Special guest Susan Surface, former Archinect editor now at Design in Public, joins us on Archinect Sessions to talk about recent developments in the dialogue around gender inclusive design – particularly, in public restrooms.

As the binary model of gender begins to slowly dissolve in popular consciousness, in favor of a spectrum of different identifications, international building codes still often mandate restrooms (even single-occupancy ones) as strictly for either male or female. Those who do not identify as either face a difficult choice at best, and often harassment or exclusion. Various institutions are experimenting with more gender-inclusive designs and designations, but not without controversy. Advocates liken the advent of all-gender inclusive bathrooms to a civil right, akin to policies that guarantee equal access regardless of ethnicity or physical ability.

In other news, this past Monday we launched Archinect Sessions One-to-One, a brand new podcast focusing exclusively interviews. The premiere episode features Neil Denari. You can keep up-to-date on all our podcasting news by following us on Twitter, @archsessions, and let us know what you think by rating us on iTunes.

Continuing our "Next Up" series, recorded at Jai & Jai Gallery in Los Angeles and during the opening weekend of the Chicago Architecture Biennial, we've been posting the live-interviews as podcast Mini-Sessions. Due to a technical error at the Biennial, the second half of live Chicago interviews were lost – so some were recorded on another date. You can listen to past Mini-Sessions here.

Our second Mini-Session recorded during the Biennial's opening weekend features Thomas Kelley and Carrie Norman of Norman Kelley.

Season two of Archinect Sessions premiered last week – featuring a discussion on the Chicago Architecture Biennial with Log director (and co-curator of the US Pavilion for the 2016 Venice Biennale) Cynthia Davidson – and to finish out our coverage of CAB, we're posting the "Next Up" live-interviews we did in Chicago as Mini-Sessions, continuing from the interviews done at Jai & Jai Gallery in Los Angeles. Due to a most unfortunate technical glitch in Chicago, the second half of live interviews were lost – so some Chicago interviews were recorded on another date. You can listen to past Mini-Sessions here.

For our first Mini-Session recorded during the Biennial's opening weekend, we spoke with Urtzi Grau and Cristina Goberna Pesudo of Fake Industries Architectural Agonism.

Our new podcast, Archinect Sessions: One-to-One is an interview show, straight-up. Each episode features a single interview with a notable figure in contemporary architecture – it's that simple. Usually, One-to-One will be led by me or Paul Petrunia, while occasionally others will serve as guide. The conversation will be casual and spontaneous, touching on the interviewee's role in the expanding range of architectural practice, and will serve (we hope) a valuable archival role in future discourse.

For our very first episode, I spoke with Neil Denari of Neil M. Denari Architects (NMDA). Aside from his firm's work, Denari is a tenured professor at UCLA, and was the director of SCI-Arc from 1997 - 2001. We spoke about the shifting focus of architecture education, multitasking, Los Angeles and the recession's impact on architecture.

It's great to be back. Our second season of Archinect Sessions premieres today in a new, shorter format, with an episode devoted to the Chicago Architecture Biennial, and featuring special guest Cynthia Davidson, director of Log and co-curator of the US Pavilion for the 2016 Venice Biennale. Keep a look out as well for more Mini-Sessions, featuring interviews from the Biennial.

In other podcasting news, we're going to be launching a brand new podcast early next week, focusing exclusively on interviews. You can keep up-to-date on all our podcasting news by following us on Twitter, @archsessions, and let us know what you think by rating us on iTunes.

Tomorrow (!!!) we'll premiere season two of Archinect Sessions, and in anticipation of the launch, we've been posting Mini-Sessions interviews, recorded during our first-ever live-podcasting series, "Next Up", held at Jai & Jai Gallery in Los Angeles' Chinatown and at the opening weekend of the Chicago Architecture Biennial. You can listen to past Mini-Sessions here. We'll also be launching a brand new podcast soon. 

For our last Mini-Session recorded at Jai & Jai, we spoke with a panel of jurors from Archinect'sDry Futures competition, featuring: Charles Anderson of werk, Hadley Arnold of the Arid Lands Institute, Ian Quate and Colleen Tuite of GRNASFCK (who joined us via Skype), andPeter Zellner of Zellner Naecker Architects LLP. The winners had been announced just a few days prior.

Leading up to (and continuing after) the premiere of Archinect Sessions' second season on November 5, we're posting individual interviews as Mini-Sessions from our first-ever live-podcasting series, "Next Up", held at Jai & Jai Gallery in Los Angeles' Chinatown and at the opening weekend of the Chicago Architecture Biennial. You can listen to past Mini-Sessions here. We'll also be launching another brand new podcast soon. 

Here you can listen to our fifth Next Up Mini-Session with Marcelo Spina of P-A-T-T-E-R-N-S. More Mini-Sessions will be released in the coming days, and remember to subscribe to Archinect Sessions to not miss an episode! 

If you couldn't join us during our first-ever live-podcasting series, "Next Up", held at Jai & Jai Gallery in Los Angeles' Chinatown and at the opening weekend of the Chicago Architecture Biennial, then good news – you can still listen to the over four hours of live interviews we recorded. Leading up to the premiere of Archinect Sessions' second season on Thursday, November 5, we'll be releasing them as individual "Mini-Sessions". We'll also be launching another brand new podcast soon. You can listen to past Mini-Sessions here.

So please enjoy our fourth Next Up Mini-Session, an interview with Anna Neimark and Andrew Atwood of First Office. M

After accumulating over four hours of live interviews from our first-ever live-podcasting series, "Next Up", held at Jai & Jai Gallery in Los Angeles' Chinatown and at the opening weekend of the Chicago Architecture Biennial, we're now letting them go, one by one. Leading up to the premiere of Archinect Sessions' second season on Thursday, November 5, we'll be releasing them as "Mini-Sessions". We'll also be launching another brand new podcast soon.

Without further ado, please enjoy our third Next Up Mini-Session, a panel discussion with Claus Benjamin Freyinger, Andrew Kovacs and Jimenez Lai. We'll be sharing more Mini-Sessions in the coming days, and remember to subscribe to Archinect Sessions to not miss an episode! You can listen to past Mini-Sessions here.

Listen to our "Next Up" panel discussion with Claus Benjamin Freyinger, Andrew Kovacs and Jimenez Lai.

After we wrapped our first live-podcasting series, "Next Up", held at Jai & Jai Gallery in Los Angeles' Chinatown and at the opening weekend of the Chicago Architecture Biennial, we had over four hours of live interviews to release. Now, we're letting them loose as "Mini-Sessions", leading up to the premiere of Archinect Sessions' second season on Thursday, November 5. We'll also be launching a brand new podcast soon, so keep your eyes and ears open.