scholarly journals What can urban design learn from changing winds? A case study of public space in Nanjing (1990s-2010s)

2020 ◽  
pp. 7-22
Author(s):  
Qiuxia Xu ◽  
Zhen Xu
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Design ◽  
Cfd Simulation ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
Human Society ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Pattern Complexity ◽  
The Public ◽  
Human Habitat ◽  
Planning Decision

Climate is one of the prominent and persistent factors affecting the human habitat. During the recent urbanization, human society has left remarkable environment footprints including the macro- and micro- climates related to human settlement. It’s essential for urban planning decision-maker to contextualize people’s wellbeing in the public space and micro-climate changes. The adverse changes of micro-climate are usually related more to local developments than to global changes, with the causality relatively feasible to detect. Characteristic of openness, the open spaces play an important role as outdoor relaxation and wind corridor, which is precious yet vulnerable assets for the citizens’ wellbeing. Agglomerated and unintentional developments inevitably change the wind patterns which potentially affect public life. A longitudinal study of such circumstance will provide knowledge and lessons for sustainable and salutary urban design. Based on CFD simulation, this paper compared the static winter and summer airflows patterns of the Drum Tower area in downtown Nanjing during the period of 1990s-2010s. The results indicated that the wind pattern complexity increased gradually, the outdoor comfortability degraded dramatically in some areas, the environment inequity might be deteriorated too. The researcher suggests putting micro-climate issues firmly on the agenda of public wellbeing policy, involving various stakeholders in the assessment and urban design code with technical and social supports.

Waterfront as the Public Space of the City - Research on the Waterfront Park of the North Bund in Shanghai

2013 ◽  
Vol 807-809 ◽  
pp. 1733-1736 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chun Xia Yang ◽  
Wei Shang ◽  
Stefania Rusconi ◽  
Beatrice Anne Bruneaux
Keyword(s):  
Landscape Ecology ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Design ◽  
Environmental Resources ◽  
Waterfront Development ◽  
The Public ◽  
Future Design ◽  
The North ◽  
The Future ◽  
The City

The waterfront development in China faces the problems of landscape, ecology and sustainability. According to the research of the waterfront park in the North Bund of Shanghai, this paper discusses the main issues from the view of urban design and gives possible countermeasures for the future design. In order to make full use of the environmental resources, we should build a connection between the waterfront and the inside city, and provide more opportunities for individuals to keep closing to water.

scholarly journals Beyond the Sit-In: Public Space Production and Appropriation in Sudan’s December Revolution, 2018

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 5194
Author(s):  
Ibrahim Z. Bahreldin
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Design ◽  
Political Ideology ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
The Public ◽  
Space Transformation ◽  
Space Production ◽  
Space Activities

This article reflects on Khartoum’s sit-in space in front of the Army headquarter in Khartoum during Sudan’s Nile Spring. The article explores the public discourses, activities, and space transformation during the sit-in, which lasted fifty-eight days. Through studying the sit-in, we aim to discuss how the Nile Spring has, or has not, transformed the conception of what a public space is by examining the functions and activities of the sit-in space as a territory of political exercise. The methodology underlying this research includes direct and participant observation, a follow-up of the sit-in space activities on various media sources, a literature review, and interviews. The conclusions drawn by this article show how the sit-in space has challenged the current relationship between public space and the political ideology by providing a new example of what a public space is. The sit-in space succeeded in revolutionizing the understanding of how public spaces should be imagined, designed, appropriated, and managed. This inquiry has disclosed the necessity to rethink current planning and urban design processes that restrict democratic activities in public spaces.

