Celina Su

Celina Su is an Associate Professor of Political Science at the City University of New York and a co-founder of the Burmese Refugee Project. Her research focuses on civil society organizations, participatory community development and policy-making, and youth empowerment. She authored Streetwise for Book Smarts: Grassroots Organizing and Education Reform in the Bronx (Cornell University Press, 2009) and co-authored Our Schools Suck: Young People Talk Back to a Segregated Nation on the Failure of Urban Education (NYU Press, 2009). She is a long-time CUP fan, as well as a contributing researcher and writer to its City Without a Ghetto project.

Sean Suchara

I am Graphic Designer, Illustrator and Image-Maker based out of Long Island, New York. I split my time between Art Directing/Designing the Independent Architecture magazine Take Shape and working as a freelancer in a variety of mediums and formats. In spite of the many hats I put on in my work my aim is always centered on making work that is accessible and educational, work that seeks to humanize and emphasize information and work that isn’t afraid to be made with play or humor. 

Hot Sundae

Hot Sundae is 50% Amelia Irwin and 50% Nicole Killian. They met a year ago while working their design day job at Nickelodeon. After realizing they both had the same beliefs over Degrassi Junior High they decided to join forces to create a new super-powered design duo. Amelia had already been trained at Cranbrook Academy of Art and Nicole decided to do the same. 50% of Hot Sundae is from the trails of Appalachia and the other half is from the snow piles of Buffalo. 100% of them like kittens, ice cream, drawing, typography, and pizza. Hot Sundae is currently working with CUP on the Keeping Parks Public MPP.

Stacey Sutton

Stacey Sutton is an Assistant Professor of Urban Planning at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP), and the Founding Director of the Community & Capital Action Research Lab (C2ARL). Stacey’s research and teaching engages questions broadly related to social, economic and spatial equity within cities.  More specifically, Stacey examines local economic development concerns, retail landscapes, neighborhood change and community planning processes with a strong New York City focus. Stacey joined the CUP Board in 2011 and hopes to expand the CUP methodology within the academy.

Marcela Szwarc

Marcela is a graphic designer, illustrator and artist. She loves being challenged by both creative and social projects, and is especially dedicated to projects regarding environmental justice, women’s rights, and the arts. Currently, she is designing for the Institute of Children, Poverty and Homelessness. Her favorite color is salmon.

Visit website

http://marcelaszwarc.net

Alex Tatusian

Alex Tatusian designs publications, records, environments, and magazines.  He works on civic and social problems in New York and recommends you read Toyo Ito’s “Architectural Scenery in the Saran Wrap City”. He will gladly get a beer and noodles with you at Deluxe Green Bo.  

Melisa Tekin

Melisa Tekin is a graphic designer based in Queens, New York. She holds a B.A. in Urban Economics and Marketing, and a BFA in Graphic Design. Melisa works with community advocacy organizations, small businesses, and corporate clients to help them build and maintain a compelling visual identity for their brands. Melisa believes that good design is an important marketing tool, and aims to bridge the divide between good design and pressing issues in her community through her work. tekindesigns.com

Tenants and Neighbors

Tenants and Neighbors is the largest tenant’s rights organization in the New York State, with 15,000 members. For more than 30 years, through grassroots organizing, T&N has forged a powerful movement in the fight to preserve affordable housing, strengthen tenant protections, and sustain diverse and livable communities. They collaborated with CUP on the MPP Predatory Equity.

Students from The Big Squeeze

Students from The Academy of Urban Planning participated in an Urban Investigation on micro-units in New York City. Those students were Antonio Capellan, Miguel Ruiz, and Christopher Viquez; with help from Marcus Carlos and Bernardo Nuñez.

The Brooklyn Community Bail Fund

Brooklyn Community Bail Fund secures the freedom of New Yorkers who would otherwise be detained pretrial due to their poverty alone. They are committed to challenging the criminalization of race, poverty and immigration status, the practice of putting a price on fundamental rights, and the persistent myth that bail is a necessary element of the justice system. CUP collaborated with Brooklyn Community Bail Fund to create Bail’s Set, What’s Next?, a guide that helps bail payers understand the difference between the four types of bail, and navigate the process of paying. https://brooklynbailfund.org/

Students from The Good, The Bad & The Empty

Students from the BCCP’s afterschool program at Walt Whitman Middle School participated in an Urban Investigation on empty lots. Those students were Alex Frederick, Ragjay Green, Jeannegeilia Mathelier, Freddie Larry, Angela Weeks, Evette Drawhron, Latifah Shim, Stephan McKenzie, Lauson Albertine, Deshawn Lindo, and Shanice McBean.

The Legal Aid Society

The Legal Aid Society is a 501© non-profit legal aid provider based in New York City. Founded in 1876, it is the oldest and largest provider of legal aid in the United States. Its attorneys provide representation on criminal and civil matters in both individual cases and class action lawsuits. The Legal Aid Society works throughout New York City to ensure everyone has access to justice. CUP teamed up with the Legal Aid Society to create Yours to Keep, a poster that breaks down the key steps in the foreclosure process and helps homeowners in NYC understand their legal rights and options to keep their homes. https://www.legalaidnyc.org/

students from There’s No Business Like Small Business

Students from the School for Legal Studies in class worked with CUP and Teaching Artist Sam Holleran on an Urban Investigation that investigated the future of small businesses in NYC. 

Elijah Thomas

Elijah Thomas is CUP’s Spring 2021 intern. He’s currently pursuing a BA in design at Queens College and hoping to minor in Sociology. He grew up in Queens, and ever since he was a kid, he’s wanted to pursue something in art because of his love of cartoons and comics. He pursued graphic design after realizing how impactful a simple design can be. He hopes his work can someday touch the lives of many people on a daily basis, helping them in any way, whether it’s making them laugh or sharing new information.

Whitney Thomas

Whitney is one of CUP’s Fall 2020 interns. She is from Chicago, IL and attends Stanford University where she majors in Urban Studies with a concentration in Urban Society and Social Change. She’s interested in dismantling systems of inequality found in urban environments and aims to center marginalized voices and communities in her academic and professional careers. Whitney is excited to intern with CUP this fall!