focus four

sustainable talk at Phenryn Road on 21st March 2007

Sustainable Homes and Cities was a discussion of how we can move fordward with sustainable movements, lifestyles and technologies, and why we need to. The panel consisted of: Nic Marks- The head of the centre for Well being, Rodger Wood- a chartered civil engineer Working for Arup, Ros M Taylor- tutor of earth Sciences and Geograhy, Munir Morad and Bernadette Valley- an Environmental campaigner.
Here's what they had to say:


Bernadette Valley:
Waste is our moral imperative
up until two years ago small bananas would be chucked, however now they ae huge profits being sold as 'kids' food!
The average amount of paper in Africa is not enough to allow everyone to learn to read. this shaming as with every print out at Kingston university you get an wasteful sheet teling you about what you printed- the system is disgusting!
statistically in Kingston alone there are £6 billion of unworn clothes in our draws and we produce 20,000 disposable cups each month Perhaps water fountains by law shoud not be placed nexto disposable cups- recycling bottles could be forced on everyone- i doubt it would lessen quality of life- would just make your drink bigger!

Cigerretes account for 50% of all litter, it takes the tidy Britain group to make up for the inconsiderance of others who just think its one little ciggerette! We need to be concious of our own actions as everthing counts and behaviour is infectious.

One thing Bernadette said that made me think was about not buying into slavery, paying a good price for something rather than going to Primark- and to do your research before you buy it, as looking trendy will gain you no respect if you got there by not repecting others and expepting them to have a bad quality of life so you can wear ridiculously cheap clothes.

'Never underestimate the power of a few people to change the world, indeed it is the only thing that ever has' Margrarette Mead.

She suggested watching Al Goré's 'Inconceivable truth'

Nick Marks
Nick informed us that happiness levels were the same in the 1970's as they are now, so technological progression does not make our lives any better. He also stated that happiness levels of those at home during the war were not low- they were penniless and had to use every last scap of food but pulled togeasther more as a community.
we need a range of things top be happy there's extrinsic things which is our need to be valued by society, and intrinsic values which includes doing what your best at, being love and having friends. Humans also need a level of autonomy- making our own mistakes. Our fundamental needs do not need to be changing materialistic goals. Infact Nick stated that the richer people are the less happy they are generally.

He predicts and fears that the costs of climate change will fall on the poor as the rich will look after themselves. The Eu and America could become fortresses. People in general are more scared of loosing money than appreciative of gaining it, it is difficult for people to part with what they have for the sake of others, and it is quite a challenge for people to give up parts of their life style to influence the lives of others, not neccessarily in their life time or in their region.

Nick's ideas for progression were 'pay to pollute' so organic and recycled should
be cheaper- however would that sacrifice its current 'trendy' reputation amongst the wealthy? Costa Rica Latin America is a sustainable area and people there have a full rich life minimising impact.

As far as happiness levels are concerned I know the expensive things in modern life don't usually help i.e. computers- I think most people would much rather be finger painting to clicking!

an interresting website to check out, for those who don't like mice is:
http://www.dontclick.it/

Munir Morad
We have enough wasted Energy in London to power 7 power plants! And 50% of our water supply goes to cool down coal, gas, nuclear power stations!
He beleives in tidal potential 'the Tsunami reminds us of how strong the sea can be'
Apparantly a tidal energy system accross the Seven would give the uk 80% of its energy. The technology's out there and people are increaingly experimenting and altrnatives are slowly becoming viable possibilities.
and the potential of geothermal heat pumps. However in the UK one would have to dig 20 m to collect the sustainable energy unlike Austrailia where it is possible to just dig 5m.
Described how sustainability relies on the three aspects working togeather-ecological/environmental, social wellbeing, and economically sustainable
By 2010 10% of energy in all new buildings should be renewable and this will have doubled by 2020
He mentioned concern for the Stem report and Russias example of an economy melt down. Giving Britain a predicted 40 years before economic downfall as the current economy is not increasing quality of life it is simply being ecologically negative and creating technical highrise
The Uk is one of the largest wind resources in the region
Neighbourhood community led solutions work well and a good Urban design project should encorporate visual quality, legibility in wayfinding, lively public space, encouraging sustainable lifestyles.
The Urban Population is to reach 1.12 billion by 2050, thats a shift of 600 million people from raural to urban.


