Landscape+Urbanism

Category: resources

  • Brief Thoughts on Binary Thinking

    The on-going debate on LU/NU is interesting less for any content (of which there has been little beyond posturing and uninformed rhetoric), and more than its continuation of a history of binary discussions between oppositional actors that has occurred in many arenas, including a long history within urbanism and design.  Lest we think there is…

  • Reading, Thinking, Observing: A New Direction for L+U

    Forgive my self-indulgent post, but my lack of blogging is not an indication of lack of thinking (and walking) – as my attention has shifted from following the various blogs (i used to follow many, and now have reduced this to around a dozen) and their myriad paths of discussion towards a more rigorous engagement…

  • The Urbanism Wars: AD v. CW

    Turns out you have to read and write a bit in doctoral studies – which sometimes cuts down on the time for blogging… who knew?  But glean and collect I still do, and lots of good reading since the last dispatch on the ongoing dispute/feud/discussion/turf-war on who controls urbanism – aka the LU/NU debates (which…

  • SHIFT:journal

    SHIFT:infrastructure release + SHIFT:process call for submissions The inaugural issue of SHIFT: suggests that the integration of natural systems into the built environment provides for a more sustainable model of landscape architecture in infrastructure design. However, the skillful employment of ecological principles does not necessarily ensure a culturally sensitive design. In the 21st century, Landscape Architecture faces the challenge…

  • Reading the Landscape

    LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE AND URBAN DESIGN ON‐LINE READING GROUP SEEKINGMEMBERS. LETTERS OF INTEREST DEADLINE FEBRUARY 1ST. READING THE LANDSCAPE is an on‐line reading group dedicated to fostering engaging dialogue about the shaping of our built environment. The inaugural group will begin reading The Landscape Urbanism Reader edit by Charles Waldheim the week of February 21st. The group will include…

  • Architect’s Brother

    Stunning work by artists Robert and Shana ParkeHarrison worth checking out (link via the always great Landezine).   Not a whole lot of descriptions around to place these – so just soak them in – more at the artists website.  Happy New Year! :: images via Landezine

  • The Digital Canopy (Expanded)

    It’s intriguing that Google Earth 6 has started populating the virtual ‘planet’ with 3-Dimensional trees, which together with buildings and terrain offer the opportunity for some reasonable representation of exterior sites.  Right now, only a few cities have been added in selected cities and natural areas: “I think we can all agree that our planet…

  • Aquifers not Aquitards

    From the recent post on watershed boundaries, a reader mentioned the concept of underground aquifers and their relation to geographical boundaries and .  My title is in jest (sort of) referring to ‘Aquitards’ which according to Wikipedia is “a zone within the earth that restricts the flow of groundwater from one aquifer to another“, but…

  • Natural Boundary / Political Boundary

    I’m really glad that Strange Maps featured the interesting (albeit never realized) notion of John Wesley Powell‘s watershed-based approach to defining political boundaries in his 1890 ‘Map of the Arid Region of the United States’.  The concept reframes the Jeffersonian national grid, using drainage districts as “the essential units of government, either as states or…

  • Environmental Urbanism Panel Discussion

    As an addenda to the previous post, on Chris Reed’s lecture, a round-about summary of the panel discussion that followed. Panel Discussion – Environmental Urbanism:  Ecological Design for Healthy Cities The panel was moderated by Peter Steinbrueck, with Reed joined by additional panelists including Randy Hester (who lectured the previous evening on Design for Ecological Democracy) and…