Hopecast is a series of five hopeful summer podcasts on how architecture can contribute to social change. In each episode, de Architect editor-in-chief Merel Pit and Nature of Hope curator Catherine Koekoek will speak with a guest from the design world about how their work fosters hopeful change and about the challenges and opportunities they encounter along the way. The Hopecast podcast series is a production of de Architect in collaboration with the Architecture Biennale Rotterdam.
All of the guests blend a social and societal perspective with a practical emphasis on sustainability and materiality in their work. The talks are inspired by the meetings that take place at the Practice Place during the IABR 2024 exhibition with the goal of building alliances for the transformation of the practice of architecture.
#3 – The Design Process as a Catalyst, with Pinar Balat https://open.spotify.com/episode/059ntCF6Lzc3uwpHPJDVNE
Pinar Balat combines a commitment to equity with ambitious ecological goals. As an architect and urban designer, she envisions creating a forest in the concrete-heavy, postwar neighborhood of Pendrecht in Rotterdam. Who is the client? She is. Her goal is to enhance the neighborhood’s ecological and social resilience. In the third episode of the Hopecast podcast series by de Architect and the IABR, she discusses the advantages of being her own client, particularly in terms of involving residents in the design process. By not working for a housing association, client, or municipality, she emphasizes that she can truly focus on serving the needs of the people.
