of my talk, you will think
that I am getting lost in some kind of recondite argument. but
bear with me in terms of the argument, because it is a kind of a
process, not something that I am delivering as a finished
package. It is a Green concept that how you get there is as
important as whether you get there or not.
Hopefully, there is a parallel between these two seeming opposites---equitability on one hand, and sustainability on the other.
Let us see if we can find it. One way of putting the problem, of
course, is to say "Yeah, you can talk about saving the environment, but what about jobs?" That immediately poses a presumed contradiction in people's minds. Or, for example, the
issue of whales versus people-again, some people getting very
excited about saving the whales, but not terribly concerned (in
the eyes of other people) about social and economic conditions
of people. Environmentalism over the last 30 or 40 years has
been stereotyped as something that pits white, upper middleclass environmentalists against poor and working people and
people of color. It wasn't too terribly long agG-in the late
1970's-in Maine (where I have been living and working), that
bumper stickers appeared on the cars of working people proclaiming "Eat an Environmentalist." This was pretty sobering
to those of us who were, at that time, fighting a battle to not have
Dickey Lincoln Dam, which would have flooded enormous
tracts of Maine land for the purpose of providing peak-hour
electricity to Boston, and not to Maine at all. That particular fact
was kept hidden by the politicians from the people, who were
then venting their anger on us because they were convinced that
II
we were denying them jobs and electricity.
Yet it seems to me that in the recent decade, there has been a
shift, and people are talking seriously about both now-the
equitable and the sustainable. Of course, it occurs in every day
life that these two things are co-mingled. Two or three weeks
ago, there was an account of Mexico City (which is in dire
straits, with that gray!brown haze thickening over it every year),
of how the city registered the highest ozone levels in its history.
The levels of this odorless, colorless gas were more than twice
the amount considered safe by the World Health Association.
This pollution crisis forced the authorities to close most schools,
to interdict the movement of half the cars in the city, and to
declare that factory output had to be reduced by 70%. In a case
like this, the more people pollute, the fewer the jobs! This is seen
more and more to be the case.
Last year, one of the most important events that happened (as far
as organizing is concerned) was a meeting in Washington DC,
called by leaders of people of color. Afro-American, Native
American, Asian American, and Hispanic American leadership
had an environmental leadership summit, in which they discussed the degree to which people of color (and the poor) are
subject to tremendous environmental hazards.
Even though all of this is taking place, it all seems to be taking
place under the surface, because the presidential campaign
today seems not to be about any of these questions. It is not
about equity, and it certainly is not about sustainability. In so far
as it is about anything at all, it seems to reflect some concept of
growth that comes out of the 1950's. That leaves you feeling
somewhat let down. On the other hand, beneath the surface,
beneath what is going on in the mass media, there are these
changes occurring in people's perception that link economy and
good ecology.
I want to pause for a moment and provide basis for an argument.
We have to understand the links as well as we possibly can. So
I withhold judgement. I keep my skepticism clear.
I start by giving three standard arguments about equity, and then
move towards a notion of sustainability, taking into account
those standard arguments. One argument for equity is that it
means the adequate distribution of the economic pie and of
economic rewards, certainly to the poor and unfortunate, and
also to people who experience prejudice-people of color,
women, manual and technical workers with limited scope in
their jobs, and of course, gays and lesbians. An attempt to
overcome these various disparities with respect to their wages
and their status and with respect for them as persons would then
be part of equity.
The second argument for equity is that it means an adequate
distribution of environmental burdens, so that the siting of
plants or the dumping of toxic wa~te only in areas of people who
are victims of prejudice, or are too poor to make a difference,
should be slopped, in so far as it means that these are the people
who bear the brunt of it. The argument is that this should be
shared in terms of equity. For example, this would call for
stopping excess dumping of toxics in third world countries and
Eastern Europe.
A third notion of equity would be that it means an adequate
distribution of access to power. This is a more sophisticated and
a more meaningful argument than the previous two, because it
means that people who are given greater access to power then
have greater power to do something about their situation, and
have greater empowerment, as we call it.
The question I want to raise is "Do any of these standard
understandings of equity (economic and financial rewards distribution, sharing of environmental burdens, equal access to
power), do any of these approaches to equitability get us any
closer to sustainability?" For example, greater distribution of
access to power on the part of people who are poor might mean
that their demands could escalate and become an unsupportable
demand on the environment. If we only adequately distribute
environmental burdens, it might mean that we all share the
stinky (and lethal) air---<loes that help? Greater distribution of
economic rewards to more people might simply make it impossible for us to be able to sustain life.
It has been argued and continues to be argued that the solution
to an adequate distribution of the economic pie and economic
rewards is to expand economic growth. This is the prevailing
wisdom of our leadership-the Republicans, the Democrats,
people in Congress, people in the White House, people in
foreign governments, and people in universities who lead our
universities, generally agree that the way toanswer this problem
of equity is through greater economic expansion. They continue
in this phase. There are a lot of arguments you can make about
this, but the most compelling is that the production of goods and
services in the world has expanded five times sine 1950. It has
quintupled. In that time, the impoverishment of people in the
world has increased. In that time, the devastation done to the
environment has generated new household words-from global
warming, to ozone depletion, to deforestation, to lowering
water tables, to the degradation of the land, where the soil loss
exceeds the formation of the soil by ten times. There's also the
decline of the world's species' habitats to consider. In sum,
impoverishment and ecological discombobulation have gone
on apace during the time of the quintupling of the world's
production.
It is then argued in response that we must stabilize world
population levels, that this is the most important thing we can
do. This is a very strong argument within the Greens and among
people who are associated with Greens-whether the most
important thing is to reduce population, or to reduce poverty. I
think it is a good goal to reduce population, and yet at the same
time, I want you to look at some figures with me. If you consider
that 20% of the people of the world consume 80% of what is
produced, that puts some perspective on the question of too
great a population. One billion people in the north use ten times
the number of resources and produce ten times as much waste
per capita, compared to the four and a half billion people in the
south. Some people say that a very rich American is one
thousand times harder on the environment than a citizen in
Bangladesh. That raises the question of whether reducing the
population is really the answer. I would argue that it is
obviously part of the answer. But it is not really answering the
question we have here-how can we resolve this conflict
between equitability and sustainability?
The United Nations ha~ developed an interesting statement that
I want to examine. Their statement on sustainability is as
follows: "Sustainability is development that meets the needs of
the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." I like it, and I also have some
commentary on it.
First, what I like about it. It is positive, in the sense that it links
equity and sustain ability in a way that I think is understandable.
It means that we must be concerned and on the lookout for our
children and grandchildren. so that we are equitable towards
them by heing sustainable now. Also, what is good about it is
that it emphasizes development and not growth. That is a word
that is used increasingly by people in the environmental movement in the U.S., to try to take away from the notion that the
Greens arc against growth. We are against growth, but we are
for development. Development includes the use of energy in a
wise and conserving way, not in a protligate way. Development
also means that we have a sense of relationship with the context
and habitat within which we exist, so that (Cont. on p.8)
II
An Exploration (ConI from p
7)
there is a conserving element involved, and a systematic and a
holistic element added to the whole notion of economic development, which otherwise simply expresses itself in quantitative
expansion. The other thing I like about this statement is that it
emphasizes needs, and not wants. I think we must be careful
about that, however, but I respond to that concept as many
people do, in that we should move beyond highly luxurious and
wasteful lifestyles. We have to rethink what our needs are, so
that any type of criteria that emphasizes needs is important. A
market must meet needs, and not only the proliferation of
people's wants. However, what do you think of as needs? Do
you think of needs as survival? Survival has been a very strong
element in the Green movement. But survival could mean
survival at a very low level, at a very minimal existence. We
could all have to cat soybeans forever. Maybe needs have to be
understood in terms of sufficiency, instead of just survival. Can
we imagine a world of five and six-tenths billion people with,
according to current trends, a 90 million net addition every
year--can we imagine a world in which there is equitable
distribution of the world's goods, and at the same time, a
sufficient life for everyone? I think that is a challenge we must
conSider, and not just assume that somehow we can get there
from here without thinking about it.
I would say that there are three levels of needs. You can think
of needs in terms of survival, sufficiency, or plenitude. Can we
dare to think in the twenty -flrstcentury that plenitude is possible
for the human species? That's a challenge we need to think
about, but we need to get some of our priorities straight first.
The U.N. statement has two things about it that I find inadequate. The first is that I find it to be quite anthropocentric. As
a Green. I must say that this statement does not acknowledge the
needs of our habitat~. It does not acknowledge the needs of
nature, it only acknowledgcs the needs of human beings. I think
the needs of human beings are inextricably interwoven with the
needs of the habitat. We are responsible for our intervention.
We must act in a way that ensures the power to nature and
habitats to be able to renew themselves. If our habitats cannot
renew themselves, then we are lost. The bottom line is that we
must gradually move beyond an anthropocentric view of nature.
We must have a cooperating view of nature. We are part ofthat
nature in whieh we intervene. Does that mean that we put
whales above human beings? Of course not, but it means that
we do acknowledge the context within which people and animals and nature itself muves, and we are responsible for a
holistic and balanced development. I call that a co-evolutionary
consciousness.
The second inadequate thing about the U.N. statement is that it
is naive about political power. I think that any attempt to
understand and resolve the dichotomy or contradiction or para-
..
dox or whatever you want to call it between the equitable and the
sustainable depends to some degree on social change. I mean
that there must be the evocation and the development and the
emergence of social forces that can help this thing change. The
shocking part about most academic exercises today is that they
completely elude the dimension or need to bring into the
analysis the question of political power. Sustainability depends
on social change, the emergence of new social forces.
What are these social forces? That is difficult to handle. But 1
look at it in terms of the historical emergence of people from
whatever social origin, whu articulate and/or embody a new and
vibrant life. Several themes converge among such people. One
is the theme of environmental justice-as raised especially by
people of color. Second, a theme of sustainable economy-to
understand it in developmental terms rather than in growth
terms. Third, development-the kind that helps to evoke the
spirit of enterprise. Environmentalists and Greens have been a
little hesitant about talking about the need to produce, but we
must produce in a developmental way, not in a growth sense.
Gross national product is no measurement of growth. We need
an approach to development that releases the opportunities that
human beings have to hetter themselves economically and to
strike out as entrepreneurs. We have themes of environmental
justice, sustainable economy concept, a developmental concept
thatis united with cooperative and in dividual enterprise. Fourth,
wc must have contextual and holistic thinking, rather than
linear. rationalistic thinking. A fifth theme is that of a convivial
technology, which is not utilitarian, but elicits from technology
its capacity to make us happy. Technology should enable us to
freely interact and to find new ways to relate and develop.
It is less than likely that we will find people who correspond to
these themes among people who are in today's ruling elite, both
in the govemment and in the multi-national corporations. I
think you are more likely to find such people among women,
people of color, gays and lesbians, dropouts, and white men who
rebel against the domination of other white men in ourpredominant institutions. Among such people you will find those who
are capablc of discovering and finding and elucidating and
developing these new ideas.
If we can think of political power as the opportunity for such
folks and the determination of such folks to enter history, if we
can think of such people being able to enter history in a serious
way. then it seems that equity and sustainability can run in
parallel tracks. I would suggest a revised U.N. statement:
"Sustainability is development, inspired by new social forces,
that meets the needs of the present without compromising the
ability of future generations and of our habitats to meet their
needs."
Yes, new social forces are gathering. Let me briefly identify
some things that have happened in connection with activities
that have engaged me. Surely, the Greens worldwide are a
testament to the determined evolution of new social forces.
They have made a lot of mistakes, have a lot of factions, and
have a lot of disputes. But they are a worldwide phenomenon
that started mostly in West Germany, and now embrace almost
every country in the world. In the U.S .• the Greens have
organized since 1984. There is also something very interesting
happening in the last year and a half-that is a movement for
environmental justice and economic sustainability, started by
Jeremy Ritkin of the Greenhouse Crisis Foundation, which now
embraces the leadership of 175 national organizations across a
broad spectrum of people of color. women, environmental
organizations, peace organizations, etc. These groups are
meeting for the fourth time this week-end in Washington, DC.
Their purpose there is to provide a means through which these
groups can align their strategies and out of which can come a
significant political voice for both equity and sustainability.
There is also an effort to draw third part initiatives together into
a serious. common foree. A progressive convention is being
planned for mid-August in Ypsilanti, Michigan (near Detroit),
following the Republican and Democratic conventions. Its
purpose is to pose an alternative and to draw together several
third party initiatives, which include Greens, Labor Party advocates, and the National Organization for Women.
it all comes down to a question of power. Similarly, new
attitudes must be embraced by us towards nature and towards
each other. but it is still a question of power. Maybe you would
rather not deal with the issue of power. True. you can perhaps
have sustainabilily, if you define it in very minimal terms. You
can have it at very minimal levels with the present leadership in
society (maybe), but there would be very little equity along with
that, given the way the power structure is organized.
To truly join equity and sustainability at levels of sufficiency
that opens windows of opportunity forreaching plenitude in the
twenty-first century-this is going to take a transformation-a
transformative, peaceful revolution-and that revolution is
gathering strength.
An immediate program for such social forces would include a
stark reduction in military output and conversion of that to
civilian real production, and a serious reduction of carbon
emissions. A report by the Alliance to Save Energy, the
American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy. and the
Union of Concerned Scientists appeared in the science section
of the New York Times last week. in which they advocated
aggressive action to cut back carbon dioxide emissions by 70%
over the next forty years through a carbon tax, which would be
used to foster and help investment in alternatives to fossil fuels.
Their argument is that this would cost two and seven tenths
trillion dollars in fuel and electrical bills since, in the transition
process, jobs would shift or be lost; however, new ones would
be created. Another example of a program for such social forees
would be a super fund for displaced workers, i.e. all workers
who are displaced due to environmental actions or military
conversion would be guaranteed an education and support and
benefits. Another example would be to cut back consumption
of meat. If Americans would cut back their meat consumption
by 10%, this would release land and resources sufficient to
produce grains that would feed 100 million people. In the end.
too, we need universal community self-defense and community
empowerment.
