WELCOME TO PLACELAB
PlaceLab was founded by Dr. Eva-Maria Simms at Duquesne University for researching the intersection of community, nature, and place in collaboration with community organizations that steward local green spaces. Dedicated to ecopsychology and recovering the attachment between people and place, PlaceLab is looking for ways of giving voice to children’s and adults’ experiences of their local nature commons and help to develop community features and practices which enhance the connection between people and place. We are pioneering phenomenological concepts and qualitative methods that can transform the relationship between people, place, and nature and lead to better neighborhood green spaces.
"What is learning for, if not to serve and to be given away and to be made fruitful?"
-Dr. Eva-Maria Simms, founder of PlaceLab
OUR MISSION
PlaceLab researches the intersection of community and place with the tools of psychology and philosophy. We strive to address the degradation of community and place, and enhance their well-being through community-engaged qualitative research, advocacy, and education.
OUR TEAM
Collaborators
Eva-Maria Simms
Founder
Dr. Eva Simms' interests are interdisciplinary (philosophy, psychology, ecology, poetry, spirituality, feminism), but they converge in her writing and research on child psychology and eco-psychology. Her research group, PlaceLab, is pioneering qualitative research methods for the investigation of place- and nature experiences, which can help marginalized communities -- particularly children and youth -- advocate for and improve the places where they live and play. Understanding and restoring the commons as shared public spaces in their social and natural features is at the heart of her project and deeply entwined with the study of public violence. She has written widely in the field of phenomenology, particularly the work of Merleau-Ponty, ecopsychology, Goethean science, language and literacy, and child psychology. She enjoys giving workshops on the phenomenology of place, Positive Youth Development, and likes to conduct phenomenological place studies that help organizations develop restorative nature playscapes for children.
Jessie Goicoechea
CTRC Director
Dr. Jessie Goicoechea is the Director of the Psychology Clinic and Director of Training of the doctoral program in clinical psychology at Duquesne University. She brings a background in community mental health and enjoys the combination of overseeing the community clinic and contributing to the students' training. She has developed innovative, clinically sensitive and supportive community arts programs for children. Her qualitative research focuses on psychiatric, diagnostic discourse in patient-staff interactions from phenomenological, discursive, and feminist perspectives. Other research interests include clients' experiences of collaborative assessment and group psychotherapy training. Dr. Goicoechea is a licensed psychologist with a private practice; clinical interests include child-centered play therapy, therapy with sexual minorities, and couples therapy from an integrative approach that draws on object-relations.
Christian Nowlin
Christian Nowlin is a rap artist, film maker, and community activist. He used to write and produce for Dr. Dre, has taught film making and media production in different youth programs, and is co-director of Hilltop Rising, a non-profit organization that works with returning citizens. He is a member of the academic research and advocacy group, PlaceLab, and co-produced and directed the documentary Juvenile Justice in Context. His music album, Running out of Time produced under the name Nowl, can be found on Spotify and YouTube.
Rick Bigelow
As the CEO & Director of the 2Tenths Foundation, Rick Bigelow oversees the foundation and manages partnerships with numerous non-profit community organizations as well as local, regional, and international corporations. He has been instrumental in helping co-create and deliver the Community Trauma & Resilience Collaborative curriculum with Duquesne University’s PlaceLab. Rick has been at the forefront of violence prevention youth work for 2 decades. He is a member of the CTRC (Community Trauma and Resilience Care) Collaborative and has been trained in Trauma-Informed Community Practice through the Rita McGinley Clinic at Duquesne University.
Lillian Grate
A Licensed Professional Counselor with over ten years of experience working with individuals, businesses, and communities under acute stress and experiencing prolonged trauma and grief. She is currently the Chief Equity, Inclusion, and Community Relations Officer at an independent school in Pittsburgh, PA. Lillian is a member of the CTRC (Community Trauma and Resilience Care) Collaborative and has been trained in Trauma-Informed Community Practice through the Rita McGinley Clinic at Duquesne University.
