Search results for: covid-19

Dear advocates for healthy and connected communities in which everyone can thrive, The pandemic brought to the foreground the hidden nuances behind the “We are all in this together” motto. In the US, communities of color are disproportionately affected, experiencing higher death rates and unemployment. Flattening the inequality curve is an instrumental step in moving…

Dear colleagues,  The pandemic has brought to the forefront the importance of balancing “togetherness” with “aloneness” in design. We are living in a perplexed state of mind. Before the pandemic, many of us craved time with family members. As it turns out though, too much time together and under stressful situations can negatively impact well-being.…

Dear colleagues,  We are excited to announce the launch of the “What We Do” page for Culturally Enriched Communities.  We are “Cultural Enrichers”who advocate for healthy and connected communities in which everyone can thrive and who share the CAST commitment, which means “to form by this process.” Through Consider, Act, Seek, and Transform one can…

Dear colleagues,  An estimated 30-40 million Americans are at risk of eviction, in what maybe the country’s worst housing crisis in its history. Although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a temporary halt in residential evictions until the end of the year, it will delay mass evictions but not solve the rental crisis, according to Emily Benfer, a housing…

Dear colleagues,  Europe’s largest migrant camp on the island of Lesbos, Moria, has been devastated by massive fires early Wednesday. Greek authorities believe that the fires were started by Moria camp residents expressing dissatisfaction with coronavirus-related lockdown measures after 35 people tested positive for Covid-19 earlier this week. The refugee camp is home to an estimated 13,000 people, more than…

Dear colleagues,  People’s ingenuity in creating spaces for quarantine and self-isolation struck me while collecting design interventions from around the world for www.cec-design.com/covid-19 – from treehouses to separated bedrooms and bathrooms that kept elders and other family members safely protected. Basements also emerged as suitable spaces for quarantine, the most famous one probably being Chris Cuomo‘s who continued reporting from his basement for CNN…

Dear colleagues,  What we do matters, but how and why we do it matters even more. The challenge, as Solon declared around 550BC, is unlearning old habits. Hundreds of cancer patients‘ treatments have been impacted by the pandemic, including mine. Breast cancer came into my life at a pivotal point in my career, right before I was promoted to Full Professor. With three…

Dear colleagues,  CDC guidelines for reopening heavily rely on cleaning and disinfecting, both of which intersect with the creation of healthy and connected communities in which everyone can thrive, because: They involve design elements frequently touched, such as tables, doorknobs, light switches, counter tops, handles, desks, phones, keyboards, toilets, faucets and sinks, gas pump handles, and touch…

Dear colleagues,  Many of us are struggling to make sense of our times, to decide what to take on and what to leave out or what to say and how to say it. All that can be exhausting. In a recent BBC article on “The real reason lockdown is exhausting,” Kathleen Vohs, a University of Minnesota…

Dear colleagues,  As we reflect on the role design can play in moving toward recovery from the pandemic and global racial justice, lessons from Copenhagen might help us set a trajectory. Copenhagen is one of WHO’s Healthy Cities in a country that consistently ranks among the top in the World Happiness Report. The report is produced by the UnitedNations Sustainable Development…