Jeffrey Hou | National University of Singapore (original) (raw)

Books by Jeffrey Hou

Transcultural Cities uses a framework of transcultural placemaking, cross-disciplinary inquiry an... more Transcultural Cities uses a framework of transcultural placemaking, cross-disciplinary inquiry and transnational focus to examine a collection of case studies around the world, presented by a multidisciplinary group of scholars and activists in architecture, urban planning, urban studies, art, environmental psychology, geography, political science, and social work. The book addresses the intercultural exchanges as well as the cultural trans-formation that takes place in urban spaces. In doing so, it views cultures not in isolation from each other in today’s diverse urban environments, but as mutually influenced, constituted and transformed.

In cities and regions around the globe, migrations of people have continued to shape the makeup and making of neighborhoods, districts, and communities. For instance, in North America, new immigrants have revitalized many of the decaying urban landscapes, creating renewed cultural ambiance and economic networks that transcend borders. In Richmond, BC Canada, an Asian night market has become a major cultural event that draws visitors throughout the region and across the US and Canadian border. Across the Pacific, foreign domestic workers in Hong Kong transform the deserted office district in Central on weekends into a carnivalesque site. While contributing to the multicultural vibes in cities, migration and movements have also resulted in tensions, competition, and clashes of cultures between different ethnic communities, old-timers, newcomers, employees and employers, individuals and institutions.

In Transcultural Cities Jeffrey Hou and a cross-disciplinary team of authors argue for a more critical and open approach that sees today’s cities, urban places, and placemaking as vehicles for cross-cultural understanding.

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●人口老化的社區還有再生的可能嗎？ ●小朋友除了會玩，還能對地方做出什麼貢獻？ ●神明的意見和專業者的提案相互衝突時，如何解決？ ●專業者面對「動」不起來的社區，可以如何「興風作浪」？ ... more ●人口老化的社區還有再生的可能嗎？

●小朋友除了會玩，還能對地方做出什麼貢獻？

●神明的意見和專業者的提案相互衝突時，如何解決？

●專業者面對「動」不起來的社區，可以如何「興風作浪」？

15個社區營造案例，15則專業工作者摸索踩踏出的顛簸之路，15段對未來工作者充滿靈感與刺激的經典故事，揭開15個地方回春的秘密。

承繼《城市造反》《反造城市》《反造再起》，《野力再生》精選15個在地社區營造案例，從審議民主到更深入日常生活的「參詳」（tsham-siông），從社會抗議到擁有運作完整的農業產銷循環和社區教育，從彼此有嫌隙的社區到藉由朝聖之路重新黏著在地感。

從台東到馬祖，從台灣頭到台灣尾，專業者如何捕捉野力，社區又如何長出自己的主體性？15個經典案例、15個值得細細體會的社區再生過程！

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In parts of Asia, citizens are increasingly involved in shaping their neighbourhoods and cities, ... more In parts of Asia, citizens are increasingly involved in shaping their neighbourhoods and cities, representing a significant departure from earlier state-led or market-driven urban development. These emerging civic urbanisms are a result of an evolving relationship between the state and civil society. The contributions in this volume provide critical insights into how the changing state–civil society relationship affects the recent surge of civic urbanism in Hong Kong, Seoul, Singapore, and Taipei, and the authors present eighteen cases of grassroots activism and resistance, collaboration and placemaking, neighbourhood community building, and self-organization and commoning in these cities. Exploring how citizen participation and state–civil society partnerships contribute to more resilient and participatory neighbourhoods and cities, the authors use the concept of civic urbanisms not only as a conceptual framework to understand the ongoing social and urban change but as an aspirational model of urban governance for cities in Asia and beyond.

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City Commoning, 2019

《反造再起》為「反造系列」第二輯，以「城市共生」為主軸，分為〔關懷弱勢：人生百味、萬華協力〕〔老城再生與活化：台中中區再生、高雄哈瑪星〕〔聯合公民社會和公部門資源：Open Green〕〔人群關... more 《反造再起》為「反造系列」第二輯，以「城市共生」為主軸，分為〔關懷弱勢：人生百味、萬華協力〕〔老城再生與活化：台中中區再生、高雄哈瑪星〕〔聯合公民社會和公部門資源：Open Green〕〔人群關係的再造：古風小白屋、南機拌飯〕〔用其他方式重組社區關係：玖樓共生公寓、燦爛時光書店、都農網、還我特色公園行動聯盟〕五大方向，收錄十二個經典案例。各案例之間並非獨自發展，而是可資相互參照，彼此交疊。在實踐上這些案例也相互協力和串連，有的已經發展出社會企業甚至商業化的運作方式。

「共生」指的是一群市民對於城市空間與發展的重新想像，當他們在經營共生實驗的同時，也同時在創造一個新的城市。相較於容易落入事業導向或物質環境改造的「地方創生」，「城市共生」的核心在於社會與社群關係的建構與資源的再生產，提供合作的機會與地方活化的基礎。

《反造再起》（第二輯）不同於《反造城市》（第一輯），在抗爭、游擊與開創之餘，嘗試進一步用「城市共生」的觀點，強調市民之間的協力、合作甚至跨域，與公部門的串連，進而發展自我治理的機制，創造城市生產與生活多元的新可能性，是對日益私有化、商品化、財團化、全球化，以及政府無所作為的應對之道。

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How can we design places that fulfill urgent needs of the community, achieve environmental justic... more How can we design places that fulfill urgent needs of the community, achieve environmental justice, and inspire long-term stewardship? By bringing community members to the table, we open up the possibility of exchanging ideas meaningfully and transforming places powerfully. Collaboration like this is hands-on democracy in action. It’s up close. It’s personal. For decades, participatory design practices have helped enliven neighborhoods and promote cultural understanding. Yet, many designers still rely on the same techniques that were developed in the 1950s and 60s. These approaches offer predictability, but hold waning promise for addressing current and future design challenges. Design as Democracy: Techniques for Collective Creativity is written to reinvigorate democratic design, providing inspiration, techniques, and case stories for a wide range of contexts.

Edited by six leading practitioners and academics in the field of participatory design, with nearly 50 contributors from around the world, Design as Democracy shows how to design with communities in empowering and effective ways. The flow of the book’s nine chapters reflects the general progression of community design process, while also encouraging readers to search for ways that best serve their distinct needs and the culture and geography of diverse places. Each chapter presents a series of techniques around a theme, from approaching the initial stages of a project, to getting to know a community, to provoking political change through strategic thinking. Readers may approach the book as they would a cookbook, with recipes open to improvisation, adaptation, and being created anew.

