The prize is named for Cornelia Hahn Oberlander,aGerman-born Canadian landscape architect who died in May of complications from COVID-19, weeks shy of her 100th birthday. TheNew York Timescalled her the grandedame of landscape architecture, and she was renowned for socially responsible, collaborative work, from playgrounds to museums, which blended prescient advocacy for environmental sustainability with a modernist sensibility. Perhaps her most celebrated project Robson Square,a three-block public plazain Vancouver, designed with architect Arthur Erickson.

Bargmann, who has practiced for more than 30 years (she is also a Professor of Landscape Architecture at the University of Virginia) focuseson contaminated, neglected, and forgotten urban and post-industrial sites. Working closely with architects, historians, engineers, hydrogeologists, artists, and local stakeholders, she has transformed Superfund, mining, and manufacturing sites, and created parks, corporate campuses, and housing.She often speaks of her her desire to unearth design elements from cast off places.

Shealsobrings her background as an artist (she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture from Carnegie Mellon University and aMaster in Landscape Architectureat Harvards GraduateSchool of Design) to all of her work, unearthing a narrative for each project that is rooted in its history and offers up alternative and experimental possibilities for the future.

Asked what she might do with the Oberlanders cash award,Bargmanntells Metropolis: It will probably involve a few of my favorite things: A long road trip, defunct and fallow land, the neighbors, mayors, and aspiring landscape architects.

By honoringBargmannan activist, provocateur, critic, and public intellectualas its inaugural laureate, the Oberlander Prize claims landscape architectures increasingly cross-disciplinary mantle with pride and urgent, agitational insistence.

The clear signal that [the Oberlander] sends to the landscape discipline is that those who are working on the margins are those who are creating the most innovation, often, says Maurice Cox, commissioner of Chicagos Department of Planning and Development, in a TCLF video introducingthe prize winner. Bargmann was selected by an independentseven-person jury chaired byDorotheImbert, the landscape architecture chair and director of the Knowlton School at The Ohio State University.

TCLF has been working for years to establish the prize. In 2017, TCLF board member JoanShafranand her husband RobHaimesdonated $1 million to supportits creation; TCLF board members and other supporters have since made significant donations. Honorees will be included in TCLFs oral historyarchiveand their projects will be added to the organizations database of more than 2,100 significant built landscapes. Going forward, their work will be assessed on a regular basis for any threats from neglect or destruction.

See original here:
Julie Bargmann Is the Winner of the Inaugural Oberlander Prize; a Pritzker Prize for Landscape Architecture. - Metropolis Magazine

Construction on the Rockford Airport cargo expansion has come right to the edge of Bell Bowl Prairie. (Courtesy of Cassi Saari)

Most battles between development and conservation, or the economy and the environment, are pitched as an either-or.

Supporters of the movement tosave Bell Bowl Prairie, a small patch of rare remnant prairie situated within the boundaries of Chicago Rockford International Airport, continue to hold out for a win-win.

At a meeting held Tuesday evening and attended by 150 people (counting both in-person and online), an alternative layout was presented for the expansion of the airports cargo facilities. Landscape architect Domenico DAlessandro demonstrated how a road, currently planned to plow through Bell Bowl, could be rerouted.

Renderings demonstrating the road (left) that would run through Bell Bowl Prairie as part of the Rockford Airport cargo expansion. (Courtesy of Save Bell Bowl Prairie)

The answer is simple, he said. Lets realign this road. All this road has to do is skim around (the prairie). Thats all we have to do.

Amy Doll, director of Friends of Illinois Nature Preserves, reiterated the stance ofBell Bowl backers: Saving Bell Bowl doesnt mean development doesnt happen. The coalition of conservationists respects the airports economic value to Rockford and the surrounding region, she said, but theres a better way to do this.

Still, with bulldozers stationed at the prairies fence, the time to present airport officials with options may have long passed.

A proposal to reconfigure the road that would plow through Bell Bowl Prairie, and have it skirt the natural area instead (blue dotted line). (Courtesy of Save Bell Bowl Prairie)

Rockford is ranked as the 17thlargest cargo airport in the U.S. and the fastest growing in the world, with business up 300% over the past five years, officials say. The cargo expansion a cornerstone of the airports strategic plan was cleared for takeoff years ago, backed by federal funds, and is barreling down the metaphorical runway.

In June 2018, a contract for design of the nearly 100,000-square-foot cargo facility was approved. Construction began October 2020. In January, $50 million in bonds were issued, and in February, the announcement of a seven-year lease agreement for the facility. This past July, Emirates and Qatar airlines were reported as new cargo clients. These and other milestones can be found in thepublished meeting minutes of the Greater Rockford Airport Authoritys board of commissioners.

