Studio Spotlight: Speculations on Social-Ecological Urban Futures

Inspired by a work of cli-fi, landscape architecture students reimagined Tokyo Bay to understand the site’s vulnerability to climate change.

Weitzman prepares students to address complex sociocultural and environmental issues through thoughtful inquiry, creative expression, and innovation. As a diverse community of scholars and practitioners, we are committed to advancing the public good – locally, nationally, and globally – through architecture, city and regional planning, the fine arts, historic preservation, landscape architecture, and urban spatial analytics.

Learn about our values and leadership

Making Space for the Public Good

Learn about Weitzman’s strategic priorities in action.

Rendering of urban park along winding river with Philly skyline in distance

We Are Weitzman

“I chose Penn for its flexibility in allowing students to pursue a dual degree of their choice.” Zachary Dietrich MArch/MSHP Student

“There’s something really interesting and mysterious, I think, about the ingredients that coalesce into a ‘Eureka!’ moment.” Ani Liu Carrafiell Assistant Professor of Fine Arts

Meet the people of Weitzman

The Latest

News

Story | 10.07.2026 Weitzman and Penn Medicine Faculty Will Bridge Architecture and Epidemiology with $3.5M NIH Pioneer Award

Story | 10.01.2026 Remembering John Dixon Hunt (1936 - 2026)

Squat red towers surround courtyard with rock garden in Chinese city

Story | 10.01.2026 Neri&Hu Tops Architizer's List of 100 Best Firms in China

Story | 09.30.2026 Lance Freeman and Michael A. Nutter on Social Mobility and Economic Development

In the media

UC Berkeley’s Newest Building Is All About Human Interactions

As designed by Marion Weiss and her firm, the new home to UC Berkeley’s College of Computing, Data Science, and Society gently reminds data scientists and AI researchers of what’s really important.

Metropolis

KieranTimberlake’s Expansion of Penn’s School of Design Reinforces the Character of the West Philadelphia Campus

The project "creates a model for the emerging designers, artists, and planners who will shape the future—giving them an inspiring space in which to create, study, and exchange ideas," writes Joann Gonchar.

Architectural Record

What If the Big Future of Market East Starts Starts … Small?

Meantime on Market, the latest experiment hosted by Meantime, a nonprofit founded by Brian Phillips, is “testing what Philadelphians actually want from one of downtown’s most under-used corridors.”

Philadelphia Magazine

100 Best Architecture and Design Firms in China

Neri&Hu, the firm led by Rossana Hu with Lyndon Neri, was named Best Architecture and Design Firm in China on a list of 100 firms blurring the boundaries between "traditional" and "modern."

Architizer

MSD-RAS Program Honored by ACADIA

The Master of Science in Design with a concentration in Robotics & Autonomous Systems has earned the 2026 ACADIA Innovative Academic Program Award of Excellence. ACADIA is the leading authority on computer-aided design in architecture.

Discover MSD-RAS

Students presenting polyhedral models to faculty critics

Up Next

Events & Exhibitions

October 1 - October 11 Architecture Exhibition “A People’s Philly“ at DesignPhiladelphia

October 10 - October 11 Fine Arts Exhibition 2026 MFA Open Studios

October 15 Architecture Lecture The Climate of Architectural History and Theory: Itohan Osayimwese

October 15 Historic Preservation Lecture Rethinking Orthodoxy: Preservation, Housing, Climate, and Community

Join the Conversation

With the Fall 2026 Lecture Series, Weitzman welcomes 40+ designers, artists, scholars, and policy makers from the US and abroad.

Aerial photo of park next to highway with curving terraces

Join the Weitzman Community

The application for 2027 admissions is now live!

Apply by January 6: Master of Architecture (M.Arch), MS in Architecture, MSD in Advanced Architectural Design (MSD-AAD), MSD in Environmental Building Design (MSD-EBD), and Master in Environmental Building Design (MEBD), MSD in Property Development and Design (MSD-PDD), and MSD in Robotics and Autonomous Systems (MSD-RAS)

Apply by January 13: Master of City Planning (MCP), Master of Landscape Architecture (MLA), Master of Urban Spatial Analytics (MUSA), Master of Fine Arts (MFA), MSD in Historic Preservation (MSD-HP), and MS in Historic Preservation (MSHP)

Start Your Application Now