Landscape Architecture Commons^™

Rideshare Issues And Implications For Curb Management, Brandon Leonard Utterback

Landscape Architecture Masters & Design Theses - Archive

As autonomous vehicles continue to prove themselves on our roads today, a look at the considerations of implementation will be necessary. The potential for rethinking our infrastructure requirements, as a result of this new technology, could be a significant benefit to everyday life in terms of safety, congestion, and travel behavior. We must also consider the potential impact on the environment, which is often overlooked. If automobile infrastructure such as roads and parking lots are reduced in urban areas, how will this rediscovered urban space be used? How will planners, designers, and policymakers adapt our infrastructure needs when less pressure …

A Bridge Between Earth & Sky: How The Natural World Shaped The Civilizations Of Ancient And Early-Modern Persia, Sophia Cabana

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

This project seeks to investigate the ways in which nature shaped the culture of ancient Persia through technology, architecture, agriculture, and art. Furthermore, this project investigates how the symbols and mentalities of ancient Persia were carried forward into the early-modern period. Achaemenid Persia and Babylon are studied as societies which influenced one another and combined to create the foundation of Persian culture as it is currently understood, which then combined in later centuries with other Middle Eastern and Central Asian cultural movements to produce the Safavid and Mughal Empires. The Safavids and Mughals imitated and revived Persian culture in order …

The Genesis And Development Of Deathscapes In America -- A Story Of How Chicago And Louisville Cemeteries Demonstrate The Shifting Rationale Of Cemetery Placement During The 19th And 20th Centuries., Thomas D. Cleven

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Today, most construction projects require a systematic site qualification based on a suitability analysis utilizing parameters such as slope, soil type, elevation, distance to open water, and distance to transportation. The proper siting determines the success of a project in terms of project stability and longevity. However, has this suitability analysis exist for one of the most significant phases of humanity – death. Historically dead bodies seem to have been placed without suitable qualification being many cemeteries have created environmental problems for the living. Hence, with which placement rationale has been used comes to mind. With a varied array of …

Incorporating Natural Play Spaces Into Elementary Playgrounds For Child Developmental Benefits, Ariel L. Wright

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Play environments are crucial to providing developmental opportunities for children and natural playgrounds provide a developmentally rich play environment. This study compared elementary school playgrounds and nature explore classrooms to determine what natural play spaces can be implemented into an elementary school playground for developmental benefits. The playgrounds were evaluated on safety, ADA requirements and what developmental affordances are encouraged through different play components. A Nature Playground Play Spaces List and handouts were developed, and a playground design exploration was conducted as an example for how the play spaces list can be used and to show what benefits can be …

Assessing The Impacts Of Laep Extension At Usu: Development Of A Model Framework, Jason G. Parkinson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Over several decades, USU’s Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning (LAEP) Department and Extension specialists have engaged Utah’s rural communities through several design-based outreach activities. These activities are intended to benefit both community partners interested in learning how design can positively impact the community in tangible ways, and students, who are given the opportunity to engage with real-world projects. This study documents, evaluates, and assesses outcomes of community engagement projects undertaken by LAEP Extension to better understand the program’s impact over time and come up with approaches that will enhance the impact of future community engagement projects.

This research develops a …

Classification Of Urban Forms And Their Relationship With Vegetation Cover In Cache County, Utah, Stephen J. Peaden

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

As residential urban development increases in the western United States, few studies have shown how different urban forms influence vegetation cover. The two studies in this thesis examine how to define and measure urban form in order to understand the relationship between urban form characteristics and vegetation cover.

In the first study, urban form was defined by using past methods of identifying and measuring urban sprawl. Past studies showed the most essential metrics that define residential urban form are building density, centrality, connectivity, land use mix, and parcel size. This study reviews these metrics and proposes revised unified definitions and …

Green Streets To Serve Urban Sustainability: Benefits And Typology, Joowon Im

Landscape Architecture Faculty Publications - Archive

Urbanization and climate change have impacted the ecosystems of US cities. Impervious surfaces in the urbanized areas are a critical issue for both challenges and green infrastructure and can be an alternative solution to achieve urban sustainability. Green infrastructure protects urban ecosystems by reducing imperviousness by treating stormwater runoff and providing other multifaceted benefits. However, even with the great potential, its adoption is still discouraged due to limited understanding and guidance especially for the cities with a growth-driven policy. This paper proposes that green infrastructure, particularly green streets in relation to impervious surfaces, can deliver urban sustainability by providing a …

