Sign in

Anjulie Rao

@anjulierao.bsky.social
1.9K followers 701 following 340 posts

I write about the built environment. Bylines in a lot of places. Anjulierao.info

PostsRepliesMedia
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
I visited the American College of Building Arts, a liberal arts school in Charleston that trains students in classical building trades. This is a story about young people: growing up in a world that is literally falling apart, they are building something that lasts. www.dwell.com/article/acad...
dwell.com
Inside the Unconventional College That Blends Classical Building Trades With Liberal Arts Education
Students at Charleston’s American College of the Building Arts are finding hope for a stable future in mastering crafts like blacksmithing and architectural carpentry.
0147
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
namhenderson @namhenderson.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
#ICYMI re: #ObamaCenter "a monument to an era of American optimism. It’s successful in the way that fattening a goose yields a tastier liver. " www.archpaper.com/2026/06/bara... via @anjulierao.bsky.social
archpaper.com
011
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
Katerra Historical Society @lilboolean.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
good read from @anjulierao.bsky.social www.dwell.com/article/arch...
dwell.com
I Learned Exactly Why American Architects Stay Tight-Lipped About the Government
Design professionals have highly practical reasons to keep their opinions to themselves.
063
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
Michael McLean @michaelmclean.me · 14/07/2026
Taxpayers are about to pay $163k per stall for a new city-owned parking garage. The last one we built was at Millennium Park. Sold it off and the operator says it’s operating at a loss now.
3437
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
I love that suddenly everyone is taking an interest in structural engineering
071
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
For The Architect’s Newspaper I wrote about the Obama Center. Since people are mad I guess I should clarify now that this piece makes a distinction between two different versions of hope. And only one of those could cost $850 million. www.archpaper.com/2026/06/bara...
archpaper.com
1153
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
If anyone is looking for a take on Everlane’s sale to SHEIN and the mythology of “millennial optimism” please call me I’ve been writing this since 2016
1121
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
Billy Fleming @joobilly.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
It's Earth Day, which means you should preorder my new book, "Building Postcarbon Futures: Land, Justice, and Energy Transitions." cup.columbia.edu/book/buildin...
cup.columbia.edu
Building Postcarbon Futures | Columbia University Press
What would a postcarbon future look like? How would a more just, decarbonized world require us to change the way we live? What would it take to build this wo... | CUP
12711
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
◥◤Kriston Capps 250 @kristoncapps.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
During a hearing on Trump's arch, White House ballroom designer James McCrery said that the new monument needs to be mindful of Robert E. Lee's home: “All of that land on the other side of that bridge used to belong to him, and the nation took it from him” www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
Trump’s ‘Triumphal Arch’ Is Vastly Larger Than Other Washington Monuments
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum pitched the president’s plan for a 250-foot-tall monument before a federal design commission — and a very skeptical public.
5125
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
My dad worked on some of the earlier forest service satellite programs that would measure heat to easily track how fires would spread. When I was kid he’d talk abt how the same tech would be used to predict malaria outbreaks, heat-related deaths, and lots more. Guess that’s irrelevant
041
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
Imagine posting a racist video on the culminating day when thousands came together to slingshot 4 people around the moon. Imagine holding hate when we can watch in real time as a solar body enters the camera frame. Imagine boiling about borders when we are so close to infinity.
A photo of the screen depicting the Infinity capsule 3 minutes from the moon. The caption reads “and even more smiles. Thanks Reid. Copy hard [sic “heart”]. Copy bracelet.” The astronaut made a heart symbol with his hands and pointed to a bracelet with his kids’ names spelled in beads.
0105
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
👀👀👀👀
030
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
It is now spring. Congratulations—we all made it.
15911
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
Feeling bored might start a journalism square dancing league
040
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
Hi! Are you a millennial who once used the internet to obtain real-life social opportunities? Did you use CouchSurfing, Craigslist for rideshares, time banks, etc etc etc? I want to talk to you!
044
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 16/02/2026
I see that Lyft has updated its terms for users to include that you agree to waive your right to a jury trial
010
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
Chicago: Any insight into why Girl I Guess hasn’t endorsed in the 7th? This pool is too deep
110
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
Kim “A1” Bellware is one of the most talented reporters out there. Thorough, ambitious, devoted to reporting stories in their fullest. She mentors young journalists and brings integrity to every place she works. Hire her.
