Architectresses | Architektoniczki

BREAKING NEWS! We’re thrilled to share that our very own architectress , Honorata Grzesikowska, has been recognized as one of LinkedIn’s Top 25 Design Voices! 🎉 According to morpholio, Honorata is a true design leader—challenging norms, pushing boundaries, and redefining the conversation in the industry. Don’t miss out—follow Honorata to stay inspired!  https://lnkd.in/gA2SeheK Congrats Honorata !!!

Today we are presenting one of our reports, commissioned by the City of Krakow. It examines how urban spaces cater to women's diverse needs and experiences. It uses research, workshops, and spatial analysis to uncover gender-related inequalities embedded in the city's design. The study explores the limitations women face due to 1. gender identity, 2. age, 3. mobility impairments, 4. and caregiving responsibilities. By focusing on these challenges, the report advocates for inclusive urban planning that considers women's safety, accessibility, and overall well-being. It proposes recommendations to create a more equitable urban environment, addressing issues like lighting, street design, and public facilities to improve women's daily lives in Krakow. The study underscores the need for architects and urban planners to ask critical questions, and to incorporate gender and intersectional perspectives in order to build inclusive urban spaces. We invite you to dig in! The study "The City Gives Me Challenges Here" was prepared for the City of Krakow as part of the FEMACT-Cities  project by Fundacja Architectresses | Architektoniczki Several individuals and groups participated in the research: • Architectresses | Architektoniczki prepared the report, with Ewelina Jaskulska and Honorata Grzesikowska  as authors. • Gender Solution : Małgorzata Druciarek , Aleksandra Niżyńska, and Izabela Przybysz assisted with research and data analysis. • Primary School No. 7 • The Krakow Local Group (GLK • Women and mothers devoted their time to meet, talk, and participate in workshops. • Participants in the night walk: 13 women aged 24-65 • Mothers with mobility impairments: Four individual interviews and one research walk • Participants in online questionnaire and workshops: 75 people completed an online questionnaire, and 5 people participated in a 3-hour workshop session

A great podcast on women's safety in cities from my The Bartlett School of Sustainable Construction UCL colleague Professor Priti Parikh CEng FICE. This links well to next week's session on the Urban Form and Society module: https://lnkd.in/eH-Xi6Me

I’m thrilled to have presented the work developed at Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia’s Urban Sciences Lab with Architectresses | Architektoniczki this morning at the 8th International Conference on the Future of Women 2025, “Re-grounding feminisms: Theory and Praxis”. We presented Empowering Women through Sports: Data and Spatial Strategies, looking at how we can leverage data analytics to enable urban planning to critically and creatively empower women in sports through inclusive data driven and spatial strategies thanks to cutting-edge tools and approaches.  The paper, developed by Maria Isabel da Rocha Lima Honorata Grzesikowska Alexandra Poses and myself highlights the systemic barriers preventing equal participation of women in sports and proposes infrastructure, policy, and investment strategies to close the gender gap. Future data collection efforts, urban planning, facility designs, and policy initiatives must focus on equitable access, funding, and visibility to ensure sustained women’s participation in sports. Additionally, the paper, which will be published later this year, concludes with paths to secure the resources required implement data collection programs. Understanding feasibility of data collection and facility development is based on the ability to fundraise, secure grants, communicate with local leaders, and acquire technical resources. The content presented in this paper was initiated within the context of the Master in City & Technology 2023/24, and more specifically the Studio entitled “Internet of Gender Inclusive Buildings” of which the faculty was Honorata Grzesikowska, Iacopo Neri, M. Isabel Da Rocha Lima, and myself. We would like to extend our deepest gratitude to Alexandra Poses, Soham Bhanushali, Ionuț Mărieș and Nagendran Arumugam (students of the program) who conducted a Research entitled: Fields at Play that was one of the seeds from which this paper was born! More information about this project can be found at: https://lnkd.in/dmgSCZVi Congrats to all of the contributors of the conference, and their valuable inputs and actions!