Jamil Bey
Dr. Jamil Bey is the founder and CEO of UrbanKind Institute. His ultimate goal is to establish Southwestern Pennsylvania as a place where Black children and families can prosper and thrive and white supremacy is eradicated. Dr. Bey stirs critical thinking by facilitating tough conversations around race, equity, and systemic change. In addition to Dr. Bey's role as UrbanKind's visionary, he serves on many boards and councils throughout Pittsburgh, to drive real systemic change in policy and programming that affects underserved populations. Additionally, Dr. Bey is the founder of the Black Environmental Collective. He earned a PhD and a Master of Science at Penn State University in Geography. He also holds a bachelor's degree in Education, which allows him to connect with people and see the world around him through a unique lens.
Julius Boatwright
Julius serves as the Founder and Chief Executive Officer with Steel Smiling, an organization that bridges the gap between Black people and mental health support through education, advocacy, and awareness. Julius is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who obtained his Master of Social Work degree with a Certificate in Human Services Management and a BA in Communication from the University of Pittsburgh. He is a member of the CTRC (Community Trauma and Resilience Care) Collaborative and has been trained in Trauma-Informed Community Practice through the Rita McGinley Clinic at Duquesne University. Lastly, Mr. Boatwright completed a 1-year professional development program for nonprofit executives with Leadership Pittsburgh and the California-based Rockwood Leadership Institute.
Nisha Gupta
Dr. Nisha Gupta is an assistant professor of psychology at the University of West Georgia, where she works as a liberation psychologist, arts-based phenomenological researcher, and creativity scholar. She disseminates research about lived experiences of oppression and empowerment through art for social advocacy and community healing. Her work as a researcher, artist, and educator seeks to embrace the creative process as a vehicle for building solidarity across difference, evoking empathy and compassion, and fostering joy and empowerment. Nisha was also trained clinically as a psychotherapist for eight years, with a focus on trauma therapy as well as liberation psychotherapy with queer people of color. She received her education at New York University (M.A.) and Duquesne University (Ph.D.) and has a background in the advertising industry prior to her career in psychology.
Jennifer Bradley
Jennifer Bradley is PhD Candidate at Duquesne University. She holds a B.A in Psychology from the University of Prince Edward Island and an M.A. in Psychology at Duquesne University. She is completing her clinical residency at the Center for Interpersonal Relationships in Ottawa, ON where she practices psychotherapy with adults and couples, and her dissertation Uncovering a cradle in the waves: developing a phenomenological and restorative approach to playscape design where she develops and pilots an experiential approach to playscape design for children at a local childhood center in Prince Edward Island. Growing up on Prince Edward Island, Jennifer learned the importance of having a strong sense of community and community engagement, and an attachment to place. Inspired by PlaceLab, Jennifer initiates and engages phenomenological research projects with the aim of building and enhancing a sense of community and commitment to places, particularly natural places that are in threat of being decimated. She hopes to continue this through her clinical work, teaching, research, and workshops.
Alan R. Patterson, Esquire
Alan Patterson started out as a solo practitioner for twelve years before becoming a founding member of Gross & Patterson, LLC. He specializes in bankruptcy law exclusively in the Western District of Pennsylvania. His legal specialties also include Appellate Criminal Representation and Real Estate law. Alan has been the legal counsel for Keith Hicks, a juvenile lifer without parole, and guided the case through the re-sentencing hearing. He has worked with PlaceLab on the Hicks case since 2017.
Robert Ware
Duquesne University Graduate Students
Sugandh Dixit
Cathleen Flynn
Benjamin Gaddes
Lucas Goodwin
Christine Heller
Kathy Kocherzat
Sean Leadem
Sadie Mohler
Jonathan Rowe
Arvin Simon
Laurent Turgeon-Dharmoo
Point Park University Graduate Students
Isaiah Noreiga
David Tomaselli