Provost's Chair Professor Jeff Hou
ACCEPTING PHD STUDENTS
Faculty & Department
Joint Appointments
Head, Architecture, College Of Design And Engineering
Head, Architecture, College of Design and Engineering
Education
Doctor of Philosophy, University of California, Berkeley, United States
Bachelor of Architecture, Cooper Union University, United States
Bio
In a career that spans the Pacific, Professor Jeff Hou has worked with indigenous tribes, farmers, fishers, and villagers in Asia and inner-city immigrant youths and elders in North American cities, on projects ranging from the conservation of wildlife habitats to bottom-up urban placemaking. Before his appointment as the Head of the Department at DOA in 2024, Hou was Professor of Landscape Architecture and led the Urban Commons Lab at the University of Washington (UW), Seattle. He served as Chair of Landscape Architecture at UW from 2009 to 2017.
A pioneer in bottom-up placemaking and civic engagement, Hou’s published work includes Insurgent Public Space: Guerrilla Urbanism and the Remaking of Contemporary Cities (2010), Transcultural Cities: Border-Crossing and Placemaking (2013), Messy Urbanism: Learning from the “Other” Asian Cites (2016), Design as Democracy: Techniques for Collective Creativity (2017), and Emerging Civic Urbanisms in Asia: Hong Kong, Seoul, Singapore, and Taipei beyond Developmental Urbanization (2022). His collaborative publications received the EDRA Places Book Award in 2010, 2012, and 2018.
Hou’s career recognitions include his elevation to the Council of Fellows of the American Society of Landscape Architects (2023), CELA Outstanding Educator Award (2023), CELA Award of Excellence in Research and/or Creative Work (2019), Community Builder Award (2012) from Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority, and Gold Circle Award (2011) from the Organization of Chinese Americans Greater Seattle Chapter in appreciation for a lifelong contribution to the Chinese American and Asian American community and its heritage.
Hou received his Ph.D. in Environmental Planning and M Arch from the University of California, Berkeley, MLA from the University of Pennsylvania, and B Arch from the Cooper Union. He was the City of Vienna Visiting Professor at TU Wien (2013), a Fulbright Scholar in Taiwan (2015), a Landscape Architecture Foundation Fellow for Innovation and Leadership (2020), and a Visiting Professor at Awaji Landscape Planning and Horticulture Academy, Chiba University, National Taiwan University, Portland State University, and University of Southern Florida.
Contact Information
The “Other” Civic Urbanisms of Asia / How do everyday practices in cities and communities of Asia constitute forms of civic or participatory urbanism? How do these practices reflect agency and collectivity not recognized by current planning practices? How are they mediated? What can we learn from these longstanding and emerging practices to inform the planning and design of urban communities and environments? How can these lessons transform the practices of planning and design? Prospective students interested in these questions are encouraged to apply to our Ph.D. program in NUS Architecture under my supervision. Full scholarships are available for selected students.
Fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects. October 2023
Outstanding Educator Award. Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture. March 2023
Johnston-Hastings Publication Endowment Award. College of Built Environments, University of Washington, Seattle. For the book Emerging Civic Urbanisms in Asia: Hong Kong, Seoul, Singapore, and Taipei Beyond Developmental Urbanization. June 2021
Best in Building Health Leadership Award, presented to the Academic Advisory Group for the Viral Response Module. Center for Active Design. March 2021
Community Enhancer Award, for the realization of a more vibrant public space, presented by Seattle Neighborhood Greenways and Washington Bike Law, awarded to the Friends of Hing Hay Park (co-chair). August 2019
2019 Excellence in Research and/or Creative Work Award, Senior Level. Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture (CELA). March 2019
LAF Fellowship for Innovation and Leadership. For a project titled, Educating Design Activists in Landscape Architecture. Landscape Architecture Foundation. Spring 2019-Spring 2020
Community Stewardship Award. Neighborhood Revitalization through Community-University Partnership in the Chinatown-International District of Seattle. The 2018 WASLA Professional Awards, Washington Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects. November 2018.
Great Places Book Award. Design as Democracy: Techniques for Collective Creativity, edited by David de la Peña, Diane Jones Allen, Randolph T. Hester, Jr., Jeffrey Hou, Laura Lawson, and Marcia McNally. Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA) and Project for Public Space, 2018.
Fulbright Scholar Grant. Council for International Exchange of Scholars. Project: Creative Urban Commoning—Examining Alternative Placemaking in Contemporary Taiwan. 2015.
Great Places Book Award. Insurgent Public Space: Guerrilla Urbanism and the Remaking of Contemporary Cities, Jeffrey Hou (ed.), Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA)/Places. 2012
Community Builder Award. Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority. May 2012
Golden Circle Award, in appreciation for a lifelong contribution to the Chinese American and Asian American community and its heritage. Organization of Chinese Americans Greater Seattle Chapter. 2011
Award of Recognition for Excellence in Service-learning Education. Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture. 2011
Places Book Award. Greening Cities, Growing Communities: Learning from Seattle’s Urban Community Gardens. Jeffrey Hou, Julie Johnson, Laura Lawson. Environmental Design Research Association. 2010
Faculty Achievement Award for Work in Progress. College of Architecture and Urban Planning, University of Washington. For Urban Community Gardens book project. Co-recipient: Julie Johnson. 2006
Jeannette & David McKinley Faculty Award. College of Architecture & Urban Planning, University of Washington. 2004
As a locally engaged and globally connected scholar, my research and practice are situated at the intersection of civic engagement, public space, and social resilience. I have also written extensively on cities in the Asia-Pacific. For the past 25 years, as the volunteer coordinator of the Pacific Rim Community Design Network, I have led a growing network of community design scholars and practitioners in exchange and collaboration. Southeast Asia represents a growing area of interest for me and one of the main reasons that I joined NUS. Currently, I participate in the Southeast Asia Neighborhood Network (SEANNET). Supported by grants from the Henry Luce Foundation, the network facilitates collaboration and joint research on community and neighbourhood empowerment through participatory workshops, site visits, and research collaboration.
My Mentoring Style
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Selecting Research Topics?
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Setbacks / Challenges
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Feedback
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Consultation Frequency
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Research Group Meetings
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