The Architecture Collegium has been functioning since January 2009. It started as an informal discussion forum for practitioners and teachers of architecture and allied disciplines, to share our professional concerns and exchange notes on relevant ideas.

The most useful by product of the Collegium has been the genesis of the Museum of Architecture. This initiative has gathered momentum over the last one year and is now almost at the stage of being launched as a public institution in partnership with the Council of Architecture, Indian Institute of Architects, and INTACH.

Over the years the need for opening the forum to other disciplines was expressed. Our concerns about the state of the profession and its relevance to societal needs is a fertile ground for discourse. To address this growing concern we have now taken the step of transforming the Collegium into a monthly public forum at the India Habitat Centre. It is now in the form of a series of talks followed by discussion and called "Architecture and Society Series". It is hoped that we can interact fruitfully with the general public to share concerns and collectively imagine a more convivial and civilised future.

The first talk in the series is on Thursday 9th July at 7 pm. The notification in the IHC calendar of events is given below:

TALK - Architecture and Society Series. A monthly series with architects & allied practitioners highlighting the relevance of architecture in terms of current social and professional concerns. Better Tools For Urban Planning by Priyanka Jain, Environments Design Director and Founding Partner, 3×3 Collab: Greha

Priyanka will talk about the challenges of working in low income and informal communities. She will share creative tools - storytelling, festivals, events, district branding and campaigning - that she has used in her work at 3x3 Design, and then open the discussion to understand the principles of community led development.

"A stronger awareness of citizen needs helps align community perspectives with urban development efforts. Traditional planning tools do not always elicit genuine participation or surface the information needed to gain new insights. Creative tools can enhance engagement, add meaning to data, and create streamlined processed for understanding local values, communicating vital information and reaching shared consensus for development."

Do join us for starting a process of discovering a more socially relevant architecture.