Design as Democracy offers fresh insights for creating meaningful dialogue between designers and communities and for transforming places with justice and democracy in mind.

Editors: David de la Peña, Diane Jones Allen, Randolph T. Hester, Jr., Jeffrey Hou, Laura J. Lawson, and Marcia J. McNally

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What do the recent urban resistance tactics around the world have in common? What are the roles o... more What do the recent urban resistance tactics around the world have in common? What are the roles of public space in these movements? What are the implications of urban resistance for the remaking of public space in the "age of shrinking democracy"? To what extent do these resistances move from anti- to alter-politics?

City Unsilenced brings together a cross-disciplinary group of scholars and scholar-activists to examine the spaces, conditions, and processes in which neoliberal practices have profoundly impacted the everyday social, economic, and political life of citizens and communities around the globe. They explore the commonalities and specificities of urban resistance movements that respond to those impacts. They focus on how such movements make use of and transform the meanings and capacity of public space. They investigate their ramifications in the continued practices of renewing democracies. A broad collection of cases is presented and analyzed, including Movimento Passe Livre (Brazil), Google Bus Blockades San Francisco (USA), the Platform for Mortgage Affected People (PAH) (Spain), the Piqueteros Movement (Argentina), Umbrella Movement (Hong Kong), post-Occupy Gezi Park (Turkey), Sunflower Movement (Taiwan), Occupy Oakland (USA), Syntagma Square (Greece), Researchers for Fair Policing (New York), Urban Movement Congress (Poland), urban activism (Berlin), 1DMX (Mexico), Miyashita Park Tokyo (Japan), 15M Movement (Spain), and Train of Hope and protests against Academic Ball in Vienna (Austria).

By better understanding the processes and implications of the recent urban resistances, City Unsilenced contributes to the ongoing debates concerning the role and significance of public space in the practice of lived democracy.

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Seemingly messy and chaotic, the landscapes and urban life of cities in Asia possess an order and... more Seemingly messy and chaotic, the landscapes and urban life of cities in Asia possess an order and hierarchy that often challenges understanding and appreciation. With contributions by a cross-disciplinary group of authors, Messy Urbanism: Understanding the “Other” Cities of Asia examines a range of cases in Asia to explore the social and institutional politics of urban informality and the contexts in which this “messiness” emerges or is constructed. The book brings a distinct perspective to the broader patterns of informal urban orders and processes as well as their interplay with formalized systems and mechanisms. It also raises questions about the production of cities, cityscapes, and citizenship.

Messy Urbanism will appeal to professionals, students, and scholars in the fields of urban studies, architecture, landscape architecture, planning and policy, as well as Asian studies.

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As an alternative approach for rethinking and remaking today’s cities and regions, this book explores the intersections of critical inquiry and immediate, substantive actions. The contributions inside recognize the rich complexities of the present city not as barriers or obstacles but as grounds for uncovering opportunity and unleashing potential. Now Urbanism asserts that the future city is already here. It views city making as grounded in the imperfect, messy, yet rich reality of the existing city and the everyday purposeful agency of its dwellers.

Through a framework of situating, grounding, performing, distributing, instigating, and enduring, these contributions written by a multidisciplinary group of practitioners and scholars illustrate specificity, context, agency, and networks of actors and actions in the re-making of the contemporary city.

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"從突尼西亞到埃及，從占領華爾街到占領土耳其的廣場，從北半球的香港到南半球巴西，城市造反事件如野火燎原般席捲全球。這股從城市點燃的人民之火向我們指引了前方的道路。我們想問的是，人民的力量如何參與... more "從突尼西亞到埃及，從占領華爾街到占領土耳其的廣場，從北半球的香港到南半球巴西，城市造反事件如野火燎原般席捲全球。這股從城市點燃的人民之火向我們指引了前方的道路。我們想問的是，人民的力量如何參與新公共空間的建立，又如何打破權力者與既得利益者的城市想望？在新一波的公民行動中，對城市空間的改造如何能夠帶給社會關係、政治過程和文化認同新的解答？

《城市造反》從世界各地，收錄了十一個特色各異的社區營造實例，試圖提出更兼容並蓄的非典型都市規劃術。透過各地的城市造反實錄，瞭解當地民眾與專業者，在面對僵化的都市建設時，所從事的抵抗、反制與自力救濟，更重要的是重新營造一個更多元、開放的城市。

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"從十四、十五號公園到華光社區，從樂生爭議到大埔事件，從溪洲部落到華光社區，在全球化的時代，我們追逐國際美好城市的榮銜，公園綠地、便捷交通、拔地而起的嶄新高樓，窄化為我們視野裡唯一的目標。為了這... more "從十四、十五號公園到華光社區，從樂生爭議到大埔事件，從溪洲部落到華光社區，在全球化的時代，我們追逐國際美好城市的榮銜，公園綠地、便捷交通、拔地而起的嶄新高樓，窄化為我們視野裡唯一的目標。為了這些競爭力，政府進行美其名為都市規劃，實際作為卻是Cities for Sale的手段：讓大資本進駐、清除邊緣族群的身影、抹除歷史紋理，彷彿眼不見為淨。

我們要問的是：這些名為公共的利益，是由誰決定的？一座城市的勝利除了經濟繁榮，還有其他選項嗎？人民的智慧如何可以幫城市靈魂注入多元的可能性？

《反造城市》試圖提出更兼容並蓄、思考更周延的非典型都市規劃術。抗爭往往只是部份案例裡居民初期的對應，更值得我們參考的是後來的具體行動和溝通技術；專業工作者與居民如何在制度與政治的縫隙中，保障社會正義的存在，成為其他社區可以仿效的先例。
"

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"In cities around the world, individuals and groups are reclaiming and creating urban sites, temp... more "In cities around the world, individuals and groups are reclaiming and creating urban sites, temporary spaces and informal gathering places. These ‘insurgent public spaces’ challenge conventional views of how public spaces are defined and used, and how they can transform the city environment. No longer confined to traditional public areas like neighbourhood parks and public plazas, these guerrilla spaces express the alternative social and spatial relationships in our changing cities.

With nearly twenty illustrated case studies, this volume shows how instances of insurgent public space occur across the world. Examples range from community gardening in Seattle and Los Angeles, street dancing in Beijing, to the transformation of parking spaces into temporary parks in San Francisco.

