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Articles on Design

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Individual rules against activities such as camping or just resting on a ledge may not seem like a big deal. But taken together, they make life more difficult for people without shelter. Robert Rosenberger

Spikes, seat dividers, even ‘Baby Shark’ − camping bans like the one under review at SCOTUS are part of broader strategies that push out homeless people

Anti-camping laws are the centerpiece of the ‘hostile design’ strategies cities use to push the unhoused out of public spaces.
WeChat aims to be everything to everyone but remain mostly in the background. Kevin Frayer/Getty Images

China’s WeChat is all-encompassing but low-key − a Chinese media scholar explains the Taoist philosophy behind the everything app’s design

The design philosophy of the everything app WeChat may seem paradoxical, being simultaneously pervasive and inconspicuous. But this idea of “everythingness” goes back to ancient Taoist philosophy.
As July temperatures soared to triple digits, hundreds of homeless people lived on the street outside Phoenix’s largest shelter. Mario Tama/Getty Images

Shelters can help homeless people by providing quiet and privacy, not just a bunk and a meal

As US cities struggle to reduce homelessness, two scholars explain how planners can reform shelter design to be more humane and to prioritize mental health and well-being.

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