Extension Associate, Housing Technology. Academic, threeyear appointment in the Department of Design and Environmental Analysis, College of Human Ecology, Cornell University.
Available July 1, 1992. Formal education and/or experience in
principles, techniques, and materials of residential housing, and
Master's degree in a housing-related area required. Position
responsibilities include the following: develop instructional
materials for Cooperative Extension program areas in design;
construction; heating, ventilation, and air conditioning; plumbing. electrical, and lighting systems; energy use; and indoor air
quality. Conduct workshops in these subjects on campus and
across New York State for Extension field staff and targeted
audiences. Assist in writing proposals for program development. Send curriculum vitae or resume with statement of
professional activities and three references to: Dorothy Messenger. Administrative Manager. Department of Design and Environmental Analysis, Martha Van Rensselaer Hall, Cornell University. Ithaca, NY 14853.
All of these elements are things we can discuss and imagine, but
Cornell University is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Job Announcement
II
Power By Design: EDRA 24
Chicago
March 31- April 4, 7993
The organizers of the 1993 annual conference for the Environmental Design Research Association, EDRA 24, will integrate
ideas of the EDRA Networks and the membership at large. In
Boulder. we spent much time urging Networks to playa greater
role in the next meeting.
of the conference will consist of workshops on themes suggested by and relevant to the Networks, and yet related to the
overall theme- "Power by Design." Each workshop will consist
of about 15 persons with papers, and will also allow others to
participate from the sidelines. We could allow about 40 minutes
per paper- a different nwdus ope randi from the usual 20 or less
minutes. At the end of each session we might develop a
summary of the discussion so that overarching ideas that appear
from paper to paper can be noted and connections drawn
between the papers. We are also asking for innovative workshop formats that promote greater depth and intensity of discussion.
We also wish to share our energetic participation with other
constituencies concerned with the quality of the built environment: community and special user groups; boards. agencies.
and interest groups; clients--public and private; manufacturers; professional designers; the powerless and the powerful. To
achieve this. we envisage one-day registration, an interdisciplinary design charrette, increased contact and advertising, and
adoption of any other means that you can suggest.
It is our intent to have the usual paper, workshops, and working
Power by Design. The topic of "power" has many themes within
groups sessions of EDRA, but we would like to place emphasis
on the intensive workshops described above.
it of direct interest to EDRA members, but it is also broad and
evocative. The Board felt the need to focus on "design" as this
is a topic and attitude neglected at EDRA meetings of late.
"Power by Design" can be considered mythically. politically,
psychologically, spatially, spiritually, socially, creatively, and
economically. The topic raises questions of design determinism, of empowerment, of powerlessness and disenfranchisement, of commodification and consumer power, of fashion and
hegemonies of knowledge, of attachment to places and the
power of place.
Contact: For information. ideas. and suggestions. contact the
"Power by Design" EDRA 24, 1993 Conference Planning
Committee: David G. Saile, FAX: 513/556-3288, or telephone:
513/556-3415; Maggie Calkins, FAX: 414/%2-4088, or telephone: 414/229-6165; Roberta M. Feldman, FAX: 312/9965378, or telephone: 312/996-3335: Graeme Hardie, telephone:
201/667-3148; or Cheryl A. Parker, telephone: 510/540-9981
or 510/644-9913.
Formats. As in previous EDRA conferences, we invite submissions and proposals for a range of presentations and sessions:
symposia, papers, workshops, design projects, poster sessions,
working groups, films. and videos.
The annual conference is a great support group event; it is
refreshing socially and intellectually, but we think it can be
more valuable and exciting for the exploration of research ideas
if we can arrange more small-group. intensive, energetic discussion sessions inside the larger event, developing greater collegiality and community around certain areas of interest. It is the
Board's belief that the Networks, which have attempted to bring
together those focusing on a particular issue, have had little
support to do this, with even their business meetings often being
neglected at the conference. The notion of having part of a
conference comprised of intensive workshops gives Network
members and others the opportunity to work together on issues
of substance and of common concern.
Intensive Workshops. To do this, we propose that the first day
II
Chicago: 1993 EDRA conference site.
Ou 37 mars Au 4 Avril 7993
Oel37 de Marzo 014 de Abril de 7993
Los organisateurs de la conference annuelle 1993 de
l'Environmental Design Research Association, EDRA 24,
mtegreront des idees des reseaux EDRA et des membres de
I·association. A Boulder nous avons pa~se beaucoup de temps
"encourager les reseaux ajouer un plus grand role au cours du
prochainmeeting.
EI eomite organizador de la Conferencia Anual de la Asociaci6n
para la Investigacion en Diseno Ambiental en 1993 (EDRA 24)
integrara ideas de las redes de trabajo y de sus miembros en gran
medida. En Boulder, invertimos mucho tempo solicitando
redes de trabajo. Estas desempefiaran un gran papel en 1a
siguiente reunion.
:\ous souhaitons aussi partager notre participation active avec
d' autres parties-prenantes concernces par la qualit6 de
l' cnvironnement construit: communaute et groups d'usagers
speciaux. commissions, agences et groupes d'inleret; c1ient~
publics etprives; industriels; designers professionnels: ceux qui
ont Ie pouvoir etceux qui n'en ont pa~. Afin de parvenir aun tel
rcsultat, nous envisageons une journee d'inscription, une
"charrette" de design, des contacts et de la publicite renforces et
toule autre mesure que vous pourriez nous suggerer.
Deseamos tambien compartir nuestra participacion entusiasta
con otra~ entidades preocupadas par la ealidad del medio
ambiente: grupos especiales de usuarios y de 1a comunidad,
agencias, grupos de interes, clientes publicos y privados,
fabricantes, disefiadores profesionales; los poderosos y los
desposeidos. Para lograr esto, tenemos en mente un dia de
inscripcion, un "Charrcttc" de diseilo intcrdisciplinario,contacto
continu y publicidad, asi como cualquier otro medio que Ud.
pueda sugerir.
Le Puvoir par Ie Design
EI Poder del Diseiiu
Le sujet du pouvoir a en lui-meme de nombreux themes qui
interessent directement les membres de [,EDRA mais c'est
aussi un sujet etendu et evocateur. La commission ressen! Ie
besoin de se concentrer sur Ie design car c'est un sujet et une
altitude qui ant ete negliges lors des dernienSs reunions de
I'EDRA.
Eltemc del poder tiene muchas acepciones en si mismo, 10 cual
es de especial interes para los miembros de EDRA, pero es
tambicn amplio yevocativo. EI comite organizador sintio la
necesidad de enfocarse en el Disefio par ser este un tema y
act itud que habia quedado rezagada en los ultimas reuniones de
EDRA.
Le pouvoir par Ie design peut ctre percu comme: mythique,
politique, psychologique, spatial, spirituel, social, creatif, and
economique.
EI poder del disefio puede ser considera do en sus aspectos:
miticos, politicos, psicologicos, espaciales, esperitualies,
sociales, creativos, and economicos.
Le sujet souleve les questions du determinisme du design, du
probleme de la donation de pouvoir, des laisses pour compte, du
pouvoir des consommateurs, de la mode et des hegemonies du
savoir, de l' attachement aun lieu et du pouvoir d' un lieu.
Formato
Formats
Comme lars des precedentes conferences de I'EDRA, nous
vous invitons a soumettre des propostions pour une "ariete de
presentations et de sessions: symposia, lecture d'articles, ateliers de travail, projets de design, sessions d'affichage et de
graphiques, groups de travail, films et videos. Le Dernier jour
asoumettre des propositions: 1 October 1992.
Contactez: Ie Bureau des Affaires de I'EDRA 405/843-4863 ou
Ie President du Comite de Planification du "Pouvoir par Ie
Design" David Saile, 513/556-3415; FAX: 513/556-3288.
Como en ocasiones anteriores, invitamos a Ud. a participar
activamente en la Conferencia Anual de EDRA enviando
propuestas para presentarias en nuestras sesiones: trabajos,
talleres, progectos de diseilo, scsi ones sobre exhibicion de
posters, gripos de trabajo, filmes y videos.
Esperamos contar con su participacion. La fecha limite para
enviar propuestas es el lOde octubre de 1992.
En EEUU, Ud. puede contactar la oficina de EDRA (Environmental Design Research Association): te1405/843-4863 y/o al
coordinador del comite de planeaci6n "Poder del Disefio,"
David O. Sailc, tel 513/556-3415: FAX: 513/556-3288.
II
Political Action at EDRA 23
At the EDRA 23 Membership Meeting, two motions were
placed before the members for their consideration, The first was
an appeal to President Bush to take immediate action to stop the
production of CFCs. The second was to consider a proposed
Constitutional amendment in Colorado that would affect the
rights of gays and lesbians. The Governor himself has come out
against such a measure. There were four abstentions and zero
"no" votes on the first issue, and 13 abstentions and zero "no"
votes on the second. After the vote, various members raised the
question of what type of political action is appropriate for
EDRA. This issue of the DRN features much discussion on this
topic, and we invite further commentary.
It is not the first time that such issues have been brought before
the membership. In 1982 and 1984, letters relating to the Equal
Rights Amendment were supported by a vote of members as
well. In the early 80's, an advocacy group was established
within EDRA specifically to bring to EDRA members' atten·
tion, issues on which they may wish to take action. This
advocacy group is obviously no longer in operation. Does
anyone know of its whereabouts now?
Following EDRA 23, questions were raised as to whether
correct procedures had been followed for bringing motions
before the membership at the Membership Meeting. Complaints were made that members had been given too little time
to read and think about the issues. Trying to retrieve records of
such procedurcs from EDRA archivcs has provcd almost impossible, and yet we know that the Board has considered such
procedures in the past. The current Board has elected to accept
thc way thcse issues were handled this year as permissible, but
is once again keen to develop procedures that encourage democratic processes for the future. These procedures will be
developed and made public before EDRA 24.
Graeme Hardie, Chair, EDRA Board of Directors
Halt U.S. Production of CFCs
Dear Fellow EDRA Members:
Last summer, I became intrigued by the possibility of integrating building, infrastructure, and open space design, specifically
in the case of Riverside South on the west side of Manhattan, in
connection with current proposals being put forth by the Trump
organization and a consortium of civic-minded groups in New
York City. As a member of a twelve-person team assembled to
assess the compromise proposal for the use of this land, I saw
that parks were being used in the traditional way, as a compensation for the stresses and problems involved in urban development. I offered the idea that the group rethink the nature of the
buildings themselves in conjunction with the nature of the
infrastructure system. specifically sewerage, as well as air
pollution, congestion. and noise, and let the consequences for
urban design (including parks) t10w from that. This stimulated
me to read more about the area of sustainable development and
reorganize my course ("Social and Cultural Factors in Architecture and Urban Design") around sustainable development. To
me, the problems of saving the earth as we know it are fundamentally social and cultural, as they require changes in both
attitudes and behavior.
At the same time. I happened to be reading an issue of the
University of Chicago Alumni Magazine, which included a list
of the best books of Western Civilization. It was a limited list
of something between fifty and a hundred books, including
classics from Aristotle and other major philosophers. Included
in this list was an entry described as asocial scientist's summary
of the environmental crisis. T was surprised to see a contemporary book singled out for one of the few slots on this limited list,
and so decided to look at it. It is in fact by a biologist,a professor
of Zoology at the University of British Columbia, who has a
television program on science. and another journalist. It is an
extremely well-written summary of the best research on the
state of our biological systems: Anita Gordon and David
Suzuki, It's a matter of survival (Harvard University Press,
1990). It presents a compelling argument that we have only ten
years left to decide whether or not life a<; we've known it on this
earth will continue. After that point, the magnitude of the
changes setin place by current practices of industrialization will
be such that we will not be able to change our mind and reverse
the environmental degradation even if we all decided to cooperate to do so. It is urgency of the ozone layer issue in particular
that they single out and that has stimulated me to try to think of
ways in which responsible citizens can express their desire for
immediate and fundamental change in the way we pursue
industrial practices.
Some have questioned whether or not EDRA should take an
activist position on anything. From the point of view of the most
narrow-minded self-interest, I think EDRA should. simply
because it's possible that there won't be much of an environmentleft to evaluate if we do not collectively halt the production
of the chemicals that are creating the hole in the ozone layer! At
a slightly more elevated level of caring about people other than
ourselves, I see nothing inappropriate in a group of professionals demanding socially responsihle modes of civilization. Physicians for Social Responsibility has set an example that many
professional groups have followed without jeopardy to their
professional standing. From my reading in the sociology of
professions, professions stand for two things: a code of ethics
and a body of knowledge. What makes us not simply paid
employees is that we practice with our ultimate authority
coming from our sense of community well being. In this case,
it's obvious that a new norm must be established in order to
protect the world collectively. and therefore I see it as appropriate that we act in at least this modest way by sending a letter
expressing our concern as environmental design professionals.
The letter, which will be sent by the EDRA Board of Directors,
follows.
damage, will be enormous. We Ileed to assume global responsibility, given that the U.S. is the world's worst offender in CFC
production. Once we stop CFC manufacturing, most other
nations will follow suit. We need to save planet Earth for a
sustainable and equitable future for all.
This has the urgency of war; it is, injact, more urgent than war.
Mobilize for legislative change as fast as you mobilized the
nationfromAugust 4,1990 to January 16,1991. We advocate
the prohibition of the production of all CFCs by September 30,
1992-before the Presidential election.
Preserve Gay Rights in Colorado
Dear EDRA Members:
At the Membership Meeting at EDRA 23, 1 suggested that a
letter be sent to various Colorado newspapers, I thank rhe
membership for their support on this issue and the Board for
their agreement to send the following letter, modified from the
original.
The letter reads:
Sincerely yours,
The Environmental Design Research Association is a 23 year
old group of650 professionals concerned with the quality of the
natural and built environment. We are psychologists. architects, sociologists, urban planners, designers, developers and
anthrop%gists,primarilyfrom the U.S., with worldwide memhers. We are writing to communicate the urgency wefeel about
passing legislation to protect the ozone layer. Specifically, we
see prohibition of the production ofCFCsas an immediate need.
