The Africatown International Design Idea Competition was launched in Mobile, Alabama—the only settlement in the United States established by Africans at the site where the last slave ship arrived. This groundbreaking initiative is presented by Renee Kemp-Rotan, CEO of studiorotan, an urban designer and master planner whose work bridges architecture, heritage, and community.

Kemp-Rotan is also a trailblazer in architectural education, recognized as the first African American woman to earn a Bachelor of Architecture from Syracuse University. Through the Africatown project, she brings forward an ambitious vision for how design can honor history, confront the legacy of slavery, and catalyze cultural and urban regeneration.