Careful Considerations (Asynchronous Session)
Design of Socio-spatial Networks and Practices for Hybrid Cities View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Leonidas Bourikas, Ruth Dalton, Alejandro Moreno Rangel
Urban space and city living are being redefined in the context of hybrid cities – the realm where the physical and online worlds exist intertwined and interact. The emerging socio-spatial networks and practices create new possibilities for resilient, adaptive cities (and citizens) but at the same time raise questions on rights to the city, digital civics, openness and privacy. Human activities create, often unconsciously, an unprecedented amount of data turning humans into gullible data producers. Nonetheless, the ownership, interpretation, and management of data are under the control of few commercial entities. This research adopts a critical realist approach to the design of the future hybrid cities’ networks and practices to create a paradigm shift towards transforming people from “homo-datum” to “human-nodes” – conscious creators, developers and users of data. This study addresses the following themes: 1) What approaches in the design of hybrid cities would enable cities to reflect the complexity and plurality of people and societies? 2) How could technology assist human citizens with managing and interpreting in the correct context the increasing amount of data? 3) How can we move from current socio-economic models towards building new socio-spatial networks that will better represent future societies? 4) What is the role of non-human citizens and how would they interface with “human-nodes”? 5) Finally, what are the necessary conditions for transforming current cities and living into participatory hybrid cities and sustainable lifestyles?
Architectural Intervention through Relational Design Towards Sustainable Development in a Vulnerable Rural Community: Building Superadobe House in XiaoShuiJing Leprosy Rehabilitation Village as a Case Study View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Chelsea, Hei Chan, Andrew Kwong, Meng Hsun Hsieh, Peter Hasdell
When working with a vulnerable rural community, a top down approach is commonly adopted in which the construction work is fashioned to emphasis 'speed', 'efficiency' and 'economic growth' without understand the underlying causes (Ku & Dominelli, 2018; Ting & Chen, 2012). The result may not be effective and even worse, after spending vast human and financial resources, we might have hurt the vulnerable people in the process of trying to help them. In fact, vulnerabilities is not only lack of material resources, but lack one or more of life’s essentials: purpose in life, a sense of self-worth, relationships in community, and an ability to work productively and steward the fruits of that labor (Corbett & Fikkert, 2009). Value is not inhere in objects- it arises from relationship (Bollier, 2016) and sustainability design is about re-connection of relationships (Thackara, 2020). With this perspective, participatory action research has been done to explore how architects could effectively re-connect relationships between people, community, and environment in supporting vulnerable community locally driven sustainable development. Essential steps including interdisciplinary cooperation, asset mapping, and participatory design are introduced through a case study of a superadobe house architectural intervention in Xiao Shui Jing village - a leprosy rehabilitation village in Yunnan, China.
Material Application: Formulating a Design Strategy in Interior Space View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Kishori Dalwadi
When individuals are uncertain or perceive a situation to be intimidating, values are emphasized towards safety, security, and comfort. In the same perspective, interior volume is directly related to health and safety of the user. Attitudes are prioritized towards endurance of healthy lives and promoting wellbeing for all. With respect to indoor environment sensitivity, interior spaces need to be monitored. During the process of designing buildings, there is a need to devote more care to interior environmental design. Individuals can govern safety by making a conscious effort in selecting materials in response ‘to the purpose’ of use in the interior spaces. The sensory experience in space is related to magnetism of the space by the touch-feel notion. In consideration of the design, a look into the use of material surface applications needs to be considered to give a checklist for creating a healthy environment for everyone to be comfortable in regard to interiors. Sometimes, we find ourselves not physically comfortable in a space, with common symptoms as headache, irritation of eyes, causing discomfort. The paper aims to review materials in relation to impacts for a healthy design approach In conclusion, a comprehensive approach for balancing “accountability of material vs creative idea solutions” in design practice, with an assessment method for its application is evolved. It has the potential to be considered an important clause for the next generation.