Drawing on the experiences and knowledge of individuals extensively engaged in the actual implementation of these spaces, Insurgent Public Space is a unique cross-disciplinary approach to the study of public space use, and how it is utilized in the contemporary, urban world. Appealing to professionals and students in both urban studies and more social courses, Hou has brought together valuable commentaries on an area of urbanism which has, up until now, been largely ignored.

Winner of 2012 Great Places Award -- http://www.edra.org/content/2012-place-book-winner"

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"Although there are thousands of community gardens across North America, only Seattle and a few o... more "Although there are thousands of community gardens across North America, only Seattle and a few other cities include them in their urban development plans. While the conditions and experiences in Seattle may be unique, the city's programs offer insights and lessons for other cities and communities. Greening Cities, Growing Communities examines:

- Planning and design strategies that support the development of urban community gardens as sustainable places for education and recreation
- Approaches to design processes, construction, and stewardship that utilize volunteer and community participation and create a sense of community
- Programs that enable gardens to serve as a resource for social justice for low income and minority communities, immigrants, and seniors
- Opportunities to develop active-living frameworks by strategically locating community gardens and linking them with other forms of recreation and open space as part of pedestrian-accessible networks

Greening Cities, Growing Communities focuses on six community gardens in Seattle where there has been a strong network of knowledge and resources. These case studies reveal the capacity of community gardens to serve larger community issues, such as food security; urban ecosystem health; demonstration of sustainable gardening and building practices; active living and pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods; and equity concerns. The authors also examine how landscape architects, planners, and allied design professionals can better interact in the making of these unique urban open spaces, and how urban community gardens offer opportunities for professionals to have a more prominent role in community activism and urban sustainability.

Winner of 2010 Great Places Award -- http://www.edra.org/content/past-great-places-award-winners-continued"

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What do community designers across the Pacific Rim share in common? How can practices in the diff... more What do community designers across the Pacific Rim share in common? How can practices in the different political, institutional and social contexts inform each other? What lessons can be drawn from an increasing array of cross-cultural and transnational collaboration in participatory design and planning? This collection of 52 papers and abstracts is an outcome of a three-day conference held in Seattle in September 2004 that brought together a dynamic group of activists/scholars from different countries to answer and reflect on these critical questions concerning the growing practice of community design in the Pacific Rim. Featuring articles by Hilda Blanco, Jim Diers, Masato Dohi, Mark Francis, Yasuyoshi Hayashi, Randolph Hester, Margarita Hill, Julie Johnson, Min Jay Kang, Isami Kinoshita, John K-C. Liu, Marcia McNally, Louis Mozingo, Sawako Ono, Pasty Eubanks Owens, Antonio Ishmael Risianto, Daniel Winterbottom, and more.

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Papers, Articles, and Book Chapters by Jeffrey Hou

Local Environment, 2022

More than just everyday acts of appropriation, guerrilla gardens have appeared in a growing numbe... more More than just everyday acts of appropriation, guerrilla gardens have appeared in a growing number of civic protests. During Seattle’s Capitol Hill Occupied Protest (CHOP) in 2020, a guerrilla garden was featured prominently within the six-block area taken over by protesters following a standoff with the Seattle Police. Through informal and semi-structured interviews with the garden leaders, volunteers, protesters, and neighbours who lived near the site, this study examines the garden's role and significance during the month-long protest. Findings suggested that the CHOP garden provided opportunities for social interactions among protesters as well as non-protesters. Through expanded engagement, the garden brought a wider range of individuals to the protest site. With its ability to engage broader participation, the garden helped mobilise additional human and material resources for the movement. Furthermore, the garden functioned as a place of learning that deepened the meanings and narrative of the movement. It also served as a place of refuge and relief during the tense occupation. Lastly, the social networks and relationships that emerged from the garden serve as a vehicle for sustaining the movement beyond the protest. As a place that facilitated these multilayered processes, these findings suggest that the CHOP Garden functioned as a “thick” space of civil resistance. The notion of thick space highlights the importance of specific spatial practices that can contribute significantly to the transformative outcomes of social movements.

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Journal of Geographical Science, 2021

Civil society responses including self-help and mutual aid have played an important role in addre... more Civil society responses including self-help and mutual aid have played an important role in addressing the COVID-19 crisis around the world, including Asia. They represent a form of civic resilience, the ability of citizens and communities to cope with and adapt to social, economic, and environmental disturbances. But how exactly did communities and social groups in Asia self-organize to address challenges during the pandemic, particularly those facing the most vulnerable populations in society? What did these cases have in common? What can we learn from these civil society responses for future planning? What were the roles of researchers, spatial planning professionals, and institutions in strengthening community resilience? This article presents outcomes from a two-part webinar titled "Bottom-Up Resilience" that took place in July 2020 featuring activists, organizers, and researchers from Hong Kong, Manila, Shanghai, Singapore, Taipei, and Tokyo. Preliminary findings include contrasting responses from institutions and civil society actors, how the civil society responses have built upon and expanded trust and empathy in a given place, how civil society responses scale up, and such scalability has depended heavily on solidarity and collaboration. The article further discusses how these efforts represent a form of civic resilience, the continued barriers, and implications for spatial planning practices.

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The Field: ASLA Professional Practice Network's Blog, 2021

The following is the second installment in a summary of a recent panel on decolonizing design edu... more The following is the second installment in a summary of a recent panel on decolonizing design education that took place at the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture (CELA)‘s 2021 conference (click here for Part 1). In order to address systemic racism and biases within institutions that teach landscape architecture, we must confront the way our profession approaches the teaching and production of knowledge within landscape architecture that replicates racist and oppressive processes, policies, and outcomes in communities of color.
– ASLA’s Environmental Justice Professional Practice Network Leadership Team

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The Field: ASLA Professional Practice Network's Blog, 2021

The following two-part series is a summary of a recent panel on decolonizing design education tha... more The following two-part series is a summary of a recent panel on decolonizing design education that took place at the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture (CELA)‘s 2021 conference. In order to address systemic racism and biases within institutions that teach landscape architecture, we must confront the way our profession approaches the teaching and production of knowledge within landscape architecture that replicates racist and oppressive processes, policies, and outcomes in communities of color.
– ASLA’s Environmental Justice Professional Practice Network Leadership Team

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Open Space, 2021

From June 8 to July 1 of last year, tens of thousands of Seattleites took part in an occupy actio... more From June 8 to July 1 of last year, tens of thousands of Seattleites took part in an occupy action, one of many Black Lives Matter protests in the wake of George Floyd’s death. As Seattle Police retreated after days of intense confrontations with protestors, a six-block area in the Capitol Hill neighborhood was proclaimed an “autonomous zone,” taken over by protestors. Inside the occupied zone, one could find “no-cop” co-ops, conversation circles, community kitchens, and medical aid stations, tents for the occupy protestors — and a vegetable garden inside the Cal Anderson Park, around which the occupation started to coalesce. The movement eventually became known as CHOP (Capitol Hill Occupied Protest).