Me and Sarah Bridger became next years SLIC reperesentatives i.e. 'Student Landscape Interface Commity', we had a meeting in Manchester, it also gave me a chance to show people around the regenerated areas of the city.

Manchester Art Gallery
CUBE the first time I have viseted thei funky little gallery and not the last. The work on show was an architectural competition, with some student submissions.

Green Modernism

Runs: 13.04.2007 to 26.05.2007
Green Modernism will provide an in-depth exploration into the future of sustainable living. As part of the renowned Look ’07 photography festival, CUBE presents an exhibition by British artist David Spero entitled Settlements in GALLERY 1. Visually documenting some of the most innovative and extreme examples of sustainable living in the UK, Spero presents us with an exciting collection of photographs tracing self-built dwellings of communities who have chosen to live off the land in a sustainable way.

GALLERY 2 will feature a sensory installation and using sound bytes taken from interviews with environmentalists, academics and members of the public CUBE hopes to foreground current debates on the future of sustainable living.

GALLERY 3 will host the interactive part of the exhibition and CUBE invites members of the public to contribute their thoughts on the debates raised via a feedback wall and an online “blogspot”. This section of the exhibition will also include case studies of local and international pioneering sustainable developments.

We are now at a time when it is important to suggest ecologically friendly ways of living as the effects of climate change are felt with increasing force. CUBE intends to confront this powerful issue by showcasing alternative and greener modes of existence.'
From:
http://www.cube.org.uk/exhibitions/detail.asp?id=133
I really want to see that exhibition!


URBIS- I went to see an amazing exhibition about Hongkong 'Arrivals and Departures: New Art Perspectives of Hong Kong', various artists had dipicted the cross cultural city and there was a huge range of stories to be found. currently there is an exhibition called 'PLAY: EXPERIENCE THE ADVENTURE OF OUR CITIES' which i will be going to!

Manchester City art gallery had a stunning and thoughtprovoking exhibition by artist Sophie MacCorquodale 'Waiting for the Day' on Rhyl.




I also went to Barcelona- brilliant city!

Design Museum

The Design museum, Shad Thames in London makes for an indulgent and inspiring visit. The architecture and streetscape leading to the museum is intimate and niché. Garden balconies/bridges occassionally roof the row of niché shops, cafés, resturants galleries. Well angled narrow vein streets create interresting and luring lighting drawing ones attention to the sky. The extreeme wealth of the appartment dwellers is starkly contrasted near by on the thames with the container house boats. A resident let us in to have a look and we met someone who 'ran out of fuel four years ago and has been there ever since!'

Of al the quotes running up the staircase in the Design museum, this one I agree with the most!



Fletcher: fifty years of graphic work (and play) ran from 11 November 2006 – 18 February 2007, check out http://www.designmuseum.org/exhibitions/previous-exhibitions/alanfletcher for more details, heres some of my favorite images from th exhibition (which I absoluty loved!)

Focus on Life Drawing

I have been going to life drawing and heres some of the results:

London, a place where currently 7172691 people live, a home to 12.5 % of the UK's population and with a vast economic, political, cultural and architectural history of power, its future could be sustained if we act effectively now or disastorously distroyed if we neglect the pressing presence and pressure to act now of global warming.

At current cities contribute 75% of the worlds c02 emmissions and use 75% of the planets resources whilst only occupying 2% of the planets surface area. Almost half the worlds population lives in our cities and NLA is addressing the need for a change in associated lifestyle and politics for those of us living in Cities.


