Research and service
With faculty actively engaged in research and a host of opportunities to learn and to serve at home and abroad, the Interdisciplinary Design Institute offers students a rich experience.
Learning at home . . .
Our students learn through real-life, service-oriented projects within local communities. In recent studios, students have designed green housing for Habitat for Humanity and developed plans for a University District in Spokane.
Through the Institute's annual charrette, students have created doghouses for SpokAnimal, designed a Spokane Gateway, and explored ideas for the Great Spokane River Gorge Park.
. . . And abroad
Our faculty have connections around the world—Oslo, Beijing, London—that translate into valuable opportunities for students. In Spring 2007, for instance, a team of faculty and students traveled to China and Tibet to observe housing styles, mixed-use dwellings, solar housing, and more.
Faculty research interests include:
- Environment–behavior relationships
- Land use and environmental planning
- Urban space as interior design
- Lighting design
- Observation-based research methodologies
- Art and architectural aesthetics
- Urban material culture
- Aging and the environment
- Social basis of design
- Design–build collaboration
- Design criticism and theory
