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We’re postponing… but! In response to the Massachusetts’s Governor’s guidance in response to the outbreak of COVID-19, we’re postponing this event. In the meantime, however, we’re still thinking about these important issues, and know you are, too. We invite you to sign up here to receive occasional emails on this and related topics. We apologize for any inconvenience and look forward to being in touch!
What can municipal staff working in the areas of planning, open space and recreation, and public arts do to address untold histories, engage with controversy, and leverage the power of public art and public memory in these discussions?
Join the Metropolitan Area Planning Council and New England Foundation for the Arts for a professional development workshop designed for municipal staff on new approaches to public memory and public art in Greater Boston.
In this workshop, you’ll learn about best practices for facilitating dialogue about controversial monuments and memorials in your community, and about inspiring examples of public art and public history projects that are transforming public memories of places around the country. You will also engage in small group discussions where you’ll have an opportunity to learn about lesser-known historic and cultural stories in our region and how those stories and experiences can be actively engaged in place-based planning and programming related to public art, creative placemaking/placekeeping initiatives, and more.
Facilitators and Speakers: To be announced
This event is part of a series organized by the MAPC’s Arts and Culture Department and NEFA’s Public Art Department in conjunction with MAPC’s MetroCommon 2050 planning process. This unique, cross-sector initiative brings together artists and creators, planners, and policymakers to discuss the evolving relationship among public art, public memory, and public policy and to explore how artists can envision and shape more inclusive, thriving spaces and communities in Greater Boston.
How do monuments and memorials shape our understanding of place—and what we choose to forget? And how might we reframe public memory to address the harmful legacy of colonialism in our region? This artist panel will consider how remembering and forgetting of Indigenous peoples and colonial history shaped the landscape and collective consciousness of Greater Boston—and the necessary role of Indigenous artists in shaping more just public spaces.
Reclaim? Recontextualize? Relocate? Remove? What should we do with monuments that no longer reflect our shared history and collective values (or never did to begin with)? This conversation among artists, designers, and educators will explore how creative commemoration can help us see the past and present in a new light—and chart a path toward more just futures.
MAPC’s Zoning Atlas, a data product years in the making, makes zoning information for all 101 of the region’s cities and towns available to the public. We invite you to join us to learn more about how to explore, use, and provide feedback on the data, and to hear more about why transparent municipal zoning information is a critical resource for the future of Greater Boston
Join to hear Jacqueline Patterson, Director of Environmental and Climate Justice Program at the NAACP, discuss the intersection of climate resiliency and racial justice.
MAPC’s Accelerating Climate Resiliency Series presents a panel of experts from across the United States who will speak about the challenges and opportunities of climate resilience coalitions.
Wednesday, December 15
12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Melrose, Malden, and Medford worked with the MAPC to collaboratively develop sustainable and resilient building design guidelines for residential and mixed-use developments and retrofits. These voluntary guidelines will help these communities encourage developers to build more more affordable housing that is energy-efficient and climate-resilient.
Join us for an interactive webinar on April 26 at 12:00 p.m. to learn about the guidelines and hear from the communities about how they plan to use them to shape green, affordable development.
Please join the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) for an information session and Q&A for artists interested in the Boston Urban Agriculture Community Events Activation Call for Artists.
Target Audience: Artists in the Roxbury, Mattapan, Dorchester, and East Boston areas.
The Boston Urban Agriculture Strategy is a project in partnership between MAPC, GrowBoston (the City of Boston’s urban agriculture initiative), and the Urban Farming Institute (UFI). The project aims to increase food production in the City with a particular focus on the neighborhoods of Roxbury, Dorchester, Mattapan, and East Boston. Learn more. . .
The Accelerating Climate Resilience 2023 Speaker Series continues on September 7th from 12-1pm. Join us to learn more about microgrids, including what they are, how community-driven microgrids provide resilient energy, how they serve as a community aid disaster response, and about their connection to climate resilience planning. You’ll hear from two leaders who are pursuing a resilient future for their communities.
Open to all, be sure to register for the Zoom event here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZclduyopzwvG9LLB-ILS62GYWOWBGbx6tno
Speakers:
Sari Kayyali, Microgrid Manager, GreenRoots Inc.
Arturo Massol-Deyá, Executive Director, Casa Pueblo de Adjuntas
This event is now full. However, you can still join the waiting list, and if a spot opens up between now and the date of the event and you are next on the waiting list, we will contact you by email. Thank you!
MAPC invites you to join us for this exciting MetroCommon 2050 Speaker Series event featuring keynote speaker Henry Grabar.
Event Program:
- Keynote address by Henry Grabar; Slate staff writer, author (Paved Paradise: How Parking Explains the World), and a Loeb Fellow at the Harvard School of Design
- Panel of municipal planners will discuss how they are taking on the issue of the “perfect parking space”, and advancing sustainable and equitable housing and transportation options.
As cities and towns work to comply with the MBTA Communities Act, this event will focus on how to “right-size” parking for your community while managing this political issue and promoting healthy neighborhoods that are economically vibrant, equitable, and sustainable by design.