Topos Design Lab (from the ancient Greek word topos, meaning ‘place’) is an international community of scholars who embrace engagement, dialogue, and the application of place to design, advance human well-being, environments, and society. Drawing from a range of fields and single - and interdisciplinary approaches, we focus on facilitating place in meaningful research, striving to overcome the barriers of place in ourselves, our communities, and our regions. The Topos Lab is based at RMIT University, Australia.

MISSION STATEMENT

Advancing place research through interdisciplinary and focused approaches

AIMS

• Foster, celebrate, and promote place-based and design research

• Assemble a collective of place-based scholars, thinkers, and practitioners 

• Lead a world-class research group aiding human society

​OBJECTIVES

• Build a network of place-based and design scholars, thinkers, and practitioners

• Initiate events, publications and promotion of place-based research

• Advance place-based research through collaborations and outcomes

ADVOCACY

• Working with government, institutions, and foundations to promote place

• Developing principles, policies, and guidelines about place

• Alleviating barriers to stronger recognition of place

ACTIVITIES

• Publication of scholarly and creative outputs

• Yearly symposium and conference about place-based themes

• Public outreach programs