Critical Considerations
Northern Environmental Justice: A Case Study of Place, Indigenous Peoples, and Industrial Development in Northeastern British Columbia, Canada
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Annie Booth
This case study introduces the concepts of place-based and Indigenous environmental justice as well as the theory of Indigenous sovereignty, as articulated within a Canadian context and considers their application with respect to the Indigenous peoples with traditional territories within the borders of Canada. The specific legal and industrial contexts affecting Indigenous peoples in Canada are briefly examined to frame two cases of environmental justice issues in the northeastern corner of British Columbia. The two cases are oil and gas development and the proposed development of a new dam which will represent the largest industrial development in Canada in the last several decades. The perspectives of British Columbia Treaty 8 Indigenous Nations on the impacts of these industrial developments are introduced.
Sustaining Low-income Residents through Design : Exercises on Avoiding Gentrification in the West End and Oakland City Neighborhoods in Atlanta, Georgia
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Mine Hashas Degertekin
Land vacated by Fort Mc Pearson Military base was bought by Tyler Perry studios in Oakland City, Atlanta. After a year or so, Atlanta BeltLine has reached the north of Oakland City and south of West End Neighborhoods. BeltLine, a recreational green line going through in-town neighborhoods with lower-income residents and connecting parks in the city, created a huge gentrification impact in those surrounding neighborhoods. By the two events, there is an influx of new people moving into the two historic neighborhoods, where a dominant and visible African-American culture with low-income people exist. Students in the KSU Architecture Department’s Urban Studio have worked in these neighborhoods and developed urban design solutions to preserve the current residents in the neighborhood while welcoming the new ones. Land uses for each economic level integrated with community services and environmental solutions for the flooding in the neighborhood and heat-island conditions, providing conditions for local economy as well as socially and physically connecting disjointed factories to the neighborhood, surrounding dominant infrastructural elements by public domain, providing public spaces for social interaction, and preserving the social and physical community character were some of the strategies used. These illustrated strategies have been shared with public and private partnerships, organizations, and governmental entities working in the area via Instructors committee duties and have already been creating a positive impact on the neighborhoods’ physical and social future.
Digitizing Refugee Camps: Promotion of Mobile Communication for Self-Governance
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Frank Lorne, Gbemisola Adegboye
Refugee human migration is a universal problem for all advanced economies of the world. The mission of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is to help and to protect refugees, safeguarding their rights, assist with voluntary repatriation, local integration, and to resettle them to a third country. These are all good intentions, but they neglect the strengths of refugee human resources in that the ingenuity of human beings can be brought to its fullest if they have the proper infrastructure to allow them to expand their economic activities and prosper. Examples of great cities that are built by refugees are explored. A twenty-first century method of solving refugee problems should find ways to utilize communication technology to meet auxiliary needs in refugee camps by encouraging exchanges and the expression of ideas. While the political economy of existing systems feeds on a mentality of reliance, facilitating trading activities and communication of ideas via mobile communication could help not only to meet auxiliary needs, but also possibly the incubating of a self-governance structure that, if properly nourished, could build great cities like the past. Several auxiliary needs suitable for refugee camps can be shown to have great potential to be used for promoting communication. UN, NGOs, host-countries, and other social entrepreneurs can unite to put together the infrastructure necessary for implementation in this direction.
