Civic Ecology: A Citizen-Driven Framework for Communities

Wednesday, January 23, 2019
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM PST / 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM CST / 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM EST

Much of the conversation around sustainable development has focused on designing better “hardware” – energy efficient buildings; renewable energy; leaner, greener infrastructure. While these manifestations of sustainability in the built environment are important, they are not the whole solution. Great communities have robust “software”, the self-initiated, self-perpetuating activities and social networks of local citizens. The Civic Ecology Institute, led by Portland-based SERA Architects, seeks to illuminate how that software and hardware fit together to constitute a completely sustainable community.

Blue Infrastructure – A Holistic Approach to Water Ecology

Wednesday, March 20, 2019
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM PST / 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM CST / 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM EST

The era of taking water for granted is over. Climate change and aging infrastructure has prioritized water in the planning and design of our buildings, landscapes, and communities. The most desirable and resilient communities rely on “integrated water strategies,” ways of handling water that integrate built and natural environments, ecological science with traditional planning and design, and the people who live and work there. When designing a site – at the building or district scale – as part of a watershed and as habitat for all life, amazing things can happen. Understanding a project’s water footprint focuses resources on increasing resiliency through expanded habitat and green space, net zero water, and water reuse. This holistic approach to infrastructure respects the natural water cycle and access to clean water. Hosted by Biohabitats, this webinar helps you understand district-scale opportunities including integrated infrastructure, water resources, and ecological benefits.

Centering Health in District Scale Development

Wednesday, May 15, 2019
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM PST / 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM CST / 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM EST

Social determinants of health — the conditions in the places where people live, learn, work, and play — affect a wide range of health risks and outcomes. EcoDistricts includes health and wellbeing as one of the key Priorities of our community regeneration framework. Increasingly, institutions, organizations, and communities are developing policies, tools, and programs to improve long-term health outcomes in our neighborhoods and public spaces.

In this webinar, we heard from Dr. Whitney Austin Gray, Senior Vice President of Business Development at Delos about the WELL Community Standard, which aims to impact individuals throughout the public spaces where they spend their days. Attendees learned how a WELL community functions to protect health and well-being across all aspects of community life, and how the WELL Standard promotes inclusive, integrated, and resilient, and engaged neighborhoods.

Restorative Economics: An Equitable Development Framework and Strategy

Wednesday, July 17, 2019
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM PST / 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM CST / 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM EST

Long time social justice organizer and advocate, Nwamaka Agbo, will provide an overview of her Restorative Economics framework, and how she has applied it as an equitable development strategy in her consulting work. The first portion of the webinar will walk attendees through the methodology and principles that inform her framework. The second half of the presentation will take an in-depth look at a recent development project with a close analysis of the integrated capital stack and its implications for achieving the equitable development goals set for the projects. Participants will have an opportunity to reflect on how the financing of development projects can be leveraged to deepen equitable outcomes in low-income communities of color.

Pittsburgh Embraces EcoDistricts

Wednesday, September 18, 2019
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM PST / 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM CST / 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM EST

The Pittsburgh Region is quickly becoming a national equitable and sustainable development leader with several projects pursuing EcoDistricts certification. The reason: a long standing commitment to regional collaboration and a focus on neighborhood partnerships. This webinar explores the stories behind Pittsburgh’s resurgence and why we chose “The Iron City” for the 2019 EcoDistricts Summit.