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Fabrications, 2021

Taking its cue from Foucault’s short but seminal lecture “Of Other Spaces: Utopias and Heterotopi... more Taking its cue from Foucault’s short but seminal lecture “Of Other Spaces: Utopias and Heterotopias”, 1 this forum addresses the category of crisis heterotopias. However, not as Rob Shield has argued of marginal places for deviant socialities, 2 or of initiation into new rituals of biological change, or even the more superficial interpretations of hetero-architecture or “green” archipelagos examined by architectural theorists. 3 But it uses Foucault's essay instead to look at more anodyne building types that are violently, but only temporarily transformed. With the global spread of Covid-19, a new taxonomy of defamiliarised spaces that deny the rituals of everyday sociality has forced us to rethink and reconfigure our lives. As our national borders were rendered impenetrable and defensive, our homes imploded into spaces of internment, and our bodies were constrained by fear, regulation, and surveillance. Between the border and the home, a range of ordinary spaces were expediently alienated as viral incubators and were programmatically transformed. They include the spaces examined in this forum: the island detention centre, the cruise ship, the airport, the train station, the quarantine hotel, and the home. Contributors have been asked to historicise these spaces under the new politics of widespread lockdown and quarantine and to reflect on how the haptic and somatic capacities of their users have been compromised.

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The City as Eye Level Asia, 2020

A vast continent with rich cultural traditions, Asia is steeped in its extraordinary heritage of ... more A vast continent with rich cultural traditions, Asia is steeped in its extraordinary heritage of places, ranging from the majestic monasteries in the high plateaus of Tibet to the multicultural streetscapes of George Town on the island of Penang. For ages, these memorable and remarkable sites have evolved through exchanges of cultures and the economic and social life of their communities. They embody systems of cultural values and spatial practices that are integral to the local ways of life and the identities of those places. For much of recent history, however, these longstanding practices of place-making in Asia were disrupted by a multitude of changes, conflicts, colonisa-tion, and rapid economic development, and through institutions imposed on the local communities, including none other than the professional planning and design practice. Over time, vernacular practices gave way to imposed economic and political imperatives. Human-scale places were demolished and replaced by large-scale developments. The city at eye level was transformed by policies at the high level. This chapter examines placemaking as a contemporary presents alternatives to institutionalized planning and design. It further examines challenges facing placemaking as a potentially emancipatory spatial practice.

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●小朋友除了會玩，還能對地方做出什麼貢獻？

●神明的意見和專業者的提案相互衝突時，如何解決？

●專業者面對「動」不起來的社區，可以如何「興風作浪」？

15個社區營造案例，15則專業工作者摸索踩踏出的顛簸之路，15段對未來工作者充滿靈感與刺激的經典故事，揭開15個地方回春的秘密。

從台東到馬祖，從台灣頭到台灣尾，專業者如何捕捉野力，社區又如何長出自己的主體性？15個經典案例、15個值得細細體會的社區再生過程！

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City Commoning, 2019

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Design as Democracy offers fresh insights for creating meaningful dialogue between designers and communities and for transforming places with justice and democracy in mind.

Editors: David de la Peña, Diane Jones Allen, Randolph T. Hester, Jr., Jeffrey Hou, Laura J. Lawson, and Marcia J. McNally

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Messy Urbanism will appeal to professionals, students, and scholars in the fields of urban studies, architecture, landscape architecture, planning and policy, as well as Asian studies.

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Winner of 2012 Great Places Award -- http://www.edra.org/content/2012-place-book-winner"

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Winner of 2010 Great Places Award -- http://www.edra.org/content/past-great-places-award-winners-continued"

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Local Environment, 2022

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Journal of Geographical Science, 2021

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The Field: ASLA Professional Practice Network's Blog, 2021

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The Field: ASLA Professional Practice Network's Blog, 2021

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Open Space, 2021

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Fabrications, 2021

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The City as Eye Level Asia, 2020

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Medium, 2020

This series of articles represents the outcomes of a two-part webinar, titled Bottom-Up Resilienc... more This series of articles represents the outcomes of a two-part webinar, titled Bottom-Up Resilience and hosted by APRU Plus in July 2020. Through a partnership between Pacific Rim Community Design Network and the APRU Sustainable Cities and Landscapes Hub, the discussion brought together a group of activists, organizers, and researchers across the region to critically reflect on their ongoing work in supporting the local communities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Medium, 2020

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Transactions of the Associations of European Schools of Planning, 2020

Neoliberal urban restructuring constitutes an underlying challenge facing cities and communities ... more Neoliberal urban restructuring constitutes an underlying challenge facing cities and communities around the world. Public space, as a medium of political engagement and social interactions, may represent a vehicle for resistance against patterns of shrinking democracy. In its capacity as a place for active democracy, public spaces-the lived spaces of contemporary societies-deserve greater care, attention, and critical reflection. As movements evolve to confront new challenges, explore new opportunities, negotiate with new actors and circumstances, and utilise new technologies and platforms, our understanding of the agency of democracy-supported through an understanding of civic dignity-must also advance. This paper aims at examining the role of public space in reclaiming and reinstating democracy. By drawing on empirical findings from cities worldwide, explored through the lens of multiple disciplines, it argues that the study of urban protest might show directions for a new, dignified politics of public space. It asks how this study may enable planners and designers to contribute to the spatial emergence of human and civic dignity.

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Companion to Public Space, 2020

After decades of privatization and control under concerns for security, public space returns to t... more After decades of privatization and control under concerns for security, public space returns to the center stage of political struggles in cities around the world in the new millennium. From Arab Spring to Occupy Wall Street, squares, streets, parks and plazas, and even privately owned public spaces gained new identities and meanings through both organized and spontaneous actions of citizens and activists. In the context of neoliberalization and resurging totalitarianism, these instances remind us the important role of public space as a vehicle for citizens and publics to mobilize and reclaim their political voice. Based on a review of relevant literature and cases, this chapter explores the multiple dimensions of public space as a space of resistance and resilience. Specifically, it explores how public space functions as a space of assemblies and amalgamation, a space of visibility and meanings, a space of encounters and negotiations, and a space of everyday resistance. Through these processes, public space also serves as a space of critical reflections and renewal. An understanding of these dimensions is critical to clarifying the significance of public space as a space of resistance and resilience in the struggle for an active and meaningful democracy.

