Pittsburgh’s Rivers and Urban Space

Against Extractive Ways of Thinking

Authors

  • Noah Pankiewicz University of Pittsburgh

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5195/pur.2025.127

Abstract

Since British settlers took control over Pittsburgh, the rivers were utilized to maximize economic growth. This historical and ongoing commodification can be analyzed through the lens of the hydrosocial cycle, which claims that water and society constantly reshape each other. From indigenous stewardship to frontier expansion, industrialization, and postindustrial redevelopment, the river has been appropriated to serve shifting economic goals–first as an artery of transportation, later as an engine of industry, and today as a lure for consumption and raised rents. The paper argues that the river’s material and cultural meanings have been suppressed in favor of extractive spatial logics. Water’s agency should be acknowledged and integrated into a decommodified and equitable relationship between people, the built environment, and Pittsburgh’s rivers.

Author Biography

Noah Pankiewicz, University of Pittsburgh

Noah Pankiewicz is a senior majoring in architecture at the University of Pittsburgh and plans to continue his education by pursuing a Master of Architecture degree after graduation.

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Published

2025-11-03

How to Cite

Pankiewicz, N. (2025). Pittsburgh’s Rivers and Urban Space: Against Extractive Ways of Thinking. Pittsburgh Undergraduate Review, 4(2). https://doi.org/10.5195/pur.2025.127

Issue

Vol. 4 No. 2 (2025): Pittsburgh Undergraduate Review

Section

Research

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Copyright (c) 2025 Noah Pankiewicz

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