The Rural Communities Design Initiative (RCDI) is a collaborative effort between WSU design disciplines at the School of Design + Construction, including WSU faculty in history, business, sociology, anthropology & communications, WSU Extension, and rural community partners throughout the Pacific Northwest. The RCDI aims to enhance the social, cultural, economic, and natural capital of unique rural places through design interventions in the physical environment.

 

RCDI is an action-oriented program of research focusing on the revitalization of small rural, under-resourced communities. Finding new ways to restore, preserve, and revitalize such communities can entice investors, encourage the young to stay, and provide opportunity for those who have left to return.

 

The RCDI promotes economic prosperity in small, rural communities through community engagement and participatory design in a Rural Community Studio (RCS). The RCS pairs the creative resources of design students and faculty with the goals of rural communities throughout the Pacific Northwest. The design interventions aim to transform the built environment through:

 

–Community visioning through participatory design

–Capacity building through community build projects

 

 

 

Mission Statement

The mission of the Rural Communities Design Initiative (RCDI) is to promote economic prosperity in small rural communities through a participatory process engaging a university and private sector collaboration with community memebers. The RCDI employs the physical environment to contextualize community capacity for innovation and provides technical support in the development of each communities unique plan of action for developing and sustaining economic vitality.

 

RCDI is a collaboration of academia and the private secotr engaging small rural communities and dedicated to building community prosperity, thus transforming how communities identify themselves and the economic opportunities inherent in their community.

 

Research

-White Paper_Paper for National Science 

 Foundation

PDF

 

-2012 Finding Linkages Symposium 

 Summary Report

PDF

 

 

RCDI Co-Directors

Kathleen Ryan
Assistant Professor, Interior Design
karyan@wsu.edu; 509-335-3815

 

Robert Krikac
Associate Professor, Interior Design
rkrikac@wsu.edu, 509-335-6845

 

School of Design + Construction

100 Dairy Road

Carpenter Hall 520

Washington State University

Pullman, WA 99164-2220