Along the way, airport officials say they dotted all their is and crossed all their ts in terms of following guidelines and rules related to Bell Bowl, which is listed on the Illinois Natural Areas Inventoryas an outstanding, high-quality gravel prairie, fewer than 22 acres of which exist in Illinois in total.

The airports outreach included public notices, public meetings, and notices to all media in the area,Zack Oakley, deputy director of operations and planning, said in a statement provided to WTTW News. As required, RFD (Rockford Airport) completed the Environmental Assessment in 2019 and ultimately received a Finding of No Significant Impact from the FAA in November 2019. Construction has since commenced in areas that were included in the 2019 Environmental Assessment.

Bell Bowl isnt referenced in meeting minutes, but notes from theAugust 2018 meetingbriefly state:Were working on environmental studies in order to move forward with any midfield construction in the future.

Those studies were severely flawed, prairie proponents say, and they also dispute the airports version of its communication efforts regarding the cargo expansion.

The two sides have been at a stalemate since August, when the federally endangered rusty patched bumble bee was spotted at the prairie. The airport agreed to pause construction in the area until Nov. 1, a date pegged as the end of the bees foraging season. A plan to relocate two state-listed endangered native plants by Nov. 1 the large-flowered penstemon and the prairie dandelion is being coordinated with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Oakley said.

IDNRcouldnt immediately provide details on the relocation plan.

While the airport pushes forward with its construction timeline, the Save Bell Bowl Prairie coalition continues to pursue legal recourse but is relying largely on a grassroots campaign to drum up support for, if nothing else, a chance to press pause.

Our immediate goal is that on Nov. 1, bulldozers dont go through a high-quality area, said Doll.

Thousands of letters have been sent to elected officials, including U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, whose record straddles both sides of the issue: His environmental advocacy recently earned him a conservation leadership award from Openlands, while airport meeting minutes cite the senator as instrumental in the growth at RFD. (The senators office hasnt responded to multiple WTTW News requests for comment.)

Representatives from the Illinois Environmental Council say the action is moving the needle, minimally in terms of putting Bell Bowl on legislators radar, but has yet to produce concrete results.

As the clock ticks on Bell Bowl and its loss creeps closer to reality, its supporters are left with the existential question of why, with climate change crises at hand, these 11th-hour scrambles are still necessary.

Why is the prairie expendable? DAlessandro asked. Why is this happening? It boggles the mind.

Contact Patty Wetli:@pattywetli| (773) 509-5623 |[emailprotected]m

Originally posted here:
Bell Bowl Prairie Proponents Have a Proposal to Save Rare Land and Allow Rockford Airport to Expand - WTTW News

Judy Rose| Special to the Detroit Free Press

Detroit town house was designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe

Classic Mies van der Rohe townhouse in Detroit's LafayettePark has a beautiful setting and glass walls.

Tanya Wildt, Wochit

Set in Detroit's Lafayette Park, this town house by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe is a meticulous piece of mid-20th century architecture, updatedwith a cool Ikeakitchen.

Ludwig ("Less is more") Miesdesigned 162 of these town houses, and they are closeto identical but for changes made by owners. Like row houses, they're joined side-to-side in small groups.

They're part of the gracious park and residential mix that forms Lafayette Park just east of downtown close to the city, close to the Detroit RiverWalk, close to Eastern Market,designed and built in the 1950s under the aegis of urban renewal. The other neighborhood components are 24 one-story courtyard houses and two high-rise buildings.

The area is so well-known in architectural circles, said the unit's ownerJennifer Reinhardt, "You look out and see people with cameras, you see Japanese tourists."

This town house has the advantage of looking out into the neighborhood's Plaisance Park, which makes the view from its living room even more spacious.

"I love the landscaping," Reinhardt said.

She noted that Mies and fellow planners, including landscape architect Alfred Caldwell, filled the grounds with young honey locusttrees,which have since grown into a leafed canopy overhead. From a drone shot above, this area looks like woods.

"To think they were planning 40 years ahead," Reinhardt said.

Mies was a proponent of International Style, which emerged in the 1930s. Steel beams carry the weight of his buildings,not wood bracing, nor stacks of stone or brick. That means the exposed walls can be all glass,and in these townhouses they are both front and back.

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Infront, the floor to ceiling glass goes down the side of the entrance and the dining room.At the rear, it's theliving room,with the park view beyond.