Proposal For A Visual Resource Stewardship Specialist Certificate Program, Robin E. Hoffman, Richard Smardon

Visual Resource Stewardship Conference

The Visual Resource Stewardship (VRS) Conference gathers visual resource stewardship professionals from around the world. Their expertise includes methods, theories and policies that inform the practice of visual impact assessment (VIA). Therefore, the 2019 VRS Conference provides an ideal forum to gather input for the development of a Visual Res

Victories In Scenic Conservation And The Road Ahead, Mark Falzone

Visual Resource Stewardship Conference

This presentation will give an overview of legislative victories and efforts in scenic conservation. Topics covered will include the Reviving America's Scenic Byways Act of 2019 and the upcoming surface transportation reauthorization. What ideas do you think should become law, regulation, or policy? This session will be interactive and solicit your feedback. Scenic America is the only national nonprofit dedicated solely to preserving and enhancing the visual character of the country.

The Community Preferences Method For Landscape Quality Assessment, Andrew Lothian

Visual Resource Stewardship Conference

For centuries, philosophers of aesthetics believed that beauty lay in the object, a physical entity. It was not until the 18th century, that British and German philosophers realized that beauty lay in the eyes of the beholder, in our mind rather than in the object. Contemporary theories of landscape aesthetics derive from an evolutionary perspective, what humans prefer is survival enhancing. The rapidity of aesthetic judgments, and the similarity of judgments across different individuals, reinforces its innate basis. Yet early attempts to measure scenic quality relied on measuring the characteristics of the landscape in the belief that somehow its scenic …

Managing The National Landscape: Opportunities And Challenges, Martin Pasqualetti

Visual Resource Stewardship Conference

This plenary presentation summarized the principal landscape challenges and opportunities that accompany the human need for energy. Drawing from 50 years’ examining what I call “energy landscapes,” this presentation focused on land use conflicts resulting during the development of four types of renewable energy (solar, wind, geothermal, hydro), fossil fuels (mainly coal), and nuclear power (particularly siting of waste repositories and the decommissioning of generating stations). Many of the challenges derive from inherent resource characteristics, some from differences to cultural mores and histories, varying public perceptions of risk and fairness, demographic patterns, as well as jurisdictional and political differences. Many …

Visual Resource Stewardship – An International Perspective, Andrew Lothian

Visual Resource Stewardship Conference

An international perspective to visual resource stewardship is presented in this paper. It examines the history of Great Britain’s love affair with its landscapes, then summarizes the more recent development of the European Landscape Convention, which has been embraced across much of Europe. The recognition of outstanding landscapes under the World Heritage Convention is then covered and the international Protected Areas program, which includes landscapes, is briefly summarized. Programs in several countries are reviewed. As the United States is very adequately covered in this and the 2017 conference, this paper mainly addresses other countries.

Welcome, Robert Sullivan, Richard Smardon, Robin E. Hoffman

Visual Resource Stewardship Conference

The 2019 Visual Resource Stewardship Conference: Seeking 20/20 Vision for Landscape Futures was held in October 27-30, 2019 at the Argonne National Laboratory. Four technical training workshops were offered on the first day of the conference, which was the first time for that format. Seventy-five technical papers and visual case studies were presented over 2-1/2 days with single audience format in the mornings and concurrent sessions in the afternoons.

The 2019 conference end session began with an overview that included three objectives for the session, a summary of the literature about the need for formal education in visualization, and the …

Visual Resource Stewardship Conference 2019, Conference Proceedings

Visual Resource Stewardship Conference

Contains 15 papers 17 visual case studies and seven abstracts from the Visual Resource Stewardship Conference: Seeking 20/20 Vision for Landscape futures held at Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, Illinois on October 27-30, 2019. The material covers topical themes related to federal and state agency programs and policies, theories and concepts, visual quality assessment, visual impact and mitigation, as well as visual resource management tools and technology.

Living Landscapes: Combining Education And Ecology For A More Resilient New York Harbor, Murray Fisher, Brad Howe

Year on Climate Change: Events

This session will highlight a unique partnership between a landscape architecture firm, an environmental group, and a public high school that are working together in New York Harbor to increase the area’s resiliency as the climate changes, and to engage and train the next generation of environmental and Harbor stewards.

