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Walled cities in ancient times represented the first kinds of centralized authority within communities. The example above is Ancient Jericho, a city in the historical West Bank of Palestine. The walls served several purposes, including but not limited to crime control, defense against external attacks and military sieges, to restrict and contain trade and economic systems, and most importantly to for the context of my project class. The wealthier population would often inhabit the inner parts of the cities (displayed in white on the photo), while the more impoverished and less desirable parts of the city would often be the lowest tier, being more prone to external dangers that the walls are meant to prevent.

(The archaeologist, 2021)

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privatized land. Before this, all land was “common land,” meaning it was collectively owned by several people within a community. This was tied to the early “manorial system,” which granted land use of various kinds to those of different classes, typically shared. The enclosure act was introduced for agricultural reasons, to create for efficient and productive farming. Still, this separate, privatized ownership of land introduced a logic of land being synonymous with wealth, introducing land as capital due to profit maximization, and transitioning early agricultural societies into early capitalist societies.

(lumen learning)

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Object 3: Roman Grid System (3rd century B.C.)

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Object 3: Roman Grid System (3rd century B.C.)

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One of the most significant documents of early city planning. This recognizable rid layout stemmed from early ideas crucial to Roman colonial domination and ideas of “control” relating to urban planning. This was implemented across many territories and adapted in more contemporary contexts for similar, if not the same, reasons. Meant to instill “order” and consolidate communities. Tied to my overarching contemporary theme, we can draw a connection between urban planning and its effects on displacement and enforcing class structures as far back as the 3rd century B.C.

(Quadralectic Architecture)

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Object 1: Beginning of Anthropocene; Benning Road Power Plant (fossil fuel infrastructure)

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Object 1: Beginning of Anthropocene; Benning Road Power Plant (fossil fuel infrastructure)

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The Benning Road power plant was built in 1906, initially using burning coal to produce energy, then switching to oil-fired generation in the 70s. I chose this “object” because it aligns somewhat with the theory that the Anthropocene started during the Industrial Revolution, a period of rapid development, industrialization, and the beginning of fossil fuel infrastructure. While the Benning road power plant wasn’t built during the industrial revolution it has electrified surrounding areas for over a century, it has also been a focal point for local environmental justice, as it has contributed to a significant amount of pollution in the Anacostia, affecting the majority black population surrounding the plant and river. The presence catalyzed a legacy of environmental injustices in the district, which is important when exploring issues of the Anthropocene.

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Object 2: Thermal Map (global warming and climate adaptation and heat exposure) 

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Object 2: Thermal Map (global warming and climate adaptation and heat exposure) 

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My second object is a thermal map of the city. One important issue in the Anthropocene is climate change and its effects. The more red parts of the map indicate higher ambient air temperature. The “Uber Island Heat Effect” describes the phenomenon where urban areas experience higher levels of heat than surrounding suburban areas. We can see that the more central parts of D.C.  We can draw connections between anthropocenic environments and climate change, emphasizing how industrialization and mass/rapid development following the Holocene have resulted in global warming and climate change.

(Keep Cool DC, 2023?)

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The 1949 Housing Act was an urban renewal project that focused on southwest D.C., but later would catalyze broader urban renewal within the entire district. The act was initiated because of slum-like conditions in several neighborhoods. Under the guise of development and progress, this project “renews” predominantly Black neighborhoods, displacing communities with highways and development. These forms of intervention reflect on the social and ecological change of the Anthropocene present. The changes in the city through urban renewal initiatives such as this one aren’t uncommon, and in turn, not only displace communities of people, but also result in the displacement of animals due to deforestation and the clearing of natural sites.

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The eastern redbud tree is native to D.C. and other states in the mid-Atlantic region. They hold historical significance as the indigenous population who inhabited the land prior used the bark for medical purposes. Urban beautification initiatives and efforts fail to accredit or incorporate indigenous stewardship, instead drawing on D.C.’s colonial history and contemporary urban development to its “beauty”. The eastern redbud tree and its relationship with both D.C.’s indigenous and foreign population represent the human relations with local ecologies, and the changes gentrification can bring in the preservation and symbolic significance of land and plants.