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Messy Urbanism: Understanding the "Other" Cities of Asia, 2016

While temporary urbanism has experienced a resurgence of interest in Western Europe and North Ame... more While temporary urbanism has experienced a resurgence of interest in Western Europe and North America, the phenomenon of urban flux has long been an everyday phenomenon and even a norm in many East Asian cities. In the dense and populous cities of East Asia, temporary uses are often not a strategy for occupying vacant and abandoned in a specific economic context, but rather an everyday survival tactic in the face of scarce real estate.

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Since late January this year, life in Seattle has steadily descended into an unsettling and uncha... more Since late January this year, life in Seattle has steadily descended into an unsettling and uncharted reality, like many other cities around the world. By this very moment, at the end of March, any semblance of normalcy in this West Coast boomtown has long been lost. The disruptions in public life and access to public space in Seattle, and other cities around the world, are unprecedented, at least in our memory. The pandemic has upended how urban spaces have functioned and performed historically and in contemporary time, from the way we moved around the city to how commerce and daily life are conducted, not to mention the basic services that have been taken for granted. While many of us may find this limited form of public space to be strange and unsettling, it’s important to point out this experience is not entirely new to many members of our society.

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Urban Design International , 2020

Unsanctioned, unscripted, and seemingly “undesirable” activities have long appropriated urban spa... more Unsanctioned, unscripted, and seemingly “undesirable” activities have long appropriated urban spaces in routine and sometimes unexpected ways, bringing new meanings and unforeseen functions to those places. In the last decade or so, such practices have inspired a growing movement under the banner of DIY and tactical urbanisms. The growing acceptance of these practices creates important openings in the formalized planning systems for greater flexibility and expedient change. Yet, the institutionalization of previously informal and even subversive acts has resulted in concerns regarding co-optation and de-politicization. This special issue seeks to pivot a refocus towards these unsanctioned and unscripted urban activities as a form of counter-hegemonic spatial practices, distinct from its professionalized and institutionalized counterpart. A range of cases is examined here sharing similar characteristics as challenges against the prevailing social and political paradigm. Key findings include the scalability of guerrilla actions, the fluid shift between overt and covert actions, and the linkage between everyday struggles and organized resistance. This special issue is intended to advance our understanding of urban design by situating it in a broader social, economic, and political praxis that encompasses both formal and informal practices performed by a wide variety of individual and collective actors.

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The Conversation, Jan 17, 2020

First seen in Prague in 1980, a form of public protest and free expression has spread throughout ... more First seen in Prague in 1980, a form of public protest and free expression has spread throughout Hong Kong and around the world.

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Medium, 2019

Since June of 2019 and with no end in sight, the protest movement in Hong Kong has stretched our ... more Since June of 2019 and with no end in sight, the protest movement in Hong Kong has stretched our imagination about the possibilities of social and political movements. It has challenged what is conceivable and practical in terms of tactics and organizational structures of a protest movement. It has redefined the common narratives of the Hong King society. It has pushed the boundaries and limits of human capacity. It has overturned many accepted norms in terms of how cities and societies can function. These norms include those that have historically governed the functions and meanings of public space.

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Public Space Design and Social Cohesion: An International Perspective, 2019

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arq.urb, 2018

This article was prepared based on a talk given at the Department of Landscape Architecture at SU... more This article was prepared based on a talk given at the Department of Landscape Architecture at SUNY ESF (College of Environment, Science and Forestry, State University of New York) in April 2017. The original title was Public Space Activism and Reclaiming the Commons. It was changed to the current title as I realized later that the focus was not about reclaiming or restoring commons that once existed but instead about new commons – new social relationships, new model of interactions in the society that can be facilitated through design, planning, and placemaking practices that build on what we know and do already in community engagement but in a more nimble, networked, and open-ended manner, a manner that is exemplified in aspects of recent public
space activism.

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Column 5: Journal of Architecture, 2008

"Rather than a nostalgic look at the past, these micro-urban observations provide a clearer view ... more "Rather than a nostalgic look at the past, these micro-urban observations provide a clearer view of how individuals and groups instrumentalize the urban landscape."

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As the civil society in the cities of East Asia develops and matures after decades of authoritari... more As the civil society in the cities of East Asia develops and matures after decades of authoritarian rule and narrowly focused economic growth, the forces of transformation are coming not only from the top but also from the bottom, through self-organized actions by citizens and community groups. In cities from Taipei to Tokyo, communities and non-profit organizations have become more active not only in advocating for more urban open spaces, but also in making them on their own, often with the support of other non-profit groups, growing networks of volunteers and even local governments.

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The City at Eye Level Asia, 2020

A vast continent with rich cultural traditions, Asia is steeped in its extraordinary heritage of ... more A vast continent with rich cultural traditions, Asia is steeped in its extraordinary heritage of places, ranging from the majestic monasteries in the high plateaus of Tibet to the multicultural streetscapes of George Town on the island of Penang. For ages, these memorable and remarkable sites have evolved through exchanges of cultures and the economic and social life of their communities. They embody systems of cultural values and spatial practices that are integral to the local ways of life and the identities of those places. For much of recent history, however, these longstanding practices of place-making in Asia were disrupted by a multitude of changes, conflicts, colonisation, and rapid economic development, and through institutions imposed on the local communities, including none other than the professional planning and design practice. Over time, vernacular practices gave way to imposed economic and political imperatives. Human-scale places were demolished and replaced by large-scale developments. The city at eye level was transformed by policies at the high level. This chapter examines how placemaking as a contemporary practice serves as an alternative to institutionalized planning and design. It also outlines a series of challenges for placemaking to function as an emancipatory spatial practice.

