Socrates Stratis

Director

Socrates Stratis (www.socratestratis.com ) is an urbanist, architect, and activist for the urban commons. He is a Professor at the Department of Architecture, University of Cyprus (UCY) and the director of UCY’s Laboratory of Urbanism (LUCY). Socrates is also the co-founder of the critical urban practice agency AA&U, Cyprus, (www.aaplusu.com ). His research focuses on the political agencies of architecture and urban design and investigates how the strategic and tactful values of urban design, as well as the social dimensions of architecture can inform critical urban practices. Socrates places emphasis on the methods with which critical architectural practice incorporates creatively political and environmental issues and seeks a role within a broader system of urban actors.  Socrates oscillates between diffractive practice and practice-led research, thanks to creative entanglements between teaching, practicing, curating, and writing. His publications include the “Guide to Common Urban Imaginaries in Contested Spaces” (Jovis 2016) and numerous articles. His curatorial and activist work includes the Cyprus participation in the 15th Venice Biennale of Architecture, (www.contestedfronts.org), as well as the “Hands-on Famagusta” project (www.handsonfamagusta.org). Socrates also has a multifaceted involvement in Europan Europe where he addresses contemporary urban issues in European and international networks of cities, professionals, and academics regarding the territorial turn of urban design.