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Although it holds no long-lasting historical or ecological significance, Gogo music began making its presence in the 70’s, a unique, street-style dance music which incorporated unconventional material as instruments, such as buckets for drums. Gogo music is deeply ingrained in the city’s cultural identity, being an outlet for creative musical expression for Black Washingtonians and symbolizing unity and Black political and social power. Current reports on its current presence indicate that gentrification has undermined the persistence of gogo as a local staple. With many non-locals either frequently reporting the bands that play out on city corners for noise, and gogo being more prominent with the older/fading population and generation, gogo has solidified itself as a historical symbol, synonymous with what was once “chocolate city”.

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Object 3: Pawpaw Tree (Asimina Triloba)

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Object 3: Pawpaw Tree (Asimina Triloba)

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The pawpaw tree produces the largest edible fruit native to the eastern part of the United States. In D.C., they can be found in Rock Creek and alongside various parts of the Potomac River. The fruit the tree contained was a part of ingenious diets. The inner bark was used for creating string, rope, and lacing, while the outer wood was used for firestarting. Despite urban renewal and development, the Pawpaw tree, like the eastern redbud, has resisted and remains a symbol of an ingenious presence in a changed cityscape.

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 Object 1: The Douglass Community Land Trust (featured home on Jackson St NE)

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 Object 1: The Douglass Community Land Trust (featured home on Jackson St NE)

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The Douglas Community Land Project is a nonprofit organization that emphasizes racial and economic equality in the district. To achieve this, it ensures locals (who qualify under the program’s criteria) can acquire not only affordable housing, but also ownership of their homes. It aims to prevent the displacement of future generations of Washingtonians, specifically helping the Black and Brown population create “community-held assets”. This is one of many resilience efforts to the immense urban change the anthropocene brings, a gentrification undermines the economic prosperity and security of local populations. This initiative is one way to combat said change. The house above is a home featured on the program’s site. With an appraisal value of almost 1 million dollars, the program offers it to qualifiers of the program for half its price (with acknowledgement of conditions).

(https://douglassclt.org/, 2025)

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The Potomac Conservancy works with the primary focus of upholding communal conservation efforts and clean water advocacy. Their clean water advocacy program utilizes grassroots activist efforts to ensure drinking water and natural water resources are clean and safe, free of harmful pollutants. They also regularly host clean-ups, allowing community members to engage with trash pick-ups to maintain cleanliness in natural spaces within the forest and sites surrounding the Potomac and the Potomac itself. We can acknowledge initiatives as such being created in response to the environmental deterioration, the anthropogenic changes brought forth by massive developments, and historical industrialization. Early (and contemporary) production centers and urban renewal projects often use/used rivers as dumping grounds for project waste.

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Pictured on the right, Natalie Hopkinson is the founder of the organization #Don’tMuteDC. Starting in April of 2019, the movement aims to combat Black native displacement in the district, initially starting with a “battle” over (gogo) music and public space, more specifically more known corners like 7th st and Florida Ave, then evolved into advocacy and a broader dailgoue around how recent gentrification has displaced thousands of locals, with Gogo music being a an outlet to express indigeneity and political exporession. This is one of many initiatives taken by locals ot combat globalization’s dilution of local cultures, one persistent problem within the Anthropocene.

(The Kennedy Center)

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Object 1: Elle Apartments Farragut North 

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Object 1: Elle Apartments Farragut North 

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The Elle apartments in Faragut North are one of many new construction apartments receiving tax breaks. The mayor recently instilled a 20-year tax abatement to incentivize the use and development of “underutilized” office spaces into residential units. Unfortunately, many of the units and residences benefiting from this 2-decade tax break are unaffordable, luxury apartments that do not accommodate single families. With the continuation of luxury developments in the city and programs such as these, I can anticipate that the future of the Anthropocene within the context of what i’ve established the anthropecne to be in this project,  means a total transformation of D.C. and other major cities in the east coast, entailing more development and infrastructural changes that benifit the wealthier non-native population.

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The D.C. Wharf is an example of complete transformations done on various neighborhoods. Prior to this mass renovation, the Wharf, just 10 years ago, was home to a vast fish market, with run-down docks. Now, the space is filled with restaurants, luxury apartments, a concert venue, and bars. Abrupt forms of development that dissolve local social ecosystems, such as markets and small-scale exchange, are the future of the anthropence and anthropocenic cities.