Cultural Resource Management and Policy Analysis Commons^™

Lightness Shaped By Stone, Jared Arredondo

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

In a period defined by industrial standardization, automation, and increasing distance from material reality, architecture has become increasingly detached from the physical knowledge of making. Processes once grounded in time, touch, and material consequence are often replaced by speed, abstraction, and systems of production that conceal labor. This thesis begins from that condition and examines stone as a material through which architecture can recover a deeper relationship to time, craft, structure, and responsibility.

Stone resists speed. Its weight, density, and permanence demand precision, patience, and consequence. Each cut, joint, and surface operation requires an understanding of the material’s limits and …

Interweaving Cairo's Urban Fabric: The Formal, The Informal And The Contemporary, Hagar Ahmed

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Architecture is a negotiation between memory and change, preservation and erasure. In Cairo, a city layered with history, rapid development threatens historic areas and informal settlements (AlSayyad, 2011). While monumental heritage preservation is institutionalized, informal urban fabrics are often excluded from heritage discussions and planning. This research explores Mansheyet Nasser, or Garbage City, an informal settlement between Islamic Cairo and the Mokattam plateau. Over the past fifty years, Zabbaleen residents have built a communal waste collection and recycling system that processes up to 80% of materials, outperforming many regulated cities (Fahmi and Sutton, 2010; Didero, 2011). This infrastructure is both …

Adaptive Refuge: Reimagining Biophilic Settlements For Sudanese Refugees In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Neeya Yahaya, Robin Pottock

Symposium of Student Scholars

Every day, thousands of people are forced to flee their homes escaping war, disaster, and instability. What begins as a temporary refuge often becomes a lifetime condition. In Ethiopia, over 4.6 million refugees live within this state of protracted displacement, with more than one-fourth arriving from Sudan after the 2023 conflict. Most remain in remote, rural camps along border regions far from the educational, economic, and social opportunities of the city. These spatial and social divides reinforce dependency, limit access to livelihood, and erode personal dignity. Yet proximity to urban infrastructure could offer a pathway toward belonging, participation, and long-term …

Spatial Echoes, Joy Cherichel

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

This abstract critiques the limitations within the U.S. education system, arguing that its selective preservation of history often obscures crucial narratives, particularly regarding systemic racism. Focusing on the suppressed history of Oscarville and the expulsion of Black residents from Forsyth County, Georgia, in 1912, the proposal advocates for architectural intervention to combat this historical amnesia. The central research question explores how architecture can preserve and convey unbiased racial history to enhance education. The thesis posits that intentionally designed architecture can serve as a powerful and enduring educational tool, making it harder to ignore marginalized histories. To address this, the abstract …

The Question Of Design In The Context Of The First Australian Nations: Designing Reparations Through Decolonial Architecture, Eli Abamonte

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Forget about tourist postcards and picture-perfect landscapes. Australia's true heart beats in the ancient stories of the Indigenous communities that tell them, their vibrant cultural tapestry woven beneath the surface. My research dives into this tapestry, not as an Architect with blueprints imposing my own vision, but as a student with an open ear and collaborative spirit. Australia’s vastness holds countless stories, but my research led me deep into the heart of East Arnhem Land, where ancient legends whisper in the wind and the Yolngu people dwell. Anthropologists like Bruno Descola shattered my singular view of the world, revealing a …

Revitalizing Sweet Auburn, Georgia: A Foodcentric Biophilic Inspired Solution, Cason Lott

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Revitalizing Sweet Auburn, Georgia: A Foodcentric Biophilic Inspired Solution addresses the critical issue of food deserts and the challenges of maintaining a healthy balance in densely populated urban environments. It underscores the importance of easy access to essential resources like food for community well-being and highlights the strain on individuals. The thesis emphasizes the potential for sustainable solutions to improve urban living conditions, promoting both physical and mental health while ensuring stability and community. Furthermore, the thesis explores the integration of urban farming, community education, and sustainability with biophilic design’s natural elements to create an enriching community center that acts …

Assessing The Sustainable Development Dimensions Of Environmental Public Policies For Protected Natural Areas In Mexico: A 1970-2018 Perspective, Cielo María Ávila López, José Israel Herrera

Journal of Maya Heritage

Abstract: This abstract discusses the challenges and issues related to the implementation of Environmental Public Policies (EPP) for Protected Natural Areas (PNA) in Mexico from 1970 to 2018. EPPs aim to achieve sustainable development by balancing economic, environmental, and social dimensions while reconciling conservation and the use of natural resources with restrictions on their use and economic compensation to communities. However, the results of this study reveal that the establishment of PNA has been unilateral and without consensus, leading to limitations on communities' use of the environment without granting them economic compensation or productive alternatives. This has resulted in conflicts …

Design Diplomacy - Cooperative Living, Kameren Horton

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

From 1990 through 1996, we witness a significant shift within the city of Atlanta. In the Summer of 1996, the Olympics was hosted in Atlanta. Techwood Homes at the time, was the first large affordable housing project in that area. In 1991, there was an order for the demolishment of Techwood Homes. However, it wasn’t until 1995, when the Atlanta Housing Authority (AHA) decided to begin demolition after waiting 4 years prior to the Olympics.

