Awards & Press

Awards

2024 NYCxDESIGN Awards: Product Honoree, Interior Design Magazine.

2023 HOPE Week Honoree, New York Yankees.

The President’s Lifetime Achievement Award, Americorps.

2021 Best of the City Award, Time Out New York.

2018 International Award for Public Art (IAPA). Nominee.

2018 Coretta Scott King Book Awards Donation Grant Recipient.

2016 City to City Barcelona FAD Award, “Urban Learning Projects:” City to City. Finalist.

2014 Public Space Invitational awarded by Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh’s Office of New Urban Mechanics.

2014 Architizer A+ Award, Architecture + Learning (to Höweler + Yoon Architecture).

2013 Innovations in Reading Prize from the National Book Foundation.

Presenter, 2013 Gel Conference, NYC.

Featured in the US Pavilion at the 2012 Venice Architecture Biennale (Spontaneous Interventions).

2012 Citation, Small Firms/Small Projects, Boston Society of Architects Design Awards (to Höweler + Yoon Architecture).

Press

Leslie Davol & Jim Lammers on BronxNet,
July 23, 2023

The New York Yankees honor Street Lab, July 7, 2023

BronxNet TV, October 31, 2023

In New York, Schools Are Reclaiming Roads for Recess
September 2, 2024 | The New York Times

NYC’s Open Streets program will expand to more than 70 schools, officials say
August 29, 2024 | The Gothamist 

Design and Deploy
July 18, 2024 | Urban Omnibus

Press Release: NYC DOT Announces Expanded Resources Available to In-Need Open Streets, Plazas, and Other Public Spaces for 2024 Season
Mar 15, 2024 | NYC DOT

2nd annual Trick-or-Streets events takes over NYC
Oct 21, 2023 | Bronx News Channel 12

Leslie Davol on OPEN
Aug 8, 2023 | BronxNet TV

WNYC and Street Lab Come to Your Neighborhood
April 17, 2023 | The Brian Lehrer Show, WNYC

Go Play in the Street, Kids. Really.
April 1, 2023 | New York Times

Street Lab + WNYC: Reinvention, embracing individuality and a nod to the ‘parking gods’ in Prospect Lefferts Gardens
Feb 27, 2023 | WNYC

Street Lab brings Mott Haven families out to play
Dec 5, 2022 | Mott Haven Herald

BronxNet covers Street Lab at PS23 Open Street, Nov 23, 2022

An Introduction to Street Lab, Tilt Shift Media, 2020

Spin Joins Forces with Street Lab to Open City Streets for Families (Video)
Dec 14, 2020 | Spin Blog

How Boston Could Save Winter by Finally Doing Something Fun with Its Streets
Oct 29, 2020 | Boston Magazine

Opinion: Creating Space in America’s Densest City
Oct 23, 2020 | StreetsBlog NYC

Opinion: How to design a street for hands-off play
Sep 21, 2020 | Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Play Streets in New York, a safe haven designed to thrive
Aug 6, 2020 | The Urban Activist

Supporting Play Streets in NYC
July 27, 2020 | Medium—SPIN

NYC Mayor announcing Street Lab at 2020 Play Streets, July 24, 2020

NYC Mayor highlights Street Lab and announces 2020 Play Streets
July 24, 2020 | nyc.gov

7 smart and simple ways public spaces are being adapted for social distancing
July 22, 2020 | CityMetric

DrawNow! with Street Lab/The Uni Project!
Sep 26, 2019 | The Drawing Center

Spending the Day with the 2019 Party on Park in East Harlem
Sep 22, 2019 | Gotham to Go

Assembly: Civic Design Guidelines (Chapter 7: Make Space for Activity.)
June 21, 2018 | The Center for Active Design

Weekend Walks in NYC (The Uni Project partners with NYC DOT to being reading rooms to these events.)
April 15, 2018 | NY1

Small Change, Big Impact (A practical guide to changing London’s public spaces, p. 35 and p. 58.)
Nov 28, 2017 | Mayor of London: Transport for London

video supplement to Boston’s proposal to host Amazon’s second headquarters. Oct 2017 | City of Boston

The Uni at Back to School Movie Night in the Bronx
Sept 24, 2017 | Bronx Times

Public Art, Public Creativity
Aug 2, 2017 | Rose Kennedy Greenway Conservancy Blog

So What’s A Pop Up Library? One’s Coming To Cranston Neighborhoods
July 24, 2017 | Cranston Patch

Uni Project Reading Room Pops Up in Brownsville
June 26, 2017 | BK Reader

Reading and Writing, Riverside
June 14, 2017 | West Side Spirit

What Being a Rock Star Teaches You About Practical Urbanism
April 12, 2017 | CityLab from the Atlantic

Tactical Urbanist’s Guide to Materials and Design v.1.0 (p.121)
Dec 11, 2016 | The Street Plans Collaborative

