“Does an urban design laboratory process contribute to construction of assets that responds to social needs?” (original) (raw)
Related papers
Does an urban design laboratory process contribute to construction of assets that
The last decade brought about significant changes to the social and political relationships in many developing countries. In Sub-Saharan Africa, there was a movement for multi-party democracy while in North African and Middle-Eastern countries, an “Arab” spring toppled governments. Parallels can be drawn between the emerging community social needs for a say in decision-making and the social movements that occurred in the western world in late 1960s. This paper argues that the research and academic community should be at the forefront of place making process in response to newly emerging social needs of empowerment. It looks at the urban design laboratory process at Carnegie Mellon University in the USA and proposes that the methods and strategies could fit the newly found democratic spaces in Africa and the Middle East.
2018
This paper offers a framework for design research that invites civic participation in the construction of place, and aims to reignite the conversation Nigel Cross raised in 1971 as a part of the first proceeding of the Design Research Society, calling on a need for user participation and intentional boundary-crossing. The need for new methods is no more evident than in the field of urban design. As global populations are migrating at unprecedented rates, new and different ideas and cultures are integrating and colliding at a high velocity. Additionally, the digital tools we use to understand and navigate urban environments as physical place, cultural space and social territory offer a new “place” and opportunities to rethink the role of the planner and designer in the process. This paper introduces the basis for novel forms of participatory design research that build on elements of placemaking, participatory design, co-creation and critical action to engage in a mutually critical an...
Politics of Participatory Urban Space Design: A Case Study on Istanbul
This research paper seeks to underline the controversial points over the participatory urban space design collectivities working based on Istanbul. More specifically, this paper examines the participatory decision making processes within TAK (Design, Research and Participation Initiative in Kadıköy) that is stated as the product of collaboration between public, private and civic investments and beneficiaries. Since it is a network based initiative, TAK provides us a study case in which we can observe a multitude of organizations designing public urban space in Istanbul. Since it is asserted that the initiative functions through transparent negotiations between residents of neighborhood, experts from various disciplines and investors from public and private partners; one can expect to see, during these negotiations, severe political discussions which are various in kind, i.e. political affiliation of residents, ideological agenda of investors and as an utmost inextricably process affects both, the shadowy power of consensus based on the discourse of consensual democracy that comes out of the concept, post-politics articulated by Slavoj Žižek (1999). Therefore, this research proposes to make a comprehensive analysis about the relation between urban policy making, place branding and joint action of social classes in the case of Kadıköy. By doing so, we will be able to make arguments about how social innovative design projects regarding philanthropy of urbanism, memory and space in Istanbul undermine or reinforce collective participation and more generally, the manageability of the city in terms of creating a creativity, design and innovation hub.
Within the International debates about the roles.and relevance of planning and architecture, urban design is trying to find its place and clarifu its contribution to city making. The pmducts and the practice of uiban design vary significantly in different global and socio-economic contexts and in relation to varying theoretical foundations. ln South Africa, as in olher developing countries, urban design is only beginning to feafure as a valid mainstream con(ern within cit5r development and amorg built envlronmenl prattitioners, This paper presents the case of the City of Cape Town's Dignified Places Programme as an example of implementation-focused urban design undertaken in a context where the conscious design and manag-ment of the public reelm does not feature on the agendas of cash-strapped, basic needs-focused local government The design and construction of,new public spaces is the focus of this programme, but a parallel obiective is to place the central concern of urban designthe quality of the public environmentsquarely on the agenda of local government in Cape Town.
A participatory approach to public space design as informative for place-making
2013
Place-making is an empowering process that takes community involvement as point of departure. In South Africa, the planning and design of urban space was previously based on top-down, bureaucratic planning practices that excluded communities from decisionmaking about their neighbourhoods. Together with this, Apartheid policy enforced separate development based on racial grounds, which resulted in communities being relocated to characterless landscapes with limited open spaces. Open spaces are important in low-income high density residential environments as they are prominent public places that form the heart of communities’ social lives. This article reports on the first phase of an on-going research project initiated by Urban and Regional planning at the NorthWest University, South Africa, that seeks to empower communities to transform local open spaces to vibrant public places. This particular study’s aim was to explore how community involvement can inform the process of place-mak...
Bagh-e Nazar, 2024
Problem statement: Following the rapid increase in urban population, numerous social issues have arisen in large cities, leading to a focus on sustainable development concepts. The key to success in revitalizing social sustainability in urban spaces lies in supporting projects that integrate local conditions, and mobilize local skills, and knowledge. Additionally, the heterogeneity and density of cities have reduced cohesion, interaction, and individuals’ attention to each other. Nowadays, there is a shift in perspective from prescriptive approaches to participatory ones, and from architect-centric solutions to problem-solving methods emphasizing community initiatives. Therefore, it is imperative to move from the prescriptive role of architects as constructors and directors of all social affairs towards a role as one of the important social partners. Research objective: This study aims to address the creation of urban spaces using the Participatory Design Method (PDM) to facilitate social interactions and move towards social sustainability. Research method: This study, with its applied nature, adopted a combined approach based on a qualitative strategy relying on field research, using the “Design Workshop” or “Charette” model. Conclusion: This research focused on presenting the process model of the “Charette Design Workshop” by designing an urban space located in the northern part of Mottahari Street, Shiraz. This process involved a pre-workshop, four main workshops, and an informal interim session, resulting in the design of the aforementioned space. The research findings recommend the necessity of having a pre-workshop to organize the main workshops and establish guidelines to prevent session deviation and straying from the main objectives. The presence of professional designers as leaders in the workshop, with their ability to design and articulate, formed the most important elements of workshop sessions, among other achievements of this research. Providing additional solutions for improving and enhancing participatory design processes is among the outcomes of this research.
University of Cape Town Participatory Design and Making Towards People Responsive Public Spaces
This paper presents an action research project that is teamwork between UCT academics and Sustainable Urban Neighbourhoods (SUN). SUN is a consultant for the implementation of the City of Cape Town's Violence Prevention through Urban Upgrading (VPUU) programme. The research is underpinned by the constructivist viewpoint that knowledge creation, application and understandings are a result of multiple actors -with even poor beneficiary communities having a positive contribution to make. The research project reacts to the overt paradox of unemployment/underemployment in a context of numerous unfulfilled needs as experienced by the many unfortunate people excluded from the formal city. Borrowing from the Scandinavian active welfare approach, the project makes use of people's residual capabilities to design and construct a small public space within one of the interstitial spaces in Monwabisi Park in Khayelitsha informal settlement. The public space, which is design around a municipal water-point, is conceived within a wider urban planning/design framework as an Early Childhood Development (ECD) Centre. It is multifunctional place for children who cannot afford daycare facilities to play in a crime-free environment. The water-point will draw adults to the site and so achieve two aims (1) safety and supervision for the children via adult surveillance (2) attraction of child care-givers to a place where they can interact informally with ECD staff for information exchange, identification of problems and assistance requirements assessment (child nutrition, health, safety, education and development). The space will also provide a platform for other community activities such as a gathering point for the Monwabisi Park Neighbourhood Watch (NHW). This project is conceived as the first designed ECD public space in a future network of several similar such small public spaces. Although this project is modest in scale, its potentially beneficial implications for community wellbeing, emergent academic insights and development of reciprocated partnerships are immense.