In this town house, the living room, dining room and three bedrooms are all the same spaces as designed,all with one glass wall.

The long galleykitchen, which runs along oneside of the building and gets its light from both ends,has beencompletely updated.

It has new black textured cabinets now with stainless steel handles. Appliances are all built-in stainless steel. Its counters are gray granite, and its backsplashes are amix of small blue tiles.

The main floor powder room also has a contemporaryupgrade. It has a floating cabinet now, suspended to give the sense of more space. Its sink and counter are poured concrete. Its floor is concrete tiles.

This row of town houses has one difference from the others. All its units have geothermal heat, which keeps the energy cost low, Reinhardt said.

Realtor Jason Hill said these town houses are especially desired by people whose fields are related to architecture, art,preservation or city planning.

"They like the minimalist style, the art gallery feel,."Hill said.

That would include Reinhardt, whose specialty is preservation planning. After working here for anonprofit group and then for the city of Detroit, she's headed to a job in a new location.

Where: 1415 Nicolet Place, Detroit

How much: $369,000

Bedrooms:3

Baths: 1

Square feet: 1,400

Key features: Classic Mies van der Rohe townhouse in LafayettePark. Beautiful setting, glass walls, close to downtown, Detroit River, Eastern Market and more. Co-op ownership.

Co-op fee: $1,077 per month. As a co-op fee this covers more than the usual condo fee gas, cable, internet, water, property taxes, security and more.

Interesting fact: The great architect beganlife as Ludwig Mies, with Mies meaning misery in German. But he expanded his name to suit the stature he'd achieved. After several versions he settled on adding "vanderRohe," or, from the family of Rohe, his mother's maiden name. This puts him in the company of the self-named Le Corbusier, whose real name was Charles Edouard Jeanneret.

Contact: Jason Hill, Historic Realty Detroit, 313-220-4820.

Original post:
Mies van der Rohe town house with walls of glass ticks all the boxes for artists, architects - Detroit Free Press

Kate Orff is the founder of SCAPE, a design-driven landscape architecture and urban design studio based in New York. (MacArthur Foundation)

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When Hurricane Ida hit the Gulf Coast 16 years after Hurricane Katrina, all eyes were on New Orleanss new levee system. The levees that had failed so disastrously in 2005 had been rebuiltand this time they held. You could almost hear a collective sigh of relief, but MacArthur awardwinning landscape designer Kate Orff believes that gray infrastructure (levees, flood gates, and sea walls) can only take us so far. The infrastructure we really need, she says, is green. Orff, recently profiled in The New Yorker, insists that ecology is the infrastructure of the future. Her work with SCAPE Studio restores and harnessesrather than resistsnatural systems to ensure the livability of our rapidly changing world.

Laura Flanders

Laura Flanders: Kate, you and your firm, SCAPE, work on design projects in many parts of the United States, including in Louisiana and New York. When you saw Hurricane Ida barreling towards both those places and others too, what went through your mind?

Kate Orff: I had a flashback to the evening that Superstorm Sandy hit. You cant imagine watching the meteorology and it looks like a comet headed straight for your region. And in the case of Superstorm Sandy, it went directly up the New York bight. And the case of Ida, it came through Louisiana and up and over the central United States. Just the tale of these two storms describes how the risk that we face is truly diverse. Theres not one kind of climate risk in our built environment. Theres not just sea level rise to contend with or extreme heat. We are looking, in the case of Ida, at a rainstorm that dropped incredible amounts of rain on our built environment, which weve largely paved over. So, we had a very, very different set of challenges here after Idaflash flooding, some very tragic deaths in my borough of Queens, people living in basement apartments that are located in a former lake. So, weve covered up much of our nature-based infrastructure, and we filled it in, and now we are living with the risks that we have built.

LF: Youve just put your finger on a variety of challenges that are changing all the time, unpredictable, complex systems intersecting, not just with our habitat, but our habits of development, and housing, and where we put people. Talk for a minute about how that relates to the point that I hear coming from you that any one solution, particularly, a built concretetype solution wont be all we need to deal with climate change. And instead we need this kind of collaborative approach where we work with nature for something that you call regenerative design.

KO: I feel like 1927 was a seminal time for America. We had major floods in the Mississippi River area, and there was a big movement to build levees and put up gray infrastructure up and down the Mississippi River system. And that set into motion this approach, which was build a wall and then if it floods, build it higher, spend more money, and then more and more money to try to reduce risk through hard infrastructure, to try to lock natural systems in place. But, of course, that is not the way that natural systems respond. And that obviously is wholly insufficient for a climate-changed environment where were experiencing more intense rain in many regions, where we are facing more extreme heat, where sea levels are rising. The old rules, frankly, do not apply.