Sustainable london is the new exhibition at the NLA. It follows on nicely from the NLA's Nov- Jan Londons Moving exhibition in which I learnd of the proposed £147m and 900km network of cycle paths proposed to run through London by 2010, by Ken Livingston. This should increase cycling in the city by 200% by 2020, making London much more fun and pleasant.Jan Gehl Spoke in the London's Moving exhibition of how London could follow in the footseps of Coppenhagen in Denmark for its successful and sustainable bike dominated travel network.

Charles Secrett

Began by talking of the Mayors climate Change action plan, and how climate change is at the forefront of all of the mayors plans. There is a need to reduce the average carbon footprints of Londoners and to change our lifestyle. Lots of energy is simply wasted. On a large scale 70% of the ouput energy for power stations is wasted, and each household on average looses £300 per year due to unsustainable choices for example turning computers off when not being used, and on a personal scale, we each use 155 litres of water a day- because we can it doesn't cost us individually any less to be vigilent. People waste the earths resources because its easy, 'safe', 'cheap' and legal, and political will can enforce changes.

Currently we are living on a planet and using resources beyond its limits but we have the technology and resources to turn this around and it will be cheaper to act strongly now than to repair the damage once the worlds cities have been destroyed by floods.

There are two possibilities for london- to move the city and allow the sea to prevail, which seems the only option if sea levels continue to rise, or to increase the flood barriers to the Thames. Areas in Essex are already being returned to the sea and salt marshes are being reintroduced. However the Chinas and Americas need to curb their emmissions for possible increased flood defences to be sufficient.

Charles Secrett emphasised that if the Co2 reduction targets laid out in the London Climate Change Action Plan are to be met community groups must lead the way. A copy of the plan can be dowloaded free at the mayor website:
http://www.london.gov.uk/mayor/environment/climate-change/ccap/index.jsp

Scientists have doubled our aim to cut carbon emmissions and it will take cooperation from all sectors to meet the mighty aims- they ARE viable. By 2025 we need a 60% reduction in c02 emmissions and by 2050 this needs to reach a 90%.

The government intends to offer grants for cut price loft and wall insulation for every home accross london which will be cost effective to the owners in one year, this will be totally free to those on benefits. There will also be a one stop green homes service to cater for those money rich, time poor londoners- of which there are many- who have the money and integrety to pay for a green home but want someone else to sort it out for them.

with the sustainable technologies and products in demand there will be new jobs created thus getting families and children out of poverty as london has a very high long term unemployment level. Therefore social, economic and environmental potential goes hand in hand.

places

Folkeston has so much character, its old is preserved and along with its new commercial business, and that rustic, seagoing character has managed to remain its identity. The coast line still hosts challenges of getting in to the spaces, this avenur of old boat huts arches is no longer used but offers many visual delights with its wicked orange and green colouts, the wooden pattern of the mould can still be seen on the cast concrete slabs inside. Parts of the coast are undergoing gentle egeneration with a brilliant adventure play area, the old beach huts are still in working order and give a sence oif ownership of the beaches to the local community. However when I was there it was very empty, and that ws in the height of summer. Its pebbled beaches and rusty old themepark are not an obviouse attractive holiday destination. This is in contrast to (St Ives below)
Dungeoness (top right hand corner)is the most barren landscape, if in Kent it is definatly worth a visit! There might not be a lot to do there, or a lot of people but please please please visit dungeoness for its peculiarity. A nuclear powerplant gives the desoloute landscape an eerie atmosphere, the locals fish rather than swim despite the intense heat- I wonder if they eat the fish? there are some interresting sculptures and junk gardens and mostly it feels like si fi waste land!

St Ives
The seaside resort in Cornwall everyone wants to go to (i want to live there!)

St Ives is extremely popular due to its glorious beaches, the lack of cars(you can only park in car parks because of the quaint narrow streets) and its arty character.
We visited Barbra Hepworths studio which is now a gallery- it is perfect.
Folkestone alike many towns is trying to become an arts and culture including a music culture, led town- thus appealling to the modern market of interrest. There are many new studio's being rented cheaply in the centre, and alike St Ives the coast and historical character of the place is perfect to encapture and inspire artists.