An aspect of research undertaken by our members includes the
social impact of destructive environmental change. Therefore
the growing evidence of the potential environmental destruction alarms us because we have knowledge of the social consequences.
The Environmental Design Research Association is cognizant
of the current proposal to amend the Colorado Constitution to
eliminate all mention of the rights of lesbians and gay males
from State and local legislation. Since ajust, equitable human
environment depends on recognition of the diversity of us all, we
regret this undemLJcratic proposal. We can verify from our
research the destructive impact of ulljair and discriminating
legislation and practices that bear on people's use of the
environment. This issue is especially important in light of recent
increases in violent, hate-related crimes,fueled by racism and
homophobia. We must make our environments more safe for
everyone, /lot less safe for some. This proposal should be
opposed vigorously. We recently held our annual international
colljerence in Boulder. if this proposal hecomes law, we will
not again consider any site in Colorado for our annual conference. Our organization includes professional groups such as
architects, sociologists, anthropologists, landscape architects,
psychologists, urban planners, and geographers: we will encourage a similar stance in the professional organizations of
these other groups.
You have gone on record as being willing to stop production by
1995, The harm done by 1995, given the exponential rate of
I would now like to give further reason to why I sought the
memberShip's support for my original letter. (Cont. on p. 14)
Galin Cranz, PhD., Sociology
Associate Professor of Architecture
Dear President Bush:
Political Action (Cont. from p.
13)
Keep in mind that this is a constitutional amendment to rescind
the rights that gay men and lesbians now have in several (mostly
urban) areas of Colorado. For instance, discrimination in
housing on the basis of sexual orientation is illegal in Denver;
the proposed alteration of the Constitution would destroy this
hard-won right. Surely, housing discrimination is an issue of
interest for EDRA. "Hate crimes" have just recently been made
a matter of statistical record in Colorado; the proposed alteration of the Constitution would make it illegal to even count
crimes such as gay bashing committed against lesbians and gay
men, simply because they are who they are. Surely an escalation
of the level of violence in public places is an issue for EDRA.
The statement above says this: we will decide where we will
spend our money. Thc taking away of civil rights is one reason
we will not spend our money in a particular locale. This
statement does not require much of anything ofEDRA, since it
is unlikely that we will consider having our annual conference
in Colorado in the next few decades, anyway. Further, this is not
the same as saying that we will spend our money onl y in places
where there is full environmental justice for everyone, because
as one member pointed out, we would not be able to find such
a place.
I think it is quite encouraging that the statement received
positive support. It is clear that the membership in attendance
favored sending the statement, despite what I consider to be my
own poor presentation of it. This means several things to me:
I) There is a will in the EDRA membership to discuss and take
positions on important public issues. More time and space must
be devoted to this in future conferences.
2) The membership came up on the good side of a tremendously
important issue, personally important to many EDRA members. Members are not afraid to take a controversial stand.
3) Political issues now have been discussed at an EDRA
Membership Meeting, however tentatively. Issues will again be
discussed, right here in the pages of the DRN, next year in
Chicago, and into the future. Our work is inescapably political.
I appreciate the support that was shown for this statement.
Thank you,
David Chapin, Associate Professor and Co-chair
Ph.D. Program in Environmental Psychology, CUNY
EDRA's Position on Political Action
EDRA 23 was generally a spirited meeting, with much discussion and debate. During the Membership Meeting, two formal
proposals were brought to the floor for action. The Board
believes that it is important to establish criteria and guidelines,
in the event that similar proposals are made in the future. In this
section, we hope to initiate discussion about how socially and
politically active EDRA should be, and how to go about deciding where to allocate our attention and resources. To start the
debate we have listed three viewpoints (in highly stylized form).
At some point we will poll the members for their opinions
regarding these. We begin with a statement of EDRA ,s purpose
as defined in our by -laws.
EDRA's Mission Statement (from the EDRA by-laws, 1988)
Article 1. Purpose of the Association.
A. Broad Purpose. The purpose of [EDRA] shall he to advance
the field of environmental design research in both its scientific
and applied forms. It shall encourage the highest quality of
research related to improving environmental design method~
and techniques and increasing understanding of the social and
behavioral aspeets of relationships between people and environments. It shall stimulate and support communication between individuals and groups involved in environmental design
research through sponsorship of conferences, publication of
conference proceedings, the newsletter, and other publications.
It shall encourage and coordinate translation and dissemination
of environmental design research knowledge to designers,
planners. and public policy makers through meetings, reports,
papers, and other media.
I) In Favor of the Organization "'laking Public Political
Statements:
EDRA is a group of informed professionals whose common
voice can have an impact on political events. As scientists,
practitioners, and private citizens, we feel obligated to speak up
on public issues. Letters onEDRA letterhead, public statement~
by authorized EDRA representatives, economic sanctions such
as refusals to hold meetings in particular locations, and so on,
are means that we can use to exert pressure on citizens and
public officials. The shared opinion of members-whether or
not these are based in our body of scientific and practical
knowledge-should be made public. There is often an urgent
need for groups like ours to support local, national, and international causes, and we are morally obligated to make our position
known if appropriate procedures are followed,
2) In Favor of the Organization Making Public Political
Statements under Certain Circumstances:
EDRA's voice will have most impact if it is raised j udiciously
II
and with the full support of it~ members. While letters, public
statcments, and economic sanctions can be effective, if we
speak too often or on issues outside of our domains of expertise,
we lose credibility with the very individuals wc mean to impress. We need to develop specific guidelines about when, how,
etc .. to support political causes. We should consider both the
immediate benefits and long-term consequences of taking a
public stand on all issues. As general guidelines, we should only
make public statements when we have scientific or practical
knowledge, and that knowledge should form the basis of our
public statement. In extraordinary cases, we might speak on
other issues if appropriate procedures are followed.
3) Opposed to Making Public Political Statements under Any
Circumstances:
EDRA is a professional organization with members brought
rogether by common professional interests, not common political goals. Almost by definition, our political views are diverse
and complex. Our time and energy are better spent in professional activities rather than in trying to persuade each other
about politics. In the past, when we have tried to makc EDRA
a political action group, it created a great deal of tension among
members. This is especially a problem for political minorities
who joined EDRA to find profcssional colleagues, not to have
their political views challenged. EDRA prides itself on being
open, accepting. and welcoming of diversity (not just tolerating
academic career in the United States. It wa~ informative to me
as aNew Zealander that the logo ofEDRA 23--emblazoned on
the front of the Conference Schedule-was an image of our
planet that completely omitted any reference to the Southern
Hemisphere. While such oversights may seen accidental at best
and coincidental at worst, they are not to bc separated (for
anyone with a modicum of sensitivity to issues of cultural
politics and to which I can only presume that the members of
EDRA would surely and uniformly suhscrihe) from the reality
of hemispheric exploitation that has seen the so-called "developed" countries expand and prosper through years of colonialism and multi-national plunder. at the expense of "underdeveloped" countries of the Southern hemisphere.
As the Brandt Report clearly articulated, the plight of these
latter, economically decimated nations is both the responsibility
of and a liability to the most prosperous nations on earth. The
survival of the planet may depend upon the critical awareness
that we in the First World are able to bring to bear on the plight
and needs of our much-exploited brothers and sisters "below"
the Equator. (The notion that the North is "up" and the South is
"down" makes no sense in astrophysical terms-it only makes
sense, hegemonicall y, in the frame of reference of the Eurocentric
exploiter, who would have the exploited accept as "superior"
the social, economic, cultural basis upon which their exploitation is built).
It).
We invite dialogue [rom members. Please send letters to lhe
DRN editors.
EDRA Board of Directors
Letters to the Editors
Dear Editors:
: v.ish to express my disappointment to the EDRA membership
:,x what I consider to be the unacceptable air of chauvinism with
-,'.hlCh much of the 1992 conference was conducted. As a
:,)unding mcmberofEDRA (at the Kresge Auditorium, MIT. in
:une. 1968, afterthe DMG Conference), I feel that I must voice
::1y disappointment at the lack of global awareness that seems to
:nfect much of our work and thinking.
: <peak as someone who now lives on the far side of the planet,
:r: ~ew Zealand, having previously spent the large part of my
,;)Iume xxiii, numbertwo, 1992
In the context of the increasing need for cultural sensitivity, it
was therefore disconcerting to hear the outgoing Chair at the
Conference going through the usual roll-call of overseas members adopt a "continental," rather than a "local" approach. In
this context, the sepmate and individual countries of South and
Central America had their cultural uniqueness erased, while
New Zealand was lumped together with Australia and referred
to vaguely a~ "somewhere down there"! I have to say that as a
New Zealander, I found this quite insulting, as, I am sure, would
my friend and colleague from Milbourne, Kim Dovey, had he
been able to stay for the banquet.
Yet there is more to this matter than a simple question of national
pride. r do, after all, bear an allegiance to both Britain and the
United States. as well as to New Zealand. What is at stake here
is a prescription for the awareness that we bring to our research
and to the global issues upon which this touches. r accepted, at
the Conference, the position of Co-chair of the newly-formed
Participation and Political Action Network. I did so with
reluctance, aware, as I was, of the difficulty of carrying out my
responsibilities from such a great distance. I accepted because
r saw EDRA drifting into a smug self-satisfaction which. to
outsiders. minorities. and people of color, translates into academic elitism and Euroeentric paternalism, and I wished to
make some contribution to halt what I considered (Cont. on p. 16)
Political Action
(Cont. from p. 15)
to be this blind and dangerous tendency. The newly-formed
Network, in coalition with many members of the Women and
Environments Network, proposed a remit to the members that
President Bush be publicly condemned for his decision not to
phase out CFC' s before 1995, and for his reluctance to attend the
Earth Summitt in Brazil in June. This remit wa~ passed
unanimously with several abstentions by the membership.
One of the aspects of the geographical and cultural myopia to
which I see EDRA succumbing is that it not only erases cultural
identity, but it also "invisibilizes" local and regional problems
that display evidence of global concern. For those of you living
in the Northern hemisphere, the problems caused by the expanding holes in the ozone, and the consequent increase in radiation
dangers, are a recent and somewhat distant phenomenon. For
those of us living close to Antarctica, they are a well-established
and ever present reality and danger. Sheep in Chile, we are
beginning to realize, are stricken with catardcts and blindness a~
a direct result of the increase in radiation levels. Here in New
Zealand, it is impossibJc to sit outside in the summer sun without
arm, head, leg, back, and eye protection for more than three or
four minutes without a feeling of "being cooked"-of sitting in
a microwave oven with the power switched on. Anyone
exposing themselves to the increased levels of radiation (swimmers' hikers, builders, etc.) risk very serious dangers of melanoma (New Zealand and Australia have the highest incidences
in the world and they are increasing dramatically).
Dear Editors:
I would like to communicate some worries that I have increasingly had about EDRA. I hope that at lea~t some members share
at least some of these worries, which conccrn two major
problems. The first is the role of research in EDRA as well as
the type(s) of research. Increasingly research is being
underemphasized in favor of design-there seems to he a shift
from the Environmental Design RESEARCH Association to
the Environmental DESIGN Research Association. This has
been clear for some time, both at EDRA and the field generally
(which accounts, in my view, for the decade-long plateau and
even decline of the field). This has also been clear from the
themes of conferences.
As long a~ such themes were only approved by the Board, one
could at least think that EDRA did not fully endorse them. The
next conference in Chicago, however, is being organized by
EDRA and its theme, therefore, becomes extremely disturbing-"Power by DESIGN" That could well be an AlA or
ACSA theme, although surely EDRA was established to get
away from that and to be as different as possible from those
bodies. A much more appropriate theme would be the "Power
by RESEARCH." Moreover, among the "powers" listed is
"mythical," but surely the major function of research is precisely to demystify. In fact, research is not even mentioned in
the announcement.
For those of us who live this reality now (as well as for those of
you who will eventually live it), the phasing out ofCFC's is not
an academic matter. It is a matter of survi val. Those academics
in the Northern hemisphere who continue to uphold an ideologically-neutral model of know ledge and research, and who refuse
to join their voices with those of the victims of their exploitation
(the U.S.A. is the world's largest manufacturer and user of
CFC's) add their weight, by default, to the forces and processes
of exploitation, and are culpable in the victimization of countless millions of people who live in the Southern hemisphere. For
those of us "at this end of the world" it is not a small matter.
Attendance at the EDRA Conference alone cost me in excess of
$3,000. At such a price, I believe that we have the right to expect
the EDRA conference to be better organized, and much less
chauvinistic.
Also, even when research occurs or is mentioned. pure/basic
research (empirical and theoretical) is neglected and even
applied research is being slighted. The emphasis is on research
application, although one cannot apply something that does not
exist-and never will without basic and applied research.
Sincerely,
This problem is even more dangerous and worrying than the
first. One can disagree, even quite heatedly, about the nature of
research, type of research, and the like without the inevitable
bitter divisiveness thatpoliticization brings with it. I realize that
minc is very much a minority position, since I disagree with all
the political positions EDRA cspouses, but I would oppose
politicization even if I approved of the positions taken. Not only
do I believe, however, that others are disturbed by one or other
Anthoney Ward, Senior Lecturer in Architecture
The University of Auckland
The emphasis on research application reflects an emphasis on
changing the world rather than understanding it (which is what
I take to be the function of research and hence of EDRA). Since
changing the world involves notions of how it should be, this
leads me to what I see to be the second major problem the
politicization of EDRA in themes of conferences (most glaringly and unfortunately in the la~t paragraph of the noticeof next
year's EDRA) , in actions of the Board, and in membership
motions.
specific positions taken, but I gathered from conversations at
EDRA 23 that even more belicvc, as I do, that EDRA as an
organization should not take any political positions whatever
they might be. That is the critical issue, there should he room
in EDRA for people with the most diverse political views,
particularly when these have nothing to do with the role of
ED RA. Moreover, many other organizations exist for political
action.
I hope that wiser counsels will prevail and that the Board and
membership of EDRA will carefully think through what the
organization should be and do, and make it possible for some of
us to stay in it. At the moment it is getting harder all the time.
