Disruptive by design : the promise of the tech-enabled design competition

Abstract

At their best, urban design competitions offer access to innovative design thinking for competition sponsors; high quality spaces for the benefit of the public; and career advancement for designers. However, many feel that competitions are falling short of these aims, frustrating organizers and exploiting designers while leaving the public largely out of the dialogue. This thesis explores the potential of web-based social technologies to improve the urban design competition model so that it better serves all parties. It establishes a current model for urban design competitions before examining some precedents for related processes that have been disrupted by emerging social technologies. The study concludes with a proposal for a new, tech-enabled urban design competition on the eastern side of MIT's campus.