Sweden Malmo

, Belgium Oostende, Sailing Scotland, summer job on Turk launches

focus

Spilling


I joined a community group to test a new method of protecting the banks of the river Thames from harsh tides that cause erosion. We worked on a part of the Thames
As a team of around 30 volunteers and split into three flexible groups; one chopped willow and other specimens of twigs and branches from the surrounding vegetation, one group organised the wood into weaveable bundles and spills (large branches to be steaked into the ground)And the other group hammered the spills into the ground around trees and along the banks, once this as done we wove the bundles around the spills:





Hopefully the tide will come in and out filtering through the new lattice willow fence leaving the sediment on the banks where it is.
I am sure that this process will need to be repeated to maintain its effect regularly, It is a site I will revisit in a few months


pleasure of cars lecture
city scape- talks on renovating architecture and play and cities
stands

Hilliars Arebetory fav plants and trees
old burseldon edges

museums
The Whitechapel is a wonderful art gallery, it is intimate, inviting and unimposing. And being located so close to Bricklane with its bustling market and Spitalfields close it makes the perfect addition to a great day out in the central.
I saw the Hans Bellman exhibition there
maps at British libary
Hong Kong at Urbis
life drawing

Public Space Seminars at the nla

From Janruary to March 2007 the 'nla' hosted a series of talks on public spaces. I went to four of them:

People Make Places: How to grow the public life of cities by Melissa Mean, Head of the Self Build Cities Programme

www.demos.co.uk

Public spaces where all classes and ages want to be, where Individuals and groups can feel safe and interact with eachother. Everyday political shared spaces are formed by people not the space. Places such as shopping malls, ASDA and allotments were discussed and each individual tells different stories of them them . A good public space should adhere to public need for resources, social values and individual values whilst giving the opportunity for adventure, risk taking, socialising, belonging and learning.

Highlighted was the fact that public activities have been taken out of the public Space with hundreds of rules and regulations. 'No' 'No' 'No' signs are everywhere forbidding anybody from interracting with their landscape. Also a ‘Pay to Play Basis’ operates in most places especially at night which removes the public from public space.

Martha Schwartz Partners, Currrent works in the Public realm

Martha Schwartz landscape architects is a leading high profile practice made of two offices one in London and another in New York. It was refreshing to see creativite and innovative designs that are vast in scale and in budget.

I particuarly enjoyed the section on Exchange Square in Manchester as this is a space I have spent many summer days. It is very close to Urbis, the Triangle, the new part of the arndale, great pubs, a ferris wheel and attracts everybody, it is free for all, provides entertainment with a grande plasma screen. Martha Schwarts informed me of an old under ground stream that is now marked with teh grinite waterfeature. This public space had many teething problems but overall it is a definate and well needed success.

Professor Jan Gehl talked about 'Public Spaces for a Changing Public Life'

People want to be in the city to be there not to shop or to do, to experience the city. Jan Gehl beleives that London could one day follow the examples set by Coppenhagen in becoming a cycling city. I have visited Coppenhagen and loved the bike friendly atmosphere. Malmo had the same pleasant more bikes than cars theme. In Coppenhagen there are free for all bikes:

There are more bikes than cars and the city squares are bustling with life. there are bicycle wheel grills running up stairs, Quality of life comes with exersize and interraction

Sarah Gaventa the Director of CABE Space talked of Designs on our streets.

She highlighted that flat prices usually reflect street quality which is a catch 22 situation. Also that the public are seen as vandals and idiots but this is because of the lack of funding to provide worthy spaces fot the public to use.People see bad, un- functional, ugly design and do not feel valued or respected so it isn't cared for. If the space provided was useful and worthy of appreciation it would not be vandalised as often and this conflict would occure less!

www.cabespace.org