The University of Pennsylvania Weitzman School of Design will host a Special Session of the Mayors’ Institute on City Design in Philadelphia, PA from August 12-14, 2026.
At this collaborative workshop, mayors will engage with design leaders to find solutions to the most critical planning and design challenges facing their cities. Sessions are organized around case study projects: each mayor selects a project or challenge from their city that the mayor is actively working to address. At the session, mayors introduce their projects with a 15-minute presentation, and the attending mayors and design leaders identify important issues, offer suggestions, and discuss potential solutions. The interchange sparks lively debates, generates new ideas, and inspires creative thinking. Between these discussions, a Resource Team of design leaders from around the country also delivers presentations on their areas of expertise.
Hosts
The University of Pennsylvania Weitzman School of Design has long been at the forefront of research that advances public space as critical civic infrastructure. The school has a legacy of interdisciplinary leadership in design, planning, and public policy, with a proven capacity to convene expertise across sectors. With faculty expertise of the departments of Landscape Architecture, City Planning, Architecture, Historic Preservation, Fine Arts, and Urban Spatial Analytics, the University of Pennsylvania Weitzman School of Design educates the designers, the planners, and the artists of the future to address complex sociocultural and environmental issues through thoughtful inquiry, creative expression, and innovation.
Read more about MICD Institute Sessions here.