Aging Against the Machine

To mark the current Center for Architecture exhibition, Reset: Towards a New Commons, members of the interdisciplinary design team for the project Aging Against the Machine will present diverse interventions in the built environment that contribute to an intersectional, community-based approach to aging. Aging is not a problem to be solved. The problem is the range of barriers—physical, social, financial, and cultural—that make it difficult to grow older with dignity and in community. Older people in the United States are often either isolated at home or subjected to institutionalized forms of care. Sited in West Oakland, Aging Against the Machine advocates for alternative housing and community development scenarios for aging that open up multiple options for care, improve physical access to the city, enhance resource sharing, and strengthen community ties. The program will feature presentations by Aging Against the Machine’s lead designers, followed by a discussion with the larger team, moderated by Emanuel Admassu.

Speakers:
Emanuel Admassu, Architect and Urban Designer, Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation; Founding Partner, AD-WO
Neeraj Bhatia, Architect and Urban Designer, THE OPEN WORKSHOP, California College of the Arts
Todd Levon Brown, Environmental Psychologist, Architectural Theorist, Urbanist, and Public Health Expert, The University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture
Ignacio Galan, Architect and Historian, Barnard College, Columbia University
Lindsay A. Goldman, Aging Expert, Grantmakers in Aging
Karen Kubey, Urbanist, Pratt Institute, Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation
Annie Ledbury, Community Architect, East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation
David Peters, Resident Liaison and Founder, Black Liberation Walking Tour

This program is part of the Reset:Towards a New Commons series:
July 7: Block Party: From Independent Living to Disability Communalism
July 11: Aging Against the Machine
July 28: Re:Play Reclaiming the Commons through Play
August 4: Decolonizing Suburbia

This event is offered in person and virtually; proof of complete COVID-19 vaccination (for attendees ages 5 and up) with photo ID for adults is required to attend in person. Food and beverages will be served. Face masks are required for visitors ages 2-5, and optional for those vaccinated. Read our full Health and Safety Protocol here.

If you register for an online ticket, you will receive an email with a Zoom link to access the program.