LF: Am I hearing you right, that it would be a mistake for people to say, OK, look, what weve been doing works. It worked with respect to Ida. Lets just pour more concrete? Current Issue

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KO: We have to do the opposite. We need to remove, depave, and undo many of the mistakes that weve made in the built environment, particularly here in the New York region. We have to soften our shorelines. We need to remove roadways. We have to integrate different forms of non-motorized transport into our built environment. Otherwise, flash flooding will get worse, and our biodiversity will continue to plummet. We will have more incidents of extreme heat, because that is also very related. What Ive been trying to do, and what the SCAPE office has been trying to do in many, many different contexts, is to try to integrate and revive ecosystemsnot just to bring nature back in a kind of a nostalgic way. Its really about propelling us forward into the next century with a vision around how people, nature, and society can co-exist and how we can reduce our climate risk.

LF: Could we even go back if we wanted to? Is rewilding, as some people call it, even an option at this point?

KO: I love the term rewilding because it inspires people. Theyre like, I get that. That sounds great. However, just rewilding for the purposes of bringing species back isnt enough. Ive tried to be very, very vocal about recasting and framing ecosystems as next century infrastructure. So its not just about rewilding, its about thinking critically about design, about engineering, and about this new hybrid world, where were weaving ecosystems back into the urban landscape where they have been decimatedlike in the New York Harbor. Almost 25 percent of our harbor was oyster reefs. That number is now around zero to 1 percent, but those reefs cleaned the water and slowed the waters.The Q&A

LF: You mentioned Storm Sandy, and the lives that were lost then, including in Staten Island, that drew your attention to an area that youve been working in ever since. And your work there has reached a kind of tipping point, it seems to me. Talk to us about what these Living Breakwaters are, and what is happening right now. Will it go ahead after what weve just seen?

KO: Were leading a project called Living Breakwaters, which is a chain of breakwaters that are seededwith oysters, with the Billion Oyster Project. They clean the water, they slow down the water, they take that dangerous wave action out of the equation. They help replenish beaches and reduce erosion. But theyre also designed to foster critical structural habitats. Theres a big social component to the project, too. Its a community organizing project. Its designed to bring educators to the shoreline and to promote citizen science in the form of reef monitoring and oyster gardening. Its a different model from Lets build a wall and throw a billion dollars in this one tiny thing that may or may not help and that may or may not account for that very dynamic environment that we find ourselves in. We have to use more tools in the toolbox. Right now, we are thinking about the future with the tools of the last century. And so I think this way is really the way to proceed.

LF: Is there other legislation that youve also got your eye on, and what would be your best-case scenario outcome of this moment?

KO: We have a dwindling window to act. We desperately need a robust infrastructure bill to pass, and we cannot spend the money on this infrastructure bill on widening roads and on carbon-intensive forms of infrastructure. We have to do the opposite. And so, Im incredibly hopeful that in the bill, there is language in there around nature-based infrastructure. Im truly hopeful that these projects can be moved front and center. Also, Laura, you asked me about what else Im interested in, I do feel like the Civilian Conservation Corps concept has tremendous potential.

LF: So the Civilian Conservation Corps was what we had in the 30s. This time its a climate corps, is that right?

KO: Yes, the Civilian Climate Corps. And Im so excited about the potential of the Climate Corp to be tied to this infrastructure bill. That would be a dream job for me, which would link these two things up because we do need to invest in an infrastructure, but we also need to invest in science-based learning. I think about what the Living Breakwaters project represents, which is integrating, the seeding of the reef by school children, eighth graders, middle schoolers, and high schoolers, and think about the tremendous potential of integrating the next generation who wants to participate.

LF: We need federal government action, but are there things that people can do to change their habitats, their habits, the soft architecture of our lives?

KO: We havent broken through in terms of (A), just making sure that everyone is aware of the risks that they face in their immediate environment. And then (B), I dont think that weve invested enough in preparedness and education. We also will probably face very, very difficult choices in the next decades. I do feel like thats where this kind of softer human infrastructure will come into play. We may need to move people out of harms way. We may need to kind of develop a national framework for equitable managed retreat. And we will need to expand the ways that were beginning to address some of these challenges and not just say, throw billions of dollars at a single wall.

LF: You say you dont ever give up hope. You never despair. What keeps you going?

