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Catalina Freixas



Catalina Freixas has taught in the Sam Fox School since 2004. She is engaged in urban humanities research and practice, with a focus on resiliency in natural, built, and social environments. She has developed a series of research questions and metrics for analysis that connect the natural, economic, and social facets of the urban environment, and a quantitative model to evaluate eco-urbanism strategies. Her work also has focused on the broad range of consequences of urban segregation locally, leading to the book Segregation by Design: Conversations and Calls for Action in St. Louis (Springer, 2019). Her research has been supported by grants from the Missouri Humanities Council and The Divided City initiative, among others. She has shared her findings widely through conference presentations and in peer-reviewed papers and publications.

Freixas weaves her approach to resilient design into the studios and seminars she teaches and has had a significant impact on the trajectories of the careers of students in the Sam Fox School’s undergraduate and graduate programs. She is the advisor for the School’s undergraduate minor in architecture—a position that has ensured a growing interest in architecture, participatory design, and resilience among the broader WashU student body—and has served as director of the Architecture Discovery Program for high school students since 2012. Based on her work related to equity and social policy, Freixas also has been appointed an affiliate professor in WashU’s Social Policy Institute.


Publications & Research by Catalina Freixas

Segregation by Design discusses racial segregation in American cities. Using St. Louis as a point of departure, it examines the causes and consequences of residential segregation, and proposes potential mitigation strategies. While an introduction, timeline, and historical overview frame the subject, nine topic-specific conversations—between invited academics, policy makers, and urban professionals—provide the main structure. Each of these conversations is contextualized by a photograph, an editors’ note, and an essay written by a respected current or former St. Louisan. The essayists respond to the conversations by speaking to the impacts of segregation and by suggesting innovative policy and design tactics from their professional or academic perspective. The purpose of the book, therefore, is not to provide original research on residential segregation, but rather to offer a unique collection of insightful, transdisciplinary reflections on the experience of segregation in America and how it might be addressed.

Publication Details
Segregation by Design: Conversations and Calls for Action in St. Louis
Editors: Catalina Freixas and Mark Abbott
Springer, 2019
621 Pages
ISBN 9783319729558

Lime green cover of Perspectivas Urbanas 7

Perspectivas urbanas 7

Contributor
Published by Universidad Europea Madrid

Course-Related Publications

Segregation By Design [4.0]: A Historical Analysis of the Impact of Planning and Policy in St. Louis (October 2019)

Authors: Catalina Freixas and Mark Abbott

2019 Teaching Assistant and Assistant Editor: Cierra Higgins, MArch/MUD

Contributors: Celine Grisham, Catherine Hunley, Nakesha Newsome, Matthew Lum, Kia Saint-Louis, Sophie Scott, and Lingyue Wang

Inclusion & Neighborhood Resilience [STLMO]: Designing for Equity in Post-Industrial Cities (January 2019)

Author: Catalina Freixas

Editors: Larissa Sattler and Erin Socha

Contributors: Historical Research: Megan Folkmann, Molly Meyer, and Larissa Sattler. Urban Analysis: Sofia Aguirre, Rachel Bennett, Megan Folkmann, Molly Meyer, Larissa Sattler, Erin Socha, and Haokun Wang. Site Model: Carmen Chee, Dylan Draves, Kyle Kapaun, and Mason Radford

Segregation by Design [3.0]: A Historical Analysis of the Impact of Planning and Policy in St. Louis (October 2018)

Authors: Catalina Freixas and Mark Abbott

Teaching Assistant Editor: Danielle Bagwin

Contributors: Anton Beer, Mesha Bisarya, Maddie Farrer, Michael Ge, Noah Treviño, Ali White, Alexandra Green, Joshua Milligan, and Lynette Riley

Segregation By Design [2.0]: A Historical Analysis of the Impact of Planning and Policy in St. Louis (2016)

Authors: Catalina Freixas and Mark Abbott

Teaching Assistant Editor: Danielle Bagwin

Contributors: Nicholas Gori, Kathryn Karl, and Tianna Williams

Segregation By Design: A Historical Analysis of the Impact of Planning and Policy in St. Louis (2016)

Faculty: Catalina Freixas and Mark Abbott

Teaching Assistant Editor: Maeve Elder

Contributors: Percy Avalos, Danielle Bagwin, Ashlee Cooksey, Christine Doherty, Lyle Hansen, Hallie Nolan, Julia Phillips, Kaety Prentice, Shelbey Sill, Nicolas Smith, Jordan Thompson, Ryan Wilson, Yong Yuan. Harris-Stowe State University students: Edward Alexander, Niesha Clark, Iana Newton, Phill Owens, Tiabi Gill, Feven Girmay, Kiara Boykin, Craig Davila, and Montez Miles

Inclusion & Neighborhood Resilience: Designing for Equity in Post Industrial Cities (2016)

Faculty: Catalina Freixas

Contributors: Daniel Aguilera, Lindsley Etienne, Suzannah Grasel, Savannah Hecker, Amanda Malone, and Xinzhi Pan