President's Report – Wrapping up 2011

We couldn't quite let 2011 roll to a close without a bit of a wrap up on what we have been up to and a few thank yous. It's that time of year of course, when time and attention spans are short – so the following is sub-titled for your convenience. Feel free to skip over the boring bits!

Volunteers

Our active volunteer base has increased following a session for new members in August. We welcomed 12 new people to our team, who have been primarily involved in words, pro bono and news.

IntentCITY – The Political City – Now online

Our first ever book, launched last year during the State of Design Festival: IntentCITY – the political city, was this year made available in digital format through the website. Find it here.

Pro bono service

There had been discussion of pro bono taking a break this year to build capacity in other areas, which is why you may have noticed it's been quiet in these parts. A project already on the books, the Fitzroy Learning Network kitchen, was completed – some of us attended the launch and it was fantastic to see the goodwill that the project had generated and the positive difference it has made to the outstanding work of the FLN, who provide education and training and general support to recently arrived immigrants and refugees. Following August's volunteer session our team has expanded and in 2012 we'll be looking at ways to similarly expand our reach to communities in need. We're sorry to be saying farewell to Edith Wong, who has been a long-standing member of the pro bono team – with us from the start. Thank you Edith for your sustained commitment to the team and your belief in the value of pro bono over the past few years. Edith will continue to be involved in the A4P committee of management.

Talks

A huge thank you to Kamil Muhammad, who ran the series this year and did it in style! 2010 was such a successful year that the increase in workload for the words team became at times overwhelming. There was a move to trial the series on a quarterly basis this year to allow more preparation time and flexibility. Anthony McInneny has recently stepped up as coordinator and the lineup for 2012 is already in the works – stay tuned.

News and editorials

Editor Ceridwen Owen led another fine year of thought-provoking monthly editorials. We are delighted that Ceridwen was able to continue as editor in 2011. The news team continues to grow, with contributions from A4P members worldwide. The critical dialogue that goes on through our website, newsletters and facebook page is a credit to the engagement of our members – thank you for your input and we welcome more of it! The facebook page has been particularly active this year which is a credit to Beatriz Maturana's social media prowess. You may have noticed the monthly newsletter turning up in your inboxes is looking slicker these days - we have the talents of webmaster Peter Johns working his technical wizardry behind the scenes to thank for that. Ajith Kuruvilla has also recently joined the news team.

Thank you...

There are many people to be singled out for a thank you. A huge thank you is due to our supporters, including Architeam, Visionary Design and Development (especially Mary Ann Jackson and Ralph Green) and the RMIT Public Art Department (especially Geoff Hogg and Ceri Hann), to those who spoke at words@bldg50 , particularly Professor Kim Dovey, Michael Howard and Che Biggs and to our pro bono architects. Thanks also to our new active members, in addition to Katherine, Soledad and Ajith, we welcome Dina, Elinor, Farah, Jana, Jose, Lina, Paul, Ruth and Stefan. Thanks to all of you for your ongoing support – whether it be coming along to a talk, posting a news item or taking on a pro bono project - we couldn't do it without you!

The team in 2012

Thanks to those who attended our AGM on Thursday 1 December. It was great to have some newer members involved in the discussion and we hope to do more of it next year. Introducing our Committee of Management for 2012:

Beatriz Maturana - Vice President
Soledad Maldonado – Secretary
Kamil Muhammad – General member
Katherine Sampson – General member
Edith Wong - Treasurer
Anthony McInneny – General member and words@bld50 coordinator

We especially welcome Katherine and Soledad who are new to the team and have also recently become active in the pro bono team where we have already grown to value their enthusiasm and proactive approach – looking forward to working with you next year!
I will be continuing as president in 2012 and would be delighted to discuss any suggestions or initiatives you might like to put forward as a member of Architects for Peace. If you have been wondering how to become actively involved, please feel free to drop us a line.

Wishing you all the best for the festive season!

Eleanor Chapman
Architects for Peace President, 2011