KO: Oh, I despair. I despair. I just also feel like its an emotion that you have to sit with but then move through. It cannot be the final word. At this moment, when we have this opportunity in front of us to invest in ecology as infrastructure, to invest in the future, to invest in a climate adaptation roadmap for the nation and all kind of bioregions, we simply have to act.

Read more:
Why Ecology Is the Infrastructure of the Future - The Nation

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Differences of working at a practice in another part of the world - Archinect

The City of Warren Parks and Recreation Commission has directed a consultant developing a conceptual site plan that includes mountain biking opportunities at Washington Park.

What that does not mean, however, is that development at the 65-acre site overlooking the City of Warren will start tomorrow.

To the contrary, it will likely be years before a project, if any at all, is undertaken at the side.

The commission held a special meeting on Tuesday to specifically discuss Washington Park. A public hearing was held earlier this year but Tuesday marked the commissions first opportunity to discuss the future of the park in any depth.

What the commission ultimately approved in a split vote was to direct the consultant Mackin Engineering to prepare the site plan including all three options presented or, as Commission member Kris Whittaker put it, the whole pie.

That action is limited to guidance provided to the consultant.

We can take pieces out of that pie down the road, Whittaker said, should a project be funded. At some point in time (there) may be grant funds. In the meantime, we also have options of removing items. (This is) not something that is cast in stone.

Matt Lokay, a senior landscape architect with Mackin Engineering, outlined three options for the park.

Were limited on development potential by the steep slopes, he said. Its a great view, one of the best Ive seen in a park.

The first option he outlined would be limited to improving the roadway and establishing formal parking, potentially creating a small trail with sensory-friendly nature play elements on the top of the ridge, potential for a waterless restroom and Americans with Disabilities Act improvements for parking and a path to the overlook.

Option two would include the items in option one but enhance and expand the trails, creating 2.5 miles of walking trails.

This idea keeps the park passive but accommodates a broader group of users, he explained.

The third option would make the trail shared use and, as a result, open the majority of the 2.5 miles to mountain bikes.

Each commission member was then given an opportunity to speak.

Mark Zavinski said he has always seen this as a passive park and questioned the value of expanding a park while struggling to maintain the parks as they are.

Judi Wilson, who is heavily involved with the local Daughters of the American Revolution chapter, highlighted the DARs role in the parks history. The park should be a passive park, she said. I think its been a wonderful park all these years and it should continue to be a wonderful park.

Kirk Johnson said he would attempt to give voice to the voiceless and explained Washington park is an ideal destination for the clients he works with as a direct support professional. There are more than enough places for mountain biking elsewhere, he added.

Whittaker raised concerns about liability relating to the oil wells on the site.

Its beautiful up there, Jackie Angove said. Anything we can do to maintain it, keep it safe, Im all for it.

The commissions chair, Mike Suppa, said hes been going to the park since he was a child and always thought Washington Park could be a magical place.

He said one of his long laments is the parks under utilization and argued that the park is not an untrammeled wilderness. Any attempt to portray it so lacks its basis in facts.

I would like to see something done to reinvigorate the park and make it more than a 15 minute destination. Im willing to consider any initiative that makes (the) park a vibrant place to be. (We) can continue to let it be a place few people know about, care about or utilize. We have that choice.

Varying views from the public were also expressed that raised concerns about parking, security and other issues.

Department of Public Works Director Mike Holtz said the city contracted with Mackin to develop the conceptual plan so if funding came available in future the city would be able to write a (grant) application that was a decent application.

I would think, he added, you would want to try to get as much as possible from this scope of work. He said the conceptual plan would be an active document. Whatever we pick now thats not whats going to come to Washington Park. It may never happen.

This is really a paint the picture (of) what we would like to see.

Johnson suggested he was hearing what I would call confirmation bias from representatives from the city where by the power of suggestion there would be development done. One of the options is largely missing a no action option. I think that members of the public need to know that we dont have to develop the park.

Freenock noted that the commission agreed to accept a grant to fund the conceptual design and that a no action option would be a waste of money.

I just dont see how we can move forward with any overt developments, Johnson said, when the adjacent property owners dont want grandiose development.

There are viewpoints across the board, Suppa countered. There is certainly a viewpoint that you characterize correctly but you continue to characterize it as a 90 or 100 percent viewpoint and thats not fair.

Johnson and Zavinski voted in opposition to Whittakers motion, which passed 3-2.

Johnson said he doesnt think option three should be a part of it. (It) can become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The commission also approved a motion to instruct the citys staff to explore a potential gate for Washington Park for consideration at a future meeting.

