Seattle Design Festival

Four agencies from the City of Seattle present a workshop on visioning an equitable city.  

Cities are spaces where diverse cultures, experiences, backgrounds, traditions and ways of being converge. They are nests for creative expression and offer pathways for unique and dynamic opportunities. Yet, although diversity is a clear asset to all cities, not all communities reap the same benefits of what a city has to offer. In the wake of recent events that bring into focus racial iniquities and tensions, and with on-going patterns of displacement, lack of affordable safe housing, lack of transportation, food deserts, and lack of green space in communities of color it’s clear that the cities we have created are not designed to serve everyone. The good news is that design is man-made so we all have a part to play in re-designing for cities that uplift people of all races.

The City of Seattle has made a commitment to work towards social equity with an emphasis on racial equity, across all departments. In this workshop you will hear from the City of Seattle’s Office for Civil Rights, Seattle Design Commission, Seattle’s Planning Commission and the Office of Arts and Culture as they share the role that we as designers, urban planners, and artists play in creating a new equitable vision for our cities. There will be a panel of commissioners, design professionals, artists and staff who will share what is happening at a city-wide level to realize the City’s commitment to building a racially equitable Seattle, followed by an interactive brainstorming breakout session where we will all explore our own individual roles in visioning and realizing a more inclusive home that serves all communities. There will be an opportunity to report out on the smaller-group discussions and share what we’ve learned from each other.

Speakers and facilitators will include:

Kirin Bhatti, Seattle Office for Civil Rights;Michael Austin, commissioner, Seattle Planning Commission; Vanessa Murdock, Executive Director, Seattle Planning Commission; Lee Copeland, commissioner, Seattle Design Commission; Ellen Sollod,Vice Chair, Seattle Design Commission; Valerie Kinast, coordinator, Seattle Design Commission; Leilani Lewis, Director of Marketing and Communications, Northwest African American Museum; Lara Davis, Arts Education Manager, Seattle Office of Arts & Culture; Ruri Yampolsky, Public Art Director, Seattle Office of Arts & Culture. Assisted by Payton Bordley, Racial Equity Liaison, Seattle Office fo Arts & Culture.