Join us for the AIASF Design for Aging (DFA) quarterly forum presented by Dorit Fromm, architect, design researcher, and writer. She will share recent cooperatives in Switzerland that advocate for new forms of living together according to the principles of social, ecological and economic sustainability on former industrial sites. The cooperative members aim to create more common space, expand experimental housing, and foster intergenerational living.

Design for Aging Knowledge Community is a forum that meets quarterly on the first Tuesday in March, July, September, and December 2022 (12:00 pm - 1:00 pm, Pacific Time), and is open to all. One AIA Learning Unit, approval pending, will be available to attendees.

Please contact Jeff Heermann at jheermann@hkit.com to register for this event.

Dorit Fromm is a design researcher and writer, an architect, and has worked in communications for the design industry. Her book, Collaborative Communities, describes European and American models of housing where neighbors collaborate together to create their well-functioning community. Cluster Cohousing Revisited, co-authored with Els de Jong, is a (design+social) history and post-occupancy evaluation of the first Dutch cohousing community. Dorit is a long-time member of the Berkeley Prize Committee and the AIA’s Design for Aging Committee.

Learning Objectives (1 LU)

- Learn about the development of several recent Swiss cooperatives; how they meet the needs of coop members and contribute to their surrounding neighborhood.

- Understand how cooperative developers with member participation support non-traditional housing designs.

- View non-traditional apartment layouts that can reduce overall private floor space through shared space.

- Describe how one collaborative building can become an anchor for ongoing collaboration in a multi-building development.