Traditional European Squares in Contemporary Urbanism: Dubrovnik's Medieval Squares

2009 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 57-73
Author(s):  
Tigran Haas
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Design ◽  
Sense Of Place ◽  
Town Planning ◽  
Public Realm ◽  
Social Spaces ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Square ◽  
Urban Places

Buildings alone do not matter, it is only the ensemble of streets, squares, and buildings and the way they fit together that comprises the true principles of good urbanism and place making. One of the main rules of good urban design is the quality of the public space. This paper analyzes the importance of creating & maintaining a true public square in contemporary urban condition, as one of the built environments' pillars for sustaining social and cultural identity. Criticism has been posed towards the (neo) romanticizing the importance of European squares (as some critics would call it “Postcard Squares”) in everyday life and contemporary town planning. Movements such as New Urbanism, which promote good urban design have not put squares that high on their urban design agendas. Also the usage of the historic European city's public realm model - the square - as the important ingredient for all urban places has not been forthcoming. To investigate this phenomena, and facilitate the discourse, The Square of the St. Blaise Church (Luza Square) and the Gunduliceva Poljana Square in the Old City of Dubrovnik, are analyzed and reflected upon through various data collection, theory reflections and urban design evaluation methods, such as Garham's Sense of Place Typology-Taxonomy. If cities have livable and vibrant social spaces, do residents tend to have a stronger sense of community and sense of place? If such places are lacking, does the opposite happen?. This paper seeks out to answer these questions. Finally the paper also looks at how the phenomenon of creating good social spaces through creating ‘third places’ is achieved and confirmed in the squares of Dubrovnik.

scholarly journals An Inclusive Model for Assessing Age-Friendly Urban Environments in Vulnerable Areas

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (15) ◽  
pp. 8352
Author(s):  
Raquel Agost-Felip ◽  
María José Ruá ◽  
Fatiha Kouidmi
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Open Space ◽  
Population Aging ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Technical Standards ◽  
The Public ◽  
Planning Decision

Population aging is becoming a major challenge in many countries. This paper deals with the elderly’s specific needs in the public open space as it can play a significant role in their social inclusion and could be especially relevant in deprived areas. The main goal is to build a model to evaluate the vulnerability of the public space by focusing on the elderly’s needs, using indicators. A previous analysis of the scientific and policy-oriented literature and of the technical standards and regulations linked with accessibility and social aspects that affect the elderly in urban areas was performed to identify the main dimensions for evaluation. The interjudge agreement technique was applied to validate the indicators with a panel of experts in technical and social disciplines. The model was applied to a vulnerable area in Castellón (East Spain), based on indicators adapted to the specific context features. The agreement level reached by experts was used to weight the indicators. The application of the model permitted the vulnerability in the suggested dimensions to be estimated and a global integrated index of vulnerability in the area to be calculated. It could assist in urban planning decision making toward age-friendly and, therefore, inclusive cities.

scholarly journals A study on the mode of public participation in Chinese urban design under the concept of multi-body participation. Community building oriented with multi-age participation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoying Luan ◽  
◽  
Yi Zhang ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Public Participation ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Design ◽  
Social Relations ◽  
Transition Period ◽  
Community Building ◽  
Urban Life ◽  
Main Body ◽  
The Public ◽  
Social Governance

With the society and economy of China entering the transition period, people's requirements for urban life show a trend of diversification and high standards. Urban design is no longer limited to physical space but starts to carry out multi-angle and multi-level comprehensive consideration on the social and spatial problems of symbiosis. In this context, the innovative social governance and the quality improvement of urban public space that highlights the role of the public have become hot topics. As the main body of city users, ordinary people entering into the deep and substantial participation from the superficial and symbolic is the only way for urban design to transform from the expert-led "optimal scheme" to the "reasonable scheme" recognized by pluralistic bodies. In the process of western democratic politics, the participation theory that focuses on the construction of micro democracy is prevalent, and the public participation based on pluralism has become the theoretical basis for the planning participation. Besides, the concept of communicative planning and collaborative planning, which emphasize cooperation and consultation, also enriches the connotation of multiple participation. Due to different systems and awareness, it is difficult to promote public participation under China's national conditions. Community building, the interdisciplinary product of urban design and social governance under communities, is regarded as the experimental field for participating in the reform. Therefore, under the current administrative system and regulations, this paper tries to make use of the grass-roots management mode with Chinese characteristics to establish an inclusive multi-participation mechanism. It allows residents of different ages can go deep into the process of community building by taking the family unit. Meanwhile, some suggestions and strategies are raised for effective participation. We hope the bottom-up process of urban design in microscale can be an effective instrument to reflect the public's will and repair social relations at the same time, while explore and solve urban problems in diverse cooperation.

