Urban planners, designers, architects and other city-builders can often experience tension between acting as an expert and learning from the community. But as we have explored in previous episodes, we are understanding more and more the importance of designing great places from a point of empathy and co-creation. I wanted to talk to someone who is doing all sorts of great planning work with communities by putting empathy at the forefront of her work. Leela Viswanathan is an Associate Professor at the School of Urban Planning at Queen’s University. Her research emerges at the intersection of planning, equity and diversity.
Resources:
- Follow Leela on Twitter @Leela_Vis
- Take a look at her consulting work
- Learn more about Leela’s work at Queen’s University, including the Planning With Indigenous Peoples research group
- Learn more about asset-based community development
- Check out design thinking
- Read about world cafés
