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Agents of Change

Things can grow even in the driest of places.

(Mano del desierto, Atacama Desert, Chile)

Though the current political climate seems to be set on deregulation and defunding, it’s all the more a reason to dream big for our communities. I think the first way to approach this kind of evolution and transition to high performance community building is to understand that the real change starts at the hyper local level. So as systems of power betray us, I can take faith, now more than ever, in my knowledge of my streets and my city. The kind of change we ought to aim for is not centralised or decentralised, it is simply local. This kind of simplicity and ownership, in a time of contradictions and disenfranchisement, gives us a method to address the complex issues we face. I think that this mode of thinking is really crucial to people encountering their own agency in a world that can make anybody feel cynical. 

Pin Pricks of Change

(Image via google images)

I remember the first book I ever read on Urban Ecology. I still furiously reference and lend out Jaime Lerner’s Urban Acupuncture. This beautiful and simple book explores the power of hyperlocal changes, or what Lerner calls pin pricks of change. This pin pricks have the capacity to change the trajectory of a place and expand beyond their initial prick. This idea is grounded by believing in the power of personal action and understanding that if the place  shapes us, we must in turn take power in our own ability to shape our place. However small an action the after effects could be monumental.

Change is a neighbourhood party.

(Image via Google, Mono Gonzalez, Muralist)

It can be really hard to have hope when the people who have most of the power don’t represent what el pueblo, las masas (the people, the masses) are all about. We have to remember that we are also not alone in this transition. The revolution is not a singular feat, it is not an independent story. Real change comes from people getting together. It also extends beyond just getting a group to be together, it also means listening and collaborating. Change is a community event, it’s a concert, it’s art, it’s cathartic, it’s healing. So grab your friends and some wine and listen to music and each other.

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Streets as Shared Space

As expressed in previous blog posts, the adverse effects of car centered development are prominent in SLC. Luckily there are strategies to address those areas that have already been affected by such development. One of these methods is Street-scaping. Street-scaping is kind of what it sounds like, landscaping for streets. The important idea is that streets are public spaces with diverse functions beyond the flow of car traffic. Although New York City is heavily trafficked, much of it is pedestrian, unlike much of the Salt Lake Valley. In certain parts here a person on the street is as novel as a food truck, there are some but not enough to seem like normal part of the landscape. This dilemna is made obvious by the difference in behavior between pedestrians of SLC and NYC, or other walkable city residents. New Yorkers walk like they own the place, Salt Lakers check the street and still hesitate to cross it. People walking in the streets of SLC don’t express as much ownership and confidence in their mobility as those in larger cities where the sheer amount of pedestrians commands a shared road or even of smaller towns that have a respect for other forms of mobility (Bend, OR is a good example of this, cars will go out of their way to let a person cross the street). This makes SLC a prime location for street-scaping focused on traffic calming as well as pedestrian ownership of the street.

One such method to open the street of Salt Lake to pedestrians is by giving them more street space, i.e. widening sidewalks. Salt Lake City is a good place for changing up street space because we have some of the widest roads for a city in the world. This is due to an old pioneer zoning rule of the earlier settling days of the valley, in which the street had to be wide enough for a team of four oxen and a wagon to turn around. They were doing it before U turns were cool. Since our streets are so wide, it’s more than possible to widen our sidewalk while making certain roads just slightly more narrow. As with much of new planning that is centered around people rather than cars, I don’t doubt that many drivers would complain at first. But much of what bothers people at first ends up being the greatest asset of a neighbourhood. The truth is that a larger sidewalk won’t do anyone harm, in fact it will benefit economic areas to have more welcomed foot traffic.  The images below are good examples of a temporary widened sidewalk, which is a good way to start!

(Transitional sidewalk expansion via Google images)

Street tree’s are another method to calm traffic, because they shorten the line of vision, causing people to instinctively drive more cautiously. Sucking up carbon and adding greenery to the overall landscape doesn’t hurt either. Many older residential neighbourhoods of SLC have many street trees, some hundreds of years old. Unfortunately too many new developments plant new baby trees instead of saving mature ones that provide the shade, visuals and history that baby trees won’t for 20+ years. It is more expensive to save an old tree, but it’s also a more effective and immediate traffic calming tool. 

(Portland, OR Via google images)

Another method to consider is a simple evaluation of existing cross walk signal timing. It is vital to see if they were efficient and extending pedestrian crossing intervals. In my own experience I’ve seen crosswalks that give very little time for a person to cross the street making it impossible for an able bodies individual to cross the street without hurrying. I have witnessed, many times, someone in crutches, a wheelchair or with a limp struggle to make it across an excessively wide city street as their time runs out. That is not right. Giving pedestrians a head start in crossing before motorists can left turn, having an all walk crossing time and basing crossing times off slower pedestrians are all ways to give justice to pedestrians and their right to move throughout the city. Heavy traffic has a flow, it tends to go more in one direction than the other during specific times of the day. So it makes total sense to have different crossing times for different times of the day that have heavier or lighter car and pedestrian traffic. The city has its own flow, it seems obvious that the stoplights should too. 

(Barnes Walk in Toronto via Google images)

(Barnes Walk Crosswalk in Washington D.C via Google images)

This blog post was inspired by the High Performance Infrastructure Guidelines from the NYC Department of Design and Construction.

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Healthy City Healthy Public

I enjoyed Erica’s presentation in our last class. It actually made me think a lot about our need for more interdisciplinary experiences in college. I love how she went to grad school for two different majors.  Her experience made me happy that I have double majored and made me wonder what is possible in a graduate education. I equate double majoring a bit to being bilingual. In a sense exploring more than one field is like learning two different languages, methods, cultures and norms. Being bilingual has opened me up to different ways of thinking. Even subtle nuances like syntax or formalities make me think critically or curiosity about both languages. Sometimes there is no direct translation for a saying or a word and so the explanation has to be moved around to fit the perspective of the other language. Urban Ecology  is one such language that would benefit from duality. It has an important place in so many different fields.

In the field of public health there is much space for acknowledging that health issues are often issues of design and the environment; faulty policies or economic norms that lead to critical health issues for individuals and society as a whole. Air quality is a perfect example of a ecological and urban symptom that leads to adverse health effects for people. Thus a lot of issues in public health are not in the treatment but the prevention of disease and illness. This is where Urban Ecology plays a fundamental role in public health. For example if we design cities to be less dependant on cars, there would be less air pollution and I will venture to say that because of this there would be less newborns with asthma. If we extended this idea to create cities completely free of fossil fuel dependency, asthma and any other toxicity diseases that come from air pollution would go down. 

Healthy cities and healthy people would affect society at an economic level. In terms of microeconomics individuals would not spend less on medicine, hospital trips or gas, leaving more time and money for healthier food and engaging activities. This would help society as whole because there would be more money for education and further infrastructure for healthy and mobilised cities. Healthy people additionally benefit their environment, one example is through waste reduction. Because a lot of medications (inhalers for example) are made to be thrown away, the less someone has to consume, the less they have to waste, the less waste there is, the less harmful impact a human's existence has on its world.

When illness and disease cannot be prevented and people must be treated, Urban Ecology can help in the healing process. In the most direct sense, ecological design can make the healing environment all the more effective. Take for example the Khoo Teck Puat Hospital in Singapore. Sterile environments aren’t the only thing needed for healing. Holistic and physiologically sensitive spaces can aid tremendously in making people better. If place can deteriorate one’s health, than so can place heal it.  A lot must be considered into how place influences one's mentality and how one's mentality influences their own recovery. Puat’s Hospital serves not only as a healing environment but also a mutlifuncitonal, community-center, complete with a rooftop garden and serene spaces open to the public. Imagine in Salt Lake City, a place renowned for it’s healthcare, hospitals and clinics like Puat’s.

Viewing public health through the lense of Urban Ecology integrates sustainability and human well being. Human health is directly connected to the design of spaces and the design of systems that we use within them. It is possible to convince those who may not have this perspective to design ecologically through common ground; both professions want healthy people.

Art by Kate Macdowell, via google images.

