This is a vertical studio combining undergraduate and graduate architecture students. The students may choose from a diverse range of options of study proposed by different faculty members. In general the studio options are grounded in a conceptual basis that invites theoretical and/or programmatic innovation. These studio options may vary from year to year.COURSE DESCRIPTIONThis studio is one of several CCA courses that will partner with Greenville, a small town in the Sierra Nevada mountains nearly destroyed by the Dixie Fire in August of 2021. For several generations, Greenville has been sustained by the region’s ecological resources, through timber, ranching, and recreation. However, these industries have also depleted natural resources, redirected wealth from local workers to corporate shareholders, and denied Indigenous Maidu rights to land. In response, our studio will ask: how can Greenville rebuild by creating a more sustainable, inclusive, and regenerative economy?In contrast to an extractive economy, which depletes resources and labor for distant profiteers, a regenerative economy sustains the well-being of land and people while giving locals decision-making control, responsibility, and profit. To learn about regenerative economies in Greenville, we will visit the town, witness burn sites, share meals with our partners, and collaborate with local experts in timber, ranching, recreation, and fire-protection. We will create resource flow diagrams, make site strategy proposals, and then design buildings and landscapes that make these visions possible. Projects might include, for example, a locally-owned sawmill and maker space, a Maidu land trust, a slaughterhouse and market for local ranchers, or a firebreak repurposed as a camping wonderland. 

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