Amos Rapoport, Distinquished Professor
Dear Editors:
The Participation and Political Action Network wishes to voice
its support for the motions submitted by David Chapin and
Galen Cranz, described in this issue of DRN. We believe both
motions involve issues that this organization has professional
expertise in and should take stands on.
While we do not necessarily claim meteorological or biological
expertise regarding damage to the ozone layer, the behavioral,
social, and psychological effects of massive population dislocations from a rising sea level, of epidemics of skin cancers, and
of the general despoilation of our environment is certainly
within our professional purview. We regularly research and
discuss the social impacts of earthquakes, floods, and chemical
contamination of the environment without needing professional
geological or chemical expertise. Environmental/ social impact
issues have been the topic of many past conference sessions.
The second motion, besides being about fundamental principles
of human dccency, also fits squarely within the concerns and
expertise of EDRA: rights to co-habitate, to safety in public
places, and to free expression in public places. Thinking about
this motion and the controversy it seems to have engendered,
should create awareness that in one way or another, many of us
are marginalized. What position would we take if Colorado
were enacting blatantly discriminatory legislation against Jews,
women, or African Americans? How would a Jew ,a woman, an
African American feel about an organization that failed to
publicly condemn such action when it surfaced at the time and
place of the conference?
We believe that taking public positions, whether they be urging
action or boycotting future conference sites, fits squarely within
ED RA' s own statements of future directions and organizational
goals, as stated in our EDRA Membership Handbook (EDRA,
1984) "[to] initiate, advocate and support social [and environmental] change towards more humanistic design," (p. v) "[tol
affect legislation impacting the conduct of environmental design research [and] monitor legislative programs, draft model
legislation, and actively support bills of interest to the field" (p.
9) and EDRA's commitments "to social justice, diversity,
community support and public life; to participation by
clients and the empowering of people to control the design,
construction, use, and maintenance of their environment"
(p. 3). Taking public positions is also consistent with actions of
other organizations such as the American Psychological Association and the American Institnte of Architects. We don't wish
to imply that we should model ourselves after these organizations, butonl y that we need not be more passive than they. While
some might think that by taking no stand, individuals or organizations avoid the political dimension, we believe that taking an
ostensibly a-political stance is political-it supports status qnos,
inequitable ones in these cases.
At the Membership Meeting. a concern was raised thatifEDRA
takes positions on these or other issnes, members may be in
danger oflosing funding by government agencies. If we allow
such conccrns and fears to direct or inhibit our actions, what is
left of the noble goals of our organization or our oftspoken
sentimcnts of concern for social and environmental justice?
Many of the academic institutions that employ us have seen fit
to take political and economic stands on such issues as apartheid
in South Africa when these actions portended financial loss. We
urge any members who are threatening to bolt EDRA, to
consider that any democracy, EDRA included, can only function with a loyal opposition.
The Participation and Political Action Network applauds the
opening of debate on these issues. All members come to EDRA
conferences to learn. Raising these issues in our public forum
encourages us to examine our beliefs and commitments; it can
be a profound learning experience.
The Participation and Political Action Network
II
Design Research Application
Urban Excellence
Courtyard
"Why is excellence in the urban environment an issue? In these days of high
interest rates and seemingly even higher
construction costs, an ever growing premium is placed on quick construction
and easy identification. Except in an
increasingly rcstriclCd segment of the
market, cheap is more important than
good, and quick more relevant than
thoughtful. Yet, to some extent, our
sense of meaning and well-being depend
on a satisfying environment, one with a
sense of permanence and harmony, and
one which binds us to it through history
and continuity" (Bruner, 1990. ix).
Urban Excellence, by Philip Langdon
with Robert G. Shibley and Polly Welch,
examines the lessons learned of the Rudy
Bruner A wards program, which credits
urban designers, architects. designers,
developers. and researchers for excellence in the creation of urban environments, and for solutions to difficult urban problems. The Awards program
examines urban projects in terms of three
elements: products, processes, and values. It looks at how the building may
contibute to the broader sense of place
and community. The program is scheduled to run biannually for at least ten
years or five rounds of awards. Information will be gathered for all rounds as to
what constitutes an "excellent urban environment. "
Urban Excellence examines the diversity of the projects in the first round of
awards. The book examines Pike Place
Market, Seattle: the market as organizer
of an urban community; St. Francis
Square, San Francisco: a housing complex as a way of life; Quality Hill in
Kansas City, Missouri: establishing a
II
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new downtown community; Casa Rita,
the Bronx, New York: a humane response to homelessness; and Fairmount
Health Center, Philadelphia: a community clinic as urban inspiration. This
book devotes special attention to how
these five places came about, have
adapted, and are maintained over time.
The five projects selected in this collection were constructed at various timesPike Place Market and S1. Francis Square
have operated for several years, while the
other projects are newer.
Urban Excellence is well organized and
each of the projects is fully illustrated. It
is published by VanNostrand Reinhold.
Robert Shibley and Polly Welch are
EDRA members.
160'
~
Site plan: Quality Hill Redevelopment Project, Kansas City, Missouri.
II
RAM Reports
c) working with the EDRA Business Office to ensure a timely
distribution of press releases.
Roberta Feldman
Membership and Networks
Kathy Anthony
Pu h lications
Peter Hecht contin ucs as Co-chair and has primary responsibility for contacts with EDRA-sponsored journals. Committee
members include: Peter Hecht, Co-chair; Jan Reizenstein
Carpman, Gary Evans, Mark Francis, Min Kantrowitz, Robin
Moore, and Tom May.
1) DRN Editors. Kristen Day and Kimberly Devlin, of the
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, have been selected as the
new DRN editors.
2) Reportsfrom EDRA-sponsoredjournals. Children's Environment Quarterly no longer exists. A successor, Children's
Environment Review, an annual publication, is currently under
development. Subscriptions are being solicited. This journal
will probably become available after the end of 1992. Its editors
would like to retain EDRA sponsorship for the new periodical,
and will offer a discount to EDRA members. A new representative to JAPR must be selected from the EDRA Board.
3) Publicizing the work of EDRA memhers in "mainstream"
publications. I have discussed this idea with Jim Poller, Peter
Hecht, and our new DRN editors. Jim has suggested a targeted
press release system sent to various publications. Press releases
could include short excerpts from the current issue of DRN.
Peter suggested that EDRA representatives write short columns
targeted to specific publications in the style and tone of the host
journal, thus increasing the likelihood that the material would be
used. Kristen Day and Kimberly Devlin sent a list of journals
with whom the DRN has a ncwsletter exchange; however, for
the most part, these are not trade publications. They suggest that
press releases based on the Design Research Application and
other sections of the DRN be sent directly from the EDRA
Business Office. Regarding possible outlets for these press
releases, I believe that our best bets are trade publications aimed
at design practitioncrs, such as Architectural Record, Progressive Architecture, Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Planning, and others. Tsuggest that the new Chair of the Publications
Committee pursue this discussion, specifically by:
a) assuming responsibility for writing or overseeing others to
write press releases on a regular basis;
b) developing a list of trade publications to whom these press
releases will be distributed. Names of contact persons at each
publication. addresses, telephone numbers. FAX numbers, and
publications deadlines will be needed;
At their fall meeting, the EDRA Board voted in favor of
establishing a new Distinguished Membership category. The
Board decided to nominate Distinguished Members on the basis
of sustained contribution to the field, the first round of nominations for which would be decided by the Board, with subsequent
nominations by Distinguished Members. At the spring Board
meeting, EDRA yearly dues for Distinguished Members were
set at a suggested (but, of course, optional) rate of twice the
regular membership fee. The proportion of the dues above the
regular membership fees would be set aside for the establishment of a student trust fund, and for the development and
enhancement of membership services.
At the Membership Meeting in EDRA 23. members requested
that the Board reconsider the Distinguished Member category.
The Board has taken this request seriously, and will review the
new membership category and fee structure at the fall 1992
Board meeting.
The Board decided to send personalized letters to all "lost
sheep" members. Tom May will prepare letters to nonrenewing
members for appropriate Board members to sign.
In the last few months, Thad severdl occasions to communicate
with Network Chairs. I informed them that the Board voted to
raise Network reimbursement to $50.00 a year. Furthermore, I
requested a brief description of each Network's purpose and
activities, for publication in the proposed new EDRA Resource
Directory, Along with the other 1993 conference organizers. I
also wrote and spoke with the Network Chairs regarding Network involvement in the conference and feedback on the proposed topic, format, and Network-sponsored events. We will
continue to work with the Net work Chairs and membership on
several proposed conference events. including the Networksponsored intensi ve seminars, workshops, and design eharettes.
Cheryl Parker
Student Affairs
Prior to the conference in Colorado, I engaged in activities to
establish a stronger Network of students. I worked with my
predecessor. Michael Conn, in compiling and distributing the
Student Interest Resource Directory, which lists design and
research interests of student members, and provides a means for
them to contact each other. I also worked with Kristen Day and
Kimberly Devlin, the new editors of the Desi/?n Research News,
to help to establish a regular "Student Work" feature article in
the DRN. I have been contacting schools and distributing
solicitations for this feature, which pays a $50 honorarium to
~ontrihuting students, If you are a student and are interested in
:his opportunity. please contact me. I also worked with the
EDRA Business Office in distributing a Student Newsletter,
which asks for student feedhack on a number of issues. Some
of this effort seems to be well-invested. I am being contacted hy
four to five students a week, with questions and opinions alxmt
the above-mentioned items. Perhaps an active Network is
emerging ....
At the EDRA conference, I met a group of students quite
interested and eager to make EDRA into something "more."
Several work sessions took place, during which the following
ideas were discussed: 1) establishing an active Network among
qudent~ (and others), which might include an E-Mail Network
:md a regular student newsletter; 2) reviving and executing the
idea of regional EDRA chapters. At the conference, we established a task group dedicated to chapter formation. They will he
generating a product addressing this idea this summer; and 3)
making the next conference in Chicago receptive and friendly to
sludents by hosting a series of student-oriented events ("History
ofEDRA," thesis/dissertation workshops, "Here's how I did it"
sessions with established EDRA members), hy trying to set up
a student scholarship to the conference (students might work at
the conference in exchange for a portion of paid travelfare), and
by hosting a student design competition. r am developing these
ideas into a "student package" proposal, to be discussed with the
1993 conference organizing committee. Finally. as a long-term
project, new Board member Jamie Horwitz and I will be
working to establish an internship program for students. The
idea is still in its infancy. If anyone has suggestions forwhatthis
might be. we certainly welcome them.
David Saile
Resource Directory
At the fall Board meeting in Denver. I agreed to assemble text
for various sections of the new EDRA Resource Directory.
EDRA members, including Board members, were identified as
contributors. In early November, contributors were sent an
outline of the contents and format of the Directory. with a
request for draft text to be submitted hy MaJch I, 1992. In
January and February. most contributors were contacted by
telephone, Some materials have now been submitted and some
are in preparation. Others are in a less certain state, needing
confirmation of contributors, or awaiting a decision by the
Board.
All contributors who have not submitted material should be
contacted, and draft text should be prepared for the summer. An
editorial/design team should he appointed before or at the 1992
fall Board meeting, to produce and publish the Directory. so that
it will be available by the end of 1992. or for the 1993 conference
at the latest.
1993 "Power by Design" Conference Planning
At the fall Board meeting, the Board endorsed a proposal for a
subcommittee of the Board to organize the 1993 conference
around the theme of "Power by Design." Tom May was asked
to explore the possibilities of a short list of potential meeting
sites. Ideas regarding subtopics and formats that might encourage greatest participation in the conference were to be sought
from the Networks.
The initial planning committee included Roberta Feldman,
Graeme Hardie, and Cheryl Parker, with myself as Chair. In
November, the planning committee invited Maggie Calkins to
become an additional member. The committee and the Board
commented upon draft ideas and suggestions, and a letter was
sent to all EDRA Network Chairs in early December. to solicit
their input and ideas. There has been both written and verbal
responses to the proposal, summarized below:
a) The theme "Power by Design," and its various subthemes,
excites most respondents. People from both design practice and
research areas have been enthusiastic.
b) Most respondents and the entire planning committee agreed
that Chicago would be an ideal location for discussing "power"
and "design." In February, I a~ked Tom May to search for hotel
bids in and around downtown
c) Various workshop topics have already been suggested. It ha~
been stressed that some workshops may he Network-sponsored
but would include other participants. and that some Network~
will encourage across-the-spectrum participation in a range of
workshops.
Future Conferences
The Board was enthusiastic about a large conference in 1994,
bringing together various research constituencies and organizations. The AINACSAResearch Council may also be interested
in related meetings. San Antonio was suggested as a site.
There is some interest in organizing an EDRA conference in
Southcrn California (possibly on the theme of "Growth and
Change") in Spring, 1996.
These locations seem appropriate for regional variety and
ability to draw populations, but must he confirmed. If San
Antonio in 1994 becomes a reality. it would. out of geographical
fairness, be most appropriate in 1995 to look either to the
Northwest (Seattle, Pacific rim) or the East Coast (large city or
Caribbean).
Student Work
The Stories that Buildings Tell:
Images of the Past in Architecture
Kathleen R. Miller Stumpf, University of Wisconsin
Madison
Pianos. workbenches, and river rats appear to have little in
common. Yet they all compose memories about one factory
building in St. Charles, Illinois. Such memories are vital aspects
of people's sense of community and place; they represent the
"life story" of a building and reflect a vivid passage of time.
Depending upon when a building was experienced by an individual, different memories occur. The collective memory of a
community represents a rich source of a community's history.
This study explores these memories in terms of community
history and the images of the past that old buildings evoke.
As analtemative to the standard community history book, it was
found that St. Charles residents had much to offer by way of
cxpcricntial history lessons: how a plot of land changed from a
Greek Revival family home to a Tudor Revival Gas Station;
how time in the city was marked by the sound of the Piano
Factory's whistle; how children sneaked into the once glamorous Baker Hotel just to ride the elevator; how people sat and
socialized on the pie-shaped steps of the downtown bakery.
