St. Louis, MO November 26, 2013 To design is to solve problems, and it is by nature multi-disciplinary. By definition design is an activity of ideation, creativity, planning, and production that shapes the quality of our living environment, and in so doing promoting economic development.
“Empowerment by Design” is a CELab initiative that was started in 2008 exploring and focusing on “architecture and design”as a social responsibility in twenty-first century civil society, and to help raise livability and quality of life in our neglected neighborhoods through design-thinking.
Re-prioritizing and re-organizing flow of capital due to post industrialization in the face of globalization, has lead to continued disinvestment and population loss from parts of our cities and neighborhoods. This has resulted in decades of too many disadvantaged, low-income communities in many cities— such as our St. Louis— leaving some of its neighborhoods without needed resources or vision to this date.
Visionary Sweet Potato Project Stl
Speaking will be Sylvester Brown, Jr., the founder and facilitator of the Sweet Potato Project, an inner city program that teaches at-risk youth entrepreneurial skills they can use today, in their own neighborhoods. Youth are paid to plant sweet potatoes and learn the necessary skills to create and market and distribute food-based products. The ultimate goal of the project is to secure vacant land in the city and to develop jobs and small businesses through large-scale inner-city farming and mass product distribution out of North St. Louis. Joining Brown on the panel will be Jasmin Aber, Executive Director of CELab/The Center for Architecture and Design STL.
A CEL-Sweet Potato Studio
Through collaboration with Aber and CEL, Brown seeks to build a creative, “safe space” in North St. Louis where Sweet Potato Project youth are inspired to dream and 24/7. Speakers will also introduce“Youth in the City; Real Talk, Reimagining, Redesigning St. Louis,” podcasts featuring the voices of local St. Louis youth.
Please join us on November 26 when we will be discussing and highlighting new approaches to architecture, community development and visionary thinking and how we might positively transform our communities through interdisciplinary approaches and collaboration, attempting to bring back our too-long neglected parts of St. Louis city.
When: November 26 from 6:30- 8:30 pm
Where: Creative Exchange Lab/The Center for Architecture and Design
3307 Washington Avenue, St. Louis
For more information visit www.creativeexchangelab.com