A New Chapter: ELM Interns Organize and Launch the ELM Library
This summer, ELM’s design studio became even more dynamic thanks to the efforts of our talented interns, Paola and Razeen, who took on a meaningful side project: organizing and launching the official ELM Library.
At ELM, we believe books are timeless vessels of knowledge—ready to teach, remind, and inspire. With that spirit in mind, our interns developed a thoughtful, structured system to help the team better engage with the extensive library of books that have shaped our thinking across architecture, landscape architecture, and urbanism.
Drawing inspiration from the classic Dewey Decimal System, Paola and Razeen created the ELM Library Decimal System, a custom classification framework designed specifically for the interdisciplinary nature of our work. By assigning unique decimal codes to each book, this system improves both communication and searchability—no more hunting down long titles or obscure authors when you’re trying to locate a resource. Just a simple code and a well-organized shelf.
Their work resulted in a comprehensive system composed of:
• A manual catalog for quick reference
• A searchable digital catalog hosted on LibraryThing.com
• Categorized shelves ready to grow alongside our expanding practice
This project became more than just organization—it became an opportunity for Paola and Razeen to explore the design literature that has helped shape ELM’s work and to experience how thoughtful systems-thinking can influence culture and collaboration in a studio environment.
“Although this was not part of our core internship responsibilities, it proved to be an enriching experience that helped us grow personally and professionally,” they shared. “We’re thankful to ELM for providing us the opportunity to create something that will serve the team long after the summer ends.”
As they head into their final year—Paola at the University of Florida and Razeen at the University of Georgia—we’re proud to celebrate their contribution and wish them the very best in their studies and future design careers.
A huge thank you to Paola and Razeen for helping us write a new chapter—your work is officially part of the ELM collection.