Eighty residents (ranging in age from 20 to 85) were randomly
selected to participate in this study. During interviews conducted in their homes, respondents performcd structured sorting
tasks using 5" x 7" cards, which displayed thirty old buildings
from the city center of SI. Charles. The respondents were
encouraged to talk about their memories of the buildings. Using
both quantitative and qualitative analyses, the old buildings
were examined for the images of the past they evoked.
A common image of the past wa~ found to exist for residents,
which consistcd of information associated with buildings that
have a public or social use or that represent the residences of
early settlers. These buildings were impOitant to all age groups
for thc scnsc of community thcy provided. Variations identified
among images were influenced by the amount of familiarity that
residents had with these buildings. This expected result showed
that the longer residents used the buildings, the greater their
knowledge of the buildings was. However, more interesting
was the variation in the content of the images. Older residents
and residents that had grown up in St. Charles had more
experiential images of the past, while newcomers had more
ahbreviated images, hased upon standa.rd facts.
Residents had shared memories of certain areas of town too.
Nicknames conjured vivid memories for older residents, and
hinted at intriguing stories for newcomers. For instance, the
smell of liquor from "Whiskey Corners" still lingered in the
memories of some. Other nicknames, such as "Frogtown" and
"Little Belgium," never appeared on any St. Charles map. Yet
many resident~ knew where they were because of the role of
these places in community life.
These findings raise important questions for the maintenance
and preservation of a place. In this study, residents demonstrated an awareness of the ability of architecture to contribute
to a sense of cultural history for tlleir city. The importance of
this awareness should be addressed in two ways. The first is for
policy makers to recognize how older buildings contribute to a
sense of community today, and not only to historic events of the
past. Preservation of buildings in St. Charles has played an
important role for evoking local residents' memories of a past
community and for supporting their community in the present.
The second issue relates to gentrification and the question of
who controls the past. As newcomers move to SI. Charles
seeking this sense of history , older residents often cannot afford
the rising costs of real estate, and so must move. The dilemma
to be considered is this: for whom is history being preserved?
For the descendants of the people who formed it? For the
outsiders who can afford it? Or for both? This complicated
issue also relates to the well-being of communities. Policy
makers should consider communities not only as economic
enterprises, but also as support for the well-being of current
residents and for the maintenance of their images of the past.
Baker Hotel, St. Charles, IL. (Courtesy: Kathleen Miller Stumpf)
(This article refers to a doctoral dissertation in Architecture
conducted at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.)
Class Notes
Studying Cultural Aspects of Environment:
The Meal Study
David G. Saile
Center for the Study of the Practice of Architecture, University of Cincinnati
The following study of the social, cultural, and communicative
dimensions of meals and their environments was developed as
pan of a Built Form and Culture Studies graduate program, but
variations on the basic exercise have also been part of undergraduate and graduate seminar courses in architecture, environment and behavior studies, family and consumer studies, and
most recently, in an architectural design studio.
The meal study is one small exercisc intended as an introduction
to the intricacy of connections among social behaviors and
rules. artifactual and spatial settings, and systems of meaning
and cultural order. Normally it takes two weeks, but length has
also varied from one to three weeks.
Students choose one of the following topics as a focus: a specific
meal---one particular event or, a class of meals for a particular
group; formal dinners, business lunches, breakfasts; or a repertoire of meals for a particular person or group- through a day,
a ceremony, a week.
They are advised to choose repasts with which they are familiar
or about which we know there is much description. They then
study, through observation, recording, reading, discussion, and
reflection, the components of the activity using Amos Rapoport's
outline inHuman Aspects of Urban Form (p. 19): 1) a summary
of the nature of the meal(s); 2) specific way(s) of doing it, either
your family's or from the written and photographic descriptions; 3) related and associated activities----choosing vegetables,
organizing who brings what, conversation, cleaning up, thanks,
etc; and 4) symbolic aspects of parts, sequences, or the wholewhat, where, when and why does what mean for whom?
Students keep a detailed workbook/file of their findings and
produce a summary sheet for display and discussion with the
class.
The meal is a locus of many human operations and meanings
and the study shows many possibilities of spatial-cultural transactions. Meals illustrate temporal dimensions, can mark social
position and change, are related to gender, control. and power
systems and have direct connections with subsistence, production and consumption. In addition to scholarly and liter.rry
investigation (from early French social anthropology, through
Levi-Strauss and Mary Douglas, to Jack Goody's studies of
power and popular etiquette models of Emily Post and Letitia
Baldridge) this study brings into view many implicit, out-ofawareness issues for designers to realize that their work intersects with situations of great cultural complexity and richness.
EDRA's Award Winning Graphic
Congratulation! Jean Deichman, graphic designer, of
the Office of Continuing Education and Public Service,
Division of Conferences and Institutes, University of
Illinois, received a National University Continuing
Education Association
Bronze Award of Excellence in the visual
indentification category.
Ms. Deichman created
the EDRA 21 Coming of
Age conference design
logo, which appeared on
p
the conference poster,
proceeding, stationery, I'l ~t} ~
clothing and more.
\.:.U'" -
Membership Update
Setha Low, CUNY Graduate Center, 33 West 42nd Street,
New York, NY 10036. 212/229·6976. Setha Low is currently
involved in a variety of projects: a book on plazas and the
cultural importance of public space; a user assessment of
Central Park (with Lynn Milan); a design studio on Riverside
South; and the development of methodology for public space
analysis. Her book with Irwin Altman, Place attachment, was
recently published as part of the Plenum Series. Setha Low will
attend the upcoming American Anthropological Association
Fall 1992 meeting, which will feature at least three sessions
generated by the Anthropology of Space and Place Group.
II
Bulletin Board
A Survey of Socially Conscious Design: Alternative
Design Education in the 90's
Stephan Marc Klein, PhD. and David Chapin, Archi
tect, Coordinators
Pratt Institute, the Ph.D. Program in EnvironmentalPsychology
of the City UnivcrsityofNew York, and the Architects/Designers/Planners for Social Responsibility. New York City, are cosponsoring an exhibition and catalogue/book of student projects
that explore issues of social responsibility and social change.
The exhibition will form a survey of design thinking about
creating just and equitable environments, which challenges
traditionally formalistic, dominant architectural values. It will
open at the Pratt Manhattan Gallery in February, 1992, and
move to Chicago in April for the Environmental Design Research Association conference and other venues.
Students from undergraduate and graduate design studios in
interior design, architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, and city planning both within and out~ide the United States
arc invited to submit projects. Projects completed from spring
semester 1991 through the end of fall semester 1992 are eligible.
Projects may be individual or team, assigned studios projects or
student initiated theses, and submitted by students or by faculty
for students.
For information or an entry packet, write no later than October
1, 1992 to: SchaUer Gallery, Pratt Institute, 200 Willoughby
Avenue, Brooklyn, New York, USA 11205
~ Universal Design Education Project
The recent passage of far-reaching civil rights laws-the American with Disabilities Act and the Fair Housing Amendments
Act---extends accessibility into every realm of the built environment, both public and private. To creatively address the
challenge of these new laws, design education must embrace the
value of design for all people. The Universal Design Education
Project seeks to stimulate innovation in the design curriculum
leading to buildings, environments. and products that can be
used by people throughout their lifespan.
Funded by the National Endowment for the Arts and other
foundations, this project will award stipends of $5000 to 15
college and university faculty in design programs around the
country to develop, implement, and test new methods and
materials for integrating universal design into the curriculum.
In addition to piloting the new curricula at their own school,
faculty will participate in an educators colloquium as well as a
national conference of presentations, demonstrations, and exhibits of work. Both forums are cosponsored by the Center for
Accessible Housing, North Carolina State University, in Raleigh. Papers by faculty and other expert~ will be published in
a collection, Advances in universal design education, and disseminated nationally to design schools and professional
societies.
The Universal Design Education Project is a program of the
Adaptive Environments Center in Boston, MA, a nonprofit
organization, dedicated to creating environments that are accessible to all people. Its educational programs and publications
have received national acclaim.
Proposals are sought from faculty in the following disciplines:
architecture, interior design, product design, landscape architecture, and urhan planning. Faculty are encouraged to apply a~
teams and to involve people with disabilities from local communities in preparing their proposals. Application packets will be
available October I, 1992. Proposals are due December 1,
1992. Selections will be made by the end ofJanuary 1993 so that
faculty can participate in the first Universal Design Educators
Colloquium in April 1993, and prepare to teach proposed
curriculum in Fall 1993. For more information eontaet: Polly
Welch, AlA, Project Director, Adaptive Environments Center,
374 Congress Street, Suite 30 I, Boston, MA 0221 0, Telephone:
617/695-1225 or FAX: 617/4R2-R099.
~ Children's Environment~ Re~'iew
Beginning in 1992, Children's Environments Quarterly will be
published as an annual with the new title, Children's Environments Review. This new format will bring you commissioned
and unsolicited pieces on pivotal issues concerning children and
the environment. Children' sEnvironment Review will continue
to publish work that bridges theory, research, and applications,
but will no longer publish individual research studies. The
emphasis will be on synthesis and making links from theory and
research to environmental planning, design, policy, and environmental education. Submissions of articles and commentaries on articles are welcome. Suggestions for topics that might
be addressed and names of potential authors are also welcome.
For an order form or for more information on submission
guidelines, please contact: Profs. Roger Hart and Cindi Katz,
Editors, Children' s Environments Review, Children's Environments Research Group, Ph.D. Program in Psychology/Environmental, The Graduate Sehool and University Center of the City
University of New York, 33 West 42 Street. ~ew York. KY
10036, USA Telephone: 212/642-2970. FAX: 212/642-2971.
Z\.-
Call for Interest: Participation at the EDRA 1993
~ Conference in a Proposed Planning and Design
Charette for the New, Third Chicago Airport
.-\ unique opportunity has been proposed for the EDRA 1993
~onference-a one day planning and design charette for the
new. third Chicago airport on the Lake Calumet site, in conjunction with the American Institute of Architects, the American
Planning Association, and the American Society of Landscape
Architects. This proposal offers a unique opportunity to participate in a major 21st century project for Chicago. The pmpose
of the proposed joint charctte is to raise issues and entertain
propositions about the planning and design of the airport and its
surroundings, and discuss and display the work atEDRA as well
3, at the AlA, AP A, and ASLA national conventions that will be
hdd in Chicago in 1993.
\,lembers of EDRA, AlA, APA, and ASLA would work in
multidisiplinary tcams to consider the planning, design. and
~nvironmental and social impacts of the third Chicago airport.
The issues that may be addressed include: transportation, economic development, airport and supporting facility design,
community displacement, new residential community planning
and design, and sustaining and rcclaiming natural habitats.
\Ve are in the initial stages of soliciting interest from the fom
organizations. We need to hear from the EDRA membership.
If you have an interest in participating in the proposed charette
or would like fmther information, contact David Saile, CSPA.
Cniversity of Cincinnati, OH 45221-3415. Telephone: 513/
556-3415; FAX: 513/556-3288.
~
An Electronic Bulletin Board for Environment and
~ Behavior
This is an open invitation to EDRA-ites to join an Electronic
Bulletin Board devoted to environment and behavior issues.
This bulletin board (callcd a "list" on BITNET/IN1ERNET) is
free to the user. The list is called ENVBEH-L@POLYGRAP.
To join you must have a computer account at a university or
research center that is a "node" on the BITNET/ IN1ERNET
:\etworks. The folks who operate your local computer center
can inform you.
The list is simply a way of bringing together people with an
interest in environment-behavior research. ENVBEH-L is a
go<Xl place to: ask for help (such as in finding references or
somces), bounce ideas off of colleagues, disseminate news and
information, advertise conferences. and provide advance conference programs. In the future we will stimulate discussion by
regularly posting abstracts of theoretical or research papers.
ENVBEH-L currently has over 100 members worldwide. To
volume xxiii, number two. 1992
join, commands vary by system, but a common command to
subscribe to the list is: TELL LISTSERV AT POLYGRAF
SUBSCRIBE [YOUR NAME] ENVBEH-L. If this doesn't
work, contact Rich Wener at: RWENER@POLYVMorcheck
your local computer center. I look forward to meeting you online.
(Submitted by Rich Water)
~
Have you always wanted to host an EDRA confer-
l\ ence but did not think you could?
The Board has accepted an approach to the handling of our
annual conference that makes it possible for all types of groups
of persons to host an EDRA conference. The hosting of the
conference ha~ been simplified, as preparation of the program
and administration tasks for the meeting have now been separated. The Business Office will take charge of all the administration planning for the conference. This includes negotiating
the venue and hotel, handling registration materials and all
financial aspects of the meeting, and the production of the
Conference Proceedings.
The conference host committee, on the other hand, is responsible for deciding upon the theme, devising the Call for Papers
and organizing papers into appropriate sessions, and finalizing
the selection of papers and other items for the Proceedings. This
reorganization of these procedmes will change what is required
of the host committee. It finally makes it possible for a variety
of people to host an EDRA conferene. The conference committee might take the form of a group of persons drawn from those
interested in a particular topic, aNetwork. or even an institution.
So how about taking the challenge and sending us a proposal?
The Board already has a proposal for EDRA 25, but we will still
entertain new ideas and themes. The contact person is Carol
Werner.
~ DRN Publications Editor retires
Julia Gelfand, Assistant DRN Editor for Publications, will be
retiring this position in December, 1992, to accept a Fulbright
Fellowship. The DRN editors wish to congratulate her, and to
thank her for the wonderful job she has done in this position for
the past several years. A new Publications Editor is being
sought, to begin in January 1993. This is an ideal position for
someone wishing to donate a limited amount of time to EDRA,
at the same time affording an opportunity to keep abreast of the
latest publications. Please contact the DRN editors to express
yom interest.
Towards a Multi-National EDRA
Proposal Statement: Call for Action
How Important is Environmental Design Research in Multi-cultural Contexts?
How Can EDRA Benefit from a Multi-cultural Consciousness?
Primary Objective:
To develop policies and action that will promote environmcntal
design research in multi-cultural and multi-national contexts
within BORA.
