HS 495 Social Cultural Factors and Community Design in Mexico

Conceived, developed, and delivered a 6–credit bilingual study abroad program between NC State University (NCSU) and Universidad Veracruzana (UV) in Cordoba, Mexico.  With the primary goal of developing design techniques that empower communities, this is a course in community design strategies that involve a service-learning design project in which NC State students in conjunction with students from the Universidad Veracruzana Córdoba develop small urban design improvement projects. Students address urban design while focusing on assessing the cultural, social, and spatial needs of the community members.

Through conducting workshops with the community, students enriched their connection to the local people, and experience real-world applications of the skills introduced in the course.  Similarly, such experiences afford students the opportunity to convey the importance of the community’s distinctive voice in confronting the development of their open space.  The challenges and opportunities of conducting an international community design studio provide a focus that heightens the student’s and faculty’s ability to gain insights into cross-cultural issues.  I plan to repeat this experience in the future.