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位在美國的西北部，西雅圖市長期以來是美國進步城市的指標。在這裏，市民團體活躍於各項社會、政治與環境議題，多數市議員甚至市長均持有進步的政治立場，市政制度上也有各種公民參與的管道，許多前瞻性的市政... more 位在美國的西北部，西雅圖市長期以來是美國進步城市的指標。在這裏，市民團體活躍於各項社會、政治與環境議題，多數市議員甚至市長均持有進步的政治立場，市政制度上也有各種公民參與的管道，許多前瞻性的市政作為在這裡得以實現，包括全美國最高的基本工資。然而，西雅圖的市政與社區議題，卻依然爭議不斷，這是怎麼一回事？公民如何真正影響公共政策與市政決策？西雅圖的公民參與制度是否有值得學習的地方？有了公民參與機制就夠了嗎？

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公園遇上菜園會發生什麼事？荒廢的畸零地、高壓電塔下的空地、陡到不能用的道路空間，四十年來西雅圖的社區園圃在有限的城市空間裡存活下來，成為全美國最有規模的公部門所推動的社區園圃計畫。近十幾年來，隨... more 公園遇上菜園會發生什麼事？荒廢的畸零地、高壓電塔下的空地、陡到不能用的道路空間，四十年來西雅圖的社區園圃在有限的城市空間裡存活下來，成為全美國最有規模的公部門所推動的社區園圃計畫。近十幾年來，隨著都市農耕漸漸受到重視，有了來自於民間的力量，西雅圖的社區園圃也開始成為都市正式綠地空間的一環，包括走進了公園…。

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The notion and politics of local has been an important element in the political and social moveme... more The notion and politics of local has been an important element in the political and social movements in Taiwan since the 1970s. As an intellectual and political discourse, it challenged the Sino-centric, ideological and political hegemony of the state under Kuomintang. Specifically, the pivot towards the local provided the ground for Taiwanese identity and political self-determinacy that were central to Taiwan’s democracy movement and continued to be at the center of political contestation to this day. Besides political struggles, the discourse of the local also played an important in Taiwan’s vibrant and colorful social movements that emerged in the 1980s and 1990s. This paper examines the politics of the local in three specific movements in which the author has been involved with from 1990 to early 2000s – Historic Preservation, Community Empowerment, and Environmental Conservation. In the Historic Preservation Movement, the newly awaken local consciousness in the 1980s led to a growing movement to preserve historic landmarks, districts, and settlements that were previously shunned by a preservation policy focusing narrowing on historical lineage linked to the Chinese Mainland. In the Community Empowerment Movement that emerged in the mid-1990s, local identities became a mobilizing tool for community building at the local level throughout Taiwan. Lastly, in the Environmental Conservation Movement since the late 1990s, local economic development and cultural survival have provided an important argument and leverage for environmental and social activists to successfully defeat large-scale construction and development projects. This paper argues that throughout these movements and more, the politics, or more precisely the reinvention of the local serves a common thread for mobilization and framing—elements that are critical to the effectiveness of social movements. As such, the local provides a critical lens for examining the mechanisms that enable Taiwan’s social transformation in its recent history.

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2014 has been a year like no others for Asian streets. In March, students and citizens occupied t... more 2014 has been a year like no others for Asian streets. In March, students and citizens occupied the streets surrounding the Parliament building in Taipei in protest against the government’s proposed trade pact with China and to protect the students occupying the Parliament building. To further pressure the government, an estimated half million people took to the streets in front the President’s Office to demonstrate their support for the students. In September, hundreds of thousands of students and citizens occupied the streets of Admiralty, Causeway Bay, and Mong Kok to demand direct democracy and universal suffrage in Hong Kong. In these two instances, urban streets are given renewed agency as a medium for transformative political actions. More than other forms of designated public spaces, the symbolic gesture of street occupation and the resulting disruptions provide a powerful tool for democratic movements. Rather than a new and novel phenomenon, however, different forms of street occupation has long been around in many Asian cities. While political protests seize the spotlight, these other forms of everyday resistance also suggest the role of streets as a site of contestation, mobilization, and negotiation, challenging the institutional and political norms in the cityscape and the society. Through the lens of ‘insurgent public space,’ this talk examines the social and political instrumentality of Asian streets and how the streets as an everyday space can serve as a vehicle for meaningful social, cultural, and political actions.

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Join Dr. Jeff Hou, University of Washington, for a keynote address for ENGAGE Week with a theme o... more Join Dr. Jeff Hou, University of Washington, for a keynote address for ENGAGE Week with a theme of "A Welcoming Community." Dr. Hou is department chair of Landscape Architecture with a background in planning and creative place-making and has published extensively on the design of communities for inclusion and public participation.

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Do-It-yourself (DIY) urbanism is a worldwide movement where individuals make changes to their str... more Do-It-yourself (DIY) urbanism is a worldwide movement where individuals make changes to their streets or neighborhoods using creative interventions. DIY urbanism can range from a large-scale event like PARKing Day to organizing a few friends to transform a street median into a "guerrilla garden".

Join UAA's Center for Community Engagement and Learning and the Alaska Design Forum for a hands-on workshop focused on improving cities through DIY urbanism tactics.

Our workshop will begin with a talk by Dr. Jeff Hou, department chair of landscape architecture at the University of Washington. Dr. Hou has a multidisciplinary background in architecture, landscape architecture, planning, and public art. He is the editor of Insurgent Public Space: Guerrilla Urbanism and the Remaking of Contemporary Cities (2010) and a co-author of Greening Cities, Growing Communities: Learning from Urban Community Gardens in Seattle (with Julie Johnson and Laura Lawson) (2009). He is a contributor to Expanding Architecture: Design as Activism (2008) and Companion to Urban Design (2011). His research on innovative practices of community participation and design education has also been published in Journal of Planning Education and Research, Landscape Journal, Journal of Architectural Education, and Open House International.

Following Dr. Hou's talk, participants will be split into groups and brainstorm transformative ideas using the Alaska Design Forum's contemporary cabin design challenge ("Cabin") as a case study.

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City design and planning has primarily been the domain of experts and professionals. Over the co... more City design and planning has primarily been the domain of experts and
professionals. Over the course of the 20th century, knowledge of planning and design is primarily concerned with regulation and bringing order to the perceived mess of industrialized cities in the previous era, often at the expenses of the richness of everyday practices of the urban dwellers. The institutional and professional practice often limits, if not shunning, the participation and knowledge of ordinary citizens. But
along with outcomes of institutional planning actions, cities are also lived spaces. As such, they are collectively produced and reproduced through both institutional planning and everyday practices of urban dwellers. How can we re-envision a planning practice that recognizes the everyday actions and practices of citizens? What precisely are the everyday practices that have shaped the cityscapes and experiences? How do they contribute to the making and remaking of cities and
neighborhoods? Building recent discourses of insurgency and tactical urbanism, this talk explores the above questions through examples in cities around the world, including North America, Europe and Asia. It presents a case for a critical, yet collaborative planning and design practice that engages both institutional planning context and agency of citizens and communities.