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The Adversity of Car-centric Development

A hyper-local issue of design that affects SLC, the entire valley, and ultimately our world, is our excessive dependance on cars. This issue has adverse affects on the environment, our society and the economy. When reviewing car centric development through The Hannover Principles, a set of principles for designing with sustainability, reveals just how much city designed for cars negatively affects our environment and society. The first four of these principles highlight this error: 

Insisting on rights of humanity and nature to co-exist

Recognising interdependence

Respect relationships between spirit and matter

Accepting responsibility for the consequences of design

Car-centric development contradicts these principles and the 3 pillars of Urban Ecology, Economy, Society and the Environment. 

1. “Insist on rights of humanity and nature to coexist in a healthy, supportive, diverse and sustainable condition.” 

There are environmental issues connected to car-centric development, so many people driving contributes immensely to the air pollution we are so famous for. Cars make up 48% of the pollutions source in our valley (Utah Dept. of Health). Winter is bad hear because of the inversions, which trap the air. But even on a summer day, we roll the windows down and unconsciously breathe in chemicals and fine particulates from our own cars as well as the others surrounding us. This is an issue of public health, especially in a city with such poor air quality as Salt Lake City. This means that pregnant women and people with asthma struggle in the winter and in the summer. Autism has been linked to air quality as well (Harvard School of Public Health). The links to bad air quality and autism are scary. Is it really just a coincedence that  Utah has one of the highest rates of autism and poor air quality in the country? Poor air quality also has economic effects,  because most people who shouldn’t go out on a red day (like me with my asthma) do it anyway because they can’t afford to miss work or school for any reason and most places don’t shut down over air quality. But as it gets worse they may have to. If and when the workday begins to recognise red air days as a reason to stay home, businesses could struggle with the impact of not having valuable employees/students come in. The worker will no doubt have a catch 22, stay in for the sake of health and lose money or go to work and risk paying for the health consequences. And if they don’t, society will have to pay the medical costs. 

Inversion on the Wasatch Front, via Google Images

Car-centric development also encourages further and longer daily travel as a norm. 84% of people who work in SLC don’t live in Salt Lake City (SLC Corporation Housing Market Update, 2016). This really degrades the life of the city and doesn’t let it be a thriving 24 hour city. This makes the suburbs much cheaper and housing within the city unaffordable for the people who could really contribute to the heart of a city (like young families, students, the elderly and business owners). Then we have a city full of parking lots that fill up during the day and lay useless at night. A city where rush hours traffic congestion is unbearable and but at  certain times of the night the feels dangerous because it’s so empty.

2. “Recognise interdependence. The elements of human design interact with and depend upon the natural world, with broad and diverse implications at every scale.” 

Car centric development wildly contradicts the principle, it doesn't recognise interdependence because it changes the scale of a city. One consequence of this disconnect is road kill. Animals migrating their way through a shared world suffer hit and runs. And we are one more wild animal short, one animal less diverse. We speed past the wreckage and feel sad for a moment, but 75 mph doesn’t let that feeling linger. But mass extinction will. Animals migratory patterns are connected to biodiversity across the world.

Another consequence is paving more of the city than is healthy for the earth an us. We lay slabs and slabs of road throughout a city and pretty soon most of it is concrete made for driving. In Salt Lake City we have black asphalt covering more space than is given to public spaces or new housing developments. Most roads are made for one type of travel as well, leaving sidewalks small or even not present, which further negates walking the city. Asphalt overkill also contributes to the urban heat island effect, making our city several degrees hotter in the summer. Hot cities are one of the largest killers of people in the summer time and certain populations, i.e. the pregnant, the elderly and children, are especially vulnerable.

This obsession with paving the way for cars also defers the replenishment of our aquifers. Instead of seeping back into the ground, storm water runs off the pavement and is piped into poorly managed water systems. In a sub-humid high desert climate, this water is crucial to preventing drought and fires that come from drought. The majority of creeks that carry drinking water from the mountains to the Jordan River have been paved over and piped through out the Wasatch Front. Paving and piping these creeks furthers our disconnect because the physical presence of the creeks aren’t there. We can’t be reminded of where are drinking water comes from if we don’t see the source. 

3. “Respect relationships between spirit and matter. Consider all aspects of human settlement including community, dwelling, industry and trade in terms of existing and evolving connections between spiritual and material consciousness.” 

Cars can bring us closer to what we consider “wild” undeveloped nature, by taking us the distance to the incredible. But they are venomous to connecting to the nature within thecity. Once in a city, cars are just boxes that take us from one box to another. For example I can go about my day leaving my home to my car to work, from work to the car to the grocery store to the car (it goes on). The whole time that day I was physically separated from the outdoors only experiencing the weather, air quality and vibrance of the city for minutes or seconds at a time. If my home had a connected garage and I drove to the mall which had connected parking, I wouldn’t feel the wind on my back once that entire outing. It’s quite easy to be disconnnected from the world in a car, simply roll the windows shut, crank the heat or the AC and put the music on. Apart from eye sight, all other senses are muted or stifled when driving. We can’t hear, smell or taste the city fully, we don’t feel the city. It’s not necessarily bad to be warm in a car when it’s cold outside, or play music while driving. Still it’s almost sick to think that thousands, perhaps millions of people drive into the city daily in personalised boxes. The more we drive, the less time we spend outside of the box mentality. This physical separation from the air, the sidewalk and other people around us leads to a lack of coexistence. For example, we do not notice the pedestrians on the street, or the breeze in the trees, or the heat of the sidewalk. This disconnection contributes to a lack of ecological conscience, leaving people unaware of what they’re missing or absorbing when they drive. This also makes it easier to ignore social issues like homelessness or segregation because one can simply drive through “undesirable” areas feeling safe and protected in their metal boxes.

4. Accept responsibility for the consequences of design decisions upon human well-being, the viability of natural systems and their right to co-exist.” 

This principle encompasses just how deeply car centric development contradicts the kind of cities we need today. The Wasatch front’s dependence on cars is an issue of design and the consequences continue to unfold. Not enough people have the right frame of mind in terms of building for the future. Instead  engineers have proposed a double decker freeway. We need creative holistic solutions that encourage less driving and more appreciation for where we live, and a healthy impact from it. Instead we have entire towns/neighbourhoods across the valley that are hard to discern from each other and bland housing developments with garages as front doors and roads as sidewalks. I can’t write what the following images show.

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Me, as a Planner

“If you don't know where you are, you don't know who you are.”  - Wendell Berry

I will find my self as a planner through the places that I have lived in and visited. From being a long distance daughter of Chile, to running around the Sonoran desert in my childhood, to learning to love Salt Lake City in my adolescence, to making a home out bustling of Buenos Aires and important Washington D.C. I will find myself as a planner by appreciating how the places I have lived and seen shaped me as a person. If place has been shaped me, then the people of those places will also be moulded by the design and nature of the spaces they inhabit. I will find myself as a planner by allowing those who know their home to impress me and the design process as a whole. I will take examples from historic design, like James Rusell, and understand place based purpose of the design of regions.

“Not all who wander are lost” -J. R. R. Tolkien

I will better myself as a planner by letting the wanderer in me guide not only my next adventures, but my career. I will travel so that I may see the ways of the world. I will seize chances to experience different ways of living. I'll attempt to view the places I am a local to through the eyes of a tourist. I will welcome others who wander to tag along (or vice versa). I will go to those who are grounded and I will join those who fly. I will work to being mindful on my path and not leave a trail that does detracts from future experiences to the places I wandered to. I will never stop exploring.

“A city grows like an organism. It is a structure of living and working together a mix of functions.” -Jaime Lerner

The nature of planning is not single handed projects, but many hands building together off of a shared idea and crafting it into a reality. As a planner I will utilize one of the most important tools, collaboration. I won’t make the businessman my enemy. I will invite others to work together because I do really believe that most people want to love the place they live in. I will value collaboration as both a tool for learning and productivity. I will work with others from different fields. I will respect different backgrounds. 

