Aashna Singh

Social justice means equal rights, opportunities, and treatment for everyone. In New York City today, about 45,000 people lack housing and 750,000 people live in areas considered food deserts. Architecture and urban design can play a role in alleviating these problems. Hi Neighbor, a proposal for a block in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, is aimed at bringing equity and social justice to people living in the area and uniting the community. The proposal contains a blueprint for a community gathering space, created by taking land from people's backyards, an expanded food shelter with an urban farm providing fresh food, a water-harvesting pavilion to shade the block, and an affordable housing structure containing shared resources for the community. One block at a time, New York City can become a more equitable place to live in.