The Urban Design Lab (UDL) mapped and analyzed land-use and agricultural parcel distribution in the Hudson Valley Region for a report released in Februrary 2011 by the Glynwood Center, a longtime partner of the UDL.  This work is part of the Lab’s focus on agriculture and food systems in the New York City region and… read more

January 2011 was a month of intense traveling for the Urban Design Lab (UDL) with Director Richard Plunz and Assistant Director Michael Conard  giving a series of high profile presentations on their work in China. In Beijing, they offered an exemplar of their activity to a venture capital group undertaking large urban projects and a second… read more

January 12, 2011, marked the first anniversary of the Haiti earthquake that claimed some 250,000 victims and stunned the world. With the goal of helping the rebuilding effort, Richard Gonzalez participated as a juror in an international housing competition organized by the American Institute of Architects New York Chapter (AIANY) Global Dialogues Committee’s Haitian Housing… read more

In November 2010, New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn released FoodWorks, a comprehensive report outlining policy recommendations for New York City’s food systems. Urban Design Lab (UDL) Assistant Director Michael Conard, who sits on the City Council’s Food Policy Advisory Board, and UDL Project Manager Kubi Ackerman were significantly involved in shaping the report, which reflects many… read more

The panel “The Foodshed: Promoting Sustainable Local Agriculture” at the Food and Climate Change Summit at New York University (NYU) in December 2009 saw a crowded gathering for a description of a potential New York City’s Foodshed. The urban Deisign Lab’s Michael Conard led the panel in partnership with the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture. The… read more

Design Research Coordinator Kubi Ackerman presented Urban Design Lab (UDL) work on urban agriculture and food systems at the November 2009 New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) Innovations in Agriculture Conference in Albany, New York. The presentation, titled “Sustainable Urban Agriculture: Confirming viable scenarios for production”, was part of a panel on… read more

In November 2009, Urban Design Lab (UDL) Assistant Director Michael Conard spoke at the Aspen Design Summit, a participatory event where 70 leaders from the design field, nongovernmental organizations, business, social institutions, and foundations gather to share innovative solutions for large scale national and international problems.  Conard provided the design-based research perspective to the “Sustainable… read more

Urban Design Lab (UDL) Project Manager Richard Gonzalez participated in 2009 in a conference sponsored by the Department of Architecture and Urban Studies Program at Barnard College on urbanism in relation to public space in New York City titled “Rights of Way”. The panel presentation was followed by a question and answer session with architects,… read more