"Life imitates Art far more than Art imitates Life” - Oscar Wilde

As a planner I will try to incorporate art into every aspect of my profession. I will invite art into community events and invite artists into the planning process. I will design places with artists in mind. When I am frustrated or hopeful I will express my thoughts through musical action (because it’s cathartic and a means of survival). I will welcome humor into my work life. I will consider myself an artist. I will view policy as an art form and use it to encourage good, thoughtful design.

“So all you see is what you lacking, not what you packing” J. Cole

I will focus on the assets of places/cities to assist in reaching what is needed. I will build on natural and human capital. I will brainstorm with others. I will ask myself what I love about the place I live in. I will invite others to do the same. I will know where the sun rises and sets, and which way the wind blows, remembering to appreciate elements that are already there, subtleties that could be made bolder.

“Speak your mind, even if your voice shakes”- Maggie Smith

My voice as a planner will be strengthened by the acknowledgement of my background. I will remind myself of my privileges and take advantage of the perspectives gained from my disadvantages. I will plan with the marginalized in mind. I will constantly and publicly acknowledge the oppression that societies have been built on. I will be respectful of cultures that I am not a part of and reach out so that I may become a friend/partner. I will learn the history of places that I’m working in. I will remind myself that the biggest experts on the betterment of a place are the people who live there. My voice will also be found by learning to be a good listener. I will practice the art of observing. I will speak up when I’m invited to and I will do it loud and proud, mindful that not every persona has the privilege to voice their knowledge and sentiments. I will speak up (even if I am not invited to) when justice or basic systemic flaws have not been considered. I will use my profession as a platform for justice.

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Ecological Homemaking

All three of the examples mentioned in this post are from the Affordable Housing Design Advisor’s gallery. https://web.njit.edu/abs/  It’s an incredible resource for future planners or anyone interested in affordable and sustainable living.

Trolley Square, Cambridge MA

The affordable housing designed out of Trolley Square in Cambridge Massachusetts made useful space out of an old trolley station, giving new life to a building that had a entirely different yet historic use. The space was made more versatile because it has both a community, commercial space. This is a popular trend in new apartment complexes, so having this multipurpose use brought into the design makes the re-purposed building all the more modern. Design Advisor  discusses how the building was designed with the surrounding community. The designers and stakeholders purposely designed a corner of the site as a public park that acts as a rest stop for the bikers passing by on the nearby path. The parking garage is underground and above it is a plaza/garden for the residents, I love this because so much space is wasted by parking so I am all about putting it underground and utilising the space above it. The parking lot is also provides covered parking for bikes in the same space! This development made me think about what Salt Lake’s own trolley square could be like. It’s a beautiful building with so much history and I think apart from some vital businesses within it it lacks a lot of use and appreciation by the city.In terms of sustainable planning policy there is a lot to be learned from this development. For one, we should work with what we go. The most sustainable building is the one that’s already been built. Renovation and repurposing historic districts and buildings is vital to planning and this involves incentivising it and writing in ways to preserve it.The second element I want to take from this development is to make underground parking or parking structures with green roofs a requirement. Obviously the end goal is to eliminate as much parking as possible, but we still need parking and there’s no reason that it shouldn’t be well done and have more than one use. This brings me to a third principle, giving spaces multiple uses. I loved that the parking was underground (this makes it covered and harder for theft) and also that it’s roof acts as an open air space for residents, this is such a simple but smart use of space. The building as a whole acts a commercial/residential space and the park was made for more than just residents. 

(Trolley Square, Cambridge, MA)

Annie Mitchell Homestead, Aspen CO

What drew me to to this development was it’s intended purpose- to supply young, working class people affordable places to live in one of the West’s most expensive real estate market. I also liked this development because of its efficient use of sunlight. The top floors have skylights to utilise daylight and every building has a shared patio that’s oriented towards the mountain landscape and “solar exposure”, instead of of the nearby commercial. The last thing that made me really appreciate this development was the fact that recycling was incorporated through every stage. Much of the complex was built out of previously used materials. The roof was made out of recycled metal and both the carpet and insulation were made out of 100% recycled material (recycled cellulose). The building and deconstruction process made to sure to recycle. The asphalt that used to be on the site, the metal, wood and cardboard were all recycled. Every unit is equipped with a recycling center. 

This design strategy is another strong testament of the need for updates and conscious standards for housing development. The recycling element of this development is remarkable given that almost no apartment complexes in SLC supply recycling services to their residents. It’s actually quite uncommon for high density housing developments to offer recycling to residents. Many  people who live in SLC apartments do not have the option to recycle because there building does not supply it (and this is very, very common). The first thing that any city should be doing is requiring that large multifamily developments have recycling. It is one of the more affordable, digestible aspects of sustainability and frankly it’s past the point of excuses. I also love that the development utilized natural lighting and think this is another practical, digestible and incremental step towards a culture of sustainable development. Policies that require windows and designs that consider where a development is places in relation to the sun are crucial. Another policy that could be adapted from this development is who is receiving affordable housing. Because college students do not qualify for affordable housing many students and young people in general struggle to pay rent or find housing. This is unacceptable. This is a demographic that carries the economy, by getting an education, being consumers and working. Young adults and students deserve more than to struggle to pay for rent and stress about the weight of the world. A policy that includes affordable housing for young people and university students is completely necessary and would draw the kind of metropolitan crowd to the city center, which is much needed in a lot of down town areas of the United States.

(Annie Mitchell homestead via google images)

Catherine Street, Albany NY

This development is located in a historic district of Albany, New York. This development really engaged the community in the design process. There was a survey and lots of extensive conversations with residents. Still the site didn’t sugar coat it, they admitted that the community engagement process was challenging and although the community was engaged the processes felt confrontational at times. I appreciate this honesty. As planning students we are often told the importance of involving the community, but we also need stories about the challenges that come with such involvement. Community involvement in the planning process could be one of the most challenging parts of urban ecology. The honesty of this development’s course follows. Planners have acknowledged that despite the Catherine Street housing being successful, community conditions did worsen. Architect Kathleen Dorgan comments, "This development points out again how important it is to have strong continuing redevelopment in the neighbourhood. There needs to be an integrated local policy for addressing the continuing needs of the community."

The making of the Catherine Street development reveals a policy need for professional training surrounding community engagement as well more case studies for students of Urban Ecology of interactions between planners and the community. Another policy I would implement is allowing historic districts to regulate the kind of materials used in new developments, but also allowing for some flexibility so that old and new can blend together. Last, but not least, (and I don’t know how to make this a policy) but planners in general should focus more on the process rather than an end product, and when the project is completed there needs to be follow up and continued investment in the community. It’s sad to me that Catherine Street Housing was successful but the neighbourhood kept going downhill from there. It was probably outside of the planners hands. But many times development has negative consequences for residents, (i.e. gentrification). Urban Ecologists can’t just think that the job is done because one development is deemed successful at a given time. Communities are complex and there are many elements that could contribute to their success or struggle. They continue progressing, or, sadly, digressing, even after you’ve turned in your project and gotten the grade.

(Location Unknown)

(Tallin, Eastonia)

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Designers Dilemna

“...we have allowed engineering, architecture, and other design disciplines to be split from the very local knowledge systems that need to inform them “ (pg. 81) Ecological Design

“since sustainability is a cultural process, it depends on the everyday actions of ordinary people.” (pg. 81)

Had designers understood that their work must be grounded in local knowledge, that design is inherently place based, moulded by it’s environment and transformed by its people, then the University of Utah’s campus would look and feel completely different than it does today and it would have a different role as an institution of the Wasatch Front.

If designers had made this campus with local knowledge of the natural capital of the foot hills, they would have designed buildings that capitalised on our solar exposure. The city gets and average of 222 sunny days a year, that’s a lot compared to other places. If buildings had been designed to utilise this natural light, in the morning students would be learning by sunlight. On darker, stormier days, students would continue learning under light powered by solar energy. Salt Lake City may get a lot of sun but we also get a lot of storms. If designers had put this Ecosystem Function in mind when designing they would have made the buildings closer together so walking campus wasn’t so uncomfortable on the days that we have to trudge to class through snow or rain, which is basically all of Spring Semester. They would have taken advantage of the stormy weather we get in the spring and put cisterns all over the campus and designed buildings with rain catching infrastructure everywhere to harvest whatever water we could from those storms. 

