The recent events in the US and the agitation for justice and equality by the Black Lives Matter movement has forced every profession and organization to re-examine how their practices may have contributed to the discrimination and the exclusion of Blacks, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC).
While every profession can initiate programs to address issues of justice, equity, diversity and inclusion within their own organizations there is an opportunity for the allied professionals to pull together to make greater gains. One such issue is the low university enrolment of BlPOC students, particularly Black and Indigenous, in architecture, landscape architecture, and planning programs.
This proposal seeks to use storytelling through digital media to reach out to high schoolers. Videos featuring the career journeys of Black professionals in Canada in the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, and planning will be developed. The intention is threefold:
- Make visible the underrepresented professionals in these fields.
- Expose students to these careers and demonstrate how these professions intersect.
- For the students to see themselves reflected in these professions and encourage them to explore these careers.
The videos’ wider audience reach will increase university enrolment and raise a new generation of Canadian Black architects, landscape architects, urban designers, and planners.