Public Space And An Interdisciplinary Approach To Design

The crisis of contemporary public space is a question of interest to all architects. The economic, social and cultural crisis, in particular affecting the entire European continent, is clearly and originally reflected in the public spaces of our cities, more and more of which are now considered “heritage”. Public space and the public realm, due to their original facets, are once again a theme of interest for architects, but also for philosophers, sociologist and anthropologists (J. Habermas, D. Innerarity, Z. Bauman, M. Augé), as complex “spaces” to be decomposed. Hence, a few questions: Does the analysis of public space and an approach to design, in a reality that considers a different concept of “public” than that of the pat century comport a new way of looking? A new urban-architectural nomenclature? An interdisciplinary approach to design? The general situation described in this publication, in various authors from different disciplinary backgrounds, clearly expresses the tangible need to provide (or provide once again) positive responses to different questions before proceeding with the design – or analysis – of contemporary public space.

Social cohesion is often perceived as being under threat from the increasing cultural and economic differences in contemporary cities and the increasing intensity of urban life. Public space, in its role as the main stage for social interactions between strangers, clearly plays a role in facilitating or limiting opportunities for social cohesion. But what exactly is social cohesion, how is it experienced in the public realm, and what role can the design of city spaces have in supporting or promoting it? There are significant knowledge gaps between the social sciences and design disciplines and between academia and practice, and thus a dispersed knowledge base that currently lacks nuanced insight into how urban design contributes to social integration or segregation. This book brings together scholarly knowledge at the intersection of public space design and social cohesion. It is based on original scholarly research and a depth of urban design practice, and analyses case studies from a variety of cities and cultures across the Global North and Global South. Its interdisciplinary, cross-cultural analysis will be of interest to academics, students, policymakers and practitioners engaged with a range of subject areas, including urban design, urban planning, architecture, landscape, cultural studies, human geography, social policy, sociology and anthropology. It will also have significant appeal to a wider non-academic readership, given its topical subject matter.

The Companion to Public Space draws together an outstanding multidisciplinary collection of specially commissioned chapters that offer the state of the art in the intellectual discourse, scholarship, research, and principles of understanding in the construction of public space. Thematically, the volume crosses disciplinary boundaries and traverses territories to address the philosophical, political, legal, planning, design, and management issues in the social construction of public space. The Companion uniquely assembles important voices from diverse fields of philosophy, political science, geography, anthropology, sociology, urban design and planning, architecture, art, and many more, under one cover. It addresses the complete ecology of the topic to expose the interrelated issues, challenges, and opportunities of public space in the twenty-first century. The book is primarily intended for scholars and graduate students for whom it will provide an invaluable and up-to-date guide to current thinking across the range of disciplines that converge in the study of public space. The Companion will also be of use to practitioners and public officials who deal with the planning, design, and management of public spaces.

This trailblazing book outlines an interdisciplinary "process model" for urban design that has been developed and tested over time. Its goal is not to explain how to design a specific city precinct or public space, but to describe useful steps to approach the transformation of urban spaces. Urban Ecological Design illustrates the different stages in which the process is organized, using theories, techniques, images, and case studies. In essence, it presents a "how-to" method to transform the urban landscape that is thoroughly informed by theory and practice. The authors note that urban design is viewed as an interface between different disciplines. They describe the field as "peacefully overrun, invaded, and occupied" by city planners, architects, engineers, and landscape architects (with developers and politicians frequently joining in). They suggest that environmental concerns demand the consideration of ecology and sustainability issues in urban design. It is, after all, the urban designer who helps to orchestrate human relationships with other living organisms in the built environment. The overall objective of the book is to reinforce the role of the urban designer as an honest broker and promoter of design processes and as an active agent of social creativity in the production of the public realm.

This illustrated notebook highlights the need for a change of paradigm in current flood management practices, one that acknowledges the wide-ranging and interdisciplinary benefits brought by public space design. Reassessing and improving established flood management methods, public spaces are faced with a new and enhanced role as mediators of flood adaptation able to integrate infrastructure and communities together in the management of flood water as an ultimate resource for urban resilience. The book specifically introduces a path towards a new perspective on flood adaptation through public space design, stressing the importance of local, bottom up, approaches. Deriving from a solution-directed investigation, which is particularly attentive to design, the book offers a wide range of systematized conceptual solutions of flood adaptation measures applicable in the design of public spaces. Through a commonly used vocabulary and simple technical notions, the book facilitates and accelerates the initial brainstorm phases of a public space project with flood adaptation capacities, enabling a direct application in contemporary practice. Furthermore, it offers a significant sample of real-case examples that may further assist the decision-making throughout design processes. Overall, the book envisions to challenge established professionals, such as engineers, architects or urban planners, to work and design with uncertainty in an era of an unprecedented climate.

The built environment is witnessing a worldwide concern followed by intensive consideration of its environmental impacts on the one hand and influence on public health and wellbeing on the other. Respecting both priorities mentioned above, the trends in current design tend to be in line with multiple dimensions of sustainability. Next to its occurrence in scientific research and practice, the topic of sustainable design is ever more emerging within the courses at universities, whereby the educational approaches can be beneficial if interrelated to different scientific or expert disciplines. As universities are recognized as complex organizations inevitably evolving over a long period of time period and responding to changes in society and environment, attempts to improve the efficiency of academic teaching have been intensively introduced also in the study programs of the University of Maribor, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Transportation Engineering and Architecture (UM FGPA) through implementation of various activities related to development of innovative approaches towards education on sustainable design of built environment.The publication presents the interdisciplinary approach to the academic education on sustainable building design through integration of different activities. In addition to basic educational courses, the transfer of latest research findings, implementation of practical student workshops, development projects and various activities aiming at integration of different knowledge transfers makes the level of academic teaching more active and efficient. The book consists of six chapters. The first chapter describes the general aspect of the integrative approach to education on sustainable built environment through the experience of the interdisciplinary course. Chapter 2 introduces a comprehensive set of urban design criteria for creating residential neighbourhoods and emphasizes the role of high-quality open space and green areas, which significantly contributes to liveability. Chapter 3 deals with sustainable transport in connection with the living environment, and emphasises the interdisciplinary approach. Chapter 4 presents the inclusion of energy-efficient building design with the integrated use of new digital technologies, such as building information and energy modelling. Chapter 5 describes the main types of timber structural systems and presents a sustainable design perspective of contemporary prefabricated timber-glass buildings with further development of multi-storey prefabricated timber buildings with enlarged glazing areas. The last chapter is prepared as a graphic summary of interdisciplinary workshop projects which demonstrate the complexity of design and the respect for diverse interdisciplinary principles of sustainable planning.

Book Award Finalist for Urban Design Group Awards 2020 Lighting has the power to illuminate and enhance our experience within the built environment. The light that enables people to travel around their neighbourhood or their city; the light which they see themselves and their neighbourhood under. Research into the effects of urban lighting on behaviour, environmental psychology and social interaction is developing at a rapid rate. Yet, despite the affect it has on our daily lives, the practical application of this research is a relatively untapped resource. This book explores the needs and experiences of people at night and how these can be addressed by public lighting. It will give readers the confidence to develop more sophisticated lighting plans and add value to their projects. Case studies provide in-depth analysis of real-life projects and will help the reader to understand lighting designers’ own experiences, including post-installation observations. Written in an accessible style by an array of experts, this is an essential book for practitioners, academics and students alike, that will enable you to put the research in to practice and develop better lighting for better places.

Bringing together an interdisciplinary team of social scientists from around the world, this volume presents a broad spectrum of approaches and discourses on contemporary public spaces.