Archives: Projects

Over the last decade, the American news media landscape has changed in concurrence with the growing variety and number of news sources. Traditional news outlets, with higher expectations of journalistic standards, are challenged for viewership by news sources with significantly more ideological spin and less accountability. The implications of this transformation are debated, but some researchers argue that it has resulted in an increasingly polarized public. One prominent example of political polarization is the case of the environmental movement, in which environmental issues—from renewable energy to climate change action and conservation—have come to be viewed by many as reflecting a liberal agenda. To better understand how issues become polarized through news media, this research draws on the latest literature and a case study analysis to examine how ideological values, issue frameworks, and rhetoric are constructed in television news reports of the same environmental events. The case study analysis compares news coverage of the Paris Climate Agreement and Dakota Access Pipeline from two ideologically-opposed networks: Fox News and MSNBC. The results of this study demonstrate the significance of language and communication in constructing ideological opinions and underscore the influence that news has on the polarization of society. The insights provided by this study encourage critical forethought among news viewers when consuming media information.

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The population of multiracial and multicultural individuals in the United States has steadily risen, but few public spaces have been designed to represent them or express their identities. Individuals in this group can find themselves feeling isolated from spaces because they feel like “imposters’ or that they have to choose only one part of their identity to belong. How can we create public spaces that encourage people to express all parts of their multiracial or multicultural identity in a way that is inclusive, educational, and encourages cultural exchange? Through research of existing design methods and practices, this project addresses how public spaces can be created to include multiracial and multicultural individuals. I provide design methods and practices in four categories: cultural exchange; cultural education; safety and inclusion; and expression. These methods are compiled into a set of guidelines and best practices to guide designers through the creation of multiracial and multicultural spaces. These guidelines fill the gap between white and other mono-cultural spaces to create public spaces where multiracial and multicultural individuals can find belonging in. As a product created for designers, these guidelines bring the multiracial and multicultural identities into conversations and processes that they would not normally be a part of. This project reflects my own desire to see my multiracial and multicultural identity and others like me reflected in public spaces and serves as an example of why spaces like this are important and why representation matters.

Universities are increasingly expected to integrate sustainability best practices throughout their planning, operations, academics and engagement. Universities should also consider their sustainability impact beyond institutional boundaries to advance community and global sustainability goals. What’s needed is a framework for university sustainability planning that aligns established institutional metrics, with the latest community, city and global sustainability metrics. This project presents a replicable framework for universities to integrate campus, community, city and global sustainability metrics. The framework uses the Sustainability Tracking Assessment and Rating System (STARS) as a foundation for university planning and aligns that with the Leadership for Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) for Cities and Communities, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). The framework integrates the metrics of STARS, LEED, and the UN SDGs to benchmark key performance indicators and advance sustainability goals. This framework will facilitate more efficient data driven decision making and resource allocation, while supporting globally focused sustainability research for universities. A final report will detail the methodology of this framework for universities to use in their sustainability planning.

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People in Seattle who use public transportation as their main mode of transportation accumulate a great amount of time waiting for public transit. Seattle’s adult obesity rate has also nearly tripled since 1990. Could one solution to Seattle’s obesity problem be found in the waiting time of bus riders? This project examines the feasibility of turning bus shelters into exercise zones. Specifically, this project was designed first to gauge interest of having simple and accessible exercise equipment installed at a University of Washington station bus stop, and, second, to find out which equipment passengers would want to see installed. This project required research on health, exercise, and bus ridership, as well as looking at case studies, surveying bus riders, and surveying gym users at the UW Intramural Activities Building. 80% of the people surveyed for this project were in favor of installing exercise equipment, and the two most popular devices people wanted were a pull up bar and assisted rowing and pushup machines. Findings from this research are summarized in a report that also includes a series of recommendations and next steps.

In cities where there is a growing population such as Ridgefield, there is an opportunity to help foster a sense of place in new and existing residents. This project and paper examined how a walking tour helps residents connect with their community, making a place more than just a location. This project was a two-part process that involved research about walking tours and the effects that they have had on the surrounding community members and then using the information in order to justify and create a walking tour of the City of Ridgefield. I conducted a literature review that looked at how a sense of place ties into a walking tour and focused on the positive impact it has on communities. In order to understand the importance of a walking tour and how it can be beneficial to a city it required looking at case studies from various cities and best practices. This helped solidify the project of developing a walking tour for the City of Ridgefield. The second part of this project involved researching about the City of Ridgefield and the unique features that it has and creating a walking tour for the city. This part of the project involved interviewing stakeholders, visiting the site, and designing a guide. This guide is in the form of a pamphlet and will be distributed amongst the citizens with the intention of helping residents connect with the city they live in.

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The city of Seattle and King county has declared a state of emergency in 2015 for the crisis on people experiencing homeless. Since then, the contributing factor to stop the growth and lowering people living unsheltered on the streets has been never ending. As the problem becomes more transparent we see that affordable housing, job loss, addiction and employment gaps are the main contributing factors to homelessness. The issue here is that our secondary option for housing people have not been as successful as the City has planned it to be. Due to the lack of planning and guidelines for these housing units, majority of these individuals rather live on the street then to stay in these homes. Which is why for this project, the methodology will focus on inducting interviews, site visits, and guideline/case studies review. By looking at tiny homes villages, Black homes, and Desc housing I hope to highlight issues with homeless units and its health issues, Requirements for housing, exploration on its funding and how people feel about these homes. Which is why we have to ask ourselves, what factors make these units fail? And how can we create a plan or guideline to resolve these problems? The main focus for this project is housing units that can provide people facing homeless with long-term, free, properly designed housing for certain individuals. By looking into examples in Seattle and narrowing down to just three projects, the report will consist of a guideline on how to plan and design from the issues for people facing homeless.

Humans thrive when they feel connected to nature and their surroundings. Providing green space and creating a sense of place identity are two issues that cities often have to address. My project explores how by becoming what is known as an integrated utility greenway, the undeveloped green space under an overhead power line right-of-way in the Benson Hill neighborhood of Renton, Washington can be redesigned as an opportunity to address these matters, as well as additional goals identified in carious planning-related documents. Through an iterative research and design process, I’ve prepared an existing conditions inventory and analysis report, developed a series of conceptual recommendations that I’ve illustrated graphically, and constructing a guiding matrix for implementation. The design concepts are represented through digital diagrams and illustrations made using Adobe Creative Suite, AutoCAD, and mapping software. The accompanying implementation matrix cover information and strategies related to potential future application and execution of the recommendations with specific considerations being made for the local agencies, municipalities, and other pertinent entities likely to be involved. The preliminary scoping and design materials produced through this process are meant to inform relevant governing bodies and other interested parties about why this project is worth pursuing through official channels. This greenway would not only provide numerous new amenities to the Benson Hill community but would also create a place uniquely identifiable to Benson Hill that residents could form a sense of belonging and attachment to.