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從十四、十五號公園到華光社區，從樂生爭議到大埔事件，從溪洲部落到華光社區，在全球化的時代，我們追逐國際美好城市的榮銜，公園綠地、便捷交通、拔地而起的嶄新高樓，窄化為我們視野裡唯一的目標。為了這些... more 從十四、十五號公園到華光社區，從樂生爭議到大埔事件，從溪洲部落到華光社區，在全球化的時代，我們追逐國際美好城市的榮銜，公園綠地、便捷交通、拔地而起的嶄新高樓，窄化為我們視野裡唯一的目標。為了這些競爭力，政府進行美其名為都市規劃，實際作為卻是Cities for Sale的手段：讓大資本進駐、清除邊緣族群的身影、抹除歷史紋理，彷彿眼不見為淨。在同時，從突尼西亞到埃及，從占領華爾街到占領土耳其的廣場，從北半球的香港到南半球巴西，城市造反事件，如野火燎原般席捲全球。這股從城市點燃的人民之火向我們指引了前方的道路。我們想問的是，人民的力量如何參與新公共空間的建立，又如何打破權力者與既得利益者的城市想望？在新一波的公民行動中，對城市空間的改造如何能夠帶給社會關係、政治過程和文化認同新的解答？

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一九八○年代起，台灣「現代化都市」意識覺醒，政府機關以「都市規劃」之名，將原本不為人所關注的河岸地、非列管眷村、及非典型使用之土地，納入其治理範圍之內。相關的例子不斷出現，從十四、十五號公園到華... more 一九八○年代起，台灣「現代化都市」意識覺醒，政府機關以「都市規劃」之名，將原本不為人所關注的河岸地、非列管眷村、及非典型使用之土地，納入其治理範圍之內。相關的例子不斷出現，從十四、十五號公園到華光社區，從瑠公家園到土城彈藥庫，從樂生爭議到大埔事件，從寶藏巖到溪洲部落，以及當下的蟾蜍山聚落，甚至還包括即將被劃定為經濟特區的蘭嶼。

這些在政府眼中落後礙眼、應當被加以規劃開發的社群和土地，幾乎都是社會上的弱勢者。這些無權力者在一波波的反抗中，習得或發明了哪些技術？「弱勢者的技藝」（Art of the weak）如何動員其他人的聲援，壯大改變的可能？抗議行動如何可能撼動技術官僚施行「國土規劃」的本質？受挫的公民行動又如何帶給我們啓示？

我們反思有關空間的各種戰術，發現其仍有侷限與盲點。造反行動不能無止盡地進行，當公權力選擇不願面對時，抗議者如何促成協商？當決戰談判桌的那一刻來臨時，如何延續原先的訴求？弱勢團體內部如何自治？又如何被監督？非典型都市規劃術應該是社會的常態嗎？當整體社會仍需一個能夠統合各方利益、思考何謂「大公」的公權力單位來執行長遠規劃時，反抗運動如何促成這樣的終極目標？

這一場我們邀請到四位講者，分別是侯志仁（華盛頓大學景觀建築系）、康旻杰（台大建築城鄉研究所）、連振佑（中原大學景觀系）、黃舒楣（文化大學建築與都市設計系）。他們將以西雅圖、香港、柏林等國外經驗為起點，分享國外經驗如何激發他們在台灣所從事的城市游擊，也一起思索城市戰術的限制與挑戰。

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Now Urbanism recognizes the rich complexities of the present city not as barriers or obstacles bu... more Now Urbanism recognizes the rich complexities of the present city not as barriers or obstacles but as grounds for uncovering opportunity and unleashing potential. It views city making as grounded in the imperfect, messy, yet rich reality of the present city and the everyday purposeful agency of its dwellers.

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「暮らしの芸術都市」は、現代における日常生活の営みから芸術を捉え直し、多様な表現にあふれる都市を創造する試みです。その取り組みのひとつとして、まちづくりやアート、コミュニティをテーマにした交流会... more 「暮らしの芸術都市」は、現代における日常生活の営みから芸術を捉え直し、多様な表現にあふれる都市を創造する試みです。その取り組みのひとつとして、まちづくりやアート、コミュニティをテーマにした交流会「TOWN DRINKS」を毎月開催しています。今回はゲストに千葉大学園芸学部教授の木下勇さんと、ワシントン大学准教授・ランドスケープ学科長でジェフ・ホウさんのお二人をお招きします。それぞれ、まちのアイデンティティや持続可能性、公共空間の利活用などについてお話しいただく予定です。

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While contributing to the multicultural vibes of cities, migration and movements have also result... more While contributing to the multicultural vibes of cities, migration and movements have also resulted in tensions and clashes of cultures between ethnic communities. As destination of migration and movements, how can cities and urban places support cross-cultural interactions and learning? How can cross-cultural understanding be engendered through social and spatial practices in the contemporary urban environment? Using cases from California, Utah, and Pennsylvania, this panel examines both barriers and dialogues between placemaking and cross-cultural understanding.

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URBAN DESIGN International, 2020

https://link.springer.com/journal/41289/25/2 Unsanctioned, unscripted, and seemingly “undesirabl... more https://link.springer.com/journal/41289/25/2

Unsanctioned, unscripted, and seemingly “undesirable” activities have long appropriated urban spaces in routine and sometimes unexpected ways, bringing new meanings and unforeseen functions to those places. In the last decade or so, such practices have inspired a growing movement under the banner of DIY and tactical urbanisms. The growing acceptance of these practices creates important openings in the formalized planning systems for greater flexibility and expedient change. Yet, the institutionalization of previously informal and even subversive acts has resulted in concerns regarding co-optation and de-politicization. This special issue seeks to pivot a refocus towards these unsanctioned and unscripted urban activities as a form of counter-hegemonic spatial practices, distinct from its professionalized and institutionalized counterpart. A range of cases is examined here sharing similar characteristics as challenges against the prevailing social and political paradigm. Key findings include the scalability of guerrilla actions, the fluid shift between overt and covert actions, and the linkage between everyday struggles and organized resistance. This special issue is intended to advance our understanding of urban design by situating it in a broader social, economic, and political praxis that encompasses both formal and informal practices performed by a wide variety of individual and collective actors.