✨ Exciting News! Our Erasmus+ Project SPARKLE Has Been Granted! ✨ We are thrilled to announce that our project SPARKLE – "Make Her Move" (PL: "Aktywna ONA, aktywna przestrzeń") has been officially granted funding under the Erasmus+ programme! This initiative is dedicated to tackling gender inequalities in urban planning and architecture, with a special focus on women and teenage girls. 🔹 What is SPARKLE? SPARKLE is an Erasmus+ KA210-VET 12-month research and educational project (Nov 2024 – Oct 2025) aimed at equipping architects, urban planners, and local authorities with the knowledge and tools to create public spaces that reflect the needs of overlooked groups. It involves research in Poland and Spain, analysing how teenage girls use schoolyards and parks, with findings used to create educational resources. 🔹 Why Does It Matter? Research shows that adolescent girls often feel excluded from parks, schoolyards, and other urban spaces and are inactive in public spaces. 🔹 SPARKLE has two main goals: • To expand European research on gender and the impact of public space on how people function based on their gender. • To provide architects, urban planners, and local authorities with the knowledge of how physical space design influences the trajectories of girls and women    🔹 Key Activities ✔ Collaborative Studies in Poland and Spain ✔ Creating Educational Material ✔ Workshops & Events 🔹 Who We Are This project is a partnership between: 🌍 Ewelina Jaskulska - Expert architect in gender-sensitive design and participatory processes. 🌍 Honorata Grzesikowska - Urban designer specializing in designing for spatial equity. SPARKLE aligns with the EU’s priorities on inclusion, diversity, and gender equality, contributing to a fairer and more accessible urban environment for all. 💡 Want to follow our journey? Stay tuned for updates as we take the next steps in creating more inclusive cities! #ErasmusPlus #GenderEquality #InclusiveCities #SPARKLEProject

Rewriting the Rules of City Design: Hello! We are Ewelina Jaskulska and Honorata Grzesikowska, the co-founders of Architectresses | Architektoniczki Foundation. We are on a mission to transform how cities are designed. Our goal is simple: 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲, 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝘂𝗿𝗯𝗮𝗻 𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲𝘀. We challenge traditional architectural and urban planning practices. Through data-driven insights, innovative participatory approaches, and deep research, we provide guidance and actionable next steps to change how space is used and occupied in cities. As women in a male-dominated industry, we know how important it is to bring diverse perspectives into the design process. Architektoniczki ensures that these perspectives are integral to the future of urban development. DM us to start the conversation and explore how we can work together!

Exciting News! Due to the growing international recognition of our work, we are proud to announce the addition of the English translation of "Architektoniczki" in Polish, which translates: "ARCHITECTRESSES" This marks an important step in celebrating the contributions of feminine architecture and furthering the conversation on spatial equity. Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to push boundaries!!! Ewelina Jaskulska Honorata Grzesikowska

Co robimy, co badamy, o co walczymy:

What defines a neighborhood? And how do we quantify it? Planning theories offer numbers and frameworks. I’m looking for examples of neighborhood-scale definitions and implementations worldwide. • How neighborhoods are defined in your region • Real-world projects or master plans that apply these scales • Innovative or context-specific interpretations of neighborhoods Contribute your insights in the comments or DM me 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆. Let’s map how neighborhoods are shaped worldwide. #UrbanDesign #NeighborhoodPlanning #CityDesign #Urbanism #Urbanitarian Urbanitarian Architectresses | Architektoniczki Ewelina Jaskulska

‼️ Evolution isn’t just physical: how caregiving defines women’s entire lives. Have you ever noticed how evolution timelines always show physical growth but ignore life’s responsibilities? What if we mapped not just age, but the hidden labor women carry throughout their lives? Here’s the reality: women experience only 15 years of self-focus through their life time ! And the rest? A lifetime of girls and women is fulfilled with caregiving or preparing for it. ▪️ From a young age, girls are subtly trained for care work. Helping siblings, doing chores—it all reinforces the idea that their purpose is to nurture others. ▪️ By adulthood, they’re balancing careers, raising children, and caring for aging parents—earning the title of the “sandwich generation.” ▪️ For many women, retirement doesn’t mean rest—it means moving on to the next job—caring for grandchildren. What if we reimagined this cycle? What if caregiving weren’t such a gendered expectation, and women had more opportunities to live outside of these roles? It’s important to recognize that caregiving is valuable and necessary, but it shouldn’t define a person’s entire existence. This is a part of our research work we do with Honorata Grzesikowska as Architectresses | Architektoniczki #architectresses #architektoniczki #CareWork #GenderRoles #WomenEmpowerment #FreedomBeyondRoles