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Excerpt from:
Moving ahead with plans for Washington Park | News, Sports, Jobs - timesobserver.com

After living in Princeton for 17 years, author Lauren B. Davis has finally authored her first novel set in the town, as well as in neighboring Trenton. Even So, published by Dundurn Press on Oct. 12, explores the value of loving difficult people and sheds light on the marginalization that Davis has herself witnessed in her time in Princeton.

The book follows two women a privileged matron residing in Princeton and a Catholic nun running a food pantry in Trenton as they navigate the challenges of their relationship and the broader issues of inequality in their communities.

When Davis and her husband first moved to Princeton, they expected a diverse community. Although they found that to be true in some ways, in other ways Davis felt the town was not nearly as integrated, both racially and economically, as she had thought.

I was struck by this dissonance between the bright sparkling university, with all its great minds and talents, and some of the undercurrents on the streets of Princeton, Davis said. Its Ralph Lauren on one side and people who have trouble getting housing on the other.

Even So reflects these societal divisions and prompts readers, in particular Princeton residents, to ask themselves who they consider to be the other in Princeton and where they see themselves, Davis said.

Her previous eight novels have all examined similar questions: Who gets marginalized and why? Who do we choose to be the other and why do we choose for them to be the other? What happens to both of us as a result?

Davis has also long been interested in the idea of love as a tool for transformation rather than simply a reward for good behavior.

In the novel, Princeton matron Angela Morrison is discontent and is questioning the choices she has made; she is searching for a far more passionate life than the one she has.

At the pantry where Angela volunteers, Sister Eileen introduces her to Carsten, a landscape architect who has come to build a vegetable garden for the soup kitchen, and the two begin an affair. Angela ends up causing enormous tragedy and seeks out support from Sister Eileen, who is then confronted with the challenge of caring for someone who has caused immense harm to others.

In the words of Davis: Its easy to love people who have been harmed, but far less easy to love people who do harm.

Davis was inspired, in part, by a friend of hers who is a Catholic nun who often talks about wrestling with difficult angels.

Although Even So tackles serious issues and may prompt some Princeton residents to ask tough questions of themselves, Davis hopes local readers will also have fun recognizing locations in the book. Davis herself loves reading novels set in places where she has spent time.

Davis will discuss her newest book on Thursday, Oct. 28 at 7 p.m. in an online event hosted by Labyrinth Books and the Princeton Public Library. She will be joined by author and Princeton University Professor Sheila Kohler, and Sister Rita Woehlcke, director of the Sisters of Saint Joseph Associates in Mission of Philadelphia.

Register for the event on the Labyrinth Books website.

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Princeton and Trenton are settings for latest novel by author Lauren B. Davis that explores marginalization, othering - Planet Princeton

Billionaire Peter Thiel, PayPal co-founder and chairman of Palantir Technologies, during a news conference in Tokyo, Japan, on Nov. 18, 2019.

Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Peter Thiel's proposed luxury lodge on New Zealand's South Island has been criticized by a local environmental group who believe it is "inappropriate" for the natural landscape.

The PayPal and Palantir co-founder, who profited from an early investment in Facebook, wants to build the lodge and a private residential building on a 193-hectare (477-acre) estate that he owns on the shores of Lake Wanaka, near Queenstown.

Thiel bought the estate in 2015 for a reported $13.5 million through an Auckland-headquartered company he owns called Second Star Limited.

Details of the development, designed by Tokyo Olympic Stadium architect Kengo Kuma and Associates, emerged in a planning application in August.

They show several buildings that are designed to blend into the landscape. There's a private home built into a hillside as well as a larger luxury lodge with enough space for 24 people. There's also a separate meditation pod, several water features and a yet-to-be-designed back-of-house building.

But in a six-page letter to Queenstown Lakes District Council this month, the Upper Clutha Environmental Society said it opposed the application in its entirety.

"The Society believes the applicant has not meaningfully avoided, remedied or mitigated adverse effects," the letter reads, before going on to say that "the proposed development is inappropriate."

The environmental group argues that the buildings will be an eyesore on the natural landscape and that the development is "extremely unlikely" to meet the "reasonably difficult to see test" set by the local council.

A representative for Thiel did not immediately respond to a CNBC request for comment.

Kengo Kuma and Associates said its objective was to "design an organic architecture that fuses into the landscape" and respects the indigenous nature. Elsewhere, Jo Fyfe, senior planner at John Edmonds and Associates, who carried out an assessment of the environmental effects of the complex, said the placement of the buildings into the landscape was "thoughtful."

