Giving It 1%

Somehow I got on an email list I never signed up for, but in this case I'm glad I did. I've been receiving information for the last several months about a campaign by the nonprofit institution Public Architecture called the "1% solution", intended to increase investment of time and money by the design profession in public spaces. Here's their explanation:

"Based on a 40-hour workweek, one percent represents a modest 20 hours per year per person. Were all 240,000 architecture professionals in the U.S. to sign on, the collective resources would be the equivalent of a 2,500-person firm (the largest in the world) working fulltime for the public good, totaling an estimated 5,000,000 hours annually."

"Launched in 2005, the 1% Solution program grew out of the realization that no formal mechanisms exist to encourage, support, or even simply recognize architects’ pro bono work."

I'm certainly not one who should be casting any stones, because I honestly don't spend much time on volunteer work. But Public Architecture has signed on numerous member firms that have pledged 1% in time and money. One thing I noticed, though, is that there are five firms in the state of Washington that have signed on, 27 in California, and even two from Arkansas, among several others. But there is only one Oregon architect signed up, a sole practitioner in Beaverton called Stonhaus.Ark.

Comments

[Lauren]

Does anyone know who Stonhaus.Ark is? Or where there work is? I've been interested in Public Architecture for some time and am curious what this looks like.

[Brian Libby]

If you click on the link for Stonhaus in the original post, it should take you to a page on the 1%/Public Architecture site with the firm's contact info.

[Sean]

Having only recently run across this thread, I am a bit late in commenting, but thought I should chime in.

I am stonhaus.ark. Fairly modest in all aspects. My single preson firm (ha) gives my 1% of hours in all forms: feasability study, schematic design, documents, permitting and a heafty amount of simply advising those that cannot afford to hire a professional.

More recently I have become part of SERA Architects who now have a 1% program of their own. Presently the SERA 1% effort is working with p:ear to help design a new home for their program on 6th and Flanders.