Learn more about designer partnership opportunities.

On March 13, a group of DFW-area designers, urban planners & architects gathered at our office to learn about [bc]'s various designer partnership opportunities. At the social, [bc] shared with attendees the upcoming projects that need design partners to get involved. Below is an overview of the short presentation given during the social as well as the accompanying slides.

Call for Designers:

[bc] is seeking local designers and professionals interested in getting involved in their communities. Design partners can participate in a variety of ways. These roles include:

a Design Team Member committed to seeing a project through
a Reviewer to give expert advice and critical feedback to Design Teams, or
a Volunteer to give support for a one-day event or activity.

We are asking every designer interested in becoming a Design Partner to fill out the Designer Information Form. Tell us more about your skills, experience, and interests so that we can reach out to you about projects and communities that need you.

Visit our Call for Designers web post for regular updates, announcements and project opportunities. We hope it will become an active, local resource for collaboration and engagement with neighborhoods in our city.

Projects currently seeking Design Partners:

Little Free Libraries/Libros Libres
Little Free Libraries/Libros Libres is a literacy and community design initiative in Dallas that uses free book exchanges to build community and promote a culture of reading. Part of the Little Free Library movement (www.littlefreelibrary.org), these small neighborhood book shelters operate under the guiding principle of “take a book, leave a book.”

The project makes books available through a sustainable, low-resource, high-access model that supports the health of the neighborhoods by fostering collaboration and relationships. Dallas residents work alongside artists and designers to plan, design, build and sustain Little Free Libraries, creating new outlets for accessing books that reflect their neighborhoods.

A selected designer or artist must commit to participating as the design and construction leader for the creation of a LFL in an assigned location in southern Oak Cliff. The LFL must be durable, replicable, or a high quality (as determined by their peers and project partners), reflective of the community in which it will be installed, and promote a culture of reading. Little Free Libraries will be cared for and become cherished by their stewards and community and as such should be accessible and welcoming for all to use and enjoy.

Public Design Impact Initiative
Earlier this year, [bc] released a Request for Proposals to allow nonprofits and community organizations to tell us what their design needs are through the Public Design Impact Initiative (PDII). Project proposals were welcome from all community groups, ranging from large and established nonprofit organizations to smaller and less formal community groups, regardless of their size or scale of work. [bc]’s goals for PDII are:

to find projects that mutually benefit community groups/organizations and the communities where they work.
to provide or match those projects with capable architects and designers who meet the needs of those projects.
to ensure both partners have a productive experience and create a positive outcome.
to provide technical support throughout the duration of the project.

Up to six projects will be selected to be matched with design services per year. Project selections for 2015 will be announced at the end of March.