'I owe my soul to the company store': Learnings from corporatocracies

In 2023, I visited two cities in the United States to conduct research on company towns: Pullman, in Chicago, IL; and San Bernardino in the Inland Empire, California. My learning experience was not only confined to historical research, but also lessons in life experiences and unexpected encounters.

Sep 23, 2024

Augustine Wong

Architecture Student, University of Toronto

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Augustine Wong (He/Him)

Architecture Student, University of Toronto

Hello there! I'm a problem-solver and leader in my second year of undergraduate architectural studies at the Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design, University of Toronto, minoring in Forest Conservation.

This summer, my research topic regards phenomena where corporations possess more power than nation state apparatuses. In this scenario, companies may build privately owned and controlled towns where employees may be at the hands of corporate mercy. This pattern has not only happened historically, but is still occurring in the present by entities such as Amazon. As an architectural researcher, I hope to identify urban or economic patterns of company towns and find antitrust solutions to break up corporate dependence.

I'm also passionate about democracy, built and natural environments. But when I'm not thinking about architecture, in my free time I pursue various interests, from photography to journalism, hiking, writing and listening to music.