If designers had understood that we live in a high desert or sub humid climate they would have landscaped the campus with native plant species. If designers had taken time to appreciate the location of the university they would have realised that this is a natural habitat for many mountainous and migratory species and different organisms would be more noticed, named and protected, making the entire campus more understanding of their place as co habitants of the mountain side. If the design had been thoughtful, students would have an opportunity to become ecoliterate, regardless of major or college.

If the designers had considered the University a city, the 10th largest one in Utah at that, then they would have designed for more food options across the campus. Not just in the buildings but around the campus. Perhaps the campus would even have a grocery store or market. If they had valued the surface area of our campus, they would have designed urban Agriculture into the master plan for the entire campus. Students would see where the food they eat comes from and some students could even be employed as campus gardeners.

If the designers of the campus had really thought about the fact that 85% of undergraduates commute to school (OBIA), then they would have made the arrival sequences onto campus more pleasant. There would be more pedestrian friendly pathways through the campus. They may also have thought of investing more in mass transit infrastructure rather than devoting valuable campus space for the parking of cars. Had they thought about the fact that 45% of the University is female, departure sequences would have been designed to make people feel safe rather than vulnerable when leaving school at night. 

If the Universities College of Fine Arts music department, had understood Salt Lake City’s local music scene, there would be majors for musicians beyond traditional and classical music/instruments (i.e music production, stage management/design, management). These students would themselves contribute to making voices heard as a lot of concerts in Salt Lake area are empowering community events. If our Design program included fashion design and Interior design students who study that elsewhere could become a part of our college and be exposed to the sustainable ideology of the College of Architecture of Planning and the majors that are already here would have more chances to collaborate.

If the University had considered that the entire Salt Lake Valley hosts a variety of people from different backgrounds, cultures,  ethnicities and passions than the University would have a more even representation of peoples on campus rather than being 69% white. This would make the entire campus more prone to activism or at least exposed to it. Different voices would be heard more often. There would be creativity in the classroom because people from different backgrounds have different perspectives and methodologies. This can shape processes and make people more observant or thoughtful where they would otherwise be careless. This would make our University more marketable because people from different backgrounds would hear about us through their community and people who value diversity and representation would want to come here. The same can be said for offering more extensive Music and Design programs.

Sources

Van der Ryn, S., & Cowan, S. (2007). Ecological Design, Tenth Anniversary Edition. Washington, DC: Island Press.

Offices of: Budget & Planning Institutional Analysis Common Data Set 2016-2017 http://www.obia.utah.edu/ia/cds/2016-2017/index.php

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Here to There

This is the bus stop that I wait for my bus home many days of the week. I use it in the morning and in the afternoon and it is bus stop for multiple routes. Many cars pass by, Trax cruises through and so does the occasional biker. It is a frequented space. But most of the space for this stop is dedicated to the road. The stop is sandwiched between the road and a parking lot, a little strip of xeriscaped land houses the only bench for the stop. Like many bus stops all around Salt Lake City the stop is uncovered. On pleasant dry days the bench can be quite enjoyable as it has large trees around it, but it it does little for any other kind of day, a day when sun beats down or the wind beats loud. I always feel a little watched at this stop. People passing by in cars tend to stare out there window at those waiting for the bus, because those one the sidewalk seem like such a novelty for a campus dominated by car commuters. I want to make this stop more of a comfortable and inviting space. Following the images are short term, medium term and long term solutions to make this a more functional space.

Short-term: I would start by surveying people waiting at the stops on the highest traffic ways and ask what kind of changes they would want. Or put a Candy Cheng like art installation around the bus stop that says “ I wish this bus stop had” or “I wish this bus stop was” the purpose  for that would be engaging people who use the space and inviting them to consider that there are different alternatives to the space. 

After this survey and just getting people thinking about the way that space could look like, I would come in and put up a temporary shade structure. It would need to be spring. I would get trees, the same trees that they use for the Park-ing days, those kind of trees that one can by at home depot (later these trees could be planted around the area or somewhere else on campus, or even donated to a homeowner who wants it). Then there would be a temporary shade provided to that little bench that there is never shade.

Medium Term: The medium term solution would be to write and propose policy for improvements for public transportation stops all around the campus. This could include policies that set a standard and incentivize making those spaces welcoming. This could be a standard of widened sidewalks, public art installations, shaded structures and ADA accessibility. It could even go as far as to incentivize solar powered features at the stops so that the lights turned on at night are renewably powered, or that people can plug in their devices if they need to without adding to the electricity bill. A medium term solution like this would require a lot of networking.  We would need to be reaching out to leaders and administration of the University, landscapers of the U as well as Utah Transit Authority. 

This would also be the time to start inviting other people to collaborate on the design process, as in students from other majors. We could ask someone at the business school who could calculate the overall price and return on investment and even businesses we could collaborate with. We could have graphic design students create the posters and graphics for when we proposed the policy to those in higher up positions at the University.

Long Term: The long term solution to this stop would start from changing one stop in particular (the one I have discussed) based on the new policies and incentives that were written in the medium term solution to the space. The implementation of these policies could start at that first bus stop and be funded by a SCIF grant that was written by student organisations invested in sustainability and public transportation, or even a couple unaffiliated students. The first stop would have a permanent shade structure  made at that stop and the sidewalk would be widened so that the shared space between drivers and those waiting for their public transportation commute is made obvious (cars drive slower when the space they drive through is obviously shared.

The best long term solution that would come of this would be how much we could learn from the process in general, from surveying people, to making new policies and communicating them to people in power at the university. What we learned from the installation of improvements to the first stop to improvements to the rest of the stops around campus and then, hopefully, around the city.  could help us guide  and transform that small, could make every bus stop around the U a covered spot with ample space that makes the area an inviting space for people to wait to ride their public transportation.

[mundoprofundo-blog1]

Transformative Transit.

The most most discussed benefit (with good reason) of a diversified, carless mobility for Salt Lake Valley is better air quality. Air quality in our valley is heavily impacted by industry, but we fail to recognise how much driving our cars play into this as well. I bet that our air quality would improve by half because I think the issue is half too many people driving and half toxic industries/development. Even though this wouldn’t solve the issue of industry’s negative impact on air quality but it would give people efficacy over their contribution to good air quality. Walking, cycling and mass transit should be made more accessible and welcoming to women, the elderly and children. If these modes made people feel like they belonged on the road, more people would bike, more people would walk, more people would use public transit and more people who drove would see that the road they belong on is shared. The more people that choose these  “alternative” modes of transit, the less people who drive. 

Courteous drivers are the first benefits to a shared street transportation system that comes to mind. Drivers in Salt Lake City are very, shall we say, brave? Just yesterday I was cut off 4 times by 3 different cars. I was going the speed limit. Since Salt Lake City's transit infrastructure is built around the car there aren’t enough pedestrians, cyclists or public transit vehicles to physically show drivers that the road is a share space. If the mobility infrastructure was diversified, drivers would instinctually respond by driving consciously, because they would be aware of a road with diverse mobility and thus diverse consequences. This would not only help pedestrians and cyclists feel safe but it would be helpful for other motorists and motorised public transport too because when we drive more slowly, aware and cautiously, we are less prone to collide with another car. 

The educational opportunity behind a mobility revolution transformation is  worth noting. In Copenhagen children learn how to ride bikes in school and are even tested for proficiency in the 9th grade. Children across the Wasatch front could also benefit from a similar, entertaining and practical PE class. Beyond PE, a chance to learn the freedom and independence that comes from riding a bike is presented. Biking is a relevant mode mobility for children because one can take short cuts or even ride right up to the store. One  doesn’t need to ask or rely on an adult for a lift or wait for their ride. It could give mobile autonomy to youth of Salt Lake City, one of the more unheard and overlooked demographic of community stakeholders. Imagine if this same group was riding around town respectfully and well because they were taught how to.