UNI in Shemonaikha!
Sept 16, 2016 | American Corner, East Kazakhstan Regional A.S. Pushkin Library

A Big Gift
Sept 1, 2016 | American Corner, East Kazakhstan Regional A.S. Pushkin Library

Featured on NY1, July 2016

Not-for-Profit Brings Library on Wheels to Astoria Playgrounds
July 23, 2016 | NY1

NewCitizens documentary about the Uni from France.
July 22, 2016 | NewCITYzens

Great Public Spaces: Lighter, Quicker, Cheaper. The Uni Project.
June 18, 2016 | Project for Public Space

Pop-Up Reading Room Setting Up in Chelsea
May 25, 2016 | DNAinfo

New York lessons: a word with Sam Davol, co-founder of The Uni Project
May 16, 2016 | Full Fabric Blog

Uni in Sunnyside Queens (video interview)
May 2, 2016 | MechidTV

Activating Public Space With Books
April 13, 2016 | Poets & Writers

Interview with Sam Davol, Uni co-founder
March 31, 2016 | DC Public Library Podcast

A Few Things I’ve Learned About Learning—On the streets of New York City
Feb 26, 2016 | Bright Magazine on medium.com

The City As A Sequence Of Interiors: An Ecological Approach To The Design Of Public Spaces (Cristina F. Colombo)
Dec 2015 |  Bollettino Del Centro Calza Bini

The Uni: Pop-Up Reading and Art in Public Spaces
Sept 29, 2015 | NY Metro Parents

Pop-Up Libraries & Play Space Coming to Hamilton Heights and East Harlem
July 7, 2015 | DNAinfo

The SoHo Memory Project, A Mobile Historical Society for the Iconic NYC Neighborhood
June 13, 2015 | Untapped Cities

The Memory-Keeper of SoHo
June 12, 2015 | New York Times

Diversity Plaza to Transform Into a Reading Room This Summer
June 2, 2015 | Jackson Heights Post

The SoHo Memory Project, A Mobile Historical Society for the Iconic NYC Neighborhood
May 13, 2015 | Untapped Cities

The Story Behind the Uni Project
Apr 19, 2015 | FDR Four Freedoms Park

New York City’s Best Boutique Libraries
Apr 8, 2015 | New York Observer

3 Kinds of Temporary Public Spaces and the Cities Who Love Them
Mar 31, 2015 | Medium

Libraries Are Everywhere
Feb 18, 2015 | Kickstarter

The Uni Project: Bright Lights, Big City, Mobile Reading Rooms
Jan 15, 2015 | Publisher’s Weekly

Making a Place for Books and Learning in Almaty, Kazakhstan
Oct 20, 2014 | The Bradley Herald

Mayor’s Office Debuts Portable Reading Rooms by Uni Project
Jul 23, 2014 | Boston Magazine

Video–Maker Chats: The Portable Reading Room
Jul 23, 2014 | City of Boston

Mayor Walsh “Rolls Out” The Portable Reading Room
Jul 23, 2014 | City of Boston Press Release

Boston rolls out Uni Portable Reading Room
July 23, 2014 | Metro.us

Boston Gets Its First Pop-up Library
Jul 18, 2014 | Radio Boston/WBUR

Boston’s public art gets a lift
Jun 11, 2014 | The Boston Globe, Editorial

A simple way to add art in Boston
Jun 8, 2014 | The Boston Globe, Yvonne Abraham column

Boston’s Public Space Invitational winners announced
Jun 5, 2014 | Boston Magazine

9 bright ideas win funding to refresh Boston’s public space
Jun 5, 2014 | 90.9 WBUR, The ARTERY

Walsh announced winners of city redesign contest
Jun 5, 2014 | Banker and Tradesman

Coming soon to a public space in Boston near you
Jun 5, 2014 | Curbed

Contest nets new faces for public spaces
Jun 5, 2014 | Boston Herald

Contest aims to enliven public spaces in Boston
Jun 5, 2014 | The Boston Globe

Daring Public Interest Design: 10 Architects Set to Save the World
May 1, 2014 | Architizer

Featured in Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood’s Countdown to Screen-Free Week
May 1, 2014 | CCFC

Uni Project Brings Pop-Up Reading Rooms To NYC
Apr 16, 2014 | Litreactor

Reading Rooms Will Be Popping Up Around NYC This Spring
Apr 11, 2014 | Galleycat

Goodreads Voice
Apr 7, 2014

Goodreads Newsletter
April 2014.

Tribeca Pediatrics Newsletter and blog
April 2014.