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This issue of Public: A Journal of Imagining America focuses on implications and mechanics of civ... more This issue of Public: A Journal of Imagining America focuses on implications and mechanics of civically engaged research, teaching, and creative practice across national boundaries. What does it mean to be "globally engaged?" What principles guide the building and sustaining of equitable relationships with international partners? What opportunities and challenges can/do international engagement partnerships present? What are the politics of framing and funding engaged arts, humanities, and design projects abroad? How do we recognize global engagement that is an extension of colonialism: "beneficent" projects that "bring civilization" to communities seen as eternal victims or as primitives? How do we enact a paradigm grounded in two-way projects aimed at bringing various populations' epistemologies, semiotic paradigms, theories, and philosophies into scholarly and public discourse within and beyond their nations?

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The launch edition of plaNext is composed of selected contributions from the AESOP-YA 8th interna... more The launch edition of plaNext is composed of selected contributions from the AESOP-YA 8th international conference, titled Cities that Talk, which took place at the University of
Gothenburg, Sweden, 10-13 March 2014. While plaNext generally provides young scholars with an intellectual platform, this special edition is intended to advance the discussions about the conference theme “Urban Resistance” which, as contemporary phenomena, have significantly challenged traditional practices of urban planning worldwide. Activities of urban resistance may range from everyday life insurgencies, through protests and riots,
to urban social movements. Such a broad perspective is intended to enhance thought on urban resistance and critically discuss the question “what happens in cities?” today. The idea is to go beyond the traditional ways of illustrating the problem. Instead, plaNext
invites contributions that open up the discussions and explore how urban resistances form in cities, how their presentations of cities differ from formal narratives, to whose benefits urban resistances grow, and whether they can or should be “institutionalized”. Such discussions may help us to make theoretical sense, political use, and practical approaches to
deal with the perpetual urban resistances that take place in different parts of the world. Contributions to this special edition relate to the following four topics, which have been drawn out of the four tracks presented at the conference “Cities that Talk”:

• Insurgencies, the “right to the city”. planning cultures
• Cities as spaces of commons and “the political”
• Identity and heritage politics in urban planning
• Urban segregation, gentrification, social mixing and the suburbs

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Arq.urb. Revista eletrônica de arquitetura, 2019

Este artigo foi desenvolvido com base numa palestra apresentada ao Departamento de Paisagismo na ... more Este artigo foi desenvolvido com base numa palestra apresentada ao Departamento de Paisagismo na Universidade Estadual de Nova York em Syracuse em abril de 2017. O título original era "Ativismo no espaço público e a retomada dos comuns". Mudei o título para sua versão atual por perceber, depois, que a questão não é a retomada ou restauração de um espaço comum que teria existido no passado, mas a construção de novos comuns – novas relações sociais, novos modelos de interação na sociedade que podem ser facilitados por meio de práticas de design, planejamento e placemaking. Essas práticas se apoiam no que já sabemos e fazemos em termos de engajamento comunitário, mas o fazem de uma maneira mais ágil, conectada e aberta, uma maneira exemplificada por aspectos do ativismo recente no espaço público. Parte deste artigo foi também publicada previamente na revista científica Perspecta n. 50 (HOU 2017a).

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Advances in intelligent systems and computing, Jun 27, 2018

Adopting a case study methodology with mixed methods data collection and analysis, this study inv... more Adopting a case study methodology with mixed methods data collection and analysis, this study investigates causes and mitigation strategies related to urban informal settlement and infrastructure (UISI) in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), Seattle, Washington, United States and Lagos metropolis, Nigeria. The study indicates that informal urban settlement is associated with factors including socio-economics, environmental conditions, and governance. In Lagos metropolis, UISI stems from inadequate infrastructural development, economic challenges, governance and other factors. In Seattle and Hong Kong, the escalating cost of living (housing) and a widening gap between the rich and the poor create homelessness and street sleepers which contributes to UISI. In Seattle, significant efforts and resources are directed towards this urban threat. However, administrative bureaucracy, inadequate coordination of organizations and issues of equality, equity, and race hinder significant advancements. The study recommends policy reforms, community-based participatory design, and inclusive socio-economic and environmental planning design as vehicles for sustainable development.

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Journal of Intercultural Studies, 2017

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Http Dx Doi Org 10 1162 104648803322336557, Mar 5, 2013

ABSTRACT

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ABSTRACT

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The future of our urban parks is hotly debated, with experts arguing for more 'hybrid' ... more The future of our urban parks is hotly debated, with experts arguing for more 'hybrid' forms of public green space, jointly established and mana-ged by private and public actors. This richly illus-trated book offers an interesting contribution to the debate, demonstrating that urban ...

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Building of public awareness has long been recognized as an important part of successful historic... more Building of public awareness has long been recognized as an important part of successful historic heritage preservation. In the World Heritage Convention (WHC), Article 27 requires the State Parties to strengthen the appreciation and respect of their people of the cultural and ...

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In the face of growing collaborative projects and advance in digital and telecommunication techno... more In the face of growing collaborative projects and advance in digital and telecommunication technology, the practice and education of landscape architecture are increasingly challenged by the need for online collaboration using emails, the Internet and other technological ...

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Page 1. Cultural Production of Environmental Activism: Two Cases in Southern Taiwan JeffreyHou Ph... more Page 1. Cultural Production of Environmental Activism: Two Cases in Southern Taiwan JeffreyHou Ph.D. Candidate Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning ... Armonk, New York: ME Sharpe, Inc. Kondolf, G. Mathias and Jeffrey Hou. 1998. ...

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After more than a century of heroic urban visions, city dwellers today live in suburban subdivisi... more After more than a century of heroic urban visions, city dwellers today live in suburban subdivisions, gated communities, edge cities, apartment towers, and slums. The contemporary cities we know are more often the embodiment of unexpected outcomes and unintended consequences rather than visionary planning. As an alternative approach for rethinking and remaking today’s cities and regions, this book explores the intersections of critical inquiry and immediate, substantive actions. The contributions inside recognize the rich complexities of the present city not as barriers or obstacles but as grounds for uncovering opportunity and unleashing potential. Now Urbanism asserts that the future city is already here. It views city making as grounded in the imperfect, messy, yet rich reality of the existing city and the everyday purposeful agency of its dwellers. Through a framework of situating, grounding, performing, distributing, instigating, and enduring, these contributions written by a multidisciplinary group of practitioners and scholars illustrate specificity, context, agency, and networks of actors and actions in the re-making of the contemporary city.

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