Secondary Objectives:
1) To fulfil the expectations of the multi-national participation
raised at BORA 22;
2) To bring issues of environmental design research in differcnt
cultural or multi-cultural settings and non-U.S.A. countries to
the attention of EORA members;
3) To develop research methodologies applicable to the cultural
and technological contexts of non-U.S.A. countries;
4) To encourage consideration of the impurtanee of underlying
culture in all behavior-environment related processes, by environmental design researchers.
Therefore it is recommended that:
EORA must require that all EORA brochures, Calls for Papers,
informational material announcing conferences, and abstracts
be submitted in both English and Spanish. The future expectation is to require that all abstracts be submitted in French and
Portuguese as well. This action was recommended in EORA 22
in Oaxtepec, yet was not accomplished at this conference.
EORA must facilitate cultural accessibility at all conferences by
presenting all major sessions, welcoming addresses, plenary
sessions, etc., in the presenter's own language with translation
(English or Spanish) at all conferences.
EDRA must promote international participation in EORA conferences, especially by Latin American and Canadian participants. EORA must assure that all mailings are sent to members
and programs in all participating countries, and not only the
United States. The consequences of this lack of accessibility to
timely information prohibits peoples from pursuing funding
and other resources that may allow them to attend.
facilitation of easy monetary exchange of international
funds for registration;
• access to media/slides through such means as a "Slide
Exchange Booth" at conferenccs, where people can bring
copies of slidcs from specific areas and research interests to
exchange for copies of other participants' slides.
EORA must promote cross-cultural participation in environmental design research among its members by promoting the
above suggestions, and by providing:
• respondents to paper scssions, to critique material un issues
of cultural diversity and cultural acknowledgement in
representation of information;
access to each others' work in different cultural settings!
countries using a variety of networks-i.e. E-mail (electronic mail), Bitnet, Telnet, FAX.
EORA must focus on more diverse issues, such as the essential
elements for environmental quality-deteriorating in many
countries-by promoting:
creative formats in sessions, such as workshops that explore eaeh participant's approach or methudulogy(ies) in
analyzing an issue;
analysis of problems that recognize the global power relations evident in the cultural context studied/praetieed, by
including examinations of issues of ecunumic, political,
and social expluitatiun within that system.
A fundamental assumption in all environmental design work
must be that there is a diversity of cultures within and between
geographic areas and countries. Culture must reflect ethnicity,
race, gender, sexuality, and social class, and not just spatial!
environmental dimensions.
EORA must promute culleague exchange in environmental
design research at universities and professional associations
through such means as:
• cultural accessibility of papers from all major sessions
presented in the presenter's own language, with translation
(English or Spanish) made available at all conferences;
• networking through student internships, visiting faculty;
• sharing of addrcsscs and research interests of members;
Declorocion de Propuestos: Un Llomodo ala Accion
Hocio una EDRA Multinocionol
Que Tan Imporiante es la Investigacion en OisenoAmbiental en Contextextos Multiculturales?
Cuales Son Los Beneficios Para EORA de la Importancia Multicultural y Multlnaciona/?
Objetivo Principal :
Desarrollar politicas de acci6n orientadas ala promoci6n de la
investigaci6n en disel'lo ambiental en contextos multiculturales
y multinacionales dentro de la Asociaci6n para la Investigaci6n
en Disel'lo Ambiental.
Objetivo Secundarios:
i I) Continuear las expectativas surgidas en EDRA 22 de los
participantes multinacionales para involucrarse en EDRA.
12) Llamer la atenci6n de EDRA acerca de la situaci6n actual
de la investigaci6n en diseiio ambiental en escenarios
multiculturales y en paises en desarrollo.
Declaraciones:
(I) EDRA debe considerar las diferencias de contexto social,
e.con6mico y polftico de los paises en desarrollo at realizar
investigaci6n ambiental.
(2) EDRA debe ampliar su visi6n de la investigaci6n en diseiio
ambiental a problemas cotidianos atingentes al desarrollo (por
ejemplo: pobreza, marginalidad, ecologfa, salud y educaci6n
ambiental).
(3) EI desarrollo de metodologfas para la investigaci6n en
disel'lo ambiental no pucde extrapolarse a otros contextos
especfficos debido a diferencias culturales y a la existencia de
diferentes tecnologfas.
(4) Los investigadores en diseiio ambiental deben considerar la
importancia de la cultura que subyace en todo proceso de
relaci6n conducta-ambiente.
Por 10 Anterior se Recomienda que:
EDRA requiere que las convocatorias para las conferencias
(Call for Papers), el material informativo de las mismas y los
res6menes sean enviados tanto en ingles como en espano!. En
un futuro pr6ximo se espera que tarnbien sean solicitados en
frances y portugues. Esta fue una recomendaci6n generada en
EDRA 22 misma que no ha sido atendida en esta Conferencia.
EDRA debe facilitar el acceso cultural en las Conferencias al
ofrecer el mayor ntimero de Sesiones, la Sesion de Bienvenida
y las Plenarias en el idioma del presentador con traducci6n
(espanol-ingles) segtin sea el caso.
EDRA debe promover la participaci6n internacional en sus
conferencias especialmente de CanadA y Latino America.
Asegurandose de que toda la correspondencia sea enviada a
todos sus miembros yprogramas de los paises participantes y no
solamete de Estados U nidos. De otra manera, el no contar con
informaci6n pertinente y en el momento preciso redunda en
falta de tiempo para tramitar las solicitudes de apoyo econ6mico
para asistir a las conferencias.
EDRA debe promoverel intercambiode colegas en investigaci6n
en diseiio ambiental, entre Universidades y Asociaciones
Profesionales por medio de:
• Redes de trabajo que permitan becas estudiantiles y
programas para profesores visitantes.
• Generar directorios y areas de interes entre los miembros.
• Dar mayor acceso cultural de los trabajos al permitir las
exposiciones de las ponencias en su idiom a materna con
traducci6n.
• EDRA debe facilitar el pago del registro al aceptar moneda
extranjera 0 el cambio de moneda.
• Tener acceso a medios audiovisuales por medio de un
"centro de intercambio de diapositivas," donde se puedan
ofrecer diapositivas de areas 0 investigaciones especfficas
para el intercambio de copias con las de otros investigadores.
EDRA debe promover la participaci6n transcultural de la
investigaci6n en disel'lo ambiental, entre sus miembros al
promover los puntos anteriores, ademas de:
• Proponer comentaristas para la discusi6n de los trabajos
que aborden t6picos concernientes ala diversidad cultural.
• EI acceso aotros trabajos en diferentes contextos culturales/
paises por medio del uso de redes de trabajo, correo
electr6nico, Bitnet, Teinet, FAX.
EDRA debe orientar su atenci6n en aspectos substanciales para
la calidad ambiental y que deterioran el ambiente en los paises
en desarrollo, al prom over:
• Nuevas formas de presentaci6n, tales como: talleres que
permitan a cada participante la presentaci6n de su
metodologfa a un fen6meno particular.
• Analisis de problemas que aborden las relaciones globates
de poder que imperan en al contexto cultural del que es
motivo de estudio,incluyendo t6picos econ6micos, politicos
y de explotaci6n social en el sistema.
Las bases fundamentales del trabajo de investigaci6n en diseiio
ambiental deben comtemplar la existencia de la diversidad de
culturas intra e inter areas geograficas y de paises. La cultura
debe reflejar los problemas etnicos, de raza, de genero, de
sexualidad y de clase social y no solamente la dimensi6n
espacio-ambiental.
EDRA Network Directory
Children and Youth
Patsy Eubanks (Chair)
Department of Environmental Design
University of California, Davis
Davis, CA 95616
916/752-6223
Department of Housing and Design
1401 Marie Mount Hall
University of Maryland
College Park, MD 20742
301/454-2144 or
301/299-7037
Cultural Aspects of Design
Nature/Ecology
Setha Low (Chair)
Environmental Psychology Program,
CUNY
33 West 42nd Street
New York, NY 10036
212/642-2572
Danny Choriki (Chair)
CUNY
33 West 42nd Street
New York, NY 10036
Environmental & Architectural
Phenomenology
Lynn Paxson (Co-chair)
College of Design
Iowa State University
Ames, 10 50010
515/294-4717
(Temporary address until 6/1/92)
Participation and Political Action
Margaret Boschetti (Co-chair)
Department of Textiles, Clothing, and
Interior Design
College of Human Ecology
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS 66506
913/532-6993
David Seamon (Co-chair)
College of Architecture and Design
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS 66506
913/532-5953
Anthony Ward (Co-chair)
School of Architecture, Property, and
Planning
University of Auckland
Private Bag
Auckland, New Zealand
011-64-9-737-999
ext. 8636 or 8676
Environmental Gerontology
Maggie Calkins (Chair)
School of Architecture and Urban
Planning
P.O. Box 413
Milwaukee, WI 53201
4141229-6165
Health
Alice Davidson (Chair)
3380 Longwood Ave.
Boulder, CO 50303
International Housing Research
POE/Programming
Brodie Bain (Co-chair)
Jay Farbstein & Associates
1411 Marsh St., 3204
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
805/541-0612
Raymund Bertrand (Co-chair)
ADUM
811, rue Ontario
Montreal, Quebec
Canada, H2L IPI
514/52-1479 or
514/521-5869
Professional Practice
Greg Allen Barker (Co-chair)
Jay Farbstein & Associates
1411 Marsh St., 3204
San Luis Obispo. CA 93401
805/531-4940
Peter Hecht (Co-chair)
301 Cherry SI.
Philadelphia, PA 19106
215/925-9530
Student Affairs
Cheryl Parker (Chair)
Architecture Graduate Office
370 Wurster Hall
University of California at
Berkeley
Berkeley, CA 94705
510/644-9913
Women and Environments
Kristen Day (Co-chair)
School of Architecture and Urban
Planning
University of WisconsinMilwaukee
P.O. Box 413
Milwaukcc, WI 53201
414/962-2315
Lynne Manzo (Co-chair)
Environmental Psychology
Program
CUNY
33 West 42nd Street
New York, NY
212/642-2567 or
718/267-0215
Work Environments
Phyl Smith (Chair)
Working Spaces
1228 Montgomery
San Francisco, CA 94133
Guido Francescato (Chair)
II
Network News
Environmental Gerontology Network
The Network has accomplished several
of its goals in the past year. The Gerontology Network Resource Directory is in
its first iteration, and will be mailed to
Network members who submitted personal information. This will be revised
yearly, with revisions and additions sent
to all members. If you think this isa bribe
to get Network members to send in their
information, you're right. It is! Anyone
needing the information form, may request one from Maggie Calkins.
A second goal achieved was the establishment of a collection of course syllabi
related to aging and the environment.
While the collection is still small. several
more syllabi have been promised. Several members have also sent in bibliographies on various topics, and information
nf current research projects. The Institute on Aging and Environment at the
School of Architecture and Urban Planning, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, has agreed to serve as the resource
center for these different collections.
The majority of the meeting was spent
planning and coordinating EDRA Environmental Gerontology Network sponsored presentations for several upcoming conferences, including GSA, ASA,
and EDR A 24. Thesepresentations/symposia compile the work of a diverse group
of network members. incorporating research at the community, building, and
micro scale. Updates on these sessions
will be forthcoming to the participants.
Others interested in developing EDRA
Environmental Gerontology Network
sponsored workshops or symposia should
contact Maggie Calkins.
(Submilled by Maggie Calkins)
•
Participation and Political Action
Network
A spirit of concern for advancing social
and environmental justice has been
emerging in EDRA. This became evident the first afternoon of this year's
conference in the working group, Challenging (or sustaining) inequitable habitats: What place for environmental design research in broad social issues?,
organized by Roberta Feldman and
Stephan Klein, and attended by over 50
people. It was evident in the ensuing
animated lunch sessions on Friday and
Saturday that continued our discussions.
It surfaced in the self-study working
groups ofEDRA 20/1989 at Black Mountain, and in the vision statements those
groups and individuals produced. It was
evident in the Board sponsored working
group-answering the request expressed
hy Black Mountain attendees to continue
the discussion, How can EDRA make a
difference? It ran throughout EDRA 21/
1990 at Champaign-Urbana. It continued at EDRA 22 in Oaxtcpcc, where
many of us Norteamericanos realized
that much of our work is irrelevant to
critical Latin American issues. This spirit
ha~ flowed through many Participation
Network sessions held during past conferences. Clearly, the Patticipation and
Political Action Net work, forged from
two existing EDRA Networks, responds
to the interests and concerns of numerous
EDRA members who attended these sessions. Perhaps this spirithasalwaysheen
there. Perhaps it's becoming stronger.
The newly formed Participation and Political Action Network grows out of two
EDRA Networks with long histories. The
Participation Network began at the 1978
EDRA conference in Arizona. It was
started by a small group ofEDRA members (LisaCashdan. Bernard Fahle, Mark
Francis, Steve Schwartz and Peler Stein)
interested in participatory design, planning. and action-research. The Network
has since grown in size and scope, producing ten newsletters and sponsoring
workshops and symposiaatEDRA, TAPS,
and PAPER conferences. A continually
increasing membership atld mailing list
comprises 355 people; 184 from outside
the United States. Although thc Participation Network has been somewhat inactive in the past few years, interest among
members in participatory approaches to
design and research has remained strong,
as issues of participation, equity, and
diversity have become more mainstream
within EDRA as an organization (witness the themes of Black Mountain
EDRA, this year's conference theme of
"Sustainable and Equitable Environments," and the participatory format and
the "Power" theme of next year's EDRA
in Chicago).
The Political Action Network, spearheadedhy Maxinc Wolfe, Anthony Ward,
and Alan Lipman, began at Black Mountain from needs expressed by many of
that conference's attendees for EDRA to
become a more politically active organization. Their working group's (Group
12) report called for the organization to:
"make a commitment to action, act as
agent of change and refuge for those
undergoing change, be more therapeutic
as an organization (and be less competitive), take a political position as an organization and develop a process of dialogue which will allow for discussion of
the means of empowerment of atld the
intervention by the powerless to take
physical and political control over their
environments." The group emphasized
that "EDRA must continue changing itself!" (Working Group 12, 1989, p. 343).
