Mumbai-based architect is revamping NYC’s public housing

Mumbai : Vaidehi Mody’s interest in urban place-making, or the process-driven strategy of planning and building spaces with and for the people, stems from her training as an architect in Mumbai. Maximizing value, encouraging better urban planning principles, and adding to the health, happiness, and well-being of the community are all goals of place-making. Vaidehi recognised the significance of this potential influence as a designer and enrolled at New York’s Pratt Institute to learn more.

Since 2019, she has been improving the quality of life for low-income New Yorkers through her work in the public sector in one of the world’s most vibrant and exciting cities. Vaidehi began as an intern and is now a Senior Planning Consultant with New York City’s public housing agency, where she promotes and manages a revolutionary programme called “Connected Communities.” She oversees initiatives involving collaboration, new approaches to policymaking, and public input into the planning and design process. This initiative has garnered a lot of praise and will likely win an award in 2020, such as the worldwide Well Being Cities Award.

Vaidehi is particularly pleased with the Open Space Masterplan project she led for the city’s public housing, the first master plan of its kind in the organisation’s history. This initiative has won numerous prizes and will result in millions of dollars being invested into public housing landscapes.

The 28-year-old Mumbai resident thinks that design is only effective when it is created in close cooperation with the people it is designed to serve. She wants to get the word out about the positive effects of public sector planning work and encourage many aspiring planners to pursue careers in that area. Her ongoing efforts to unite the realms of policy, planning, and community in order to create novel approaches to improving the built environment are inspiring.