sculpture in an urban plaza

Design for Peace and Democracy

Explore how our designed environments can promote and support peace and democracy using historic examples of how the built environment – including parks, squares and streets – can be an instrument of oppression and serve as forums for both tyranny and uprising. We’ll return to the U.S. for stories closer to home, and frame the future in hope and optimism.

Kristin Faurest
Taught By Kristin Faurest
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Course Info

  • Duration 7 video lessons (50 Mins)
  • Published Published
    2024
  • 4.52
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Browse Course Chapters

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    1.
    Introduction
    Chapter Duration 4 mins
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    2.
    Maidan: a brief but fascinating history of a word
    Chapter Duration 4 mins
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    3.
    Controlled by Design
    Chapter Duration 15 mins
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    4.
    Squares and Uprising
    Chapter Duration 6 mins
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    5.
    Spaces Designed for Peace and Democracy
    Chapter Duration 9 mins
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    6.
    Green Spaces as Drivers of Peace and Democracy
    Chapter Duration 4 mins
  • Chapter Locked
    7.
    The Way Forward
    Chapter Duration 5 mins

What You Will Learn

1. Gain a global perspective on public squares and other similar places as sites of both control and dissent through a wide variety of stories and case studies.
2. Understand how, historically and still today, urban renewal practices can negatively or positively impact democracy,
peace, and empowerment.
3. Gain an understanding of transportation as an expression of democracy or lack thereof: public transit, car dependency, bicycling and pedestrian infrastructure.
4. Comprehend, through numerous examples, the connection between the lack of public green space and rates of violence, and how parks and active transport infrastructure can positively impact crime rates.
5. Understand the role of informal systems in cities in promoting equality and social mobility.
6. Explore future scenarios for restoring peace and democracy in cities that have been the site of recent conflict
7. Be able to apply lessons from international examples to the U.S. context.

Course Description

In this course, we will explore how our designed environments can promote and support both peace and democracy. We will see examples of how design of the built environment can be an instrument of oppression, examining historic examples of large scale public space – including parks, squares and streets – as forums for both tyranny and uprising. We’ll come back to the U.S. for some stories closer to home, and, finally, frame the future in hope and optimism.

Learn these skills

  • Civic Engagement
  • History
  • Land Use
  • Parks & Recreation
  • Pedestrian Planning
  • Plan Making
  • Transportation
  • Urban Design
  • Urbanism
  • Walkability

AICP CM

This course is approved for .75 AICP CM credit.

Meet Your Instructor

Kristin Faurest

Kristin Faurest

Kristin Faurest is a public garden education and outreach professional, author, and landscape architecture educator, committed to a world where everyone has equal access to nature and healthy food.

Meet Instructor

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