In 2021 the College of Built Environments launched the CBE Inspire Fund, designed to support CBE research activities for which a relatively small amount of support can be transformative. The second year of awards have just been announced, supporting five projects across 4 departments within the college as they address topics such as food sovereignty, anti-displacement, affordable housing, and health & wellbeing. This year’s awardees include: Defining the New Diaspora: Where Seattle’s Black Church Congregants Are Moving and Why Rachel…
Department: College of Built Environments
Entombed in the Landscape: Waste with Assistant Professor Catherine De Almeida
Assistant Professor of Landscape Architecture Catherine De Almeida remembers picking up trash on the playground, seeing people throw trash out their car window, and noticing trash flying around while she played outside as a child. The presence of litter in landscapes upset her so much that she would spend her elementary school recesses picking up trash. When she got into the field of architecture, De Almeida found herself drawn to how things could be flexible and take on multiple identities…
Tera Williams
I am interested in researching equitable revitalization methods in marginalized communities so those communities can be revitalized without creating mass displacement and erasure of the existing culture. I have been using environmental psychology as a lens to analyze the neighborhood and explain the existing value there to people who do not inherently see it. I am interested in delving into how design can be used as a tool to empower communities to strive for spatial justice. I have additional interests in culture, place, identity, collectivism, belonging, community, equitable community development, human well-being, affordable housing, economic empowerment, and interdependence.
Jerry Watson
My current Ph.D. research is investigating the history of transportation in the U.S. national parks. My research will explore from a historical and ecological perspective how to protect and preserve the park’s natural resources, while accommodating the public’s ability to visit the parks without causing irreparable harm. I believe a new strategy is required to address the critical transportation issues in these parks. I would like to formulate, develop, and evaluate a strategic model that explores alternatives to traditional modes of transport within national parks. There are three basic components of my research: conflict resolution, environmental ethics, and the ecological effects of roads (road ecology).
The main impetus for my decision to apply to the PhD program in the Built Environment, at the University of Washington is the opportunity to work in a program that offers me a unique opportunity to investigate the complicated problem of human-environment relationships. This will allow me to realize my belief that environments can be manipulated and planned to enhance the quality of people’s lives. I believe that significant impacts on the development of sustainable responses to environmental challenges can best be achieved through education and research.
Holly Taylor
My research focuses on historic preservation theory and practice, particularly related to vernacular buildings and cultural landscapes. Specifically, I am interested in understanding how the intellectual framework that underlies public policy can better support the preservation of community gathering places and other historic sites that are significant for their contemporary cultural uses, social values, and roles in traditional economies. For more information about my research, please see “Recognizing the Contemporary Cultural Significance of Historic Places: A Proposal to Amend National Register Criteria to Include Social Value” on the US/ICOMOS site. In addition to pursuing doctoral research, I am the owner and principal of Past Forward Northwest Cultural Services, a consulting business specializing in historic preservation research and heritage education projects.
Kristin Potterton
I am interested in exploring the development of historic structural systems. I plan on researching a historic development in structural engineering and construction, exploring the history, including the introduction and implementation of the system, balancing a historic narrative with a technical engineering exploration, as well as considerations for modern construction – in both new and preservation contexts. I am particularly interested in focusing my research on the development of the West Coast and Pacific Northwest. I am a structural engineer and am also interested in structural engineering topics, including teaching and the history of the structural engineering field, as well as broader topics related to the history of construction and building technologies, historic preservation, and sustainable design.
Babita Joy
I plan to examine the intersections of architectural practice and theory, specifically, the interweaving of structural and material compositions with theoretical frameworks. My research focuses on the architecture of modern/contemporary cultural spaces being shaped by influences of technology, interdisciplinary dialogue, culture, and urbanism. I have additional interests in materiality, complexity theory, minimalism, construction history, and transnational and global architects/architecture.
Kirk Hochstatter
In addition to working in the construction industry, I plan to research reliability in supply chains and its impact on economic stability in prefabricated materials. I will further explore how human behaviors, such as communication, impact project reliability. I have helped design and teach the newly launched undergraduate digital tools course at UW and am an active member and leader of the Cascadia-Seattle LCI community of practice.
Hyein Chae
I have a strong interest in urban conservation, which aims to enhance sustainability in old urban areas physically, economically, and socially. I would like to study management of changes in old (historic) urban areas, specifically focusing on creative approaches such as adaptive reuse projects, contemporary designs, and long-standing communities. In addition, I am also interested in urbanism issues in developing countries in East Asia, international preservation principals, gentrification, public places.
Judy Bowes
My primary research interest focuses on preventing avian fatalities resulting from collisions with buildings and structures through effective glass, lighting, and landscape design strategies. My broader objective is to demonstrate how these design strategies are integral to sustainable building objectives and avian conservation goals throughout the built environment. I also plan to explore how providing habitat space for birds and protecting wildlife supports visual biodiversity, positively impacting human well-being and the local ecology.
My additional interests include discovering the intersection between biophilic design elements in early Middle Eastern Architecture and sustainable architecture in the contemporary Middle East.
Judy’s project “Evaluating Campus Bird Building Collisions” has been funded by multiple Campus Sustainability Fund awards.
Project summary:
Every day the campus community actively engages with the buildings where we learn, work, play or live. However, most are unaware of the over 100 species of birds found on campus or that they collide with the buildings’ surfaces. Birds cannot detect transparent glass surfaces, like windows or glass walkways, and fly towards vegetation, open spaces, or perches beyond the glass, hitting it head-on. Reflective glass is also dangerous for birds as it can reflect habitat space or the sky, confusing birds as they fly towards the reflection resulting in collisions. And night collisions occur when birds fly towards lit windows or surfaces, particularly during fall and spring migration. A study from the University of British Columbia estimates that college campuses can kill up to 10,000 birds yearly due to collisions. However, there are design solutions available to prevent bird building collisions.
This project aims to understand where collision “hot spots” are on our campus and develop a plan to treat them. By monitoring 20 campus buildings over six quarters, we will increase our understanding of which species are affected by collisions and identify the deadliest design features. The project will also bring awareness to the issue of bird building collisions by engaging campus and local communities through campus tours, a course taught by the project lead, an app allowing anyone to record collisions across campus, and recruiting volunteers for collision monitoring.
Gathering data about the collision victims, birds, and deadly architectural features on campus provides a unique opportunity for students to engage in the study of birds and buildings. This convenient central location eliminates extra travel time or field trip fees, allowing more students to join the project. Further, this project will engage underrepresented communities, particularly in the environmental sciences and architecture and the LGBTQIA community, first-generation students, and women in the sciences through volunteer opportunities, the project’s course, and research assistant positions.