“We have the capacity to hold each other, serve each other, heal each other, create for and with each other, forgive each other, and liberate ourselves and each other. these are not new thoughts, this is what beloved community means. it is what we all long for, and what we all need.”
-adrienne maree brown
-
I’m a founding member of BlackSpace, an interdisciplinary collective seeking to bridge policy, people, and place, with a mission of equity and justice. We strive for built environments that recognize, affirm, and amplify Black agency, discourse and thought.
-
In 2021 I started an arts-based design practice with my friend Gloria Lau called Laudi CoLab. Our work together focuses on amplifying community stories in the built environment that have been erased or undervalued and pushing the boundaries of what mediums are possible for storytelling.
www.laudicolab.com/ -
The Octavia Project uses speculative fiction as a lens through which to envision new futures and greater possibilities for our world; blending creative writing, art, science, and technology, our programming increases confidence and skills in a myriad of subjects while fostering leadership and community for teen girls and and trans and nonbinary youth in New York City. I’ve had the pleasure of being a visiting teacher and advisory board member for the past 8 years.
-
Romantic Urbanism is a project I started with my friend and collaborator Louise Yeung that explores the features of cities that help to foster love and social cohesion. There’s increasing research that shows that feelings of social isolation and loneliness are on the rise in the United States, yet the pursuit of familial, platonic, or romantic love is not often centered in urban design or planning. Through design activations, essays, and visual art Romantic Urbanism will explore the ways that cities can build infrastructures of love and care.