Join Phil Gruen and Robert Franklin on April 8th for their pub talk, “Plutonium’s Places and the Columbia River Plateau”.
The Columbia River Plateau—renowned for its striking geography and agricultural productivity—is seldom recognized as a cultural landscape shaped by the lives of everyday people, and even less frequently examined through the lens of its vernacular built environment. In anticipation of the May 2026 Vernacular Architecture Forum (VAF) in Walla Walla, this talk draws from a community-engaged, interdisciplinary graduate seminar co-taught by Robert Franklin and Phil Gruen in spring 2024. The course focused on the people and architecture of east Pasco, Washington—a community long marginalized in the wake of plutonium production at the nearby Hanford site during World War II. Franklin and Gruen will share insights from the classroom and invite discussion on how to center complex narratives, including stories of indigeneity, within broader public conversations.
Science Pub: “Plutonium’s Places and the Columbia River Plateau”
April 8th, 2025 | 6:00 – 7:00 p.m.
April 8th, 2025 | 6:00 – 7:00 p.m.
In-person at Paradise Creek Brewing or Zoom