Written by:
Grace Crannis
Reconfiguring Place: “What’s Vital Now?”
Due to the current pandemic, the final event in The Glass-House 2019/20 WE design series, Reconfiguring Place: What’s Vital Now?, which scheduled to take place on 25 March in London, was postponed indefinitely. Because of this, we decided to close the 2019/20 series, Reconfiguring Place, with the three completed events, and carry the theme ‘What’s Vital Now’ into 2020/21.
The Reconfiguring Place series explored the prominent topics that are influencing the design of places today. In events focusing on Intergenerational Cities, High Streets and Housing, we co-designed ways to enable citizens as agents of change with audiences in Glasgow, Blackpool, and in Manchester. Events were collaborative, creative and workshop-based, and developed ideas and proposals that brought infrastructure together with social, cultural and economic activity, as part of a transformation process to support long-term sustainability. Each event explored the themes of connection, power, sustainability, and diversity as a starting point for discussion.
You can read more about the Reconfiguring Place series in our series round-up publication.
Reconfiguring “What’s Vital Now?”
Given the fantastic line-up of speakers who were due to speak at What’s Vital Now? in March, and the urgency of this question in the current crisis, we have invited our speakers to share their ideas online, and these will be shared on the blog in the coming weeks.
We now want to open up that invitation to a broader network of people, and are inviting people across our networks to respond to the provocation through a new series of think pieces on the same theme.
Share your ideas
We invite you to share one “What if…?” proposition for a shift in culture, policy or practice, a new approach or project idea to help us better shape our places. Your idea should link to one or more of the themes of connection, power, sustainability, or diversity. This could also include a reflection on the current crisis if that feels appropriate. This series is not a space for promoting programmes or products but instead, for putting forward creative, innovative and even challenging ideas and propositions, big or small, for doing things differently in the future.
Ways to contribute
You can share your idea using one or more of these formats:
- A blog of no more than 500 words and maximum of 5 accompanying images
- A recorded presentation with maximum of 5 slides
- An audio recording
- A short video
All recorded submissions should be no more than 5 minutes in length.
Each idea will form part of a series that is posted on our website and shared on social media.
Please email your proposals to grace@theglasshouse.org.uk. Please include a short bio of no more than a few sentences, as well as any web links you would like to accompany the piece.