Cities and territories face social and environmental challenges (climate change, biodiversity crises, increasing urbanization of the planet). Urban and territorial design defines today an urgent and critical field. Through four episodes – “Prototypes of the transition”, “Utopia for our Time”, “Design a Horizontal Metropolis”, and “Towards an urbanism of the living soil” – the presentation will delve into some of the extraordinary challenges of the future of cities and territories. They embed a long-term designer’s reflection on how we shall live together.

Paola Viganò architect and urbanist is a Full Professor in Urban Theory and Urban Design at the EPFL (CH) (where she directs the Habitat Research Center and the Lab-U) and at IUAV Venice (IT). She received the Grand Prix de l’Urbanisme in 2013, the title of Doctor Honoris Causa by the UCLouvain in 2016 in the frame of “Utopia for our Time”, the Flemish Culture Award for Architecture in 2017, and the Golden medal to the career of Milano Triennale in 2018. Together with Bernardo Secchi, she founded Studio (1990-2014) working on numerous projects and visions in Europe. Since 2015, StudioPaolaViganò works on the ecological and social transition of cities, landscapes, and territories designing urban and territorial projects and realizing public spaces in Europe. In 2019, her work has been exhibited at the Shenzen Biennale, and in 2021 at the Venice Biennale. In 2022, she received the Schelling Prize for Architectural Theory.

The Douglas S. Kelbaugh Lecture is generously funded through an endowed fund given by Douglas Kelbaugh and Kathleen Nolan to support an annual public lecture on the topic of urban design.

Douglas Kelbaugh, FAIA, FCNU, professor emeritus of architecture and urban and regional planning and dean emeritus of Taubman College, died on February 18, 2023, at 78. Kelbaugh’s contributions to the field of sustainable architecture and urban planning, the Taubman College community, cities, and the education of students will continue to create a positive impact in the world for years to come, including through the annual Kelbaugh Lecture.