Shaping the City: A Forum for Sustainable Cities and Communities – a conference organised by the European Cultural Center in collaboration with the Chicago Architecture Biennial – will be held on December 10 at the Chicago Cultural Center.

The conference, which sees Domus as media partner, is now in its third year, tackling the issues of the city and contemporary urbanisation in the presence of a group of academics, urban planners, designers, architects and scholars. 

The conversations will gravitate around two key points, “Architecture for the People” and “Re-Imagining the City”, emphasising the primary role of design in shaping the relationship between inhabitants and urban spaces.

“Architecture for the People” addresses the social issues of the city, such as urban inequity, community displacement, new architectural values, inclusion and social equity, looking at community regeneration in different areas of the world and linking to the Chicago Architecture Biennial theme “The Available City”.  

“Re-Imagining the City” explores how the morphological dimension, including the architectural character and the urban environment, creates an identity for the city. The theme will critically examine visions of the future of cities, reflecting on the relationship between people and their physical space, always considering issues of inclusion and equity at the urban scale.