Architecture Commons^™

Fortifying Lower Manhattan's Shoreline, Krystel Campuzano, Mathlyn Mckie

Publications and Research

Lower Manhattan comprises less than 1% of the entire city’s land area, but generates almost 10% of the city’s total economic output, as measured by Gross City Product, and is the location of over 10% of all New York City jobs. Workers in Lower Manhattan come from all parts of the city. The District’s growth is supported by excellent access to transit, with 19 out of 25 subway lines and 26 ferry lines passing through the District. Any climate impacts in the District will resonate across the city as a whole and beyond. Because Lower Manhattan is a critical economic, …

Reimagining Future Sustainable, Climate-Resilient Urban Design For Apia, Samoa: Developing Plans For A Developing Nation, Alyssa Kaewwilai

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Small island developing states are arguably the most vulnerable, exposed nations on a global scale to the harmful effects of climate change. Particularly in Samoa, an abundance of environmental, economic, and social impacts have severe impacts on both the country as a whole as well as on an individual level. This study analyzes future mitigation strategies of land use and urban design to recreate Samoa’s capital of Apia as a more climate-resilient city to encourage economic growth and to ensure the well-being of all inhabitants. This planning is based upon current challenges of Samoa driven by climate change such as …

“In Principle” Versus “In Reality”: Assessing The Potential Of Adaptive Urban Governance Toward Urban Flooding In Ho Chi Minh City’S District 7, Cindy Pham Nguyen

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Flooding has become the new normal in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC). During the rainy season, many areas of the city experience severe inundation that seriously impacts infrastructure, traffic, and economic transactions. As the effects of climate change unpredictably and rapidly manifest in Southern Vietnam, the frequency and impact of urban floods are projected to increase. In addition, within the last few decades, HCMC has rapidly developed and urbanized, transforming itself into the economic center of Southern Vietnam. However, previous studies and international experts have determined that rapid, poor development may be exacerbating urban flood issues.

In recent years, city …

Primitive Palms: A Density Study On The Impacts Of Harvesting Natural Materials For Construction Purposes On Sumak Allpa Of The Amazon Rainforest, Zachary Bull

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In an effort to better understand how rural construction techniques affect a surrounding environment, this study combines a density test of the natural building materials used in the construction of a school on Sumak Allpa island of the Orellana Province in the Amazon basin of Ecuador. The focus of the study measures the density of the bamboo species Guadua angustifolia and the Panama hat plant Carludovica palmata on the island while noting a comprehensive compilation of the techniques and materials used in the building process. Using a mix of plots and transects, a comparison of harvested material to remaining material …

Design For Living Complexities, Peter J. Taylor

Working Papers in Critical, Creative and Reflective Practice

Lectures from a 12-session course that addresses the intersection of design with critical thinking. Design in this course means intentionality in construction, which involves a range of materials, a sequence of steps, and principles that inform the choice of materials and the steps. Design also always involves putting people, as well as materials, into place. This happens by working with the known properties of people, as well as the known properties of material, and trying out new arrangements to work around their constraints (at least temporarily). Critical thinking, as I define it, involves understanding ideas and practices better when we …

Drawing The City, Sandy Litchfield

Sustainability Education Resources

How do we represent the spatial and social complexities of contemporary urban environments? And why is this important for artists, designers, planners, architects, and landscape architects?

Twenty-first century cities are complex, messy and wicked. They can be dazzling, magnificent and aweinspiring, full of diverse culture, creative activity, architectural marvels, and cutting-edge innovation. But they are also facing some of the most challenging problems in history– unprecedented economic inequality, sea level change, unpredictable weather events and severe pollution to name just a few. In trying to understand such a complicated system, we need to develop and hone new and distinctive methodsforrepresentation …