OurPlan in YourNeighborhood: Using Technology to Engage and Educate Changing Communities

Just about every other neighborhood in Philadelphia has been embroiled in debates around land use, equity, and fears of displacement. The specter of gentrification looms large in the imagination of the average Philadelphian, and studies suggest Black and Latinx renters are disproportionately impacted by the city’s rising property values. After piloting the technology in a MUSA practicum in 2019, Urban Spatial LLC is launching “OurPlan”, a free, open-source, web-based technology that uses videos and surveys to teach and engage communities around their neighborhood’s land use issues.

Join City and Regional Planning Assistant Professor Akira Rodriguez and alum Sydney Goldstein (MCP‘18) to learn about how OurPlan combines community engagement and technology to help neighborhoods plan for equity and preservation - two outcomes that are hard to square, particularly in gentrifying neighborhoods. This technology attempts to grapple with urban planning’s most wicked problem: how can we grow a place without disrupting the fabric that makes that place special?  

If you require any accessibility accommodation, such as live captioning, audio description, or a sign language interpreter, please email news@design.upenn.edu to let us know what you need. Please note, we require at least 48 hours’ notice. If you register within 48 hours of this event, we won’t be able to secure the appropriate accommodations.