Spring 2026 Lecture Series Opens January 22

From climate migration to threats to heritage sites around the world, the speakers in the Weitzman Spring 2026 Lecture Series offer perspective on some of the most pressing issues facing built environment professionals, cultural leaders, and policy makers today.

In keeping with the Weitzman School of Design’s interdisciplinary mission, the series appeals to artists, urban planners, and preservationists as well as architects and landscape architects. Speakers will explore the lessons of pandemic-era experiments for public space, the dynamics of urban renewal in Portland following a municipal plan to combat displacement, and how an interest in salt lakes became a mission to save our water systems, among other topics. A symposium and exhibition on the role of plants in nation building are the first of several programs organized for America’s 250th anniversary.

The series begins on Thursday, January 22, with a talk by Kofi Boone, whose work explores the overlap between landscape architecture and environmental justice.

Among the scheduled speakers:

• Sarah Oppenheimer, Artist
• Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi, Architects
• Thaïsa Way, Landscape Historian
• Stephen Kieran and James Timberlake, Architects

Admission is free and open to the public; advance registration is required for some events. Unless noted otherwise, lectures take place at Meyerson Hall, 210 South 34th Street, Philadelphia.

Visitors who require any accessibility accommodation, such as live captioning, audio description, or a sign language interpreter, are advised to email news@design.upenn.edu at least 5 business days in advance.

Because information is subject to change, visitors are advised to consult www.design.upenn.edu/calendar to confirm program details.

Select lectures are eligible for continuing education credit. Contact the presenting department or center for more information.

Thursday, January 22, 6:30pm
(Ad)Just Recovery: Facing Climate Migration Inequities
Kofi Boone, NC State University
Kleinman Energy Forum, 220 South 34th Street
Presented by the Department of Landscape Architecture

POSTPONED - Wednesday, January 28, 12:00pm
What Pandemic-Era Experiments Can Teach Us About the Future of Public Space
Ariel Ben-Amos, Philadelphia Water Department
Jason Brody, Hunter College
Josh Davidson, Oberlin College
Tya Winn, Community Design Collaborative
Presented by the Penn Institute for Urban Research and Department of City & Regional Planning

Wednesday, January 28, 6:30pm
The KPF Lecture
Marcelo Faiden, adamo-faiden
Presented by the Department of Architecture

Thursday, January 29, 12:00pm
The Black Space Project
Charles L. Davis II, University of Texas at Austin
Presented by the Department of Historic Preservation

Thursday, January 29 – Friday, January 30
Adventive America: Follow the Plants
Banu Subramaniam, Wellesley College
Maria Thereza Alves, Artist
Convened by Catherine Seavitt, University of Pennsylvania
Kleinman Energy Forum, 220 South 34th Street
Presented by the McHarg Center for Urbanism and Ecology

Wednesday, February 4, 6:30pm
The EwingCole Lecture
Antón Garcia-Abril, Ensamble Studio
Presented by the Department of Architecture

Wednesday, February 11, 6:30pm
Stephen Kieran and James Timberlake, KieranTimberlake
Presented by the Department of Architecture

Thursday, February 12, 6:30pm
Teaching Design as Art and Practice
Thaïsa Way, University of British Columbia
Kleinman Energy Forum, 220 South 34th Street
Presented by the Department of Landscape Architecture

Wednesday, February 18, 6:30pm
Lap Chi Kwong and Alison Von Glinow, Kwong Von Glinow
Presented by the Department of Architecture

Thursday, February 19, 12:00pm
The Ken Steif Lecture
Geoff Boeing, University of Southern California
Presented by the Department of City & Regional Planning and Master of Urban Spatial Analytics Program

Thursday, February 19, 6:00pm
Sarah Oppenheimer, Artist
Institute of Contemporary Art, 118 South 36th Street
Presented by the Department of Fine Arts

Monday, February 23 – Friday, February 27
Energy Week at Penn
Locations across campus
Hosted by the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy and the Vagelos Institute for Energy Science and Technology

CANCELLED - Thursday, February 26, 6:00pm
Guadalupe Maravilla, Artist
Institute of Contemporary Art, 118 South 36th Street
Presented by the Department of Fine Arts

Monday, March 2, 12:00pm
"You could have done us better than that": Repair after urban renewal in Portland, Oregon
Lisa K. Bates, Portland State University
Kleinman Energy Forum, 220 South 34th Street
Presented by the Department of City & Regional Planning

Thursday, March 5, 12:00pm
Expanding Knowledge, Deepening Impact: The Future of Preservation
Jonathan S. Bell, World Monuments Fund
Randall Mason, University of Pennsylvania
Kleinman Energy Forum, 220 South 34th Street
Presented by the Preservation Research Collaborative at Penn and Department of Historic Preservation

Thursday, March 5, 6:00pm
Finnegan Shannon, Artist
Institute of Contemporary Art, 118 South 36th Street
Presented by the Department of Fine Arts

Thursday, March 19, 12:00pm
Salt Weathering of Built Heritage Materials: How Scientific Research Can Better Support Practical Conservation
Davide Gulotta, Getty Conservation Institute
Kleinman Energy Forum, 220 South 34th Street
Presented by the Department of Historic Preservation

Thursday, March 19, 6:30pm
Media Matters
Karen M’Closkey, University of Pennsylvania
Keith VanDerSys, University of Pennsylvania
Kleinman Energy Forum, 220 South 34th Street
Presented by the McHarg Center for Urbanism and Ecology

Wednesday, March 25, 6:30pm
Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi, WEISS/MANFREDI
Presented by the Department of Architecture

Thursday, March 26, 12:00pm
Stop Asking for Permission: Shifting Preservation's Power Dynamics
Sarah Marsom, Heritage Resource Consultant
Kleinman Energy Forum, 220 South 34th Street
Presented by the Department of Historic Preservation

Thursday, March 26, 6:00pm
2025-2026 Sachs Visiting Professor Lecture
Sondra Perry, Artist
Institute of Contemporary Art, 118 South 36th Street
Presented by the Department of Fine Arts

Wednesday, April 1, 6:30pm
The Cunningham Lecture
Manuel Aires Mateus, Aires Mateus
Presented by the Department of Architecture

Thursday, April 2, 6:00pm
Rebecca Quaytman, Artist
Institute of Contemporary Art, 118 South 36th Street
Presented by the Department of Fine Arts

Thursday, April 2, 6:30pm
Salt Lakes
Caroline Tracey, Journalist
Kleinman Energy Forum, 220 South 34th Street
Presented by the Department of Landscape Architecture

Wednesday, April 22, 6:30pm
Earth Day: Celebrating Indigenous Voices
Kleinman Energy Forum, 220 South 34th Street
Hosted by the McHarg Center for Urbanism and Ecology

Thursday, April 23, 6:30pm
Shared Waters, Divided Landscapes
Tami Banh, University of Pennsylvania
Kleinman Energy Forum, 220 South 34th Street
Presented by the McHarg Center for Urbanism and Ecology