Mapping Visaginas Sources Of Urbanity In A Former Mono Functional Town

Mapping Visaginas is the second book in a series promoting Critical Urbanism as a way of analyzing the changing relationships between citizens, the state and the international context in shaping urban spaces in Central- and Eastern Europe. In this participatory research into the former mono-functional nuclear town of Visaginas in the East of Lithuania, we used mapping as a process-oriented technique to explore sources of urbanity. The book was edited by the Laboratory of Critical Urbanism at the European Humanities University in Vilnius. Among the authors are Felix Ackermann, Anja Baniewicz, Svetlana Boguslavskaya, Aleksandr Chaplya, Dalia Ciupailaite, Benjamin Cope, Oksana Denisenko, Marija Dremaite, Leonard Ermel, Valiantsina Fashchanka, Inga Freimane, Gerrit Fussel, Anna-Luise Goetze, Yves Haltner, Afra Hock, Miodrag Kuc, Arne Kunkel, Siarhei Liubimau, Terezie Loksova, Povilas Marozas, Gintare Norkunaite, Galina Orlova, Sibylle Piechaczek, Alla Pigalskaya, Diana Poskiene, Ida Roscher, Indre Ruseckaite, Indre Saladzinskaite, Anika Schmidt, Simone Scholer, Steffen Schumann, Viktoryia Stalybka, Paule Stulginskaite, Hanna Tsimoshyna, Vytautas Valatka, Joachim Werner, Anna Veronika Wendland, Rugile Zadeikyte

The Place of Silence explores the poetics and politics of silence in architecture. Bringing together contributions by internationally recognized scholars in architecture and the humanities, it explores the diverse practices, affects, politics and cultural meanings of silence, silent places and silent buildings in historical and contemporary contexts. What counts as silence in specific situations is highly relative, and the term itself carries complex and varied significations which make it a revealing field of study. Chapters explore a range of themes, from the apparent 'loss of silence' in the contemporary urban world; through designed silent spaces; to the forced silences of oppression, catastrophe, or technological breakdown. The book unfolds a rich and complementary array of perspectives which address – through the lens of architecture and place – questions of sound, atmosphere, and attunement, together building a volume which will form the key scholarly resource on architecture and silence.

Post-Socialist Urban Infrastructures critically elaborates on often forgotten, but some of the most essential, aspects of contemporary urban life, namely infrastructures, and links them to a discussion of post-socialist transformation. As the skeletons of cities, infrastructures capture the ways in which urban environments are assembled and urban lives unfold. Focusing on post-socialist cities, marked by neoliberalisation, polarisation and hybridity, this book offers new and enriching perspectives on urban infrastructures by centering on the often marginalised aspects of urban research—transport, green spaces, and water and heating provision. Featuring cases from West and East alike, the book covers examples from Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Germany, Russia, Georgia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Tajikistan, and India. It provides original insights into the infrastructural back end of post-socialist cities for scholars, planners and activists interested in urban geography, cultural and social anthropology, and urban studies.

The book illuminates the educational potential of nuclear tourism that becomes a site of outdoor and place-based education, promotes STEM, energy literacy, critical thinking, and environmental skills.

Mapping Vilnius is the first book in a series promoting Critical Urbanism as a way of analyzing the changing relationships between citizens, the state and the international context in shaping urban spaces in Central- and Eastern Europe. In this participatory research into two districts of the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, mapping is used as a process-oriented technique to visualize these relationships in transition. It book was edited by the Laboratory of Critical Urbanism at the European Humanities University in Vilnius. Among the authors are Felix Ackermann, Vaiva Andriušytė, Philip Boos, Benjamin Cope, Dalia Čiupalaitė, Inga Freimane, Elisa Gerbsch, Tomas Grunskis, Max Hellriegel, Alina Jablonskaya, Justas Juzėnas, Anu Kägu, Andrei Karpeka, Yagmur Koreli, Miodrag Kuč, Siarhei Liubimau, Miglė Paužaitė, Indre Ruseckaitė, Tomáš Samec, Aliaksandra Smirnova, Kamilė Užpalytė, Gerda Vaitkevičiūtė, Kotryna Valiukevičiūtė, Clemens Weise, Lennart Wiesiolek

Latin America and the Caribbean constitute the second-most urbanised region in the world, with many cities still growing exponentially. Long-term strategies need to be developed to meet the resulting challenges. How can growing cities be planned without neglecting their urbanity? How can urban spatial growth be managed in tandem with social, environmental, cultural, and economic challenges? Between 2013 and 2018, the Urban Design Lab worked in over twenty emerging cities in Latin America and the Caribbean. They developed dynamic planning tools that trigger transformative urban processes by engaging and empowering local communities. This handbook not only explains the context and emerging problems faced by the cities of Latin America and the Caribbean, but also proposes solutions for typical difficulties encountered within those urban conglomerations. 250 colour, 50 b/w images

Essays reevaluating and challenging the critiques of the urban studies field

This book identifies, diagnoses and evaluates social and economic processes taking place in the rural areas of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) states in the last 25 years and affecting the immediate future, with a particular focus on their spatial diversity. It addresses questions related to the rationality of the current development policy and possible results in the future. Contemporary processes of socio-economic development are typified by the fact that spatial and regional disparities are tending to increase. This unfavourable phenomenon manifested both in society and in terms of polarised space needs to be counteracted using an effective development policy. The book highlights issues concerning demography, functional structure and non-agricultural activity, and identifies new challenges arising from membership of the European Union (EU). Accession to the EU and the opportunity to implement support measures has further increased the dynamism of transformation – a process that proceeded under various scenarios and different regulations and assumptions that have yet to be identified and evaluated. Furthermore, the current internal policies of individual CEE states concerning rural areas are diverse and likely to affect differential future development. The book is based on the knowledge and experience of scientists from countries in the region investigated, who have the best understanding of the subject matter and have observed the transformations. It is intended for researchers exploring the development of the countryside and practitioners dealing with regional and national development policies targeting rural areas.