New York Global (Critical Writings and Proposals: 1970-2020. Housing, Infrastructure, Pedagogy)

Framed by the period of the Great Acceleration, these writings and projects represent a critical commentary on the state of architecture and urbanism and their causal role in global metamorphosis.

On the eve of Plunz’s status as Emeritus at Columbia University, New York Global bridges five decades of his pedagogical commitment to question the cannons of the design and urbanism fields and their relationship to the contemporary built environment. Global urbanization serves as a backdrop for a heightened consideration of the intermingling of housing, infrastructure, and pedagogy, as he negotiates the evolution of mainstream theory and praxis in architecture and planning.

Through interviews, syllabi excerpts, essays, discussions, and projects, New York City is projected as a lens for understanding the potential for metropolises everywhere to serve as firewalls against dystopic social inequities and ecological adversity. In questioning the discourse surrounding urban research and action, Plunz engages with the primordial question of “urban” itself. This book is not a cautionary tale, but rather an assemblage of timestamped evidence toward understanding our current condition. Closely studying the very tools that have fostered today’s environmental and societal consequences, each segment contributes to understanding engagement with a post-accelerated future.