ENVIRONMENTS OF CRISIS & DESIGN
Explores emerging built environments designed to support people undergoing crises such as disasters, conflicts, forced migration. Focuses on psycho-social components to employ human-centered design lens to environments of crisis. Examines theoretical frameworks on stress, trauma-informed practices, supportive environments, and restoration. Investigates physical spaces in crisis environments and their health and wellbeing impacts. Evaluates design, policy interventions from lenses of equity and justice, human rights, and dignity.
Prerequisites & course information
Requisites: Junior standing Course Designation: Core GenEd - Natural Science & Wellness + Lab Level - Intermediate L&S Credit - L&S Liberal Arts and Science Grad 50% - Counts toward 50% graduate coursework requirement Repeatable for Credit: No Last Taught: Spring 2026 Learning Outcomes: 1. Examine theoretical frameworks in environmental psychology investigating human-environment relations in environments of crisis. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 2. Demonstrate familiarity with the breadth of human experiences in crisis situations focusing on the built environment. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 3. Describe health and well-being impacts of built environments on people undergoing crisis. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 4. Critically evaluate environmental interventions in spaces of crisis to investigate their psycho-social supportiveness. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 5. Apply theoretical frameworks in development of research questions within the context of environments of crisis. Audience: Graduate 6. Critique existing crisis contexts from a human-centered perspective. Audience: Graduate Learning Outcomes: 1. Examine theoretical frameworks in environmental psychology investigating human-environment relations in environments of crisis. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 2. Demonstrate familiarity with the breadth of human experiences in crisis situations focusing on the built environment. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 3. Describe health and well-being impacts of built environments on people undergoing crisis. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 4. Critically evaluate environmental interventions in spaces of crisis to investigate their psycho-social supportiveness. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 5. Apply theoretical frameworks in development of research questions within the context of environments of crisis. Audience: Graduate 6. Critique existing crisis contexts from a human-centered perspective. Audience: Graduate
Sources
- Course catalogue ↗2026-2027