Challenging the conventional paradigm, Designing to Live Sustainably, or more succinctly D2LS, will present a celebration event on May 18 at CEPA Gallery promoting community engagement in developing a vision for a more comprehensive and supportable future for Buffalo. A comparative advantage Buffalo has over other cities is its wealth of vacant and underused properties engendering opportunities to create wiser and more viable ways to re-think using this wealth to focus on a new vision of what Buffalo might become. D2LS at CEPA combines an awards competition and public display of ideas, designs, and strategies submitted over the last year to further initiatives for sound, informed solutions to identify and design new ways to help cities become more livable resilient places. While a competition, D2LS encourages suggestions in compiling a resource list to raise the bar for all entries and help the City of Buffalo and the Niagara region benefit from the best possible submissions. Most recently there is interest from other cultural arts promoters including Frits Abell of Echo Art Fair and Robby Takac’s Music as Art’s enthusiastic invitation to present a number of submissions for display at MIA in September.

D@LS is still accepting submissions. Participants must register by April 19, and submissions are due May 3. To learn more, visit www.d2lsbuffalo.com.