Many of the other EDRA 20 working
groups' summary reports also expressed
the desire for EDRA to become more
politically involved and to focus more
attention on the relation of political, economic, and social issues to environmental issues.
Composed of members from the former,
separate Participation and Political Action Networks, as well as of folks who
joined in Boulder, the Participation and
Political Action Network will provide a
fornm for exploring ways EDRA members can individually and organizationally become effective (Cont. on p. 30)
Network News (ConI. from p. 29)
agents to "initiate, advocate, and support
social [and environmental] change towards more humanistic design," as our
organizational goals are stated in our
EDRA Membership Handhook (EDRA,
1984, p. v). This includes increasing the
participation by users in the design, planning, building, and operation of settings,
where participation is a strategy forpeople
to gain control over the circumstances
and processes of their lives. Thus, the
mission of this network meshes with longstanding commitments of EDRA "to social justice, diversity, community support, and public life; to participation by
clients and the empowering of people to
control the design, construction, use, and
maintenance of their environment"
(EDRA, 1984, p. 30).
At its Boulder meetings, our Network
resolved to initiate outreach efforts with
other EDRA Networks and with likeminded organizations (i.e. co-supporting
with the Women and Environments Network, a possible future conference theme,
"Exploringfeminist perspectives in environmental design research and practice"). An immediate Network agenda is
exploring diversification ofEDRA membership. We are concerned (as always,
unfortunately) by the sea of almost all
Caucasian faces at our conferences.
Consistent with its intentions, our Network took two political actions at the
general Membership Meeting late Friday
afternoon. First, on behalf of our Network, Galen Cranz submitted a motion
calling for the Board to write letters to
major national political figures and to the
public media demanding actions to repair the ozone hole in the atmosphere.
These included an immediate ban on
CFC production and cooperative participation by the U.S.A. in the upcoming
Brazil Conference on the environment.
Second, on behalf of our Network, David
Chapin submitted a motion calling for
the board to write letters to Colorado
state legislature and to the public media
in Colorado deploring a bill pending in
the Colorado legislature. This bill would
make illegal any provisions of current
and future Colorado laws that specifically protect the rights of gay men and
lesbians. The bill, if passed, would deny
these groups specific protection and ability of redress of wrongs in ca~es of discrimination. The motion also directs the
Board to write that EDRA would not
hold future conferences in Colorado if
the bill became law. Both these motions
pa~sed unanimously, with some abstentions, at the general Membership Meeting. The two motions appear in this issue
of DRN (see page 12).
The newly merged Participation and Political Action Network sees its future role
as a forum within EDRA to explore issues and to propose programs of action
for EDRA and members of the organization, including: metho<ls and approaches
to participatory environmental change;
action-research as an approach and paradigm for environmental design research;
diversity, social justice, and equity in
environmental design and research;
power, empowerment, and participation
in environmental design and research;
the meaningful role of researchers and
designers and their organizations in sustainable development and environmental change; global environmental change
that has social and cultural implications;
international, national, and regional issues that impact on social and environmental change; and ways EDRA as an
organization and EDRA members individually and collectively can affect meaningful social and environmental change.
We invite EDRA members interested in
these issues to become active in the Network by contacting either of the Network
Co-chairs, Lynn Paxson or Anthony
Ward (See the Network Directory for
addresses).
(Submitted by Stephan Marc Klein and
Mark Francis)
•
POE! Programming Network
EDRA 23 proved to be productive and
interesting for the POE/Programming
Network. The Network sponsored a
workshop entitled The changing practice: Linking POE and programming.
This livel y discussion included a panel of
practitioners and academics assembled
to discuss issues related to linking the
two processes. Topics included examining the notion of POE and how it can best
be linked to programming, types of clients that would be most interested in
supporting a linked process (by most
benefiting from it), ways that POE can
best serve the client (perhaps as a preprogramming or form of "pre-occ upancy
evaluation"), who should be educated
about the needs of the two processes, and
how to approach POE and programming
in the educational environment. Due to
time constraints, we were only able to
touch on issues that could have become
full sessions in themselves.
At the Network meeting, we focused on
plans for next year's conference. With
the new conference format, we explored
possibilities of providing aPOEjProgramming mini -conference. Possible topics
include a discussion of issues from the
workshop, a presentation of case studies,
a field trip to Chicago firms, a meeting
with a facility management consultant, a
discussion of liability issnes and POE/
programming methodologies. If anyone
has ideas, comments, or would like to
help planning for nex t year's conference,
please contact Raymond or Brodie.
Establishing a reference list of POE and
Programming sources was discussed. If
you havc a list of references, please let us
know. We would like to use it to begin
developing a masterlist.
Lastly, we would like to reduce our membership to a manageable size. We currently have 200 names on the membership list, making the ability to get in
touch with members a very costly and
cumbersome task. Given the low response rate to our survey and relatively
low attendance at the Network meeting,
we assume there are some who no longer
wish to remain a member (and it is no
problem if you do). Please contact Brodie
or Raymond regarding your membership
status, We will finalize a new list before
conference plans begin for next year, so
please contact us as soon as possible.
(Submitted by Brodie Bain)
•
Professional Practice Network
The ProfessionalPractice Network meeting in Boulder was attended by over a
dozen persons. Chair Greg Barker reported on the success of the paid speaker
proposal, which commits EDRA to helping to support outside speakers. Greg
also reported that the Network was sponsoring a profcssionalliability workshop,
which was very successfully held the
next day. The Network decided to sponsor a case study/charette, suggested by
Min Kantrowitz and Raymond Bertrand,
during the Network day on the Friday
preceding the conference in Chicago next
year. A structure is being developed for
this, and Network members are encouraged to provide input and case studies for
presentation. Greg asked for volunteers
to assume the Network Chair, and Peter
Hecht volunteered to act as Co-chair for
the next year and Chair thereafter.
(Submitted by Peter Hecht)
•
Student Network
Student Network activites are summarized here; otherwise, please see RAM
report (page 20). Efforts have been geared
towards establishing a stronger network
of students and expanding services to
student members (who, after all, may
have a significant impact on the future of
this organization). Those efforts geared
toward networking include: (I) establishing a regular Student Newsletter, (2)
establishing an EDRA E-mail network,
and (3) organizing regional EDRAchapters. It is hoped that items 2 and 3 will
expand to a broader constituency than
only student members. To expand services to students, plans include: (I) establishing a regular student work feature
in the DRN; (2) establishing a Student
Resource Directory.
In addition to
being free-standing, this will also act as a
supplement to the forthcoming membership Resource Directory; (3) establishing a comprehensive package of services
for students at the next EDRA conference in Chicago; and (4) establishing a
student internship program. If you have
ideas, contact Cheryl Parker.
(Submitted by Cheryl Parker)
•
Women and Environment Network
During EDRA 23 in Boulder, Colorado,
the Women and Environments Network
was involved in several important events
and meetings, To begin, the Network
sponsored a working group on theFuture
of EDRA and feminist perspectives in
environmental design research. This
well-attended session provided a forum
for an energetic discussion on whatfeminist perspectives are, and how they impact on our lives in both professional and
personal ways. Issues included the role
of women in EDRA and in various design and social science professions, the
nature of feminist theory and critique,
and the notions of inclusion and empowerment. In this working group we began
to explore the possibility (and desirability) of sponsoring a future EDRA conference from feminist perspectives, and what
that might mean. In doing so, we examined both the format and context of various EDRA conferences that we had experienced. For example, many felt that it
was important for there to be continuity
of the dialogues that begin at EDRA
conferences. This could be facilitated by
more between-conference communication and by knowing the content of conferences before they actually begin.
(Hopefully, the Network Directory can
help in that regard. If you are not included in the Women and Environments
Network Directory and wish to be, please
send your name and address to either
Kris Day or Lynne Manzo, along with a
description of your professional interests. Please note that the latest, purple
version distributed at EDRA 23 is an
addendum to the earlier green version
produced in 1990 by Nina Gottlieb).
Much of the discussion from this Working Group was continued into the Women
and Environments Network Meeting, held
the following day. The Network Meeting focused on discussing the abovementioned issues in the context of the
next EDRA conference (EDRA 24"Power by Design," to be held in Chicago, Illinois).
Plans were made to
organize two events for this upcoming
EDRA. The first is a design charette/
design problem-solving exercise, based
on a conference held in Boston this past
fall ("Our Lives Have Changed, Our
Housing flasn't: Alternative Housing
Conference and Design Charette," October 1991). One primary emphasis
would be issues of inclusion and empowerment. Attempts will be made to include women from the local community.
The Women in Architecture group in
Chicago is one possibility. However, the
hope is to also include non-design-trained
participants who want to be involved and
learn more about the design process.
The second event that was discussed and
planned for EDRA 24 was a workshop on
feminist theory and critique. Ideally,
both thedesign charette and theory workshop would be continuations of one another. Several members volunteered to
begin organizing these events for EDRA
24. (Cont. on p. 32)
II
Network News (Cont. from p. 31)
In addition, several Women and EnvironmentsNetworkmembersalsoparticipated
in a joint meeting with the newly reconstituted Participation and Political Action Network. This was truly stimulating, as many ideas and concerns of these
Networks are commensurate with one
another (i.e. concerns for inclusion. participation. empowennent, and change).
If you have any thoughts on these activities or any plans for this next EDRA
conference, please call or write to us!!
Let's keep the dialogue going!
(Submitted by Lynne Manzo and Kris
Day)
•
Work Environments Network
A new Network arose from the demise of
a fonner one at EDRA 23, whcn the two
members of the Interior Environments
Network and eight newcomers attending
the scheduled Network meeting discovered their common interest in workplace
research and design. At that point the
group decided to disband the previous
Network and create a new one. focusing
on work environments, variously defIned.
The new Work Environments Network
is chaired by Phyl Smith, Working
Spaces. San Francisco, interiors practitioner, with assistance from Robert
Lueetti, RobertLucctti Associates, Cambridge, Massachusetts. Replies to interest and contribution questionnaires are
currently being compiled. Members of
the previous Network are encouraged to
indicate their interest in participating in
the new Network by contacting the Chair.
Work EnvironmenL~ Network members
currently include Philip Stone, Harvard
University; Paul Cornell and Pam
Brenner, Steelcase, Grand Rapids;
Kathleen Stumpf, University ofWisconsin-Madison; Susan Cooper, CUNY.
NY; Marjorie Inman and Margaret
Boschetti, East Carolina University,
Greenville. NC; Duncan Case. University of Nebraska; Ping Xi, University of
Colorado, Denver; Lynn Kearny, Human Performance Management, Oakland,
CA; JohanGrobler, Sanlarn, CapeTown,
South Africa, as well as Smith and Lucetti.
(Submitted by Phyi Smith)
RAMs (Responsibility Areas of Management)
New York, NY 10036
212/642-2575
Berkeley, CA 94720
EDRA25
Psychology Department
University of Utah
Salt Lake City, UT 84112
Cheryl Parker, Student Member
Student Affairs, Education and
Training
Architecture Graduate Office
370 Wurster Hall
Berkeley, CA 94705
510/644-9913
David G. Saile
EDRA 24, Public Relations, Resource
Directory
CSPA
University of Cincinnati
Cincinnati, OH 45221-3415
513/556-3415
Roberta M. Feldman, Secretary
Public Relations, Membership,
Networks
School of Architecture (MIS 030)
University of Illinois
Chicago, IL 60680
312/248-8194
Jim Potter, Ex-officio
Nominations and Elections
32 Arch Hall
University of Nebraska
Lincoln, NE 68588-0107
402/472-3592
Gary Winkel, Treasurer
Publications
CUNY Graduate Center
33 West 42nd Street
Jamie Horwitz
Awards. Education and Training,
Resource Directory
Architecture Department
232 Wurster Hall
Graeme Hardie, Chair
DRN Liaison, Long Range Planning
210 Rutgers Place
Nutley, NJ 07110
201/667-3148
Andrew D. Seidel
External Relations
College of Architecture
Texas A&M University
College Station, TX 77843-3137
409/845-6582
Javier Urbina-Soria
Membership. Networks. Long Range
Planning
Apartado Postal M-8401
Mexico City, DF 6000
Mexico
5/550-25-60
r
Financial Report
Environmental Design Research Association
5 Year Analysis
•
Revenues
I2l
Expenditures
•
Net
:=unds
1987
1968
1990
1989
1991
Year
Reserve Fund Balance as of December 31, 1991
$36,640
Reserve Fund Balance as of December 31, 1987
32,242
4 Year Growth
$4,398
Environmental Design Research ,Association
Revenue and Expenditure Analysis
•
1989
IDl
1990
•
1991
Funds
Total
Dues
Olher
Total
DRN
Proceedings
Revenues
Funds
EJtPenditures
The dramatic increase in 1991 income and expenditure IS a result of col/ecting and forwarding payments for the EDRA conference
in Oaxtepec.
II
Datebook
July 1, 1992; August 3, 1992
The Interfaith Forum on Religion, Art
and Architecture (lFRAA) will hold
the 1992 Tnternational Architectural
Design Awards Program for built religious structures. Entry forms are due by
July 1, 1992, and submissions are due by
August 3, 1992. Contact: IFRAA National Headquarters, Doris Justis, ExecutiveSecretary,1777ChurchStreet,N.W.,
Washington, DC, 20006.
July 6-10, 1992
The Department of Architecture and Urban Planning of the Eindhoven University of Technology announces an international conference on Design and Decision Support Systems in Architecture and Urban Planning, to be held in
Eindhoven July 6-10. 1992. Contact:
Ms Marlyn Aretz, Eindhoven University
of Technology, P.O. Box 513, Postvak
20,5600 MB EINDHOVEN, The Netherlands. Phone: 0-40-472262. FAX: 040-452432. Telex: 51163. E-mail.
BWAUL V@URC.TUE.NL.
July 11-14, 1992
The International Association for
People-Environment Studies (lAPS)
will hold its 12th International Conference in Marmaras, Chalkidiki, Greece,
from July 11-14, 1992. The theme of the
conferenceisSocio-EnvironmentaIMetamorphoses: B uiltscape. Landscape.
