U. S. Housing Markets, Problems, and Policies

This course examines the operation of U.S. housing markets, the principal housing problems facing the nation, and policy approaches to address them within the existing political, regulatory and market context.  The course is structured around five central housing problems that are the focus of US housing policy:  the challenge of producing housing affordable for lower-income households generally; approaches to subsidizing rental housing for low- and moderate-income households; the challenges facing low-income households and people of color in attaining homeownership; the high degree of residential segregation by race/ethnicity and income and associated differential access to public and private resources that results; and how housing policy can support broader efforts at community revitalization.  Each section of the course will develop a detailed understanding of the nature of the problem, how the operation of housing markets either produce or fail to address the problem, introduce the principal federal, state and local policy approaches available to address the problem, and wrestle with critical policy questions that arise in choosing how best to address the problem. The goal of the course is to build both a foundation of knowledge and a critical perspective needed to diagnose the genesis of the nation’s housing problems, to identify the potential policy levers for addressing these failures, and to assess the relative merits of alternative approaches. Synchronous class sessions will be a mixture of short lectures and large and small group class discussions focusing on the assigned readings. Each synchronous class will be supplemented by short asynchronous lectures as well. The course will include frequent guests to provide a range of perspectives on the topics covered, including those from the public and nonprofit sectors, researchers, developers, and the communities served. Students will be expected to come to synchronous classes prepared to be fully engaged participants in the discussions. Over the course of the semester, students will be required to prepare periodic reviews of assigned readings and prepare questions for guests which will be shared on Canvas. The principal assignments for the class will be a mid-term paper analyzing a housing challenge in a jurisdiction of the student’s choosing and a final paper assessing policy options for addressing the challenge and proposing a course of action. The course is intended for graduate students with an interest in US housing policy, although no previous background in housing policy or disciplinary training is required.

This course is jointly listed with HKS as SUP 670.

This course will be taught online through Friday, February 4th.

 

 

Building and Leading Real Estate Enterprises and Entrepreneurship

This course focuses on how you conceive, build and lead successful real estate companies. By virtue of the industry in which they compete, real estate companies are almost always founded and developed by entrepreneurs. A few grow to become category killers; others are able to compete in a crowded and competitive landscape. Many, however, are eventually closed down; sometimes due to changing market forces, sometimes due to lack of good corporate strategy or execution, and sometimes due to the founder neglecting to institutionalize a lasting organization to succeed him or her.

Taught through a combination of lectures, cases and analytical problems, this course examines (primarily through the lens of real estate investment and development companies), the critical ingredients required to grow and lead long-term competitive enterprises. The course will begin with an examination of how to optimize the performance of real properties and then migrate to the design and development of successful companies that own or service properties.

At the end of this course, students should gain a deeper appreciation of how owners think and act when they oversee their companies. They will specifically be introduced to how to develop a robust strategy, capital plan, corporate culture and execution capability that are part of every great real estate company. Students taking this course should also be able to construct the elements of a simple business plan for a startup. Students are also encouraged to think about how they may launch their own real estate enterprise during the course, and to make active use of other Harvard resources, including Harvard clubs and facilities like the I-lab, as they think through their entrepreneurial opportunities.

Paired Course: Although not mandatory, this course is meant to be taken in conjunction with GSD 5275,  which meets the first half of the semester; it is also 2 credits and meets at the same time as 5276. GSD 5276 will build on many of the questions and concepts that 5275 postulates.

 

Note: Most GSD faculty teaching elective courses will offer online live information sessions January 12th- January 14th. Please visit the Course Information Schedule for more information.

 

Advanced Real Estate Finance

This course builds on GSD 5204 and comparable introductory real estate courses offered by other schools at Harvard. This year’s course covers five main topics: (1) Advanced Financial Analysis and Deal Structuring for Acquisitions (including waterfalls), (2) Advanced Financial Analysis and Structuring for Land and Development Projects, (3) Debt Financing and Debt Investments, (4) Real Estate Market Cycles and Portfolio Structuring, (5) Management and recovery of Assets in a Distressed Environment

The objective of the course is to give students in-depth financial analytical skills for project acquisitions and development, real estate financing, and portfolio management. Using case studies and lectures, the course focuses on advanced real estate topics for all major real estate product-types including apartments, office, retail, industrial, single-family, and land development. A major emphasis in the class is to build students’ financial modeling skills and their knowledge of advanced industry practices. Many cases will require students to apply a full range of acquisition, development, investment, disposition, financing, and management decisions at the property level. Key decision-making for all phases of the development process including site selection, design, financing, construction, leasing, operations, and sales are stressed throughout the first half of the course. Other strategic requirements for completing successful projects such as acquisition due diligence, debt and equity structuring, market cycle timing, and asset recovery in a distressed environment are covered during the other half.

Paired Course: Although not mandatory, this course is meant to be taken in conjunction with GSD 5276, which takes place in the second half of the semester; it is also 2 credits and meets at the same time as 5275. GSD 5276 will build on many of the questions and concepts that 5275 postulates.

 

This course will be taught online through Friday, February 4th.

