Loading Events

Designing a Campus for All: The Impact of our Built Environment on Equity and Inclusion

Thu, February 3rd, 2022
3:45 pm
- 5:15 pm

  • This event has passed.

This virtual event is open to the public. Join the Zoom meeting.

Mary Anne Ocampo, an Associate Professor of the Practice of Urban Design and Planning at MIT as well as Principal at Sasaki, will present on the role urban designers and planners in translating the values of academic institutions into the environments they occupy. What does this look like internationally, on other campuses in the US, and here at Williams? Where do we see inequities in how people experience the built environment, and how do we think about improving our campus to espouse our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion as an institution?

Using a visually compelling slide deck, Mary Anne will present for ~30 minutes about her work addressing equity and inclusion in other geographies and at various scales. She will show examples that are both global and domestic:

  • Gender equity in Kabul
  • Socio-economic equity in Metro Manila
  • University of Kentucky case study

Mary Anne is joined in conversation by Nicolas Howe, Director of CES and the Environmental Studies Program, Associate Professor of Environmental Studies, and Faculty Affiliate in Anthropology and Sociology. Mary Anne will share some observations and takeaways of challenges and opportunities facing the Williams Campus, which are based on her experience working with the institution on the ongoing Williams Campus Plan. Attendees will be asked to reflect on what principles the current Williams College built environment reflects, versus what principles it should embody, and Mary Anne will share how these principles can be used to shape the future of the campus.

There will be both panelist discussion and open dialogue for Q&A with members of the audience. The goal would be to learn their perspectives on the challenges of the built environment at Williams and collaboratively brainstorm ways to make it more inclusive and equitable. The event is intended to empower participants to understand that they have the agency to impact the way we plan and design our campuses, communities, and cities.

Sponsored by Sasaki Associates in partnership with the Office of Planning, Design & Construction.
More Information

Event/Announcement Navigation