RDAC + San Diego Design Week

Learning from Los Angeles: Christopher Hawthorne, City of Los Angeles Chief Design Officer, in Conversation

Cities around the world rely on various forms and scales of design governance to ensure design excellence in citymaking. As the 2024 World Design Capital approaches, how does San Diego want to take this opportunity to put into place design-led urban policies that address many of our most pressing issues, including housing, social justice and the environment?

Join AIA San Diego and the Regional Design Advisory Council for a conversation with Christopher Hawthorne, former architecture critic for the LA Times and current Chief Design Officer for the City of Los Angeles. He will be reflecting on his 5 years of service as LA's first CDO, discussing the wide range of complex projects that he and his team have engaged with and the challenges and opportunities of this unique position within the mayor's office. The presentation will be followed by a moderated discussion with Heather Ruszczyk and Megan Groth, Co-Chairs of the RDAC Design Governance Subcommittee, before opening it up to the audience for Q&A.