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Changing neighborhoods, changing times
Lance Freeman stands with hands in pockets outside of a building.

Penn Integrates Knowledge Professor Lance Freeman, of the Weitzman School of Design and the School of Arts & Sciences, studies how people interact with the built environment. 

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Changing neighborhoods, changing times

Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor Lance Freeman of the Weitzman School of Design and School of Arts & Sciences studies how people interact with the built environment.

Kristina García

Combining AI and artmaking for youth well-being
Eileen Feng leans against a pole.

Eileen Feng, a graduate student in the Integrated Product Design, inside Tangen Hall. 

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Combining AI and artmaking for youth well-being

Through a community-led partnership project, graduate student Eileen Feng and an interdisciplinary, cross-school team are working with local youth to tailor an AI-supported platform for healing through creative arts.
Building bridges: A feat of engineering and artistry
The Glass Bridge

Architect Masoud Akbarzadeh and research assistant Boyu Xiao of the Weitzman School of Design, along with collaborators including Yao Lu of Jefferson University, defied conventional engineering by constructing a 30-foot-long bridge entirely from 16 millimeter hollow glass units. Their effort is now showcased at the Corning Museum of Glass.

(Image: Courtesy of the Corning Museum of Glass)

Building bridges: A feat of engineering and artistry

At the Corning Museum of Glass, professor of architecture Masoud Akbarzadeh and his team have turned fragility into strength with a 30-foot-long span of shimmering glass, blending ancient wisdom with cutting-edge design to redefine the future of structural engineering and architecture.
What can theoretical physics teach us about knitting?
knitted squiggles

(On homepage) A close-up of a highly structured self-folding knit, where carefully designed stitch patterns create a repeating wave-like geometry. This fabric’s shape is dictated entirely by its stitch arrangement, demonstrating how knitting can be programmed to form complex, three-dimensional structures without the need for additional shaping forces. Such advancements in knitigami—the fusion of knitting and origami—could lead to innovations in deployable textiles, soft robotics, and adaptive materials.

(Image: Courtesy of Lauren Niu)

What can theoretical physics teach us about knitting?

Penn physicist Randall Kamien, visiting scholar Lauren Niu, and collaborator Geneviève Dion of Drexel bring unprecedented levels of predictability to the ancient practice of knitting by developing a mathematical model that could be used to create a new class of lightweight, ultra-strong materials.
A rare on-campus assignment for preservation students holds ‘small revelations’
A historic black and white photo of Penn’s Weitzman Hall.

One of the photographs of Weitzman Hall made by historic preservation student Kate Whitney-Schubb and submitted to the Library of Congress for the Historic American Buildings Survey.

(Image: Courtesy of Weitzman News)

A rare on-campus assignment for preservation students holds ‘small revelations’

Weitzman historical preservation students were able to use a campus building slated to be altered for its class focus, which changed the stakes of the project and the approach students took to documenting the historic building.

From the Weitzman School of Design

Turning the desert into an oasis
People gather around a large map placed on the floor.

In Senegal, the ambitious Dakar Greenbelt project seeks to create an extensive network of ecological infrastructure in and around the city to sustainably address environmental concerns and enhance urban life. With support from David Gouverneur and Ellen Neises, Ph.D. candidate Rob Levinthal in the Weitzman School of Design led two courses that included a field trip to Dakar, that culminated in students presenting their visions for parts of the Greenbelt.

(Image: Courtesy of Chaowu Li)

Turning the desert into an oasis

Students from the Weitzman School of Design journeyed to Senegal to help with a massive ecological and infrastructural greening effort as part of their coursework. The Dakar Greenbelt aims to combat desertification and promote sustainable urban growth.
Jessica Varner on the long arc of built environment and its materials
Jessica Varner.

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Jessica Varner on the long arc of built environment and its materials

Varner, an assistant professor of landscape architecture at the Weitzman School, explores the intersections between architectural, environmental, and chemical history.

From the Weitzman School of Design

Lisa Servon wins award for community partnership
Lisa Servon talks with students in her practicum course.

Lisa Servon talks with students in her practicum course. 

(Image: Weitzman School of Design)

Lisa Servon wins award for community partnership

A professor in the Stuart Weitzman School of Design, Lisa Servon was recognized for her work with the Kensington Corridor Trust. The honor was presented by Provost John L. Jackson Jr. and Netter Center director Ira Harkavy on Dec. 16.

Kristina García

Protecting Indigenous heritage in an age of climate vulnerability
Wupatki Pueblo in Arizona at dusk.

Wupatki Pueblo, north of Flagstaff, Arizona, is among the villages built by Native peoples in the desert Southwest centuries ago. “We look at those sites as still alive, as offering us the opportunity to connect with our ancestors and to continue the work, and legacy of that work, of communing with that place,” says Chas Robles, ALCC’s executive director.

(Image: Colin Cohan)

Protecting Indigenous heritage in an age of climate vulnerability

A preservation plan being developed by researchers in the Weitzman School in consultation with local stewards conserves a millennium of human settlement.

From the Weitzman School of Design