2022 Class of Fellows, María Bellalta, Boston Chapter

Boston Architectural College, Boston, Massachusetts
by Staff

Boston Chapter Category: Knowledge

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Boston Chapter Category: Knowledge

María Bellalta's career is distinguished by more than thirty years of working across multidimensional platforms of research and teaching, academic administration, and practice in landscape architecture. María's research focuses on the urbanization of the Global South and its environmental and social impacts, work that is further informed by her ongoing ties to Latin America. Maria disseminates her ideas and knowledge through national and international lectures, teaching, research, and publications, including her recent book, [Social Urbanism: Reframing Spatial Design==Discourses from Latin America.] In her long career in private practice, María has worked on planning and urban design projects throughout the United States and the Middle East, with an emphasis on sustainable design for civic spaces and new urban landscapes. She leads international studios focused on "social urbanism" in Medellín, Colombia, and Mexico City, Mexico-rapidly expanding cities that exhibit ecological, economic, and social dilemmas exacerbated by the climate crisis. Since becoming head and dean of the School of Landscape Architecture at the Boston Architectural College in 2011, María has been dedicated to the development of the Bachelor and Master of Landscape Architecture programs, applying her knowledge of the profession, her years of distinguished practice, her rigorous administration, and inspiring teaching to the task. She is committed to expanding diversity in the academy and in the profession, while also helping to redefine our notions of just space.