Emily Talen on Reclaiming Urban Design
 Professor, Author of Urban Design Reclaimed, and Co-editor of the Journal of Urbanism, Dr. Emily Talen will be the next Houston Tomorrow Distinguished Speaker.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Free
United Way Community Resource Center
50 Waugh Dr @ Feagan (map)
Pre-talk reception at 6:30 pm
Talk at 7:00 pm
RSVP
Dr. Talen is a professor at Arizona State University’s School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning. Her recent book, Urban Design Reclaimed: Tools, Techniques and Strategies for Planners, is for anyone who believes that the design of the built environment is central to urban life and community well-being, according to Dr. Talen’s ASU website. The book offers step-by-step instruction on how to observe, analyze, and design places that are civic-minded, well-functioning, and pedestrian-oriented, which she discussed in an interview on the APA YouTube channel.
In addition to her book, Talen is working on Urban Codes research, supported by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts that supports the creation of a virtual book of urban codes to be published on the web. She is also researching the affordability of planned communities, with a specific focus on New Urbanist developments that provide a high quality of life, but tend to be non-inclusive because of the high prices that come with good urban places. Dr. Talen discusses this work in a video interview on the Congress for New Urbanism web site.
Dr. Talen received a Ph.D. in Geography from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Prior to that, she worked for six years as a professional planner in Santa Barbara and Columbus, Ohio. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners and serves on the Advisory Board of the Remaking Cities Institute, an urban design research center in the Carnegie Mellon University School of Architecture.
In addition to her Distinguished Speaker presentation, Talen will also spend time with the City of Houston’s planning department taking a tour of the Montrose area, analyzing MyCity data about Montrose and Houston, and exchanging information to help the city prepare for its presentation at the American Planning Association’s national conference in New Orleans, April 10-13.
The Houston Tomorrow Distinguished Speaker Series is made possible through the generous support of the Anchorage Foundation of Texas
Reception sponsorship opportunities are available for this and all Distinguished Speaker Series events. Please contact Jay Blazek Crossley if you are interested.
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