 

Public and Private Development

Cities are developed by a complex blend of public and private actors and actions. This course employs a combination of lectures, discussions, readings, case studies, and individual and group exercises to help students understand, evaluate, and implement public and private development. The course commences with instruction about core analytic methods, emphasizing real estate financial analysis while also addressing modified cost-benefit, economic impact, and fiscal impact analyses. Early classes also explore legal, institutional, administrative, political, and ethical contextual frameworks. Together, the analytic methods and contextual frameworks allow for elaboration of decision rules about thoughtful balances in the deployment of public and private resources. The remainder of the course covers specific implementation tools including, among others, public subsidies, public land disposition through sale or lease, public land acquisition through eminent domain, value capture mechanisms, community benefits agreements, and business improvement districts. The goal of the course is to foster reflective practitioners, whether planners, designers, developers, public policymakers, or advocates, who think critically and pragmatically as they navigate the trade-offs inherent in public-private city building. Note that most of the implementation tools and examples explored in the course are drawn from United States practice, but international tools and examples are introduced from time to time to demonstrate the range of variation.

Jointly Offered Course: HKS SUP-668

In Spring 2022, enrollment in this course is limited to only those students who are required to take it to meet their degree requirements.

This course will be taught in person beginning the week of January 24th.

 

Ecosystem Restoration

Given the current speed of habitat and species loss caused by human development, the restoration of degraded ecosystems is one of the greatest challenges humankind is facing. For this reason, the United Nations declared the current decade (2021-2030) as the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. This global effort will require experts on ecosystem science, management and design. This holistic approach will allow for a deeper understanding of how ecosystems recover from human disturbance and how we can use this knowledge to increase the currently limited performance of restoration practice. This course is particularly suited for students with interests in nature conservation, the natural component of landscape architecture, or ecosystem management in a broad sense. This course is cross-listed with the Department of Organismal and Evolutionary Biology, which will allow students from both disciplines to exchange their knowledge in a multidirectional learning environment where we all will address real world restoration cases. Through research, we will learn how forests and other ecosystems have changed during this time to apply that knowledge to a real restoration project that students will develop. We will have key inputs from guest lectures coming from restoration companies with many years of experience restoring ecosystems worldwide. They will help us to find targeted tools to support and design ecosystems in both urban and natural environments. We will increase our understanding of what nature is for humans and the Earth system and, through field trips, we will increase study our connection to it. At least one previous course in ecology or a similar topic is required. This course will arm you with one of the most important tools to work with and for nature in the coming decades.

 

This course will be taught online through Friday, February 4th.

 

Informal Robotics / New Paradigms for Design & Construction

This course teaches how to create original robotic devices made of light, compliant – informal – materials.

New fabrication techniques are transforming the field of robotics. Rather than rigid parts connected by mechanical connectors, robots can now be made of folded paper, carbon laminates or soft gels. They can be formed fully integrated from a 3D printer rather than assembled from individual components. Informal Robotics draws on cutting-edge research from leading labs, in particular, Harvard’s Micro Robotics Laboratory which has created unique designs for ambulatory and flying robots, end-effectors, medical instruments and other applications.

We will explore informal robotics from multiple perspectives, culminating with the design of original devices displaying animated intelligence in real-time. Going beyond traditional engineering approaches, we will also explore new opportunities for design at the product, architectural, and urban scales.

Techniques:
Hands-on:  Working with the GSD’s Fab Lab we are creating a kit of parts that will be available to all enrolled students. With the kit, you can create a wide range of folding mechanisms controlled by on-board miniature electronics. 

Software / Simulation: Software workshops will be offered on Fusion 360 and Grasshopper to simulate robotic performance within a virtual environment. 

Topics:
– Kinematics: design techniques for pop-ups, origami, and soft mechanisms.
– Fabrication: methods: for composite materials, laminated assembly, self-folding, and integrated flexures – the kit of parts will allow for hands-on exploration.
– Controls: how to actuate movement and program desired behavior. Topics include servos, linear actuators, and use of Arduino actuator control.
– Applications: takes us beyond purely technological concerns, contextualizing Informal Robotics within larger trends where materials, manufacturing and computation are starting to merge.

Format, prerequisites, evaluation:

A portion of the lecture material will be pre-recorded, allowing students to view this on their own schedule. The class session will emphasize discussion and review of assignments & projects. 

There will be assignments to produce test mechanisms and CAD models, followed by final group projects. Presentations and discussions of ongoing student work are integral to the course. There are no prerequisites and evaluation will be based on completion of assignments and the final project.

Projects may be virtual, physical or both. Resources for fabricating customized final projects are not fully known at this point, but I am committed to supporting physical-making to the degree possible.

Jointly Offered Course: SEAS ES256

Up to five seats will be held for MDes students.

 

This course will be taught online through Friday, February 4th.

 

Jointly Offered Course: SEAS ES256

 

 

Structures in Landscape Architecture, Joint & Detail

This seminar/workshop explores how to design and make landscapes that are rationally constructed and expressively convincing. This search is focused through the lens of structural understanding. Members of the class will explore how structural principles are translated through techniques of three-dimensional drawing into practical and expressive made landscapes.

