Professors Saskia van Kampen (San Francisco State University) and Cheryl Giraudy (OCAD University) received a Canada SSHRC Partner Engage Grant Grant for their 2-year Toronto based research project Design Wo/ManifesT.O. 2020.  The research team has partnered with New Orleans-based, non-profit-Colloqate Design https://colloqate.org/ for a “Creative Practice and Placemaking (CPP) Workshop” organized for Saturday January 11, 2020 at OCAD U.

The workshop will also host a placemaking and ideas event focused on youth engagement/empowerment in responding to critical issues in their communities. This is Phase 3 of the four phase, two-year research project, and follows recent borough-based open forums to learn about and share community-based placemaking efforts across the city.

Figure 1 Above: Launch at DesignTO 2019

Figure 2 Above: Open Workshop, March 26, 2019 East Scarborough Storefront

Working with Colloqate’s founder, architect Bryan C. Lee, Jr., professors van Kampen and Giraudy hope workshop and ideas session offer opportunities to discuss pressing community issues facing the six boroughs that make up the city while empowering and engaging youth in that discourse. “Injustice and inequity manifest relative to their respective context. We see the opportunity to work with OCAD U on this project as a means to grow the base of knowledge around interventions in space outside of a U.S. context.  We are attempting to grow the Design Justice field through organizing students, academic theory and community collaboration. This [project] would effectively allow for that work to develop within the structure of a top-level university.” (Lee, 2019).

Figure 3 Above: Research Partners L to R: C. Giraudy (OCAD U), S. van Kampen (San Francisco State U) and Bryan C. Lee Jr, AIA Founder/Principal, Colloqate Design

Reaching out to creative thinkers and Nextgen leaders from across Toronto, Design Wo/ManifesT.O. 2020 continues to engage with communities as they build and nurture a society that lives up to Toronto’s global reputation as one of the most livable, multicultural urban areas in the world. Following this phase of work, the participatory action research will undertake a final phase case study with similar activities at San Francisco State University over the coming year, where both theoretical and practice-based outcomes will be applied. We look forward to sharing more information about the upcoming placemaking event in this space!

Cheryl + Saskia

Figure 4: Workshop Session, March 26 2019, East Scarborough Storefront