A Probe into Localized Urban Design Approach – Case Study of Design for Guangzhou International Financial City (GIFC)

2013 ◽  
Vol 368-370 ◽  
pp. 160-164
Author(s):  
Yan Fei
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Design ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Ecological Design ◽  
Space System ◽  
The Public ◽  
Planning And Design ◽  
Design Idea ◽  
Design Proposal

Urban design for high-intensity central urban areas often ends up with the conglomeration of high-rises, while these areas are then faced with the question as how reasonable planning and design approaches could be employed to reflect the green and ecological design idea, optimize the spatial and environmental quality and carry on the local traditional culture and features. To respond, this paper conducts a case study of the GIFC urban design proposal, and further explores the green and ecological design approaches with the local Lingnan characteristics from the perspectives of the macro-level ecological pattern, the spatial order as well as the establishment of the public space system, with the intent to offer some reference for the development of new urban areas.

Optimizing Chinese Motorized Transportation Modes to Support Cross-River Public Activities

2014 ◽  
Vol 590 ◽  
pp. 856-861
Author(s):  
Chun Xia Yang ◽  
Yan Kang Hu
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Design ◽  
City Planning ◽  
Transportation Systems ◽  
Space Systems ◽  
Cross River ◽  
The Public ◽  
Transportation Modes ◽  
The Cross

In China, the popularization of motorized transportation has made the contradiction between citizens’ desire to access water and traffic demands in cross-river areas difficult to deal with. Studying on the transportation and space systems from three layers of city across the river, district across the river and bridge across the river, this paper provides several modes of motorized transportation to keep harmony with and give support to the cross-river public activities. The research on the layer of city proposes suggestions on city planning and policies, while research on the layer of district summarizes several strategies on urban design within the cross-river area. The last part of research on the layer of bridge presents modes for reference on the public space on bridge and the connection between bridge and transportation systems.

Urban Design as a Form of Agonistic Democratic Expression

2019 ◽  
pp. 120633121986126
Author(s):  
José Francisco Vergara-Perucich
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Design ◽  
Urban Spaces ◽  
Spatial Practices ◽  
The Public ◽  
Design Practices ◽  
Santiago De Chile ◽  
Agonistic Democracy ◽  
Democratic System

This article reflects on the potential of urban design to contribute to spatializing the theory of agonistic democracy grounding this reflection by three specific urban practices that have emerged from cracks in the democratic system under neoliberalism: a protest, a community-developed square, and an artistic intervention in the public space. The analysis of these practices valorizes the role of urban design as a potential methodology for contesting the consensus of democracy from the very praxis of shaping urban spaces illustrating how urban design practices can contribute to democratizing society. “How do urban design practices contribute to the discussion of democracy under neoliberalism?” The spatial practices analyzed were observed in three different neoliberal cities: marches in Santiago de Chile, an informal public space in Madrid’s downtown, and an artistic intervention near Euston in London. Finally, the article constructs an agenda for a democratic contestation using urban design resulted from these explorations of spaces of dissensus.

scholarly journals The effect of introversion and Extroverts of individuals in the socialization of public space

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-93
Author(s):  
Zohre Yadegari ◽  
Behnoud Alinaghi
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Sense Of Belonging ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Basic Question ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
The Public ◽  
Group Activities

Urban architects and designers have been trying to create life in the public space for many years. One way to make space dynamic is to consider socialization. Public space requires socialization and require people to be present in the environment. This study identifies the way to socialization by creating a sense of belonging in space, by exploring a sense of belonging in space; he improve the quality of public space. It expresses a sense of belonging to individual needs such as introverted and extroverted traits. This research starts its work by basic question that they are looking in public space. The purpose of this study is to investigate the concepts of introversion and extroversion as factors affecting the quality of public space. After reviewing these studies, criteria and principles for the socialization of public spaces are outlined. The results of the authors' studies showed that to create a space for personality needs, one should have space with approaches such as: Space for energy depletion, space, diversity in the environment and high quality of space for long-term use. Space tranquility for group activities are also essential. And for designers who value the perpetuation of identity and, these components offer design solutions.

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