The so-called "owner's cabin" has a spa, pool, theater lounge, office and three bedrooms, while the guest cabin has its own spa and pool, as well as a library, and 10 guest bedrooms with uninterrupted north-facing views toward Lake Wanaka and the Southern Alps.

To highlight the visual impact of the development, the campaign group opposed to the development noted that "the row of buildings proposed extend across a wide visual catchment of the subject site; the buildings stretch for 330m."

"The associated car parking, access roads and paths will further detract from views of outstanding natural landscape; no less than 7.4ha [hectares] of the site is proposed to be dug up in earthworks of 36,800 m3," it continues.

Aspects of the development will be visible from Lake Wanaka and a number of public tracks in the area, the group said. "People driving, riding, walking, paddling or boating in these highly frequented public locations will be assailed by a large number of buildings spread laterally across the subject site," it argued.

The lavish lodge would feature 10 bedrooms.

The society, however, said it was impressed by the "ecological and biodiversity enhancements" described in the planning application.

It also admitted that the development could result in potential economic gains for the area if the proposed tourist unit buildings are used in the manner described in the application.

But the positive effects "will not meaningfully mitigate" the adverse effects of the proposed development, it added.

Located in relative isolation from the largest population centers of the world, New Zealand has become a popular destination with high net worth individuals in recent years. Billionaire Google co-founder Larry Page was granted residency at the start of the year.

Home to around 5 million people, the country has become linked with "preppers" those who try to prepare for catastrophic events that may pose a threat to humanity.

Reports had suggested that Thiel was planning to build some sort of apocalypse-proof bunker on his estate. While some of the buildings appear to be built into hillsides, it's unclear if any of them are intended to serve as a bunker.

The prepper craze was first put under the spotlight in Jan. 2017, when an article in The New Yorker titled "Doomsday prep for the super-rich" revealed how New Zealand is essentially like a mecca for wealthy preppers. It's remote, geopolitically stable, and sparsely populated. Importantly, it could also become completely self-sufficient in terms of water, food, and energy if it ever needed to.

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Peter Thiel's luxury New Zealand lodge opposed by environmental group - CNBC

As 2021 slowly comes to a close, begin the upcoming year by applying to a fellowship. Below are three fellowship opportunities at a firm, non-profit organization, and academic institution. Each provides a unique position that offers the applicant hands-on experience in sustainability, climate change, and landscape architecture-focused roles. Beyond their prestige, fellowship opportunities also act as essential pathways for growing professionals to explore specific areas of interest within the field of architecture, construction, and academia.

*Is your firm, school, or organization offering fellowship opportunities but don't see them listed below? Reach out to us at connect@archinect.com or post a job on Archinect's Job board to have your fellowship featured.

NYSERDA's Climate Justice Fellowship Firm:Paul A. Castrucci Architects

Details: "The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) will train workers for good-paying jobs. Specifically, this Climate Justice Fellowship focuses on investing in historically disadvantaged communities and priority populations, including low-income individuals, veterans, individuals with disabilities, formerly incarcerated residents, Incumbent or unemployed power plant workers, homeless individuals, single parents or residence of disadvantage community." Apply here.

Emerald Necklace Natural Infrastructure Landscape Design & Project Management Summer 2021 FellowshipOrganization:Amigos de los Ros

Details: "The Natural Infrastructure Landscape Design & Project Management Fellow will use their Design Skills to conduct precise site measurements to create existing condition-based drawings, conduct, and track design development, including review of CAD topo surveys, creating concept plans, and using existing tools of photography, hand-sketched drawings, reviewing site aerials, and using Adobe Creative Suite and CAD Drawing Skills to support multi-benefit project development/CD Set Creation. Design work includes site planning analysis, schematic & design development leading to Construction Drawings as required for stakeholder consensus, permitting, and jurisdiction approvals." Apply here.

Design Education Fellow - BogotOrganization:NuVu Studio

Details: "NuVu is seeking a Design Education Fellow who is passionate about design, technology and education to join our team as an instructor at our partner school, Colegio Nueva Granada (CNG), in Bogot, Colombia. In this role, you will join a unique, highly skilled cohort of Fellows who lead programs at NuVus growing network of partner schools around the world. Applicants must have a passion for working with young people, and a portfolio that reflects a variety of hands-on making skills, techniques, materials, and scales." Apply here.

*Academic Fellowship*2021 Steedman Fellowship: DisrruptionInstitution:Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis

Details: "Climate change, COVID-19, the fight for social justice. In disruptive times, how can architecture help to chart new paths and implement far-reaching solutions? Thats the question posed by 'Disruption,' the2021 James Harrison Steedman Fellowship in Architecture.The biennial research competition invites early-career architects from around the world to explore how architecture can help to address todays most pressing global challenges.Established in 1926, the James Harrison Steedman Fellowship in Architecture is one of the oldest and most prestigious awards in the United States. The $75,000 award is granted biannually to an emerging architect to support 6-12 months of international travel for architectural research." Apply here.