000
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
If you’re in Chicago, I’ll be in conversation with architects and engineers from SOM to present my work on demolition, material “recycling,” and erasure on February 9. Come! www.eventbrite.com/e/replacemen...
eventbrite.com
Replacement and Reuse, Reconsidered
Join this dynamic talk focused on reuse over demolition—how existing materials can be repurposed to shape low-carbon urban futures.
1213
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 03/02/2026
There are 44 days until spring.
1202
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
Ogling this track suit in the same way I ogle the sleeper car to San Francisco
060
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
Susan Rinkunas @susanrinkunas.com · 22/01/2026
NEW: An Atlanta-area crisis pregnancy center has raked in more than $1 million from an unusual source: the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The CPC is opening a maternity home, worrying advocates that residents may be coerced into relinquishing children for adoption. @autonomynews.co
autonomynews.co
One Crisis Pregnancy Center Has Received $1.1 Million in Federal Housing Funds Since 2020
A Georgia anti-abortion organization is building a maternity home. Public opposition surfaced allegations of false advertising and medical licensing issues—and resulted in cease and desist letters.
21491280
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
I get frustrated when the conversations happening about starter homes are why we aren’t building new ones. I get frustrated because we’ve locked out an entire swath of people who would normally be eligible to buy the ones that already exist. I wrote about it for Dwell: www.dwell.com/article/bank...
dwell.com
Can We Blame the Banks for the Dearth of American Starter Homes?
The popular narrative for why there’s an insufficient supply of houses for first-time buyers centers on new construction, but small dollar mortgage policy is a big barrier worth further critique.
0114
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
Heather Cherone @heathercherone.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
BREAKING: Chicago paid $26.5 million to more than 1,000 employees for working extra hours between 2020 and 2024, even though they were not eligible for overtime pay, according to a report released Wednesday by the city’s watchdog. @wttw.bsky.social
news.wttw.com
City Paid $26.5M in Overtime to Ineligible Employees: Watchdog
“The city’s finances are, needless to say, in an extremely precarious place, and we can ill-afford mistakes which run well into the eight figures,” Inspector General Deborah Witzburg said
2197
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 06/01/2026
Can someone please expand on if nyc is good at addressing tenant complaints about substandard or dangerous building conditions?
110
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 30/12/2025
In 2025 I wrote a lot. Gave birth. Upped my teaching game. Helped bargain a winning union contract. It was a hard year. No recaps; just gratitude to editors who patiently coaxed the best work outta me, friends who supported me, readers who shared my work, students who gave their best. Xo
Anjulie and baby in front of IM Pei’s pinkish NCAR facility
2291
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
Hey this is a good time to tell people that if you want to read an article in the New York Review of Architecture, they give you three free articles a month. You provide an email when prompted. Please read things before commenting; it’s like taking 10 deep breaths before yelling at a stranger.
1141
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
Charles Louis Richter @richterscale.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
SKULL OF THOMAS AQUINAS: TAKE A LEFT NOW PRIEST: No, the GPS says we have to keep going— SKULL: I KNOW A SHORTCUT PRIEST: Do you remember the last ti— SKULL: FOR THOSE WITH FAITH, NO EVIDENCE IS NECESSARY; FOR THOSE WITHOUT IT, NO EVIDENCE WILL SUFFICE
126182386488
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
Thank you to the Nieman Lab for inviting me to think about a topic close to my heart (and bank account): the near-future of cultural reporting
061
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 08/12/2025
I wish I could throw a holiday party for all the freelancers in Chicago. Between the newsroom-only bowling leagues and softball teams in the summer, the end of the year seems pretty bleh
050
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 05/12/2025
I’ve been waiting eagerly for a NYTimes article titled “I stopped speaking to my parents because they vaccinated me.” It would be the perfect story that disguises anecdotes as evidence.
150
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 01/12/2025
Hi! Were you required to go back to the office after several years of working from home? I want to talk to you (anonymously, if you like!) about your experience of the physical office you came back to. DMs are open!
011
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
Elizabeth Blasius @blaservations.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
For MAS Context, I investigated what happened to Gerri's Palm Tavern, a legendary Bronzeville venue established in 1933 that survived World Wars, urban renewal, disinvestment, and urban attrition, but ended up a victim of aldermanic prerogative, and an ill conceived development plan.
mascontext.com
What Happened to Gerri’s Palm Tavern?
