#belonging-and-community

#belonging-and-community

"San Jose was an agricultural wonderland. They called it the Valley of Heart's Delight, and most of it has been paved over and turned into high tech now. But this is a connection to our past."

Architecture can no longer be conceived as an isolated object, detached from the technical networks that sustain contemporary life. This condition calls for new readings and approaches.

Most people leave doctor visits with prescriptions, but still feel unsure—instructions make sense, but no one asks about their life. In contrast, when a provider knows your name, remembers your story, and explains care in a way that fits you, the experience feels different—and that difference matters.

Growing up, I expected to live the fast-paced life of a performer. I'm a Jersey girl with a New York City spirit. My dreams were set on being a principal actor on Broadway.

A beer trap is another brilliant way to protect your plants. It may not completely rid your garden of these pests, but it does have benefits. For one, the beer trap traps and drowns slugs. The other is that, in the process, you are enticing them away from crops you want to protect.

In 2025, Dmae Lo Roberts embarked on a statewide storytelling experience focusing on personal stories from both artists and community members. These stories are a form of living oral history.

"I saw people who never knew each other [before] meet at the event and develop strong relationships. A lot of people came just to watch and be part of that community. That's when I knew this was special."

The Pet Assistance and Support Program has made it easier for thousands to enter shelters and move into permanent housing, serving 4,407 people between 2020 and 2024.

The Sanctuary of Dreams operates as a collective framework for imagining futures, developed within the universe of Toguna World to reactivate dreaming as a shared cultural practice rather than an individual act.

Indigenous communities have seen dramatic changes, from rescinding land-management policies that were more inclusive of Indigenous knowledge to reducing $1.5 billion in climate funding for tribal initiatives.

I would squirm in my chair as my new teacher worked their way through the class register, and my stomach would drop as they attempted to say my full name: Priti Ubhayakar.

As I watch masked federal agents rip apart Minneapolis and the social fabric of our country, I wonder how we will recover. Pretti and Good were shot trying to protect their neighbors. But will the bridges that community leaders, college outreach programs and policymakers built between immigrant communities and their adoptive homes crumble under the weight of the federal government's crackdown?

People say it takes a village to do difficult things: raise a child, sustain a community, build a barn. But we don't often talk a lot about what it takes to be a villager. What does it mean to not just be in a community, but to help create one? Priya Parker, author of The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters, says the key is to put yourself out there, even if it's scary.

"I feel like it was easier to connect with other transplants," she said. "Everyone seemed to revolve around hobby-based communities."

The air feels heavier. And the struggles are changing shape. Beyond my office walls, the world is shifting, and my clients sense the tremors. The things they once trusted, global order, democratic norms, and even their own personal safety, no longer feel solid. They feel brittle, as if one strong wind could bring it all down. And what they're sensing isn't imagined.