Interested in academic fellowship coverage on Archinect? Be sure to check out Archinect's special Fellow Fellows series. Fellow Fellowsaims to understand what these positions offer for both the fellows themselves and the discipline at large by presenting their work and experiences through an in-depth interview. Fellow Fellows is about bringing attention and inquiry to academia's otherwise maddening pace while also offering a broad view of the exceptional and breakthrough work done by people navigating the early parts of their careers.

*If you don't already, follow Archinect'sFacebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn, or the dedicated Archinect Jobs Facebook andTwitter.

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Archinect's Fellowship Watch Part II: Check out employment and academic fellowship opportunities listed on Archinect Jobs - Archinect

Click through the links below, and you'll be able to learn more about each book, as well as buy it from the online book and stationery store Counter-Print. Please note that we at Creative Boom aren't making any affiliate money from this. We think Counter-Print is a great store, selling unique and interesting products, and we're keen to support them however we can.

Design has gone from often being an afterthought to a critical part of doing business in today's economy. Some of the world's biggest brands, including Apple, Airbnb, Google and Tesla, have made human-centred design a hallmark of their brands. Design is having a moment right now, from fashion to architecture to office plans and from digital processes to artisanal craftsmanship.

Edited by Stephanie Mehta, this book from Fast Company offers a comprehensive and lively look at the way design has permeated all areas of life and work. It's essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the ways that design is fundamentally changing and enhancing business and daily life.

If there was a time to focus on the design of our hospitals, it's now. So this book by Christine Nickl-Weller and Hans Nickl could not be more timely. Having been engaged in the field of hospital construction for 40 years, they view the hospital on a variety of levels. This holistic view is enriched by contributions from renowned authors from disciplines as diverse as psychology, health management, landscape architecture and art history.

This intriguing study of London's unique Barbican Estate was published in 2019 to make the 50th anniversary of the first residents moving in. It takes both a micro and macro approach, looking at the design of the individual flats as well as the development's status as a Brutalist icon.

Author and designer Stefi Orazi interviews residents past and present, giving an insight into how life on the estate has changed over the decades. The book also includes fascinating texts by leading architects and design critics, including John Allan of Avanti Architects and Charles Holland of Charles Holland Architects.

Over the last century, nothing short of a design revolution has transformed our houses and the spaces within them. In this ground-breaking book, architectural and design writer Dominic Bradbury charts the course of this voyage, from the late 19th century through to the houses of today. Over 19 themed chapters, he explains the way our houses have been reinvented while taking in the giants of Art Deco, influential Modernists including Le Corbusier and Frank Lloyd Wright, and post-war innovators such as Eero Saarinen and Philip Johnson.

The design of airport wayfinding is somewhat of a paradox. On the other hand, airports represent hypermodern functional environments in which processes are internationally standardised and maximally efficient. On the one hand, the history and the design heritage of the particular country can often be identified through its airport, and local characteristics are intensified and reinforced, sometimes stereotypically.

The authors, both specialists in the field, decipher the process of creating airport wayfinding, trace its emergence and evolution over the decades, and assess the wayfinding systems of approximately 70 airports.

Good homes are places that sustain you, inspire you and tell your story thanks to their architecture, use of materials and contents. These are the attributes that global business briefing Monocle has always celebrated when covering residences in its design and architecture pages.

Now it brings everything together in one book that explores individual homes, housing projects old and new, communities of self-builders, and even whole neighbourhoods. Monocle has also recruited key thinkers, writers and designers to share their perspectives in a series of fascinating essays.

Timber is fast emerging as a sustainable material of choice, and thanks to recent technological advances, it's a safe and sturdy alternative to concrete. Out of the Woods explores the innovative and inspiring ways architects are using this universal building material, from grand Alpine escapes to tropical getaways, plywood penthouses to mass timber high-rises.

The Brutalist aesthetic is enjoying a renaissance, and here's the most wide-ranging investigation ever undertaken into one of architecture's most powerful movements. It features more than 850 Brutalist buildings existing and demolished, classic and contemporary organised geographically into nine continental regions. It all adds up to one inescapable truth: that Brutalism was, and continues to be, a truly international architectural phenomenon.

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Eight recommended books for those who love architecture - Creative Boom