Design of Urban Spaces II: Urban Ecology

Urban ecology is the scientific study of the relationship of living organisms to each other and to the environment within the urban context. The first basic concept in understanding the course is that of Sustainability – Sustainable development defined as the development that meets the needs of the present, without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. (Brundtland Reort, World Commission on Environment and development, 1987). Sustainability today is a dynamic process based on four pillars, economy, society, environment and culture.

Theory The lectures focus on the concepts of environmental design and sustainability both in terms of passive systems and new technologies. They also explore the concept of urban ecology and environmental performance issues, both in buildings and in neighborhoods. The examination of the theoretical course is done by the preparation of theoretical research essay and a short oral examination. Project The project undertaken concerns the examination of a topic that needs to be analysed, both in a design-synthetic way, as well as in terms of its environmental strategy. Students are asked to design a small urban space that falls within the rules and principles of sustainable design and urban ecology

The course aims for students to have proven knowledge and understanding of topics in the field of Urban Ecology while supported by advanced textbooks, including views arising from current developments. It also aims at the analysis and synthesis of data and biographical synthesis of scientific work with sources from international literature. The work is grouped to cultivate collaboration and division of labor. The project exercise is also carried out in groups where students focus on issues of natural environment and sustainability and study the contemporary technology and practice applied to environmental issues of urban space.

– Be able to use the knowledge and understanding they have acquired in a way that demonstrates a professional approach to their work or profession and have skills that are typically demonstrated by developing and supporting arguments and problem solving within their field of knowledge. To have the ability to gather and interpret relevant data and formulate opinions involving reflection on related social, scientific or ethical issues.

– Be able to communicate information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialized and non-specialized audiences.

– Finally, to have developed those skills of acquiring knowledge, which they need to continue in further studies with a high degree of autonomy.

– Anink, D., Boonstra Ch. and John Mak, 1996, Handbook of Sustainable Building, An Environmental Preference Method for Selection of Materials for Use in Construction and Refurbishment, James & James, UK.

– Bougdah, Hocine and Stephen Sharples ,2010, Environment, Technology and Sustainability, TOA2, Taylor and Francis.

– Burton, Hugh (ed by), 2000, Sustainable Communities, The Potential for Eco-Neighbourhoods, Earthscan Ltd., UK.

– Carmona, M., Tiesdell, S., Heath, T. and Oc, Taner, 2010, Public Place, Urban Spaces, The dimensions of urban design, Routledge, London and New York.

– Forman, Richard T.T., 2014, Urban Ecology, Cambridge University Press, UK. – Guzowski, Mary, 2010, Towards Zero Energy Architecture, New Solar Design, Lawrence King, London.

– Lynch, Kevin, 1960, The image of the city, The MIT Press, USA.

– Plummer, Henry, 2009, The Architecture of Natural Light, Thames & Hudson, UK.

– Randall, Thomas, (ed by), 2003, Sustainable Urban Design, An environmental Approach, Spon Press, London and New York.

– Reid, David. Sustainable Development: An Introductory Guide. London: Earthscan, 1995. [www.earthscan.co.uk]

– Adler, Frederick R., and Colby J. Tanner 2013. Urban ecosystems: Ecological principles for the built environment. New York: Cambridge Univ. Press.

– lberti, Marina. 2008. Advances in urban ecology: Integrating humans and ecological processes in urban ecosystems. New York: Springer. Benton-Short, – Lisa, and John R. Short. 2008. Cities and nature. New York: Routledge.

– Elmqvist, Thomas, Michail Fragkias, Julie Goodness, et al., eds. 2013. Urbanization, biodiversity and ecosystem services: Challenges and opportunities. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer. Forman,

– Richard T. T. 2014. Urban ecology: Science of cities. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Univ. Press.

– Gaston, Kevin J., ed. 2010. Urban ecology. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Univ. Press.