Gerri Oliver stewarded Chicago’s Palm Tavern, a storied Bronzeville venue rooted in the Jim Crow era, for nearly seventy years until a convergence of…
33311
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
Tressie McMillan Cottom @tressiemcphd.bsky.social · 22/11/2025
Someone is going to have the write the thing about how “vibe” has become a substitute for meaningful theory in a world where the theory is so clear — grift and power — but we collectively refuse if because it isn’t sophisticated enough to generate make work for empiricists.
51269174
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
Uh well a lot of adjunct faculty are about to lose their jobs for no reason except someone else’s vanity—including myself. This is to say if anyone needs someone with 10 years of experience teaching urban design criticism, climate change narratives, writing for artists, etc…I am available.
2117
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 18/11/2025
“Things happen”
030
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
Heather Cherone @heathercherone.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin begins her office's annual budget hearing by announcing that the city will no longer buy U.S. Treasury securities to protest the Trump administration's aggressive immigration raids. CONTEXT: Conyears-Ervin is running for Illinois' 7th Congressional District.
214232
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
My last big story for the year is up at @dwell.bsky.social: I spoke with ~a dozen millennials who left big cities during or after the pandemic. What I found was a lot of people trying to redefine what ‘upward mobility’ might mean: www.dwell.com/article/rura...
dwell.com
The Millennials Who Ditched Cities During the Pandemic Would Like a Word
As a result of Covid, many young people moved in search of more affordable lifestyles. But in today’s America, is there any place left where you can have it all?
23011
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
Uh this is a weird moment to ask but if you’re planning on participating in any kind of “exodus” I’m writing a book about that and would love to talk to you
040
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
I like to believe that Chicago stands firmly in the “a better world is possible” camp. Sending love and solidarity to anyone voting for that premise today.
090
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 03/11/2025
What is this on whitehouse dot gov
Screenshot of some type of page on whitehouse dot gov that parodies MySpace, called “mysafespace” for Hakeem (Jeffries?)
261
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
My new essay is up at @dwell.bsky.social: in the depths of postpartum depression, I found solace in the IKEA Catalogue Museum. www.dwell.com/article/the-...
dwell.com
The Unexpected Healing Power of the Ikea Catalog
After I brought home my first child, poring over archival issues of the now-defunct publication transported me out of dark feelings and a chaotic household.
061
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
Christopher Nygren @cnygren.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
🚨🚨🚨 Major announcement!!! I am extremely pleased to announce that HAA is searching for a senior, endowed position in premodern art or architecture. The subfield is wide open. Please spread the word and encourage curious scholars to write to me with questions! 🚨🚨🚨 cfopitt.taleo.net/careersectio...
cfopitt.taleo.net
William S. Dietrich II Professor of Premodern Arts and/or Architecture
Click the link provided to see the complete job description.
44639
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 29/10/2025
This might be a long shot but: I'm looking to speak with architects/developers who have worked on affordable housing projects that required (or got feedback to include) some type of 'historic complement' aesthetic—massing, materials, etc—for a story. Recommendations appreciated! thanks!
387
Reposted by Anjulie Rao
Daniel Kay Hertz @danielkayhertz.bsky.social · 27/10/2025
ICYMI: Chicago's new public developer, the Residential Investment Fund, has a Request for Information for private developers interested in a potential partnership! The RIF has access to a $135m revolving fund to build permanently mixed income housing. Learn more: www.chicagorif.com/work-with-us
chicagorif.com
Work with Us | Residential Investment Fund
0132
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 22/10/2025
This whole White House demolition saga has big “Dwight Schrute buys replica of Uday Hussein’s desk” vibes
050
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 16/10/2025
I’ve covered extensively the “return to office” as it has played out in architectural work; design is sold as a means to ‘attract’ workers back is some kind of red herring. It was never about magnanimity or workplace happiness. The beer taps and pod seating were sticks dressed as carrots
091
Anjulie Rao @anjulierao.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
For the upcoming EVERYTHING CHICAGO symposium on Friday, I’ll be moderating a panel about public space, featuring some of the city’s most important shapers of the public realm. 9:30am! Driehaus museum! Register to attend (or just show up) www.eventbrite.com/e/everything...
Panel description: 9:30 AM — Common Chicago: Public Space
Ideas about transforming shared outdoor environments into spaces for collective life, moderated by journalist and critic Anjulie Rao. Panelists include Chicago practices: Ross Barney Architects, Future Firm, Resolver Studio, Site Design Group, Studio Becker Xu.
050