The sense of belonging that comes from people cycling is also important. People feeling safe and in place while biking in specific place (something discussed in the Copenhagen video) is proprietor to increasing the amount of active transportation. It’s a chain reaction. The more people who use active transportation, the more visible these kinds of mobility are. This gives others a chance to see how comfortable others look riding their bikes around on the busy bike path, making it appealing for more people to ride. More bikers day and night also opens up the space for women, many who feel unsafe traveling the streets alone at night. With more eyes on the street, women may feel an ownership over the roads and taking back the street could be a real possibility.

A walkable neighbourhood has economic benefits, since being on foot makes it’s possible to window shop on, pop in for a quick peek or smell what’s cooking. When we walk or bike the speed of travel versus a car versus is significantly slower. This slowness allows one to literally take the time to smell the roses, to try that coffee shop they always pass by, or talk to a neighbour. This speed of commuting makes the necessary amenities of a neighbourhood prone to businesses that thrive on real relationships within the community.

This blog post was inspired by this link: https://vimeo.com/13499122

[mundoprofundo-blog1]

Exploring Ecotones

The nature of things is separated from social/economic tones so I tweaked this definition so that it extends beyond biological communities to regions of transition between phenomena, events, communities and other aspects of life. Here are some examples of ecotones according to my definitions.

The place where the river meets the ocean. It’s such a beautiful shift in colour hues. The grace with which this happens is also captivating, we could learn a lot from such transitions.

Sunsets and Sunrises. There is nothing quite like a sunset in the American west. The transition from night into day and day into night is not only beautiful but also a calming. Taking the time to watch time pass is a significant human experience.

Art where it’s “not supposed to be”. I love when there is a word or a drawing or a poster on a blank wall, especially when there are so many places with blank walls. I think this is an ecotone because it is the transition from starkness to liveliness in the most urban setting. 

Spanglish. The best of being bilingual is the ability to transcend the barriers of traditional communication. If there is not a term/word for something in english, there is one in Spanish and although it isn’t looked upon very well by American English speaking culture, it’s so fun to mix in english words with Spanish and it is done in all of latin america and it makes the language that much more fun to speak and learn.

Plants that grow in “odd places”. This ecotone is special because it also demonstrates the resiliency of life, through concrete the vine keeps on pushing, it is challenging that which we have normalised, it is making the invisible visible. 

Rain shadows. I have road tripped from salt lake city through  Bend, Oregon east of the cascade mountains into Portland and it’s beautiful to watch the change from the high desert to the pacific north west, I believe this particular rain shadow is called the Pacific Crest Trail, it is both a stark and elaborate place to be.

Little Italy, China Town and other Ethnic Enclaves around the world. These neighbourhoods are textbook examples of an ecotone ...”a region of transition between two communities” with interaction and intersectionality but still distinct boundaries that characterise one neighbourhood from the other.

[mundoprofundo-blog1]

Good Newz

Today in a meeting my peers were all talking about current events. As I listened to them and shared in their frustrations, I realized that I myself  hadn't exposed myself to the news all week. Honestly, I was okay with it. Maybe my body did it subconsciously for the sake of my sanity/health (that’s crazy to think about). After feeling kind of guilty, I decided that I could do without a week of news.  I'm an activist, I’m a student and I'm a change maker and the world never fails to remind me of these and my many other identities. Bad news helps remind me of the urgency behind knowing who I am and rolling up my sleeves. But activism and change don’t have to be contentious and draining all the time (although they are often both at the same time). I’m glad I took a couple days off from the news, even it was by accident.

 In light of my no news week I wanted to post 6 beautiful/funny/cool things that are happening in our world right now. The links to every thing I mention are attached in the post. 

Saturday Night Live has been (and will be) killing the comedy game.

Sometimes it's too much or too serious, but SNL helps remind me that even the most fearful hateful things can be laughed at, and even we need to laught at oursleves.  It’s odd to be engulfed in irony in every facet of life and there’s no denying the similarity between the real world and SNL but comedy is a good remedy for reality and the best comedy puts the real world into context. checks. https://www.hulu.com/watch/1034303#i1,p0,d1

The manatee is no longer an endangered species!!!

In the age of mass extinction this is something else. Although it's just moved down into the threatened species list is important to acknowledge the perseverance and effort that went into this, Florida really stepped up its game and tried hard, and this could leave to manatees next big debut as a no longer threatened species. I'm hopeful.  https://www.fws.gov/news/ShowNews.cfm?_ID=35428

A town in Iowa just devoted 1,000 acres to help save honeybees.

“Little habitats in the prairie” It's called the 1,000 acre pollinator initiative and it's come out of a research for preserving monarch butterfly populations. Through prarie land revival that utilizes open land from little used golf courses to public parks and even sewage ditches. The town of Cedar Rapids will be collaborating with other towns in the region to reach the 1,000 acre goal. The project is the bee's knees. (This a posture post so I've got to make it punny). http://www.popsci.com/Cedar-Rapids-Iowa-save-bee-pollinator#page-2

The Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy has over 7000 cities committed to climate leadership.

This group that came out of the Paris climate agreements recognizes that cities are major catalysts for positive climate action. They covenant is focused Aligning efforts will allow for greater collaboration between cities across the world, bridging gaps and building connections, as well as increasing funding to support and empower cities in their actions”. A great example of global change at the hyper local level.

The Age of Empathy

Growing up and even as recently as last year, I was often told why care so much if I was too young to vote. I was old that a deep conversation wasn’t appropriate for parties. I had many people avoid the kind of conversations that challenge us to think about ourselves and our world. For me those deep and sometimes revealing conversations aren’t depressing, they can sometimes be difficult, but they’re always empowering. Creative solutions and open minds come from unusual conversations. It is shared experiences, not avoidance and shoulder shrugs that make our lives fulfilling.  For the first time in my life I can see a cultural shift from complacency to action people are ready to work hard. Even those who might not consider themselves activists are joining in. from marches to simple conversations people are standing up for what they believe in and communicating justice in original, creative and collaborative ways. It gives me chills just thinking about it.

[mundoprofundo-blog1]

The Economics of Campus Interventions

As an Urban Ecologist it's impossible to walk around the University of Utah’s without wanting to redesign and reinvent the many spaces I spend time in or simply pass through every day of my collegiate life. Last class we did a group project on a specific area of campus. We diagnosed each area and also gave the remedy. The area and other spaces around the campus suffer from under-utilization, un-appreciation, being unremarkable and impractical. My group found some remedies that could add many obvious ecological and societal benefits to the spaces, but in this post I will elaborate on the economic pluses of these remedies. Economic benefits are great ways to catalyze change because most of the world outside of Urban Ecology thinks with their money account. When combined with social ecology these economic benefits can contribute to a more sustainable and equitable culture on campus. Below are the proposed changes from our presentation along with their economic benefits.

North perimeter of the Marriott Library and the Plaza Surrounding it

Diagnosis: Wasted Spaces

Remedy #1: Edible campus garden north Library perimeter

Economic Benefits: The edible Campus Garden would only be wasted by the same irrigation that waters the grass, but since the space will be utilized more the water will be going to something useful, there would be no added cost for irrigation really. A cafe inspired by the food grown in the edible campus gardens would offer jobs to students, and increase the circulation of money on campus. Food grown could also be sold to other food trucks/dining establishments on campus and help fund the gardens. The edible campus gardens of the Library could also offer the service of composting the library’s organic waste for a smaller fee than the organic waste services around the valley, making the total waste output of the library smaller and total costs for the waste management services would go down.

Remedy #2:  North Plaza Ampitheatre/Seating

Economic Benefits:  Coupled with the edible campus garden a more creative use of the concrete plaza surrounding the area would be useful for the social economy of the space. If the area encourages people to gather and meet up it is increasing the circulation of ideas, something that the university capitalized on daily. The stage area could host famous speakers and university alumni who have made contributions to their university and the world. If a famous speaker came onto that stage to share ideas the university would not only benefit from the circulation of ideas but also from an added prestige and reputation to the services the U provides and the kinds of people it cultivates. Reputation is one of the strongest marketing tools and often times large companies will lose money trying to improve their tarnished brand or even just create a brand identity. This kind of space could create a brand identity for the University and become a famous example of the innovation the university provides. Adding food trucks around this area would increase the flow of money on campus and  to the university and giving students real life examples of small business practice. The food trucks provide don’t only provide employment and real life business examples, but can connect the university to the valley. It’s a wise business decision as our university is in itself a small city that hosts thousands of people from around the valley that can increase knowledge of the food establishments through referrals, that still in this age of technology and media, are the most effective marketing tool. Word of mouth is powerful. We tend to trust our neighbor/friends suggestion or story more than some billboard or commercial.

