This talk will provide a fresh look into what it means to practice “sustainable design” in the still emerging 21st century context. Elizabeth will present the concept of engaged practice as a way to encounter the ecological, technological, and social imperatives of our time utilizing design values and leadership. In a moment in which practice itself must evolve and innovate to meet the conditions of our time, practice-based research as well as academic research is discussed as an essential component of ethical practice.

Present by: Elizabeth Bowie Christoforetti

Design Director and Founding Principal, Supernormal

Assistant Professor in Practice of Architecture, Harvard GSD

Speaker Bio:

Elizabeth Bowie Christoforetti is founding principal at Supernormal, an architecture and design research firm based in Cambridge, MA. Supernormal combines design expertise with emerging digital processes to balance cultural relevance with the contemporary imperative to scale beyond a single design, to reach more people and more urban places. Elizabeth’s background includes years of practice focused on housing, urban development, and the complex social processes required for real change in the built environment. Her current work pays careful attention to urban systems, human cultures, and the evolving constraints of physical development.

Elizabeth has served as a researcher at the MIT Media Lab and is currently Assistant Professor in Practice of Architecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, where she teaches design and leads research within the Laboratory for Design Technology.