The Future of the Public Realm

WED-C10: Los Angeles Beyond the Car: Hidden Landscapes of Nature, Culture, and Power

Wednesday, September 16, 2026

1:15 PM - 2:30 PM PT

1.25 PDH, LA CES/HSW

Speaker(s)

Alex Marchinski, ASLA

Senior Project Designer
RIOS
Los Angeles, California
Adé E. Neff

Founder
Ride On! Bike Shop
Los Angeles, California
Nithya Raman

Councilmember
City of Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California

Experiencing a city at street level reveals hidden nature, social networks, and power dynamics. Through cycling in Los Angeles, this session uncovers grassroots cultures, equity struggles, and policy challenges, demonstrating how embodied movement and community engagement can transform how designers read, understand, and act within urban landscapes.

Learning Outcomes:

Use biking and walking to reveal hidden ecological, spatial, and social aspects of Los Angeles streets and apply these observations to strengthen site analysis and design understanding.
Identify and apply strategies for engaging local bike and pedestrian advocates and community leaders as meaningful collaborators throughout the design and planning process.
Evaluate how equity, race, and perception shape street design outcomes using Los Angeles cycling culture and policy as a focused case study.
Integrate experiential, movement-based site learning into design workflows to strengthen contextual understanding and inform more equitable design decisions.