West Marriott Library and Bookstore Parking Lot

Diagnosis: Blacktop Nightmare

Remedy: Pedestrian Parkway

Economic Benefits: The installation of a park could be deemed expensive but if viewed as an investment with high return than funding the project shouldn’t be a problem. The parkway would increase pedestrian safety on their commute to and from school. The park could also act as a carbon capturing space and could help improve the air quality on campus, which would help students and faculty members alike with medical expenses related to poor air quality (such as asthma, pneumonia and just a really bad cold). This would decrease the insurance costs for the many people who are insured by the university as it employs so many people throughout the valley. A parkway would also encourage professors who are deciding to tenure whether or not to stay because the campus just got a little nicer and they like that their commute to class got a little more pleasant. Professors deciding to stay adds to the Universities overall human capital, which is basically what an tertiary education institutions makes its bank off of. Losing parking spaces would probably frustrate many people at first, but it could also encourage alternative modes of transportation which means that one more person could save 400 dollars on a parking pass by taking public transport and enjoying the parkway on their way to class. The park could also act as an event space that could accrue revenue from people renting out the park space for summer festivals and winter sport events and special cultural celebrations.

West Marriott Library Facade, Plaza and stair well

Diagnosis: Concretus Overload Icus.

Remedy: High Desert Green Walls.

Economic Benefits: This area lacks character and people just pass through it. The library is the most recognized and frequented building on campus and its exterior does not do justice the the million dollar project that it was and its beautiful interior. A green wall/roof can help with the insolation of one of the largest and most frequented buildings on campus. The heating and cooling of the building would become more efficient and less heat would escape the building in the winter, less cool air would escape the building in the summer and less money would escape in the form of high energy bills year round. There would be no added cost in watering the green walls/roofs because native plants are not reliant on irrigation. The hardest economic argument towards a green wall investment is hard to quantify. This is because it's hard to quantify what sense of place and identity can contribute to a community, it’s hard to put a number on innovation, creativity and collaboration. It’s even harder to quantify how sense of place and identity play into the prestige and reputation of an institution people don’t just talk about Berkley because intelligent and active people have come from that university, they also have a beautiful and visibly sustainable campus, and their alumni have contributed to the landscape through their college experience, thus the college becomes a reflection of its student body and if the campus does a good job with that it lures future students to the school because they too want to be a part of that history and legacy. A green wall at the university of Utah would make us stand out. It is such a visible change on such a large and used building that it would be impossible to ignore it and to resonate with it. It functions as a symbol of the innovation that the University breeds. 

A green wall, and really any sustainable installation/development/policy on campus builds the University of Utah’s brand up. The reality of our university economy is that we rely on new, loyal and lifelong community and alumni support, for them to keep on supporting they’ve got to be impressed with the product, extrinsic investments based off of intrinsic value. This would also permeate into Salt Lake City and the Valley’s economy as the reputation of the University is elevated so too will that of the cities and this reputation will feed into higher expectations in the development of the city, that should also reflect the social and sustainable innovation that the Universities economy has cultivated.

[mundoprofundo-blog1]

Kinda like Europe (but saltier)

Changes to the Salt Lake Metro Area

From Chapters 3 & 4 of Green Cities of Europe

In the years after world war 2 Copenhagen was on the same trajectory as the United States in terms of extreme population growth, rapid development and increased car usage. What’s interesting is how differently the city of Copenhagen and Salt Lake City look and act now. This is incredible because it means that Copenhagen saw the problem early and chose to address, thus they are leaps and bounds ahead in green development than Salt Lake because there is much less that they have to undo” and their development has created a culture that is more flexible and positively responsive to sustainable development tactics/implementation. Freiburg, Germany had a different set up, the aftermath of WWII left the city almost completely levelled and this resulted in their planning being grounded in the act of preserving and protecting what was left of the city, this was done by restrictions on redevelopment unknown to Western America development all while planning to accommodate population growth. This combination of preserving the culture, history and environment of a city devastated by destruction while looking ahead into future growth trends has led to a town’s success with sustainable redevelopment.

Below are 4 examples from both Freiburg and Copenhagen that I find not only genius but also attainable for Salt Lake City in terms of our own sustainable development.

I don’t know how easy this would be to implement in Salt Lake City but I found the idea visionary and worth mentioning; I love that Copenhagen guides the planning in other localities through principles and priorities rather than one master plan. I think it allows for more creativity in development projects and seems to imply a faith in the people’s ability to envision the bigger picture which contributes to a culture that is fond of sustainable development. I also think that it makes the ecology of planning stand out more as it doesn’t rely on the static of one master plan but rather the end vision of shared developmental values. This kind of thinking also transcends city limits and can make municipalities allies rather than border crossers.

I would love to see the investment in Solar Energy further explored in the Salt Lake Valley which receives 222 days of sun a year (that’s so much!!!). The way the city of Freiburg was able to link solar technology to economic development is such a vital tool to legitimising not just renewable energy but any sustainable development practice in general. The fact that solar energy was linked to the cities economic initiatives legitimized the program. In a place like Salt Lake City, a culture that is quite concerned with its economic state, this is a smart move. Right not solar energy is being quite incentivizes in the Salt Lake Valley through subsidies, similar to those of Freiburg. Still I think an approach which also makes encourages investment into solar energy and divestment from fossil fuels to go hand in hand (a place to run to not just something to run away from. This “industrial ecology”  can also become a part of the social realm of the city through art installations and information centers that weave solar energy into the fabric and culture of our city, strengthened by the economic impacts of such development that gives residents a faith in the new energy solutions as was done in Freiburg.

Salt Lake City could also stand to take heed from some of Freiberg’s stormwater management techniques. I find it crazy that not too long ago it was illegal to harvest rainwater in the valley. Salt Lake tends to forget that it is part of a high desert ecosystem and that water is very much a growing issue for our cities future sustainability. Big Salt Lake office buildings downtown could benefit from green roofing in social and economic ways, making use of unused roof top space for social use and would add the value of the building. Water swailes housed by lots of native plants would give sense of place to areas and could function as great drainage systems for our crazy spring storm seasons, these areas would act as landmarks and green spaces with an aesthetic that makes them uniquely of Salt Lake City. Economic Incentives to make private properties permeable and to invest in permeable surfaces in different phases of development would be a great way to take steps to restoring our aquifers. All of these water centred developments would “make the invisible visible” revealing our cities ties and dependence to water in beautiful ways.

Copenhagen’s radial finger plan would be such an antidote to the Salt Lake Valley’s metropolitan areas sprawl, a epidemic that has affected the environmental, cultural and economic health of Salt Lake City and surrounding municipalities for years. The finger plan is mostly applicable in terms of its fingers (rather than the green space between the fingers). This is because we have some of the widest streets in the United States (dare I say the world) and also have an extensive blueprint of past trolley lines that could guide the areas we choose to implement street cars/ TRAX by researching the history of the most used trolley areas before the trolley system was taken from us. Green-space would be more difficult as the majority of the valley is already developed, but there could be methods to re-green areas along the train  lines and encourage green space to be a requisite for developments that build along these new train lines. Rather than a hand/finger plan I see an 8 string guitar (perhaps 12 string), with the main strings connecting the south and north of the valley extensively (it doesn’t have to be a super straight line to be harmonious) and re-greening, ecological industry and urban agriculture taking place between the strings. Different Fret boards could be the street cars that run shorter distances east and west. We already have the G, B and high E strings (the, blue line, the red line and the green line)! This is good because development projects can happen right now without creating a whole new train line, although new train lines/street cars should be developed urgently.

