Posts Tagged ‘density’
Urban Planning in Developing Countries: Innovative Design
Posted in Research by Kate Archdeacon on May 19th, 2010
“…a flexible building design that would allow residents to expand their homes upwards by up to three floors – as and when their families grow – and create socially and economically successful communities that are as dense as, or even denser, than buildings that are up to six floors high.”
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From “Innovative design could transform urban planning in developing countries“:
A new vision of urban planning that will positively transform the way cities grow across the developing world in the 21st Century was presented in a study issued today {18/03/2010}. The vision involves a flexible building design that would allow residents to expand their homes upwards by up to three floors – as and when their families grow – and create socially and economically successful communities that are as dense as, or even denser, than buildings that are up to six floors high. The new design, which promises a brighter future for millions of the world’s poorest urban citizens, is detailed in a study and multimedia collection funded by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund. Its launch today coincides with the opening of the United Nations Fifth World Urban Forum in Rio de Janeiro, where thousands of delegates from governments, academia and nongovernmental organisations will discuss solutions to the challenges of urbanization.
Among those challenges is the question of how best to increase urban population densities as populations grow and land prices rise, especially when large informal settlements of the urban poor occupy prime centrally located land. In many cities in Asia and elsewhere, governments are keen to force these poor communities into high-rise apartments so that the land they currently occupy can be developed into condominiums and iconic buildings to attract foreign investment. “In promoting such a vision of a modern world-class city, international financial institutions and city planners are failing the poorest communities and ensuring that those who are meant to gain the most are instead the biggest losers,” says architect Arif Hasan, a visiting fellow at the International Institute for Environment and Development and lead author of the new study.
1970s 2-bedroom flat: Medium-density retrofit
Posted in Models by Kate Archdeacon on March 23rd, 2010
Source: Ecovation via The Ecologist
From “Eco-renovation of a 1970′s 2-bed flat“:
“Our 1970′s flat in North Oxford had had very little work done to it since it had been built. We bought it a year ago and have undertaken an eco-renovation, learning as we went along. This was made slightly more challenging by living in it while all the work was done but at least we knew what was going on! Our intention was to create a light, low energy, low-water usage, low-carbon, healthy living space for ourselves. Where it has not been possible to reuse, we have tried to use products that are natural, have low embodied energy, use minimal energy, are from an ethical source and that have minimal toxicity. We are hoping to demonstrate to our neighbours and others that one does not need a huge house in the country and pots of money to “go green”.”
The rest of this excellent article goes into detail about problems, solutions, materials, products and suppliers. The decisions and compromises that the occupants made are carefully outlined. This article is a rare insight into retro-fitting (or “eco-renovating”) a flat rather than a house. -KA