Equity and Social Justice
Research + Design
As disparities and inequities widen, the College of Environmental Design is committed to practices that empower those who often have the least voice. We engage with neighboring communities, public agencies, nonprofits, industry, and government to advance environmental design as a vehicle for equity and social justice.
Dec 12, 2023
Charisma Acey named Arcus Chair in Social Justice and the Built Environment
The five-year appointment recognizes and supports Acey’s work in environmental justice, both locally in the East Bay and in African cities.
Oct 30, 2023
Danielle Rivera’s work on low-income communities’ recovery after disasters honored by JAPA
Rivera's prize-winning article argues that engaging local histories of racism and prejudice in Texas's Río Grande Valley is key to redressing post-disaster inequities.
Sep 27, 2023
Inaugural Lau Grants for Just Climate Futures awarded
This new grant program supports cross-disciplinary projects led by CED faculty that aim to reduce the impacts of climate change. This year's funded projects forge innovations in climate resilience through explorations in building technologies and materials, housing security, water access, and community-based climate visualizations. These projects stood out from the field of applications for their impact on underserved communities and their capacity to have actionable environmental outcomes.
Sep 18, 2023
Terner Labs, HUD team up to host events on affordable housing
On September 25, Terner Labs hosts the inaugural symposium, The Search for Affordable Rental Housing, a deep dive into how technology is helping and hurting individuals who are seeking affordable rental housing.
Sep 11, 2023
In Memoriam: Professor Emeritus Raymond Lifchez (1932–2023), pioneer of universal design
Professor Emeritus of Architecture and City & Regional Planning Raymond (Ray) Lifchez has passed away at age 90. Lifchez made a deep and lasting impact on the College of Environmental Design (CED), UC Berkeley, and the world through his teaching, advocacy for accessible design, and philanthropy.
Aug 28, 2023
Berkeley Rupp Prize awarded to Sierra Bainbridge, co-founder of MASS Design Group
CED announces Sierra Bainbridge as the recipient of the 2023–2024 Berkeley Rupp Prize. Bainbridge, an award-winning landscape architect and a co-founder of MASS Design Group, has worked at the forefront of initiatives that explore the role of design in cultural and environmental healing.
Aug 3, 2023
MArch student, Arcus Fellow Vanessa Giraldo awarded SmithGroup JEDI scholarship
Vanessa Giraldo, CED MArch student and Arcus Fellow, among five students selected for a 2023 SmithGroup Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (J.E.D.I.) Scholarship.
Jul 3, 2023
African Ancestors Memorial Garden designed by Walter Hood opens in Charleston
The public park and garden surrounding the new International African American Museum in Charleston, South Carolina, is a sacred space that pays homage to the profound history of the African diaspora.
May 31, 2023
Reconnecting big rivers in Mississippi and California
A multiyear collaboration between the Department of Landscape Architecture & Environmental Planning and Jackson State University in Mississippi is bringing students together to address flood mitigation and enhanced river access along Jackson’s Pearl River and California’s Sacramento River.
May 22, 2023
Graduate students propose innovative solutions to California’s housing crisis
CED's interdisciplinary Boyce Housing Studio proposes strategies for newly identified housing element sites in Menlo Park and Piedmont.
May 4, 2023
Ronald Rael’s COVID-safe cohabitation design wins social and environmental justice award
CED professor Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello, of Emerging Objects, receive the 2023 Jeff Harnar Social & Environmental Justice award for their project Casa Covid, which combines 3D printing with Indigenous building methods and materials.
Apr 25, 2023
Social justice fellows spread their wings
After finding community at CED, the first cohort of Arcus Social Justice Corps graduates makes an impact.
Mar 23, 2023
Understanding — and solving — homelessness: Q&A with Carolina Reid
Carolina Reid discusses the structural foundations of homelessness and various approaches to developing affordable and permanent supportive housing in California.
Jan 17, 2023
Studio spotlight: ARCH 201 investigates multifamily housing
This graduate studio explored multifamily housing in the context of California’s housing crisis.
Dec 8, 2022
Alan Ricks: Lifchez Visiting Professor of Practice in Social Justice
Alan Ricks, founding Principal and Chief Design Officer of the award-winning MASS Design Group will be the Spring 2023 Lifchez Visiting Professor of Practice in Social Justice.
Nov 15, 2022
Small Infrastructures
The exhibition Small Infrastructures examines how architectural practice can contribute to recent housing legislation and larger problems of urban housing in the U.S.
Oct 28, 2022
MRED+D students take first place in Hack-a-House Homelessness category
On September 30th, fifteen Abbey MRED+D students (almost half of the thirty-six student cohort) competed in Ivory Innovations’ Hack-A-House competition, with one team winning first place in their category.
Sep 30, 2022
How a Lack of Transparency Threatens to Undermine California’s Rent Cap
This report explores the market dynamics pushing up rents across California and offers recommendations for policies that might strengthen accountability.
Sep 20, 2022
Urban greening research awarded NASA Equity and Environmental Justice Grant
CED is proud to announce that the inaugural NASA Equity and Environmental Justice Grant has been awarded to Professor of Landscape Architecture Iryna Dronova, DCRP Professor Emerita Karen Chapple, and DCRP Assistant Professor Zoé Hamstead for their proposal, "Where the Grass Grows Greener: The Impacts of Urban Greening on Housing Prices and Neighborhood Stability."