Freiburg, Germany

Swaile, Freigburg Germany

Fingerplan, Copenhagen, Denmark

12 String Guiter

[mundoprofundo-blog1]

A Blank Campus

The first thing I notice as I step out of my house to catch my bus is not the cold of the winter, but the smog that this city creates itself. It’s at this moment I always think to buy one of those protective masks I see some people wearing, but it always slips my mind. As I make my way around the block to my bus stop I am discomforted by the cars that zip up 17th south, paying no mind to me as a pedestrian. Occasionally a nice alien stops to let me pass, but most of the time I have to wait for the aliens to pass until there is enough time and space between me and the cars to cross the street to my bus stop. I always feel like I stick out like a sore thumb in these moments as there are very few people who are walking or biking, although there are some, the majority of the traffic is dominated by cars and I often see the people in cars stare me down or look at me curiously as I am a lone part of the street that is not part of a car, and for some reason I feel like a novelty of the area, like wow look at that one girl on the sidewalk, how quaint! This domination makes me feel like the odd one out and reminds me that I am the one in danger in this area. I wait for my bus in the cold with my music to accompany and wait to board the machine that will take me to school. When I arrive at school I find myself at another crosswalk that is equal part cars and people. Here I cross with more confidence because I am surrounded by others like me, travelers on foot. Not 20 feet into my walk along 1725 East into my university, a space where I spend a good chunk of my days on, I come across the first antibody on campus:

Along this stark path is a little building I come along this sad little building. There is no life here. No welcome to the U, no entrance, no widened sidewalks, no shade from the sun. Just quiet pedestrians and a loud parking lot. I continue on this barren path towards the continued education that was both sold to and required of me by a society that couldn’t even make it’s entrance beautiful.

I think that there used to be a bicycle shop here that helped fix bikes, but now I don’t know if I’m just imagining it. However this building serves as the emptiest of antibodies on my journey through campus, because it is unused and it could serve many purposes, but what I especially imagine is a little coffee shop where pedestrians walking onto south campus could stop for a cup of jo on the go. And instead it sits empty and useless, it’s sad that such a little building can’t be made into more.

As I continue my walk and delve further into campus I pass by the great airport that is the business building (for some reason the architecture of today makes me always feel like I’m arriving somewhere only to leave) in front it has a plaza that is never used and named after some Utahn who I’m sure was rich and influential but who I’ll never know and whose name I forget the second I pass by an impressionable plaza that was probably littered with people using it in the architect's plans, but is not scaled to human use in too many ways; no shade, over spaced amphitheatre with too small of a stage, seats that cannot be moved and trees that are too young to leave an impression on the plaza, it is merely the entrance to an airport and I only come to it to leave it.

The snow and winter inversion only enhance the starkness of the campus and it makes me miss the green of the trees and the flowers of spring as I pass unremarkable, boring and gigantic architecture until I come face to face with the wall of construction, no doubt making another large building for the poorly scaled campus of my university. The sign that tries to tell me that excitement is building feels so forced and I realize that they haven’t really told us what they’re building, what it will provide and my opinion on what I would want/need from this new building was never sought out. So I don’t know what they’re building it for and it makes me feel less connected to place that I am constantly a part of. I pass this construction every day on my way to work and it's so pervasive because it’s in the heart of campus, shouldn't I at least be offered more information on what they’re building, at least give me something more than a cheesy sign.

Apart from making my commute much longer and inconvenient because I have to take a route that is out of the way, the construction work also affects my breathing. It’s always kicking up dust and some days it only amplifies the fact that the air is hard to breathe for me, since I have asthma. I know we have to make improvements and OSH had to be taken down because it had asbestos, but I still think that there must be a more environmentally friendly way to build new things (and make sure we make things that are built to last and interesting to look at).

This is the most frustrating part of my campus design flaws for me. There are so many places all around campus just like this one that are blank canvases for a beautiful mural that celebrates the identity of students and the culture of Salt Lake City and instead of our campus’s colors being multi colored and rich and complex, it is a concrete grey. It is so cold and boring that it actually makes me sad. Sad to think that they would never allow a mural in certain places and sad to think that a mural is exactly what those places need. I wish that campus wasn’t so vanilla, I wish Mountain West development wasn’t so afraid of color and I wish it stopped believing that grey and black and white will make us feel proud to call ourselves a part of something that can’t even give itself an identity that isn’t commercialized.

[mundoprofundo-blog1]

Incremental Change (quiet but revolutionary)

I think a good way to get a culture of transitions started in Salt Lake City is  through installations of urban acupuncture, like the one we saw in the Castro neighborhood in San Francisco and that Jaime Lerner made happen in Curitiba. I think these kind of temporary installations show the possibility that a space has and because it’s tangible it stops a city's transition from being planning specific or subject to abstracts. Instead people can interact with the installation and think about what they would do differently what they would like to see added. They could even just think about how they never imagined the space differently and now that they’ve seen the alternative they don’t wanna go back, they want more of the alternative everywhere. It’s visionary action. It’s flexible and it shows the opportunity a space has. People always say stuff like “how did it take so long for them to do this” which I think is such a valuable statement because it reveals both the simplicity of such an installation and also the need and urgency to change, to transition. I love these small transitions as well because they aren’t defined by budget or by scale. They can be tiny like Castro, or larger scale like changing Times Square overnight into a space that is not just dominated by pedestrians but also made for them.

I am thinking specifically of the 17th South and 4th East section which has every possibility of becoming a great node of Salt Lake City.

I can see a little change to the corner front parking lot of Alchemy Coffee shop that takes away the parking and makes it an open air patio space with shade structures with seating. Maybe invite a food truck to occupy the space that a car may have occupied. Do this for an entire weekend. Set it up Thursday night and take it down Sunday night. Invite local bands to come play their music on Friday and Saturday and Sunday and invite a couple local craftsmen/artists to showcase what they have and encourage the store that is already there to leave it’s doors open and maybe spill out a little into the lot.

The lot that inhabits the South West corner of the 400 East and 1700 South intersection. This is the space I am proposing for the first temporary visionary place installation.

Imagine this view, on a sunny Saturday filled with the vibrancy of human interaction, not the asses of cars. The space is there, we just need to fill it with something more human scaled.

I see something that both seems obvious and astounding happening here: The food truck decides to be in that lot/area every weekend because coming to the installation the owner found a new place that it can get food out to a new customer base in an area that doesn't have really anything to choose from in walking distance in terms of restaurants. And then as people realize the food truck is there they frequent it. So another one starts coming on weekends and parks in the lot across the streets. The parking lot event also inspires the business’s around there (Alchemy Coffee Shop, the  Red Kiln, A furniture store, a laundromat and a nail salon, a thrift store and 2 unnamed businesses) to un-park the  parking lot and become a closer coalition of neighborhood businesses that through community events and the space they have the privilege of working in, goes from being a parking lot to a place to meet, an area that gives the neighborhood identity.

This change from installation to semi permanence (yet still with flexibility in terms of what occupies the space) would lead to spillover effects like people who wouldn’t normally come to the area that live in the neighborhood realizing that what it has right down the street from its house there is incredible. Neighborhoods residents could start walking more (obvious health benefits) and  this makes cars have to drive more slowly because there the constant pedestrian traffic forces drivers to notice the sidewalk and understand the street they’re driving on is a shared one. This would also encourage people to bike more, I think foot traffic is always a good sign for bike traffic as well. Another spill over could that creative use of space becomes a norm and an expectation for people who live in SLC. Seeing one more node come up but not in such a classic area, sparks a demand for spaces like that in more of SLC’s many corners that lack life. More people would walk (and bike) to little nodes like that where they live as well. Economic activity would be a very important spillover of this. There are 2-3 buildings on the corner of 17th South and 4th East that are either unused or seem dead from the outside. These spaces could benefit and may even change business’s, sparking economic growth in an area that is very residential and passed through all the time by car traffic that is on its way to somewhere else. A node would also have the spillover of community engagement. I would be more likely to see the neighbors I do know out and about rather than having to speak to them through text or when we go to each other's houses. It would make more connections and strengthen others just through the act of seeing people around in your neighborhood. Related to this there would be more eyes on the street. Then this node would catch the attention of planners and landscapers and they would come in with professional plans and visions for the specific area like widened sidewalks and a round about and native landscaping. Perhaps this area would be considered for a street car because of its new bustle as well.

