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Letter
Junior Year
Senior Year
Internship
Senior Project
Extracurriculars

Ian Rose

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Individual Study Plan

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Majors:

  1. Community, Environment, and Planning

  2. Geography: Globalization, Health, and Development

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Minor:

Urban Design and Planning

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Letter of Introduction -

 

The core theme or interest in my chosen course of studies is holistically sustainable urban design, and one of the central reasons I have always been drawn to it is the very reason that I consider truly effective education in this field to be a very complex process. I believe that to be a genuinely educated individual within sustainable design, one must not only know how to recognize, synthesize, and innovate solutions to everyday problems in a way that draws from and merges knowledge of everything from the most obscure biological adaptations to the most modern technologies to the oldest philosophies of human civilization and societal functionality, bringing all that together in a way that is exciting to the present, resilient and relevant in the future, and properly cognizant of the past. 

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I intend to refine and pursue interdisciplinary research throughout my CEP and Geography undergraduates as well as an MLA program focusing on city-scale biomimicry. Most centrally, I plan to study the intersections of ecosystem-scale biomimicry in ecological production/consumption networks, intra-species ‘governance’, and genetic or behavioral adaptations with modern and historical best practices in sustainable urbanization, smart cities, and post-capitalist/blockchain economics with the aim of applying this research to a synergistic network model of ecologically sound urban forms and features that facilitate innovations in universal post-sufficiency standard-of-living improvements.

Winter 2018

(M) GEOG 377 - Urban Political Geography (5)

Course Description

Examines how the spatial structure of cities and towns affects and is affected by political         processes. Considers both traditional and newer forms of politics, as global and local issues. Special attention paid to where politics takes place within local contexts across state, civil society, home, and the body. Instructors: Brown

 

Justification

After taking GEOG 277 this Summer, I have become increasingly interested in the intersections of space and power structures, urban inequality, and the relationship between built environment and the public’s sense of safety, belonging, motivation, inclusion, etc.

 

(M) ENVIR 439 Attaining a Sustainable Society (3)

Course Description

Discusses diverse environmental issues, the importance of all areas of scholarship to evaluating environmental challenges, and the connections between the past and the future, to reveal integrative approaches to protect the long-term interests of human society.

 

Justification

While I actively study and work in the realms of sustainability and effective energy transitions, resource, management, etc., I would really like to get exposed to the chronology and modern theories defining the movement of urban sustainability. Additionally, I think it will be highly valuable to explore these topics in a more seminar/lecture environment, as I usually work on these issues from the individual or small-team perspective.

 

(M) URBDP 598 Special Topics (2) UW Solar

Course Description

Systematic study of specialized subject matter. Topics vary for each quarter, depending upon current interest and needs, and are announced in the preceding quarter. Specifically: UW Solar, an interdisciplinary VIP program working on photovoltaics implementation, feasibility, design, and policy with UW and various community partners.

 

Justification

I have been working with UW Solar for the majority of my time at UW, and am currently working to implement photovoltaic arrays and BIPV on the new Population Health Building, as well as working with UW sustainability to set up a voluntary carbon-offset program called ASAP (another solar array please).

Autumn 2018

(M) GEOG 375 Geopolitics (5)

Course Description

An introduction to both political geography and geopolitics, addressing the fundamental links between power and space. Topics covered include: theories of power, space, and modernity; the formation of modern states; international geopolitics in the aftermath of the Cold War; the post-colonial nation-state; and the geopolitics of resistance. Instructors: Sparke

 

Justification

Fitting with my educational aims to better develop place-appropriate solutions to urban problems in a way that takes into account the ethnography, resources, and natural/political/social/economic environments of civilizations and ecosystems, the study of geopolitics will be incredibly important in understanding the relationships between these tangible phenomena and the human socio-political and financial realities of the modern world.

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As far as other electives/choices goes: I will also be completing CEP 446 (internship) during the Autumn Quarter of my Senior year.

Senior Project - 

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For my senior project in CEP, I would like to produce a working model and written proof-of-concept of an urban 'ecosystem' that utilizes a mixture of zen/philosophical design, high-performance sustainability, and permaculture techniques to solve many of the inherent inequality-causing inefficiencies in modern Western urban design/planning.

 

Thesis - sorta...

To study the intersections of ecosystem-scale biomimicry in ecological production/consumption networks, intra-species ‘governance’, and genetic or behavioral adaptations with modern and historical best practices in sustainable urbanization, smart cities, and post-capitalist/blockchain economics with the aim of applying this research to a synergistic network model of ecologically sound urban forms and features that facilitate innovations in universal post-sufficiency standard-of-living improvements. 

Internship - Campus Sustainability Fund Project Development

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I plan on continuing my internship position as the Campus Sustainability Fund's Project Developer, working to improve and streamline the organizational processes of project completion and bureaucratic navigation for student teams, as well as better synchronize and and simplify the relationships and approval/support routes within campus departments, professional offices, etc. My internship fits perfectly within my educational goals, as my job is to manage innovative sustainability projects of all sorts, as well as organize and improve the capacities of a of a grant funding program that operates in an actively progressive, equitable, and non-capitalist way.

Sustainability Action Network -

I will continue to be a member of the SAN executive council, working towards developing a more interconnected and productive sustainability scene on campus that balances the ecological, economic, and social justice aspects of sustainability.

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Environmental Innovation Challenge - 

I will be working on a concept urban mobility vehicle for the Alaska Airlines  Innovation Challenge, presuming I can secure prototype funding, with a team of designers and business students... which will probably take a lot of my time in the next year.

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Design Journalism - 

I've been offered a guest writing opportunity for the Futureish website and their associated ConFab Design magazine, and I aim to produce at least one research article, original design product, or design philosophy/language review per quarter for the remainder of my UW career.

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