Ethnoscape. Euroscape. Contact: lAPS
12 Secretariat, Aristotle University of
Thessaloniki, P.O. Box 1641,
Thessaloniki 54006, Greece. Phone: 031/
992680 weekdays except Tuesday,
14:00-16:00 Greek time. FAX: 031/
206138 or 200392, attention of A. Mazis.
July 15, 1992; January 15,1993
The National Endowment for the Humanities Travel to Collections Program
II
provides grants of $750 to help American scholars meet the costs of long-distance travel to the research collections of
libraries, archives, museums, or other
repositories throughout the U.S. and the
world. Awards are made to help defray
such research expenses as transportation, lodging, food, and photoduplication. Deadlines: January 15 and July 15.
Contact: The Travel to Collections Program, Division of Fellowships and Seminars, Room 316, National Endowment
for the Humanities, 1100 Pennsylvania
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20506.
Phone: 202/786-0463.
July 19-24, 1992
The XXV International Congress of
Psychology will be held in Brussels from
July 19-24, 1992, under the auspices of
the International Union of Psychological
Science and Bclgische Vereniging vour
Psychologies, Societe Beige de
Psychologie. All presentations at the
Congress will be in either English or
French. Correspondence should be directed to: (for scientific activities) Paul
Eelen, Secretary Scientific Program Committee, Tiensestraat 102, B-3000Leuven,
Belgium. Phone: 32-16-28.59.55. FAX:
32-16-28.60.00. E-mail: fpaas22
@blekull1.earn. Telex: 25715 KULBIB;
(for registration and hotel accommodation) Brussels International Conference
Centre, Parc des Expositions, Place de
Belgique, B-1020 Brussels, Belgium.
Phone: 32-3-478.04.78. FAX: 32-3477.03.93. Telex: 23643. In ca~e of
doubt, send correspondence to the Brussels International Conference Centre.
July 26-30, 1992
The Community Development Society
Annual International Conference will
be held July 26-30,1992, in Charleston,
NC. This conference solicits participation in four categories: workshops, papers, bridge sessions, and exhibits. A
one-page proposal will be used by the
review committee to make decisions on
the acceptance of proposals to include in
the 1992 program. Contact: Yvonne
Miller, Extension Staff, Development
Specialist, 201 Barre Hall, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634. Phone:
803/723-3000.
August, 1992
The Research Conference on Multifamily Housing in Europe, Results and
Prospects, will be held in Sweden. For
information, contact: Ingemar Elander,
University of brebro, Centre for Housing and Urban Research, P.O. Box 923,
S-701 30, brebro, Sweden.
August 1, 1992
Entries for the Fourth Annual
Healthcare Environment Award Competition must be postmarked by August
I, 1992. A registration fee of $50 is
required. Winners will receive a complimentary registration for the Fifth Symposium in San Diego, up to $1,500 for
travel and lodging, and an awards plaque.
Contact: National Symposium on
Healthcare Design, 4550 Alhambra Way,
Martinez, CA 94553-4406. Phone: 510/
370-0345.
August 7, 1992
The newly created Designer Forum of
the National Symposium on Healthcare
Design. sponsored by Milcare, is scheduled for August 7, 1992, at the Fairmont
Hotel in Chicago. Six presentations will
focus on "Marketing Design Excellence
and its Value to the Healthcare Client."
Cost is S 195 per person. Contact: National Symposium on Healthcare Design,
4550 Alhambra Way, Martinez, CA
94553. Phone: 510/370-0345.
August 9-14, 1992
The theme of the 27th Annual Geographical Conference is Geography is
Discovery. Contact: Dr. Anthony R. de
Souza, Secretary General, 27th International Geographical Congress, 1145 17th
Street N.W., Washington, DC 20036.
Phone: 202/828-6688. FAX: 202/7756141. Telex: 64194.
August 11-16, 1992; August 16-19,
1992
The 8th World Congress for Rural
Sociology will be held at Pennsylvania
State University, University Park, PA.
The theme will be "Rural Society in the
Changing World Order." Sponsored by
the International Rural Sociology Association (lRSA), this Congress will be
followed by the 55th Annual Meeting
ofthe Rural Sociological Society, August 16--19, 1992,alsoat ThePennsylvania State University. The theme of the
meeting will be "R urality and the Global
Environment." Contact: Local Arrangements Office, World Congress/RSS Annual Meeting, 306 Agricultural Administration Building, Penn State University, University Park, PA 16802.
August 13-15, 1992.
The Society of Environmental Graphic
Designers (SEGD) National Conference titled "COMPLEXcity: The Competition for Communication in the Urban
Environment" will explore the state of
public communication in the metropolitan areas. The conference will be held at
Parsons/The New School in New York
City from August 13-14,1992. Contact:
SEGD,47, Third Street, Cambridge, MA
02141. Phone: 617/577-8225. FAX:
617/577-1769.
August 15, 1992; January IS, 1993
The Division of Social and Economic
Science at National Science Foundation conducts a special competition for
research proposals dealing with the Human Dimensions of Global Change.
Proposals for this initiative must be received at NSF by January 15 or August
15 for consideration in the evaluation
cycles that immediately follow those
dates. For more information about the
competition, contact a program officer in
one of the following programs: Decision, Risk, and Management Science:
202/357-7417; Economics: 202/3579674; Geography andRegional Science:
202/357 -7326; Law and Social Science:
202/357 -9567; Political Science: 202/
357 -9406; and Sociology: 202/357 -7802.
September 1,1992; November 7, 1992
Papers are now being accepted for an
Interdisciplinary Workshop: Professions in Transformation, to be held
November 7, 1992, at the University of
Cincinnati. Practitioners, consultants,
and scholars arc invited to submit short
papers ( 10 double-spaced pages) to stimulate round table discussions of changes,
current pressurcs, and important issues
in the practice of architecture, medicine,
law, music, and other professions. Paper
submissions are due September 1, 1992.
Contact: David G. Saile, CSPA, ML
16, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati,
OH45221. Phone: 513/556-3415. FAX:
513/556-3288.
October 2, 1992; November 19-22,
1992.
The postmark deadline for submittals for
the Fifth Healthcare Interior Design
1992. Design/architecture students, professionals, educators, and healthcare professions are invited to enter proposals for
innovative design solutions for healthcare
environments. Contact: National Symposium on Healthcare Design, 4550
Alhambra Way, Martinez, CA 945534406. Phone: 510/370-0345.
October 14-17, 1992
"Development vs Tradition: The Cultural Ecology of Dwellings and Settlements" is the theme of the third conference of the International Association
for the Study of Traditional Environments (IASTE), to be held October 1417, 1992, in Paris, France. Contact:
IASTE '92 Conference, Center for Environmental Design Research, University
of California, 390 Wurster Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA. Phone: 415/64228%.
Annual Meeting will be held October
15-18. 1992, in Cleveland, OR. The
theme is "Sociology in a Changing Environment," Please submit papers, abstracts, or other session proposals to:
John M. Kennedy, Center for Research.
Indiana University, 1022 E. Third Street,
Bloomington, IN 47405. Phone: 812/
855-2573. FAX: 812/855-2818. E-mail
KENNEDY@UCS.INDIANA.EDU.
October 15-18, 1992
The University of Cincinnati College of
Design, Art, Architecture, and Planning,
supported in part by the National Endowmem for the Arts, will sponsor an International Symposium on Design Review: Debating Practices and Issues.
in Cincinnati, Ohio, from October 1518,1992. Contact: WolfgangPreiseror
Brenda Lightner, College of DAAP,
University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH
45221-0016. Phone: 513/556-4843.
FAX: 513/556-3288.
November 19-22, 1992
The Society for Utopian Studies Conference will be held November 19-22,
1992,inBaltimore,Maryland. TheSociety is an international, interdisciplinary
organization devoted to the study of both
literary and experimental utopias. Contact: Lise Leibacher, Department of
French & Italian, University of Arizona,
Tucson, AZ 85721. Phone: 602/6217350 or 6021299-8727.
November 19-22, 1992
Continuing its bi-coastal tradition, the
Fifth Symposium on Healthcare Design moves west to the San Diego Marriott
Hotel & Marina, November 19-22,1992.
The theme is "The New Generation of
Healthcare and Design." Contact: National Symposium on Healthcare Design. Phone: 510/370-0345.
October 1S-18, 1992
The Society for Applied Sociology 10th
II
EDRA 23 Scrapbook
Biking field trip through Boulder's park system.
Outgoing Chair Jim Potter and Conference Organizer Ernesto
Arias find a moment to relax.
drn
Environmental Design Research Association
P.O. Box 24083
II
Mother-son Weidemann team both present papers at EDRA 23.
EDRA Career Award
General Criteria: Given in recognition of a career of sustained and
significant contributions to environmental dcsign research, practice, or teaching.
Eligibility: Candidates in the area of dcsign rcsearch shall have
produced a body of work that provides significant insights into the
relationship between the environment and behavior.
Candidates in the area of practice shall have made significant and
lasting contributions to the planning and design of the environment
through the application of design research.
Candidates in the area of service shall have fostered and sustained
efforts to produce a more humane environment, implementation of
policy, and appreciation of design research through efforts in the
community at large.
Candidates in the area of teaching shall have made positive,
s'timulating, and nurturing influences upon student~ over an extended period of time and have inspired a generation of stndents
who have contributed to environmental design research.
Documentation: A onc-page summary explaining the rcasons for
the nomination signed by three EDRA members; a resume summarizing the career and achievements of the candidate; and additional
supporting materials illustrating the candidate's contributions.
Past Winners:
1977 Sidncy Cohn and Henry Sanoff
1978 Environmental Psychology Program,
City University of New York
1979 Michael Brill
1980 Amos Rapoport
1981 Roger Barker
1982 Irwin Altman
1983 Donald Appleyard
1984 Clare Cooper Marcus
1985 Robelt Gutman
1986 Edward T. Hall
1987 M. Powell Lawton
1988 Joachim Wohlwill
1989 Robert Sommer
1990 Leanne Rivlin
1991 Daniel Stokols
1992 Rachel and Stephen Kaplan
EDRA Achievement Award
General Criteria: Given for a coherent, recognizable body of
work or activities by an individual, group, or organization that has
made significant, lasting contribution. This contribution should
advance the fiela of environmental design research through the
generation of knowlcdge, public service, or professional practice.
This work should demonstrate dedication to improving the quality
of the human environment through research-based design and to
increasing the understanding of the social and behavioral relationships between people and environments.
Specific Criteria: The project must employ innovative concepts
and demonstrate excellence in thought and analysis. Thc project
should have potcntial applications to other efforts. Through implementation, the project should confirm its utility and effectiveness.
The project must have dcmonstrable effect on the design of the
environment, the shaping of policy, or the advancement of environmental design research.
Documentation: A one-page summary explaining the reasons for
the nomination signed by three EDRA members; and supporting
material that illustrates thc significance of the project.
Previous Winners:
1986 Executive Officer of EDRN Willow Pequegnat
1987 The Environmental Yard! Robin Moore
1989 Environment and Behavior/ Sage Publications,
Gary Winkel (first editor),
Robert Bechtel (current editor)
1990 The Street Life Project/William H. Whyte
1991 Serafin Mercado Domenech
(Special Award of Distinguished Achievement)
1992 Journal of Architectural alld Planning Research,
Andrew D. Seidel, Roberta Feldman, and
Martin Symes (editors)
Deadline for nominations for all awards is October 1,1991. All
nominations and supporting materials should be sent to:
Award Nominations
EDRA
P.O. Box 24083
Call for Nominations to EDRA Board of Directors
In Spring 1992, three members will be rotating off the Board:
Graeme Hardie, Gary Winkel, and Cheryl Parker. This will leave
vacant two positions for three-year terms on the EDRA Board of
Directors, plus one position for a two year term for the student
member.
If you would like to nominate an EDRA member for the Board, or
if you would like to be nominated yourself, please have a letter of
nomination signed by three EDRA members sent to the EDRA
Business Office. Student nominees must also attach a letter of
support from the Chair or Director of their institution, stating that
the institution will provide funds for the student's attendance at the
annul EDRA conference.
All letters of nomination should be received by September 1,
1992. Send nomination letters and all supporting materials to:
Board of Directors Nominations
EDRA
P.O. Box 24083
The responsibilities of a Board member are briefly described
below. If you would like additional information, please contact
Jim Potter, Chair of the EDRA Nominations Committee, at 402/
472-3592. Board responsibilities include:
• Attendance at the Board meeting for two days prior to the annual
conference. Costs for this and attendance at the annual conference
are to be paid by the Board member or his/her institution or firm.
• Attendance at a mid-year Board meeting (usuaIly in October or
November) for two or three days. The cost of this trip is paid by the
institution hosting the annual conference. Board members are not
reimbursed for their time or incidental expenses.
The Board is organized into a group of "Responsibility Area
Managers" (RAMs), with each Board member assuming responsibiity for certain tasks; appointing, monitoring, and managing one
or more committees; and reporting the committee's activities at the
annual MembcrshipMeeting. RAMs include: Membership,Awards,
Publications, Future Conference Planning, External Relations,
Student Affairs, DRN Liaison, Education and Training, Networks,
Finance Committee, Long Range Planning, Resource Directory,
and Nominations/Elcctions. Officers of the Board are Chair, Vice
Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer.
Call for Award Nominations
EDRA Service Award
General Criteria: Given to an individual or organization in the
private or public sector who made a significant contribution to the
advancement of EDRA's goals through the sponsorship or initiation of projects in the field of environmental design research.
Specific Criteria: The candidate shall have supported research,
design, publication, or policy initiatives that are dedicated to
improving the quality of the human environment; the candidate
shall have increased the exposure and dissemination of environmental design research in the public domain.
This award is open specifically to any non-EDRA member or
organization
Documentation: A one-page summary explaining the reasons for
the nomination, signed by three EDRA members, and supporting
material that illustrates the significance of the service.
Previous Winner:
1991 Progressive Architecture Design Research
A wards program
1992 Rudy Bruner Awards for Urban Excellence

DRN 1992 Vol 23 n 2 - Environmental Design Research Association

Transcription

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