Studio Appalachia: Global Post-Mining Network Collaborative Research Initiative (RPA Pilot/ Seed Project)

The proposal seeks to situate an emerging body of engaged-design scholarship based in Appalachian Kentucky within a global network of research focusing on the shared design and planning challenges in post-mining communities. For many years, the prevailing thinking about Central Appalachia was that international solutions might be found in the developing world (Lewis 1978, Caudill 1963). Over the last two decades a new body of literature has emerged about so-called Shrinking Cities (Oswalt 2005, Ryan 2012), acknowledging that aside from well-known financial centers, much of the industrialized world is in a state of population decline or stagnation. As such, the international precedent for Appalachian Kentucky is more likely found in the mining basins of Europe and South America. In addition to the slow-moving challenge of demographics, climate-change has accelerated pressures on the region. Recent flooding catastrophes have dramatically impacted Southeastern Kentucky. Appalachian communities, particularly post-mining communities will continue to face flooding issues and see dramatic shifts in the future related to socio-economic impacts due to climate change, leaving many grappling with next steps for a more resilient future (Kohli 2022). As communities and national agencies continue rapidly address the built environment to respond to immediate needs, we see opportunities in this state of crisis. How can communities respond to and be transformative in the development climate resilience? Finally, how we respond collectively to rebuild rural communities in the face of ongoing disasters and societal shifts can change perceptions.