Weekly Course Format:
Lecture on syllabus topic.
Case study.
Workshop/discussion.

Topics
1. A visual understanding of structural principles. 
2. Constructive drawing – haptic three-dimensional thinking.
3. How the structural diagrams of landscape elements are translated into a material/detail language.
4. Case studies of historical and contemporary structures. 

Course Objectives and Outcomes
Each student will:
1. Understand structural principals.
2. Understand structurally based, three-dimensional detail design.
3. Develop a personal practice of detail design that translates structural understanding into a material, made reality. 

Method of Evaluation
1. Participation in weekly discussion groups.
2. Successful completion of in class workshop assignments. 
3. Successful completion of a final project assignment. 

Prerequisites
No prerequisites. Class is open to all students in all departments.

 

This course will be taught online through Friday, February 4th.

 

Towards a new Science of Design?

This project- and discussion-based seminar offers a deep, critical inspection of contemporary design practices, research methods and discourses informed by Neuroscience, Behavioral Psychology, Human-Computer Interaction and Philosophy of the Mind. In recent years, theories about extended cognition, embodied interaction and material engagement, to name a few, combined with physiological data collection techniques such as eye-tracking, electroencephalogram and galvanic skin response, among many others, have given rise to new questions about the foundations of design. Crucially, these methods and frameworks have allowed design practitioners and scholars to ask disciplinary questions with a new  degree of rigor, and supported by empirical evidence. How are buildings perceived by their users? How do materials affect occupant behavior? How do designers think when they design? These and other puzzles have begun to be scrutinized under a new light.

While acknowledging the role that contributions from these fields play today in our understanding of architecture (as an experience) and design (as a practice), this course argues that a rigorous and systematic assessment of their applicability, value and potential in design research is needed. What aspects of the built environment can these fields’ methods and theories help us understand better? How relevant is their potential to change the ways we conceptualize and operationalize design practice? What methods are available to understand the degree to which there might be a scientific basis for design?

 

Up to four seats will be held for MDes students.

This course will be taught online through Friday, February 4th.

 

Plants and Placemaking – New Ecologies for a Rapidly Changing World

In the face of crises spanning pandemics, political turmoil, and the rapid degradation of the planet’s natural systems—all within a backdrop of myriad inequalities—the power of plants in shaping human experience has been proven. Erosive pressures associated with changes to climate have placed global ecologies and plant communities under assault, yet abundant and resilient life still adapts and flourishes in most places. This course will encourage students to observe these patterns and to learn from context so that we can place the healing and restorative qualities of plants, essential to sustaining life on this planet, in the foreground of our work as landscape architects.

To reimagine the revegetation of a place after catastrophe or amidst the pressures of development and the complexities of human movement, we must first understand context by digging into the past to examine what ecologies were there before the present state occurred. With these informed perspectives, we can begin to repair fragmented natural systems, preserve (and create) habitat, sequester carbon, and buffer communities from destructive weather and climate—all while embracing the realities of how people gather, work, and live. Plants define the character of place; they shape who we are and who we become. We must get this right or the same patterns in more chaotic contexts will simply reemerge.

This course is open to those who crave a creative and interpretive, yet pragmatic, approach toward utilizing plants to create landscapes that actively rebuild systems stretching far beyond site boundaries. Expressive and iterative weekly exercises will encourage rapid design that inspires students to explore natural and designed plant communities. Conventional and non-conventional planting typologies will be examined.

Together we will seek new and innovative ideas for how to restore biological function to the land. This course will not be a comprehensive botanical overview of the history of plants; however, it will reinforce important methodologies for how to learn and research plants that can be translated to any locale, by studying individual vegetative features and characteristics. We will translate these investigations into design languages that can be applied in future design work.

This course will be taught online through Friday, February 4th.

 

Data Analysis and Data Physicalization

Data Analysis and Data Physicalization is a research seminar that explores the analysis and communication of data through statistical analysis and physical artefacts.

Data can bring clarity and insights into otherwise chaotic problems and phenomena around us yet at the same time, can be deceiving or blinding without the knowledge to handle them skilfully. This skill is often referred to as data literacy that is the ability for one to carry out statistical analysis and to appreciate and critique information made available by others. Along with data literacy, the aptitude for communication with data is becoming ever more important. Data visualization is a discipline that aims to augment human understanding of data.  The primary challenge of visualization design is to develop techniques that transform abstract data into representations that are easy to perceive and interpret. Successful data visualization using graphs, charts, timelines, and diagrams are extremely helpful in prompting visceral comprehension of data, nevertheless, many of the two-dimensional representations of complex data are difficult to be felt and digested. Physicalization of data is one of the approaches to extend the cognition and communication of data.  

In this class, we use python, commonly used in the data science community to understand the fundamentals of data analysis. Though advanced data analysis methods are beyond the scope of the class, we will cover basic concepts and techniques through a series of exercises and assignments. Simultaneously, we will explore approaches to materialize the information obtained from data analysis. Students will work on a final design project combining data analysis and data physicalization approaches introduced in the class.

 

Up to five seats will be held for MDes students, with priortiy given to Mediums Domain and Technology Area students.

 

This course will be taught online through Friday, February 4th.