It’s a very customisable and quick pin prick of change to add a new use to a space through such installations like this. The consequences of it not going well is that one simply takes it down, or changes something about it.  There’s always room to learn from the installation even if it didn’t work and even if it does. But there aren’t far reaching consequences that last lifetimes from it not working or not being liked, like other plans in the planning world. However, it does work (and from other examples it normally does even if people were against it to begin with) there could also be incredible results that do last lifetimes.

[mundoprofundo-blog1]

Take me to Curitiba

What I loved the most from A Convenient Truth was how they didn’t wait for millions of dollars in funding, or some large donation, or a grand plan. The changes that were made to the city were not traditional, but they were grand, and there necessity seemed so obvious. I think in the United States we are programmed for this order to things, to wait for the okay go and if we aren’t given the resources it’s hard for us to even carry on. But in Curitiba, Jaime Lerner and his colleagues were creative with what they had and created incredible changes with almost nothing. They didn’t wait for the funding, they weren’t reliant on large donations from positions of power or the okay go for a large plan, they simply imagined and implemented. It seems so simple and obvious, but the truth is that in this day and age it is revolutionary to think like that. Below are some of the sustainable development projects that came from Curitiba and were highlighted in the film we watched in class titles “A Convenient Truth”: 

Parks Instead of Canals

In response to the issues of flood control the city built a network of linear parks and lakes across the city and today residents spend their leisure times in world class parks which are actually part of a gigantic water stabilisation system, which was not only cheaper than making a canal, but also more resilient as earth can soak up water and man made canals just rush the water through making it more destructive and can still contribute to flooding in cases of extreme flooding.

Sheep, acting as lawnmowers for the park, created  a new job market for “inner city shepherds”.

Bettering What Is vs. Making New

Curitiba couldn’t afford to develop a subways system throughout the city so they worked with what they already had and developed it further creating a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) that is used by around 70% of the cities population. On top of that the payment/entrance system was revised, the payment for a trip was paid at the bus stop which are elevated circular tubes that line up with the buses height, making the transition very simple, in a sense the system resembles a subway but instead it is buses that pick one up. The other incredible thing about this public transportation system is that, unlike most public transportation in the United States, it is not subsidised. It is an entirely self sufficient program that does not burden the governments treasury....(hint hint USA)

Community Oriented Recycling

Years ago the UN awarded the city of Curitiba the highest environmental prize for their recycling scheme, which invited Curitibans to take part in the waste process by having them sort out their own trash before it is picked up and offered stable employment to many people of the city. The pre  sorted waste and recycling are then sorted out at a facility that sorts out the recycling and sells it to other industries that remake products from the recycled goods at a fraction of the cost of making it from scratch, and these facilities pay the city which makes the system self sufficient. Curitiba has one of the (highest rates of recycling on the planet). There is a library and a museum stocked from things found in the trash sorting and students take field trips out to the facilities to learn about the recycling program.

Revolutionary nature of Curitiba aside, the changes were not just more ecological, but they were also more economical. I think this is a crucial point to discuss when speaking about sustainable cities, because a lot of justification for avoiding sustainable development or for choosing the traditional option over the more ecological boils sustainable choices down to cost and privilege. In Curitiba they made the city more sustainable with little funding and without the prestige and privilege of a developed country at no added cost to the city or residents. This is crucial to legitimising sustainable development and having it be something that people will back up. I know that the economy is a subsystem within the environment, but for many people it is the defining factor of both survival and success, thus ecological thought has to capitalize on the capital that environmentally friendly development offers. Curitiba did this. 

*this whole assignment just finalized that fact that I have to go to Curitiba and the rest of beautiful Brazil soon to see my fellow Urban Ecologists/friends who live in Brazil... it’s on my bucket list I hope to see them soon*

[mundoprofundo-blog1]

The Fab flâneur takes on the Marriott Plaza

This is just a section of the Marriott plaza, a central artery of campus, I walk through it every single day I’m on campus and every student has to pass through here at least once during in their navigation of campus. There are many issues that I have diagnosed through this area as I have come to see it through the lens of Urban Ecology. First, it is quite stark. The plaza is dominated by concrete and linear angles, at any point of the year, on a clear and beautiful day, this starkness is balanced by the million dollar view of the surrounding mountains and the valley below, but on particularly grey days, when the inversion is so obvious it hurts, the starkness seems to melt into one grey and greasy skyline, the current construction has only made the starkness seem more nihilistic for me. It’s honestly quite depressing. A pinprick of change that I would add to this area is more landscaping. There are many plots around here that could be cultivated even more, perhaps edible gardens could expand to one of the under-utilised green spaces to the north side of the library, they could bring energy to the area and also make their cause more blatant as every student has to pass this area thus their mission would be visible for the entire campus (unfortunately not nearly enough students are aware of the edible campus gardens). On top of better landscaping the plots of vegetation that are already present, I would also recommend tearing up as much pesty concrete and extending the grassy east side further so that in summer more people sit outside and in the winter one less place to salt down so that the aquifers can be replenished when the snow melts.  

Here is the east side of the Marriott plaza just to the north of where the tandoori cart normally stops. It used to a pleasant area but the new construction has made this a hard place to enjoy. This area seems so just like most construction areas one would pass in the rapidly developing salt lake valley. When I walk past I can’t help but ask, when it finally be done and when is it done, will it be all that great? The black tarp is calling for art. I would love to see some murals painted on there by student groups or student artists. Rather than over produced ads about how great the new building is going to be we could have the real time art and culture of our university portrayed on these temporary walls. Even something as messy and self organizing as posters about upcoming events, job opportunities and upcoming performance events, like a bulletin board in the building but for the construction zone. The planters are also something that clogs this artery, I still don’t understand their purpose. I think it was to stop cars from coming in but the first time I saw them come in sometime last semester, I remember seeing owner of the Tandoori food truck talking to a construction worker because they had barred his access to the area. It also makes biking through the area more awkward and because the flow of traffic is more concentrated due to construction the area has become awkward for pedestrians to navigate to.  I find it interesting that of all the things they could have done to change the area they went with cement blockades to stop the occasional car from getting through. Well, lets just say that there absolutely positively has to be some sort of blockade preventing car traffic from going through the area, why can’t these be planter boxes instead of those horrid cement stubs. I bet that if those were planters instead of cement boxes they wouldn’t have just been pushed to their side, people would have had more respect for them.

Here is view from the east entrance to the Marriott Library overlooking the very middle of the Marriott Plaza On top of better landscaping the plots of vegetation that are already present, I would also recommend tearing up as much pesty concrete and extending the grassy east side further so that in summer more people sit outside and in the winter one less place to salt down so that the aquifers can be replenished when the snow melts.  This area would benefit from an interactive Candy Chang-esque art installation. This time however I picture a bug structure, 8 feet tall and many sided. picture something that asks students “How do U envision Marriott Plaza?” and there students could write down what they think with chalk. Any increase in events that happen in the plaza would be beneficial to the area. I think the largest project that could increase the staying in the plaza would be more places to sit and a more shade. This can be done in many ways, more tree would be a natural landscaping way to add shade to the area, but also a large and  light cloth shade structure that extends from the planters that border the library entrance to the planters that border the plaza would create a lot of shade, and although its large scale, I am sure that if there is money for cement stubs in the entrance and brand new buildings all over campus there is money for a simple shade structure, there is money to improve and build upon what we already have.

Over all this space has a lot of potential for very small pinpricks of change. A benefit to the area is although it wasn’t built to human scale, considering human activity and human navigation of the area there is possibility in the space because it is frequented anyway. A pop of color on the grey cement from student murals, events and performances on campus as often as possible and the increase of natural landscaping and shade structures would give this space more character and make it easier to meet a friend for some coffee outside or sit and observe the campus before classes.