2009 Community Service Fellowship Winners
Julian Bushmann-Copp, MArch 2012 and Matthew Swaidan, MArch 2012 will be spending the summer working on a project initiated by the Department of Micro-Urbanism, an art and design initiative founded by Marikka Trotter, a GSD student.
The Chinatown neighborhood is one of the few Boston communities without its own branch of the Boston Public Library. Julian and Matthew’s work will focus on the design, fabrication and installation of a library “insert” which will transform an existing vacant storefront in Chinatown into a temporary library space. The “Chinatown Storefront Library” project will provide community resources which have been totally missing since the 1950’s.
Lindsay Chandler-Alexander, MArch 2012 will be working at Youth Build Boston, a nonprofit organization dedicated to opening academic and professional doors to the underserved youth in Boston.
Lindsay will work in The Designery, one of three programs offered. It specifically targets design education, using real world based projects to educate participants in all aspects of architectural design. Lindsay will utilize her undergraduate training in fine arts and photography, along with her architectural training, to work with youth in design education.
Grant King, MUP 2010 will be working with Somerville Transportation Equity Partnership, a grassroots community advocacy group committed to improving transportation quality and availability in Somerville, MA.
Grant will be working on production of a plan document and presentation detailing STEP’s vision for the area between the proposed Green Line Expansion Brickbottom/Inner Belt and Union Square Stations, including the underutilized industrial area located in the Inner Belt.
Richa Shukla, MAUD 2010 will be working with Just a Start Corp, a nonprofit community development corporation in Cambridge, MA.
Richa’s primary focus will be conducting research. Her project focuses on a blend of community activism and gathering a history of real estate development endeavors. She will be capturing the historical perspectives of past and current employees and local residents, to create profiles for reference and possible distribution/publication.
Nicholas Bonard, MUP 2010 will be working this summer at Somerville Community Corporation, a membership organization that develops and preserves affordable housing. He will be working on a “One Stop” application for funding of a large apartment complex in Somerville, MA; acquisition steps surrounding green line expansion; and community process around property acquisition strategies (community corridor planning).
Irina Mladenova, MUP 2010 will be working with PlaNYC in New York, in the Mayor’s Office of Long Term Planning and Sustainability. The office goals are to improve the city’s air and water, as well as to create more affordable housing, provide better access to open space and increase transit capacity. Irina will be evaluating and collecting data for the city’s comprehensive sustainability plan. She will also produce reports and participate in resident outreach.
Daniel Hadley, MUP 2010 will be working this summer with Envision Utah, a nationally acclaimed planning nonprofit. Their work focuses on growth management, transportation planning and urban design.
Daniel will be involved in the implementation of Envision Utah’s plan for the Jordan River, which covers low-income and environmentally sensitive areas. As part of the team working on the Jordan River Blueprint plan, he will research efforts around the world (beginning in Cambridge) to implement plans for riparian landscapes. He will help design an implementation strategy and carry it through to completion.
Ryan Leidner, MArch I 2010 has been awarded funding to travel to Kigali, Rwanda. Ryan will be working with the Girubuntu Association and MASS Group (a GSD student founded nonprofit group) on the design of a new place of learning and home for Rwanda’s war orphans. The new school will serve a population of 250 children.
Hallie Chen, MArch I 2012, Annie Kountz, MArch 2012, Christina Milos, MLA I 2011, and Aaron Orenstein, MArch I 2012 have been awarded funding to travel to Kibera, just outside of Nairobi, Kenya. They will be living and working in one of the largest, poorest slums in the world. Working with the Carolina for Kibera organization and the student-run organization, Vertigrow, they will help to design and develop a flexible system of micro-farming to accommodate the varied living conditions in slums. They will also build prototypes and train a community in how to build and properly use the system.
Holly Trick, MArch I 2010, Megan Wright, MArch I 2011, Will Choi, MArch I 2011 and Stephanie Tam, MArch 2011 have been awarded funding to travel to Pucara, Ecuador. Working with the Casa Interam nonprofit organization, they will be designing the beginnings of an eco-village prototype for local community development. They will also assist a local group of high school students with the construction of nearby homes.
Marta Nowak, MArch I 2012 and Iman Ansari, MAUD 2010 have been awarded funding to travel to Nairobi, Kenya where they will be working as interns for the UN Habitat under the Shelter Initiative for Climate Change Mitigation. The United Nations Human Settlement Programme, UN-Habitat, is the United Nations agency mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially, environmentally, sustainable towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate shelter for all. Marta and Iman will conduct research on climate change mitigation, including regional studies on shared housing schemes and environmental planning, to develop improved programs.
More about the Community Service Fellowship Program (CSFP)