Van Alen Placemaking Evaluation Fellowship: Call for Senior Fellows

How do you tell a story that humanizes public data, and helps people truly understand the impact and value of public spaces?

The Van Alen Placemaking Evaluation Fellowship provides hands-on experience evaluating the power of design to bring life to public spaces. Fellows work together to evaluate the quality of public life at 2-3 sites in New York City using the tools and methods of Gehl, a pioneer in understanding how design of public spaces can improve civic life. Launched in October 2022, the Fellowship is currently active with its first cohort of six fellows.

Van Alen seeks up to two Senior Fellows to join our cohort and support by imparting valuable knowledge around data visualization and storytelling. Senior Fellows will help the cohort take its collected data and observations, and produce a variety of creative, impactful images that express the insights they have gained into how public spaces serve communities, and how those spaces might be made more inclusive. Selected Senior Fellows will have a demonstrated passion for making sense of data, and telling clear, compelling stories through art and design. Given that access to and comfort with digital image-making tools varies widely within the cohort, those with enthusiasm for “lo-fi” approaches to data visualization are strongly encouraged to apply.

Senior Fellows can expect to explore the city through Van Alen’s co-produced installations and programs, and get some hands-on experience with Gehl’s tools and methods for observing the civic life of public spaces. Senior Fellows can also expect the visualizations they help the cohort produce to be shared with Van Alen’s network of partnering designers and community organizations.

• Designing and leading approximately 1-2 sensemaking workshops 
• Reviewing and analyzing data collected at 3 sites in New York City
• Converting data collected into more accessible language (including visuals)
• Designing and leading a data visualization workshop with fellows 
• Independently offer one-on-one support for fellows working on their final projects
• Attend culminating event where final projects will be presented
• Collaborate with Van Alen’s Communications Team on strategies for presenting and disseminating the findings of the fellowship

All applicants should be eligible to receive stipend payment via forms W9 or W8BEN.

Fellows will receive a stipend of $1800 for participation in the program.

• Week of 01/30 Senior Fellow selected
• Week of 01/30 Agreement signing + Orientation
• Week of 02/16 Senior Fellow leading sensemaking workshop
• Week of 02/20 Launch of Installation in Downtown Brooklyn (Optional)
• Week of 03/06 Sensemaking + Data Analysis Workshop with Senior Fellows (data collected prior)
• Week of 03/20 Data Analysis + Visualization Workshop lead by Senior Fellows
• Week of 03/27 Sensemaking Data Workshop with Senior Fellows
• Week of March 27—Week of April 24 One-on-one final project support from Senior Fellows
• Mid March—Mid April Independent Data Analysis/Final Project Draft
• End April Data Analysis/Final Project Draft submission + feedback
• May 25/26 Final Project submission + presentations

Optional Activity

• June 2023/July 2023 (exact date TBC) Field trip to Albany, NY to share observations and learnings with Albany Design Fellows

Fill out the google form below by 6pm EST on Sunday January 29, 2023. All applicants will be notified of the status of their application by 1pm on January 31, 2023. 

Please note: selected applicant(s) should make themselves available for a 1 hour orientation call via Zoom on 01/30 or 01/31

Please contact Didintle at dntsie@vanalen.org by Friday January 27, 2023 at 6pm EST.