In October 2008, Architectural Record published a groundbreaking issue, Design With Conscience. A year ago, in March 2012, we cast a light again on architects engaged in humanitarian projects around the world, in a much-praised issue, Building for Social Change. By looking at a library and community center on the fringes of Medellín, Colombia, a school in Rwanda, and a neighborhood performing-arts space in Richmond, California, we explored a variety of ways that good design can have a major impact on people and places with few resources—what's been called architecture for the other 99 percent.

This month we take up a related, and especially daunting, topic: urgently needed new models for social housing, especially in rapidly expanding global cities, not only for those living in poverty but also for working people trying to find affordable options in urban areas where land values and housing shortages have sent rents soaring.