Digitally-Mediated Practices Of Geospatial Archaeological Data: Transformation, Integration, & Interpretation, Heather Richards-Rissetto, Kristin Landau

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

Digitally-mediated practices of archaeological data require reflexive thinking about where archaeology stands as a discipline in regard to the ‘digital,’ and where we want to go. To move toward this goal, we advocate a historical approach that emphasizes contextual source-side criticism and data intimacy—scrutinizing maps and 3D data as we do artifacts by analyzing position, form, material and context of analog and digital sources. Applying this approach, we reflect on what we have learned from processes of digitally-mediated data. We ask: What can we learn as we convert analog data to digital data? And, how does digital data transformation impact …

Centerville City Parks Master Plan, Paul Stead

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This Plan B Thesis is a comprehensive update to Centerville City’s Parks Master Plan. The document seeks to provide stability and continuity to Centerville’s open space infrastructure. Since the last update in 1993, the Parks Master Plan has been without regular updates to reflect the community’s needs and values. As a result, the Plan has largely been ignored and Centerville has lacked a unified vision regarding parks planning. The objective of this thesis project is to help promote a unique recreational identity that assists the community in positively differentiating itself from other communities on the Wasatch Front.

The Inventory and …

How Virtual Reality Impacts The Landscape Architecture Design Process At Various Scales, Drew M. Hill

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In the field of landscape architecture, the use of virtual reality (VR) is increasing as a tool for visualization and presentation in the late stages of the design process. Many of the benefits that make VR valuable in the later stages of the design process suggest that VR may also be valuable when used in earlier stages such as analysis and concept development. However, existing research does not provide a detailed study of design within VR during those early stages. Recent advancements in technology allow the potential to bring significant changes in the way that design-related professionals collaborate and design. …

Journeyman International: Peace Academy Of The Sciences And The Arts, Alyssa L. Mathias

Construction Management

For years, K-12 education has been taught through separate, individual subjects such as Math, English, Art, and Science. Primary education has remained stagnant while our society is constantly evolving with technological advances and innovation. The Peace Academy of the Sciences and Arts in San Luis Obispo, California are a group of visionaries and educators challenging traditional learning styles. They are striving to offer an education that focuses on holistic learning and integrating all subjects into big ideas to create competent, compassionate leaders for the future. My senior project is a collaboration between Journeyman International, the Peace Academy, a student in …

Film For Landscape Architecture : Learning From Alfonso Cuarón's Roma, Ramon Solis

Masters Theses

Introduction:

How can film inform landscape architectural thinking? In narrative film, we are spectators of unfolding space. In landscapes, our bodies enable us to author its unfolding.

In many ways, film is a well-suited and under-theorized territory for landscape. Its intersections are not without precedent, and in the following pages, I hope to describe the experiments, failures and potential scenarios I have uncovered for future practitioners of landscape architecture. A secondary intention of this thesis is as an articulation of my own practice, walking toward disciplinary edges, but always looking back to landscape architecture.

Site:

Roma (2018), directed by Alfonso …

Edge Of Emergence : Landscape As A Journey Of Memory, Jiayue Wang

Masters Theses

These principles formulate the strategies and finally create the six themes in the design. The whole journey in landscape is a linear system, but the stimulation in each theme is a networked system. During the whole journey, people’s emotions will be triggered when they encounter a new theme. Between each theme, they have space and time to process their emotions and adjust their experiential state. In the end, when people finish the whole journey, they will not only have their past memories brought back but also will have built new memories for future events. In this way the past, present, …

Landscape As Framework : Downtown Revival Through Rebuilding Spatial Identity, Dawei Tang

Masters Theses

In developing revitalization strategies for depopulating, shrinking districts, the economic and psychological disciplines remain the key focus. In contrast, landscape architecture has long been underestimated as a guiding framework in city revitalization. This thesis book presents how landscape architecture could function as a framework to revive a city through spatial comfort and spatial identity. Using downtown Fall River as an example, this book speculates how landscape transforms a city physically and mentally. By rebuilding Fall River’s spatial comfort and spatial identity, landscape architecture could drive social engagement, revitalize local economy, recall lost history, and ultimately, allow the city to revive …

Game / Landscape / Us, Dongqi Zhang

Masters Theses

Assumption: Today’s game companies often try to hire landscape architects to do virtual environment design. With the prompt expansion of technology, gaming has already become a unique and huge industry worth billions of dollars. More and more people have become immersed in video and computer games. If we acknowledge this is true, what are the reasons?

