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Taubman College Partners with LafargeHolcim Forum on Sustainable Construction in Detroit

Taubman College Partners with LafargeHolcim Forum on Sustainable Construction in Detroit

Taubman College partnered with the LafargeHolcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction for this year’s LafargeHolcim Forum, “Infrastructure Space,” held April 7-9, 2016, in Detroit. Sponsored by the LafargeHolcim Foundation, the conference is a series of symposiums conducted every three years to advance the academic discussion of sustainable construction. The Forum, titled “Infrastructure Space,” focuses on the impact of infrastructure on future developments and the challenges of building sustainable practices that are key to sustaining the human habitat. More than 300 experts from around the world will meet in Detroit to discuss challenges of today’s urbanization processes and built environment.

Interim Taubman College Dean Robert Fishman serves as Vice Chair for the Forum, and Associate Dean for Research Geoffrey Thün and Associate Professor of Architecture Kathy Velikov will moderate a workshop focusing on the “Territorial Scale” of infrastructure and its politico-environmental ecologies. Assistant Professor of Architecture El Hadi Jazairy will participate as an expert in the workshop. The workshop focuses on interdependent and overlapping territorializing infrastructures through three dominant themes: water, energy and risk.

In addition, M.Arch. candidate Faiq Mari was invited to participate in the LafargeHolcim student poster competition. Participating students are requested to submit a poster of their project which demonstrates contemporary solutions to sustainable construction. The posters will be displayed in an exhibition gallery for the duration of the Forum, and conference participants will cast their vote for the best, most inspired, or radical project.

Also participating in the invite-only event include college alumni Sarah Nichols (M.Arch), PhD candidate, Institute for the History and Theory of Architecture gta, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich), Switzerland and Sara Dean (M.Arch., M.S.) , Assistant Chair, Graduate Design, California College of the Arts (CCA).

As the selected host city, Detroit sits in a larger network of freeway, rail, and water transportation systems that fueled industrial growth, but also has become a symbol of urban decline associated with deindustrialization. Detroit is viewed in this sense as a site of opportunity, providing a case where the roles of infrastructure must be renegotiated to build a more sustainable way of life.

The LafargeHolcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction was created in 2003 to raise awareness of the important role that architecture, engineering, urban planning and construction have in achieving a more sustainable future – and to globally encourage critical interdisciplinary and long-range perspectives. Through its activities, the Foundation has developed a close-knit global network of stakeholder groups and grown to assume the role of information hub.

To read more about the LafargeHolcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction, visit http://www.lafargeholcim-foundation.org/