PLAT utilizes a unique “call and response” format to explore and respond to compelling issues in architecture today. PLAT 12.0 and 12.5, as in each cycle, features content around a theme established in the first issue and a series of responses in the second. The twelfth issue’s theme builds from the potential topics discussed for PLAT 11.0: Soft which questions and rethinks the mass, mark, and permanence of architecture. As with previous issues, PLAT 12.0 features voices from the international architectural community, while its half issue, PLAT 12.5, features responses from Rice University’s campus, creating a dynamic conversation between issues and positioning the journal as an instigator of architectural discourse at Rice and beyond.

Maximilien Chong Lee Shin is coeditor-in-chief of PLAT 12: Divine. Originally from Mauritius, he studied political science and urban studies at Wesleyan University with a minor in integrated design, engineering, and applied sciences. He is a master's of architecture candidate and Fondren Fellow at Rice University. Most recently, Maximilien has been a Gensler Summer Fellow, and he is currently in the HOME-OFFICE research and design collaborative.

Tasiana Paolisso is coeditor-in-chief of PLAT 12: Divine. Originally from Washington, DC, she studied architecture at the University of Maryland. She is a master's of architecture candidate at Rice University. She has worked at von Dalwig and HDR, and is currently a designer at Carlos Jiménez Studio.

Andrew Y. Jiao is editor-in-chief of PLAT 11.5: Ordinary. Andrew received a bachelor’s of science in architecture from McGill University. He is a master's of architecture candidate at Rice University. Jiao’s work observes the symbiotic relationship between the architectural and the urban with a research predilection for material's role in civic engagement. Jiao has worked at various architecture offices internationally.

Elina Chen is the managing editor of PLAT 11.5: Ordinary and PLAT 12: Divine. She recently received a BA in architecture and a minor certificate in museums and cultural heritage at Rice University. Chen continues to pursue a bachelor of architecture and is on preceptorship at ZGF Architects. She is the recipient of the William Ward Watkin Traveling Fellowship and Mary Ellen Hale Lovett Traveling Fellowship. Her design and writings engage with the human body and landscape, which have appeared in Metropolis Magazine, Guggenheim Museum Summer College Workshop, and Cite Digital.

Kexuan Shang is the design director of PLAT 11.5: Ordinary and PLAT 12: Divine. She is a bachelor’s of architecture candidate at Rice University. Trained in architecture and art history, she believes in the power of the fields to disrupt, empower and heal. Her design and theory work are both influenced by her conjecture on contemporary social, cultural, and environmental issues.

Saraí Huamán is the lead copy editor of PLAT 11.5: Ordinary and PLAT 12: Divine. She is a bachelor’s of architecture candidate at Rice University with a double minor in sociology and environmental studies. She was born and raised in Lima, Peru; and is based in the United States. Her design, theory, and writings include the interfaces and intersections of the social realm between architecture and urbanism.

Andy Entis is a master’s of architecture candidate at Rice University, originally from northern Virginia. He recently graduated with a bachelor’s of science in architecture at Washington University in St. Louis with a minor in urban design. He is interested in the connection between architecture, urbanism, and social-political issues including energy and housing policy.

Elliot Yamamoto is a master's of architecture candidate at Rice University. They received a bachelor’s of arts in architectural studies with a minor in geography at University of California, Los Angeles. They assisted in various academic projects, including graphic design for the publication HyperCities: Thick Mapping in the Digital Humanities and the inaugural symposium of the Urban Humanities Initiative. Professionally, Yamamoto has worked for three years as an architectural designer in Los Angeles at offices RFRM Collective and Studio Paul Chan. As a graduate student, their interests engage the industrial production and material processes of architectural aesthetics.

Juchen "Ignis" Zhang is a master's of architecture degree candidate at Rice University. Originally from Hefei, China, he studied architecture at the University of California, Berkeley. His work speculates architecture's role in the urban environment and ability to organize, with emphasis on building systems and assembly. He has most recently worked with Office e.g. and Cobalt Office.

Luke Blair is PLAT’s director of web design and social media engagement. He is a master's of architecture candidate at Rice University, originally from Michigan. He received a bachelor's of science in architecture at Lawrence Technological University. Blair has worked in Detroit at Albert Kahn Associates, Three Squared Incorporated, and Houm.

Alice Bian is the development director of PLAT 11.5: Ordinary and PLAT 12: Divine. She is a current candidate for BArch at Rice University, double majoring in visual arts. She enjoys video, ceramics, and installation as well as issues regarding domesticity and typology. In the future, she is hoping to integrate the two fields together in her master's degree.

PLAT is an independent architecture journal produced by students at Rice Architecture. Its purpose is to stimulate relationships between design, production, and theory. It operates in a call-and-response format by curating professional and academic work into an open and evolving dialogue that progresses from issue to issue. PLAT is a speculative catalyst for architectural discourse, a platform on which the important issues in architecture today can be addressed and advanced.