What is resilient design? Who is doing it? How does it work in practice, and what might be included in the academic curriculum of a college focused on educating future professionals of the built environment? These questions formed the basis for the College of Architecture and Environmental Design’s (CAED) symposium on Resilient Design: State of the Art and Emerging Issues for the Built Environment.

The symposium held February 22 and 23, 2018 at Cal Poly, was attended by approximately 275 people each day. The event was endorsed for continuing education credit through the local sections of the American Planning Association (APA) and the American Institute of Architects (AIA). In addition to students and faculty from three Cal Poly colleges (CAED, College of Science and Mathematics (CSM) and the College of Agriculture Food and Environmental Science (CAFES)), members of 16 private consulting firms and three public agencies were in the audience. San Luis Obispo City Mayor Heidi Harmon and CAED Dean Christine Theodoropoulos welcomed the audience and set the stage for the symposium by highlighting local opportunities emanating from the “town-gown” relationship that can foster the future of resilient design between the city and the campus communities. Mayor Harmon presented the city's efforts that promote sustainability and adaptation to climate change.