Creating diversity in the design professions is a key strategy for changing the inequitable systems and policies that dominate urban/community development. CTUD works with secondary and post-secondary educational institutions and the design professions to expose, mentor, and develop a new generation of BIPOC design professionals. The design justice studio at MCAD starting in the spring of 2023 is an 8-week program with 15 BIPOC high school students to learn about design justice and urbanism.

CTUD shares podcasts, events, and resources that build knowledge and advocacy skills of BIPOC community members about design, real estate development, and economic development.

CTUD began a residency with GGN landscape architects in October 2022 to amplify GGN’s social justice and equity actions and advance social impact work in traditionally underserved communities.

CTUD drives systems change through work with policy makers, community organizations, design organizations, and philanthropy. CTUD currently is working with Equity in the Built Environment Committee (EBE) of American Institute of Architects MN (AIA MN).

CTUD works to increase equitable real estate practices in BIPOC communities. CTUD is working with community leaders in North Minneapolis on a wealth building strategy related to I-94. It is also engaged with the collaborative History, Hurdles & Hope (HHH) effort to further equity and environmental justice in development, with particular emphasis on the areas of the Twin Cities most affected in the unrest following the murder of George Floyd.

Funded by the McKnight Foundation and the Minneapolis Foundation and led by the Minnesota chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), the collaboration partners are the Center for Transformative Urban Design, Powderhorn Park Neighborhood Association, and the Center for Sustainable Building Research at the University of Minnesota.

Through discussions with community members and representatives from private, public, nonprofit, and philanthropic sectors, HHH is developing shared understanding of the historical context of land use in the U.S. and Minneapolis-St. Paul, identifying barriers and bright spots related to development, and informing a grassroots advocacy campaign and AIA Minnesota’s legislative agenda.

CTUD is also working with the Graves Foundation and MCAD to redevelop the historic Roberts shoe store site on Lake and Chicago.

Reimagining the Civic Commons is a national learning network of 12 cities that uses civic assets, parks, trails, libraries, and the public realm to build trust and change social isolation and economic segregation in cities. CTUD will become the convener taking over for the Minneapolis Parks Foundation in January 2023. Twin-Cities Reimagining the Civic Commons, a cross-city and cross-sector initiative, will use civic assets to heal, connect and eliminate systemic and institutional racism in the cities of Minneapolis and St.Paul.