RUDC has long been one of AIA’s Knowledge Communities most deeply connected to our allied professions. We take pride in that — our events, and especially the annual RUDC Symposium, consistently draw more non-architects than architects. That’s exactly as it should be. Urban design is inherently interdisciplinary; it thrives on many voices.
As I write this, just ahead of the RUDC Symposium in October (although you may be reading this after the symposium has wrapped), I’m looking at the registration list with real enthusiasm. It’s a vibrant mix of urban designers, architects, landscape architects, planners, academics, and city officials, among others — all bringing their own lenses to the work of shaping better communities. I’m certain the conversations will be lively, generous, and rejuvenating as we each return home inspired to make bold, meaningful contributions in our cities.
This year I had the opportunity to attend three major gatherings — the National Planning Conference in Denver, the AIA Conference on Architecture & Design 2025, and most recently, the ASLA Conference on Landscape Architecture in New Orleans. At ASLA, President Kona Gray, FASLA, PLA, offered a beautiful reminder: “We are not separate from the systems we design. We are part of them.” Reflecting on the legacy of Kongjian Yu, he continued, “He taught the world that resilience can be beautiful and that we can make friends with water.”
That message—delivered in a revived city two decades after Hurricane Katrina — resonated deeply. Ecological resilience, infrastructure investment, and cultural cohesion are not separate ambitions; they are interdependent systems that must be considered in concert.
The same refrain echoed across all three conferences: we need one another. Our disciplines cannot operate in isolation. The most substantive and equitable progress toward a sustainable, just world will only happen when we stand together — even alongside those with whom we might disagree. As Mitch Landrieu, former Mayor of New Orleans, advised the ASLA audience, “Be soft on the people and hard on the problems… People will rise to the occasion if you think the best of them, not the worst.”
In our daily work, we ask communities and civic leaders to imagine optimistic futures. When we do this well, we practice empathy — we listen and interpret, not just design. That same empathy must extend beyond the project boundary. Building a durable coalition of designers, citizens, and neighbors is the foundation for a more resilient and humane future.
I’ll end with one more reflection from Kona Gray: “Mother Nature is the ultimate designer and teacher. For all she gives us, Mother Nature needs us too, now more than ever.”
Let’s keep learning from her and from one another as we tend to our collective futures.
Scott Archer, AIA, AICP, LEED AP ND
2025 RUDC Chair