Power to Puerto Rico: Putting resilience in context
Economic development expert Deepak Lamba-Nieves offers background for a lecture by architect Jonathan Marvel.
October 29, 2018
Recorded on September 17, 2018.
The Franzen Lecture was established by The Architectural League in 2006 in honor of longtime League trustee and distinguished architect Ulrich Franzen, in recognition of his enthusiastic support for League programming on environmental issues.
Hurricane Maria, which made landfall in Puerto Rico on September 20, 2017, caused devastating damage across the island. Power failed in a total blackout; it was only fully, and seemingly precariously, restored in mid-August 2018, a full 11 months later. Over the past year, Puerto Ricans have dealt with shortages of all kinds, including water, materials, and appropriate levels of post-disaster aid.
On September 17, 2018, the League invited architect Jonathan Marvel to discuss the ongoing work of Resilient Power Puerto Rico at the 2018 Franzen Lecture on Architecture and Environment. (Watch Marvel’s lecture.) As part of the event, Deepak Lamba-Nieves, the research director for the San Juan-based think tank The Center for a New Economy, provided an overview of current conditions, challenges, and opportunities for development in Puerto Rico.
Robert Kirkbride, dean of the Parsons School of Constructed Environments, and Rosalie Genevro, executive director of The Architectural League, offered brief remarks before his talk.
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