Urban
Design for
Sustainability
2010
The Urban
Design Centre
of Western
Australia
(UDC) and
the Curtin
University
Sustainability
Policy Institute
(CUSP) are
offering an
intensive
one-week unit
in Urban Design
for Sustainability.
This course
will provide
students and
professionals
in planning, development, architecture, landscape architecture and
other interested
parties with
an opportunity
to develop
an understanding
of the core
concepts involved
in urban design.
It will also
allow enrolled
students to
apply urban
design concepts
in a practical
fieldwork
project to
accompany
the formal
week-long
lecture and
discussion
sessions.
Speakers will
include Munira
Mackay and
Malcolm Mackay
as urban design
practitioners;
Jan Scheurer, Peter
Newman and Annie Matan from
CUSP; policy makers from the Department of Planning
and the City of Perth;
practitioners
in water-sensitive
design and
landscaping,
as well as
representatives
from local
Councils and
Redevelopment
Authorities
in metropolitan
Perth. Three
field trips
to innovative
projects in
urban design
and place
making will
provide case studies
of the principles
discussed
in the classroom
sessions.
Why
Urban Design
for Sustainability?
Design has
become recognised
as an important influence on
how cities function and what quality of life they offer.
But what are the success factors that make some places work and why do others function poorly? This short course
will explore
the concept of responsive
places, urban environments that
are enriched
through maximising
choice. Based
on a seminal
urban design
text, Responsive
Environments:
A Manual for
Designers, the
urban design
qualities
that provide
for choice
at many levels are explained in detail:
| * |
Where
people
can go
- the
quality
of permeability; |
| * |
The
range
of uses
available
to people
- the
quality
of variety; |
| * |
How
easily
people
can understand
a place
- the
quality
of legibility; |
| * |
The
flexibility
of a place
for a
variety
of purposes
- the
quality
of robustness; |
| * |
The
appearance
and enjoyment
of places
- the
qualities
of visual
appropriateness
and richness; |
| * |
How
comfortable
and familiar
is the
place
- the
quality
of personalisation. |
We want to make places better, but what is meant by better? and better for whom?
The production of the built environment is undertaken in parallel with political and social institutions. The social environment shapes design responses, and in turn, design responses affect choices and shape the social environment. This short course will take a particular focus on opportunities and threats to the public realm and how quality public spaces can help develop real communities.
Why is urban design important to sustainability?
Traditional urban design contributes to robust urban places that can reduce car dependence and provide for 'complete' neighbourhoods where people can live, work and play. Western Australia was one of the first jurisdictions in the world to base its urban development code, Liveable Neighbourhoods, on the principles of traditional urban design, or New Urbanism. In this short course we will critically review the elements of this approach, learn about its implementation in practice and visit examples of innovative urban development projects in Perth. |
|
Who should attend?
The unit will be of particular interest to:
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Officers in Local and State Government departments dealing with various aspects of Perth's urban and regional planning, sustainability policy and transport development; |
| * |
Employees of planning and transport consulting firms; |
| * |
Developers and real estate professionals; |
| * |
Members of community
groups
campaigning
for better
urban
environments; |
| * |
Interstate and overseas planners and transport professionals interested in Perth's unique history of urban design and urban renewal. |
When and where will it run?
The unit will
be held from
Tuesday to Friday,
6th - 9th
April 2010 from
9.30am to 5.30pm
at the UDC (click
here for directions).
Participants
are requested
to arrive early
on the first
day to allow
for administrative
matters.
How much does it cost?
There are two enrolment options:
(1) The first is to enrol in the unit on an 'audit' basis which does not require that you complete the assessment items. This option costs $1,100 (including GST). Day enrolments are also available for $275 (including GST) per day.
(2) The second
is to enrol
to have the
unit accredited
on a "Not
for Degree"
basis. This
means that if
you choose to
study at Curtin University
at a later time,
then the unit
can be accredited
to your academic
record. This
option costs
$2,200 (including
GST) for post-graduate
students. The
fee covers your
full attendance
over the week,
including field
trips, a study
guide, a course
reader and a
practical field
work project
manual. Attendance
of two special
sessions before
and after the
intensive week
is also included.
Assessment
For those
enrolling to
have the unit
accredited to
an academic
record there
will be three
pieces of assessment,
mostly due towards
the end of semester.
One will be
a group exercise
based on fieldwork,
plus an essay
on policy and
design proposals.
A poster presentation
of work in progress
will be held
at the end of
the intensive
week, and another
one in mid-May.
The basis of
the assessment
will be a comparative
urban design
exercise based
on two activity
centres with
different characteristics
in Perth, requiring
some fieldwork
to consider
the qualities
that contribute
to responsive
places.
Recognition
The unit is formally recognised by the Planning Institute of Australia (WA Division) for the purpose of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for PIA members. CPD points are credited at the rate of 1 point per net hour of CPD activity.
Course Outline
click here to download the details of the course schedule |
