This November 7 Friends of Fairsted lecture will address the contemporary challenges and implications of climate change on cities and urban landscapes. Chris Reed will explore how Olmsted’s work in the 19th century can act as a model for multifunctional urban parks, and how new versions of these parks and park systems might best take on the climate challenges and social equity issues we face today. Examples of current work in Boston by Reed’s firm Stoss Landscape Urbanism will demonstrate how climate change has renewed Boston’s leadership in imagining open space systems that respond to contemporaneous social and environmental challenges.
Chris Reed is Founding Director of Stoss Landscape Urbanism as well as Professor in Practice of Landscape Architecture and Co-Director, Master of Landscape Architecture in Urban Design Program, at Harvard Graduate School of Design. He is recognized internationally as a leading voice in the transformation of landscapes and cities, working alternately as a researcher, strategist, teacher, designer, and advisor. Chris is particularly focused on creating resilient social spaces that foster vitality, equality and community within the public realm. His work collectively includes urban revitalization initiatives, climate resiliency efforts, adaptations of former industrial sites, and the creation of vibrant public spaces that act as a catalyst for change—environmentally, culturally and economically. Chris is a recipient of the 2012 Cooper-Hewitt National Design Award in Landscape Architecture, a Fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects, and the 2017 Mercedes T. Bass Landscape Architect in Residence at the American Academy in Rome.
The event takes place at 43 Hawes Street, corner of Hawes and Monmouth Streets in Brookline. Limited street parking is available, and public parking is not allowed in the Wheelock parking lot. A reception begins at 6 pm and the lecture begins at 7. Free, but reservations are essential at https://friendsoffairsted.org/programs/register/
