About Us

The Urban Design Lab is a joint laboratory of the Earth Institute and the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP). It was created in 2005 to address the need for a design-based approach to shaping the long-range future of sustainable urbanism. New York City and its regional context is viewed as a core model for solving problems related to sustainable urban futures everywhere, including Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe.

The Lab’s work cuts across all of the Earth Institute’s themes: Climate and Society, Water, Energy, Poverty, Ecosystems, Global Health, Food, Ecology, Nutrition, Hazards and Risk, and Urbanization.

The UDL’s collaborators are academics and professionals in urban design, planning, architecture, historic preservation, real estate, public health, environmental science, climatology, engineering, ecology, education, business, economics, social science, humanities, and law.

Since its inception, the UDL has assisted New York City communities in tackling environmental remediation, high-performance and green building design, micro-infrastructure, public health, climate change, and sustainable economic development.

Collaborators & Funders:

125th Street Business Improvement District (BID)
Adriano Olivetti Foundation
Catskill Mountainkeeper
Center for Sustainable Urban Development at the Earth Institute
Collaborative Initiatives (CI) at MIT
Columbia Graduate School of Architecture Planning & Preservation
Delaware Riverkeeper Network
Ford Foundation
Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science
Go Green East Harlem
Gowanus Canal Community Development Corporation
Hudson Riverkeeper
Independence Community Foundation
Italian Ministry for Environment Land and Sea
Mailman School of Public Health
Manhattan Borough President's Office (MBPO)
Norcross Wildlife Foundation
Open Space Institute
Riverkeeper
Rome Chamber of Commerce
Scenic Hudson
Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture
Sustainable South Bronx (SSBX)
United Health Foundation
Upper Delaware Preservation Coalition
Urban Climate Change Research Network
Urban Design Lab, Korea University
West Harlem for Environmental Justice (WEACT)