Several other large housing projects were demolished to make room for Olympic venues. This is where we see redevelopment. This is where we see a …

Where Dreams Begin: Challenging The Architecture Of Migrant Detention, Pablo Garcia

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Today, more than 40 million people living in the US were born in another country, accounting for about one-fifth of the world’s migrants. Even though the US is a nation comprised largely of immigrants and their descendants, immigration remains one of the most fraught social and political issues of modern times. People dream of moving into the country seeking a better life than the one they are leaving behind. Yet, upon arrival, they face inhumane circumstances due to the recent influx of people seeking asylum within the US. According to the Department of Homeland Security, over 3 million people arrived …

From Displaced To Our Place: Using An Educational Narrative To Build Community In A Displaced Community, Morgan Frederick

Symposium of Student Scholars

Thomasville heights is a displacement neighborhood for people pushed out by Atlanta’s Urban Renewal projects. Thomasville Heights remains a casualty of a system of economic segregation. Under this system of segregation these neighborhoods are left in detrimental states. It is in places like Thomasville Heights where the phrase “place matters” becomes a call to action. A town of 6000 residents and only one elementary school, Thomasville heights is bordered by multiple freight yards, a cemetery, landfills, and Atlanta’s US penitentiary, just a 5-minute walk from that one elementary school. There remains a vast difference between that of low-income urban, and …

Architectural + Language: Breaking Barriers And Creating Cultural Dialogue, Maria De Los Angeles Delgado Bailon

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

When I was 11 years old, I moved back to the United States, after having spent my whole childhood in Ecuador, my parents native land. I was moving back to the land of opportunity in the search for the so called ‘American Dream’. It was difficult to leave and move to a new place where we did not know anyone or have anything, but just the idea of a going back to my hometown piqued my curiosity and excitement. I remember very vividly, the day I left Ecuador. I remember telling myself to be happy, because this was a moment …

Adaptive Stadium_ A Microcosm In Understanding The Identity Of Brasilia, John Rolon

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

This thesis addresses the issue of readapting the National Mané Garrincha Stadium in Brasilia with the intent to start a dialog on what identity and culture mean and how its represented in terms of a city using Brasilia. My proposal focuses in on the interrogation of the past theory and practices that influenced the concepts and foundation of the city and blending in modern day cultural ideas and influences. The main idea in choosing to re-adapt the stadium is because of its history of abandonment in which in 2 periods in history where it reached a point were it was …

Surmounting Disembodiment: Architecture And Suicide Prevention, Jack Mcgeehan

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Suicide is currently the 10th leading cause of death in the United States, more than double the number of homicide deaths. This thesis questions how architects can design more appropriately for people who are at risk for suicide in the United States. While suicide is individualistic and varies from person to person, there are consistencies that can serve as a basis for mitigating the problem and building an infrastructure for the solution. This thesis begins by examining four key cohorts that are typically high risk in the United States; veterans, the elderly, the homeless, and youths. It examines the behavioral …

Faith In Humanity : An Exploration Of Spiritually Inclusive Architecture, Jared Triemer

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

On March 15th, 2019 at 1:40 pm, Brenton Harrison Tarrant walked into Al Noor Mosque in New Zealand. Attached to his head, an iPhone set to livestream, and in his hand a loaded shotgun. Brenton then proceeded to gleefully murder 42 innocent Muslim worshippers. Soon after he fled to Linwood Mosque where he claimed 8 more victims. His actions demark New Zealand’s largest terrorist act in history. Brenton joins the long list of individuals who’s gross misunderstanding and hatred of a religion have escalated into violence. People like Brenton represent a larger issue that afflicts our modern society; the widespread …

Primary Focus, Breck Small

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

This thesis proposes a new construction method that looks beyond the physical needs of a community to train and equip unskilled laborers to continue expanding their own build environment. In areas where electricity along with running water are sparse and construction materials are expensive in contrast to average income, this method of construction will look at the manipulation of indigenous materials, climate, and passive systems to design a project that is both respectful to the surrounding community and innovative in its final design. This method could be replicated in sites with similar context, training unskilled labors to build structures in …

Introduction To The Ethics Of Physical Embodiment, Linda M. Johnston

Siegel Institute Ethics Research Scholars

Introduction to the Ethics of Physical Embodiment

Introduction To The Ethics Of Clothing And Clothing Production, Linda M. Johnston

Siegel Institute Ethics Research Scholars

Introduction to the Ethics of Clothing and Clothing Production