STEM for All: Unconventional Approaches Can Extend Reach of Science and Natural History Museums.
Jan/Feb 2014 | Museum Magazine

Interview With Leslie Davol, Creator Of The Uni Project
Jan 28, 2014 | National Book Foundation

Eyes on the Street: Reading in Ozone Park’s New Plaza
November 25, 2013 | Streetsblog NYC

Street Smarts: The Uni Project’s Outdoor Neighborhood Reading Room
Feb 12, 2013 | Good

Red Hook residents furious after 2 weeks without lights
Nov 11, 2012 | WABC New York (catch the Uni in this video at 1:20)

Mobile Libraries
Oct 24, 2012 | The Desk Set

The Practice of Civic Engagement: American Councils’ Almaty Staff and FLEX Alumni Work to Promote Reading
Oct 9, 2012 | American Councils for International Education

Here’s the Uni Project at Corona Plaza
Oct 6 |2012 Library Blog at NY Hall of Science

Pop-Up Library Coming To Gantry Park in Hunters Point
Sept 13, 2012 | DNAinfo.com, NY Neighborhood News

QEDC hosts entertainment, artists at Corona Plaza
Sept 2, 2012 | Queens Times Ledger

Queens’ Corona Plaza: A Community Place Rises
August 29, 2012 | Streetfilms.com

Books, Boxes and Bartering
August 26, 2012 | Collaborate, the Social Spaces Blog

De leeszaal die naar je toe komt
August 17, 2012 | LARS Blog

Mobile library brings the books, and librarians, outside
August 10, 2012 | Boston Globe

Cleveland, New York Gain Portable Reading Rooms
August 10, 2012 | Library Journal

Introducing the Uni, NYC’s portable reading room
June 27, 2012 | Quill & Quire, Canada

Street Lab assembles temporary reading room at Children’s Museum
June 4, 2012 | Boston Globe

Marginalia: Little Libraries in the Urban Margins
May 22, 2012 | Places: Forum for the Design of the Public Realm

6 voorbeelden van crowdfunding in de stad
Oct 24, 2011 | Steden Bouwen

Uni meets Brian Lehrer on CUNY TV 75
Sept 22, 2011 | Brian Lehrer TV

DESIGN NOTEBOOK: On Kickstarter, Designers’ Dreams Materialize
Sep 21, 2011 | New York Times

The Uni Project, An Open-Air Reading Room, Aims to Transform Public Space
Sep 9, 2011 | Huffington Post Books

Futuristic Mobile Library to Debut Downtown
Sep 8, 2011 | DNAinfo.com, Manhattan local news | by Olivia Scheck

Uni Arrives in Lower Manhattan
Sep 7, 2011 | Curbed Wire

The Uni: An Education Concept for Public Space.
Aug 24, 2011 | by Claire Lawton| Phoenix New Times

Almost a bookmobile, not quite a library
Aug 23, 2011 | Out of the Jungle, Thoughts on the present and future of legal information, legal research, and legal education.

Reading in Public
Aug 17, 2011 | Architizer – News

Taking Reading Public
Aug 15, 2011 | by Lindsay Borthwick | Pop! Tech – world-changing people, projects and ideas

A new chapter for urban readers
Aug 10, 2011 | by Mark Shanahan & Meredith Goldstein, Globe Staff | The Boston Globe

Structures to build
Aug 9, 2011, by Eric Hellman | Go To Hellman

Video: NYC’s Getting An Open Air Reading Room: Gothamist
Aug 8, 2011 | Gothamist

Kickstarter Picks: Barns, Roving Libraries, and a Gowanus Canal Clam Shack
Aug 2, 2011 | Thirteen WNET, Metro Focus

More than just books and buildings
Aug 2, 2011 | Multifarious Librarian

The Uni Portable Reading Room
Aug 1, 2011 | EdLab, Teachers College, Columbia University

The Uni Project: A Portable Reading ROom Designed by Höweler + Yoon for NYC!
Jul 29, 2011 | by Lori Zimmer | Inhabitat

Using the Cube To Bring Back the Book
Jul 28, 2011, by Michael Kelley | Library Journal

Fall Preview: Open-Air Reading Capsule in a Neighborhood Near You
Jul 28, 2011 | by Kelsey Keith | Curbed

The Uni
Jul 27, 2011 | Alternative Library Spaces

Library for Now
Jul 25, 2011 | Incunabular Illumination

The Uni: A Portable Reading Room
Jul 21, 2011 | For the love of Bookshops

Let’s put the Logan Square “el” station “plaza” out of its misery
Jul 21, 2011 | Peopling Places

3 things that inspired me this week
Jul 21, 2011, by Jan Homquist | janholmquist

The Uni: a portable reading room for public space
Jul 18, 2011 | Library Bazaar

The Uni: Portable Reading Room for Public Space
Jul 18, 2011 | Bilingual Librarian

View press about the Storefront Library and our other projects prior to 2011 over at Boston Street Lab.

 A Few Things I’ve Learned About Learning—On the streets of New York City
Feb 26, 2016 | Street Lab co-founder Sam Davol on medium.com

“I used to be anxious when we landed on the street… Will people stop and read, or will they just keep streaming by? What have Leslie and I gotten ourselves into? I feel like the guy dressed as the Statue of Liberty trying to wave you inside to do your income taxes. This is embarrassing.

But don’t panic. They will come.”