Making the Invisible Visible: Co-Designing with Marginalized Communities for Inclusive Cities
Urban planning often overlooks marginalized groups. This session explores participatory
methods that surface hidden needs and empower overlooked voices—from underrepresented
communities, youth groups, people with disabilities, to climate-vulnerable
residents—to co-design more equitable, resilient, and culturally grounded cities.
HOST: Jing Zhang, AICP
MEET THE SPEAKERS:
Ru’a Al Abweh
Ru’a is a community organizer, leadership coach, and urban planner who enables selfdetermination
through public space co-design, learning spaces for collective action, and coaching.
Iris Popescu
Iris is an architect specialized in inclusive design, combines architecture, research, and activism to
make accessibility and inclusion natural parts of the design process.
Rizqa Hidayani
Rizqa is an urban planner from Indonesia with focus on the intersection between building urban
resilience and promoting social inclusion.