Rationale: People lose focus on the physical landscape when they participate in it. In contrast, “A game, of course, is a constructed world with a narrative already baked in.” (King, 2015) Some people love virtual games because the real world lacks what they long …

When We Are Old : A Mutualism System For The Canal Network And Its Aging Community, Jiali Li

Masters Theses

Population aging is a severe problem. The whole world is aging and especially in China. As of the 2010 census, the number of people in China over 60 has reached 178 million, which is 23.6% of world’s aging population. It means 1/4 of the aging population live in China. This thesis will focus on the third-tier cities which have more urgent aging issues and more vulnerable commercial and political statuses, which leads us to Yangzhou, a typical third-tier city in Jiangsu Province. In the context of aging society, the government of Yangzhou keeps moving the elderly from the livable canal …

The Social Life Of Working Waterfronts : Strategies For Renewing The Social Value Of Productive Harbors, Evan Davenport

Masters Theses

The Social Life of Working Waterfronts is an independent thesis project that envisions the expanded role of an urban waterfront as a landscape for both industry and everyday life. The project calls for new synergies between public and private stakeholders to challenge the cultural perception of industrial landscapes and renew social and ecological value of productive harbors. By integrating industrial processes with civic life, working waterfronts can begin to operate mutually for industrial and societal needs. This proposal aims to establish spatial and systemic commons between a declining city and its thriving commercial fishing port by engaging and celebrating the …

Salt Pans Matter : A System Of Ecology And Culture Cohabitation For Cabo De Gata, Andalusia, Spain, Chenglin Zhu

Masters Theses

This thesis book seeks new meanings for the concept of “cohabitation”, it is important to understand “cohabitation” as the link to connect cultural inheritance and natural restoration. We need to find a way to coexist with nature and create something beyond - the new relationship for “economy, nature, and culture.”

The salt pans in Cabo de gata of Andalucia, Spain is not just a potential habitat for the migrating birds, especially for flamingos, but also for the cultural heritage of the traditional craft of salt production. Unfortunately, it is the only salt pan still under operation in the region today. …

Landscape Succession : Oil Field Transformed Through Landscape Process, Yuanbin Wang

Masters Theses

The Inglewood Oil Field is located in Los Angeles, California. It is a fully functioning and one of the largest urban oil field in the United States. Facing the increasingly tense relationship between neighboring communities and the expansion of oil fields, the site has attracted a lot of public attention over the years.How to integrate the landscape process as part of the evolution of the industry is critical to this project. This project examines landscape architecture as a remediating agent within a fully functioning oil field. It proposes a process to heal the site through a simultaneous evolution. By using …

Regenerative Assemblage : Future Vision For The Canals Of Pingdingshan, Meng Wang

Masters Theses

Most northern Chinese cities have inadequate drainage infrastructures, especially those tertiary cities that were built after World War II. These cities have small to middle size urban area but with high density. They are served by drainage infrastructures which are in the form of canals. These canals were built at the same time as cities with goals of protecting themselves from flooding and transporting stormwater in summer. With the growth and development in the past 80 years, the urban area has become much denser. Many cities have been installing underground pipelines to collect and transport stormwater. Thus the water level …

Hab Mitigation : Wetland Restoration In Farmlands, Jae Won Wang

Masters Theses

How could landscape strategically contribute to the collection and filtration of the nutrients that get transported in the river and introduce a new wetland system in the farmlands that utilize existing underdrainage systems and introduce a new paradigm of agricultural practice that could be applied in the future and eventually mitigate the Harmful Algae Bloom issue?

Regeneration Of Memory And Home : Rebuilding Urban Resilience And People's Mental Perceptions After The Camp Fire In Paradise, Ca, Xinye Xie

Masters Theses

We are losing, we are forgetting, we are moving forward, we are adapting to the dynamic world. Just like the growth and regeneration circle of the forest, cultures, and cities are all regenerating themselves based on what they have, what they have lost, and what has been erased. Memories of the past are essential parts of our modern society; they reflect our current situation and are also a metaphor of the future.

As designers, when facing a landscape which has been partially ruined or erased, how can we help people to reconnect themselves with what has been erased, rebuild their …