Engagement Activities
"For Newcastle University, engagement refers to the many ways in which we interact with wider society. Engagement is not a 'third strand': rather, engagement is a critical approach to how we do our teaching and research activities."
- Newcastle University's Engagement Strategy
The School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape welcomes the University's engagement strategy which brings to the fore core values of our disciplines. In architecture, planning and landscape we are exploring the relationship between people, spaces and places and creating arenas for human flourishing. This depends on an understanding of people and contemporary society. Much of our teaching is directed toward developing professionals who can contribute to making places and buildings that enrich the quality of our society. The practice and academic strands are strongly intertwined with many colleagues researching how our disciplines develop effective ways of communicating with multiple publics in their pursuit of physical and built expressions of the good life.
To watch a video of our Engagement Coordinator talking about engagement within the School please click here.
Much of our research is of societal relevance from raising awareness of the importance of design through exhibitions and festivals; to the greater empowerment of communities; to work that shapes local, regional and national policy. Academics from SAPL are engaged in a range of work that not only consults local people but also co-produces knowledge. In teaching, our work on the University’s Partners Programme has enabled many young people to develop themselves into professionals who can make a difference, often in our own region.
The annual Planning Research Conference held in Newcastle in April 2009 saw speakers from the Newcastle Elders’ Council and from a local creative arts group speaking to delegates about their own research. This validating of different voices and experts by experience is important to us.
To contact us about engagement activity please email lucy.speak@ncl.ac.uk.