Tracking Cross-Border Monetary Flows to measure Geopolitical Insecurity
Creating a streamlined pipeline to visualize and extrapolate financial data enabling a correlation with spatial geo-specific information. The World and all countries alike have been increasingly more susceptible to events and developments in the geo-political theatre. It is not surprising that the world’s top two economic and military superpowers play a pivotal role in this … Read more
Ideals Along Lines of Conflict
The killing of Nahel Merzouk was not an accident. The 17-year-old French Algerian boy was killed where the potential for conflict is high, in Nanterre. A young Muslim in a yellow Mercedes along the western Champs-Élysées unfortunately made Nahel a prime candidate for police violence resulting in death. His death brought about a week of … Read more
Confronting Forms of Erasure
History is not always written in neat paragraphs and grand monuments. Sometimes, the most important stories are the ones left untold. The ones silenced, forgotten, or deliberately erased. In 1994, over a period of 100 days, the Rwandan genocide took place. Hutu extremists; fueled by ethnic hatred and political manipulation, sought to eradicate the Tutsi … Read more
Darien: Closing the data Gap
Imagine a massive highway stretching from Alaska all the way down to the tip of Argentina. That’s almost possible through the Pan-American Highway, except for one crucial interruption: the Darien Gap. The Darien Gap is a sprawling, dense jungle separating Panama and Colombia, an obstacle that breaks the otherwise continuous highway. But the Gap isn’t … Read more
‘Gotta Catch ’em All’
Co-design & Experience Platform for Public Art as part of Data, Art and the City (5-day workshop led by Leyla Saadi) Adapted from Pokemon-Go, we propose the development of a place-based app that pops the City of Toronto’s public art scene, drives interest and support for local public art and artists, and co-designs future public … Read more
Protected: Housing For All – Building Inequalities?
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
Coltura
Introduction Milan, Northern Italy’s epicenter, confronts economic and environmental challenges rooted in a shift from agriculture to manufacturing. To secure its future, Milan invests in knowledge, tourism, and place-based innovation, relying on revenue from high-income foreigners, students, and the European Union. Strategic efforts to transition to a green economy focus on renewable energy, waste reduction, … Read more
Defining Biocities
In the ever-evolving landscape of urban planning, the concept of “Biocities” has emerged as a beacon of hope for a sustainable future. As we delve into the intricacies of creating urban spaces that harmonize with nature, it becomes imperative to establish a shared language— a lexicon that defines the essence of Biocities. This blog post … Read more
Towards a multi-performative soil
Introduction The contemporary postcard city of Barcelona is supported by a world wide web of hidden urbanization. One of the closest and most prominent hidden pieces of urbanization of Barcelona is found in the Besós Valley. When going on site, we encountered a fragmented urban landscape of logistical infrastructure, urban wasteland, scattered agriculture and haphazard … Read more
GreenScape – Milan
Introduction Known for its fashion, history, and culture, Milan also faces a pressing environmental issue: it stands as one of the most polluted cities in the World. The challenge of mitigating air pollution in Milan is complex, as it is shaped by a mix of geographical, meteorological, socio-economic, and cultural factors. From the city’s dense … Read more
Ideas para la Paz
o Corredor Biológico de San José. PROYECTO Se desea expandir el programa del Museo de los Niños a su entorno más inmediato, sus predios y margen del Río Torres, con vistas en la regeneración del borde boscoso existente. A partir de proyectos de reciclaje y agricultura en un modelo de aula abierta vinculado no solo … Read more
Arbitration of the Arbitrary
Critical urbanists are empowered by theory, constrained by history, and valued by their ability and will to negotiate opportunities. The powers of theory are defined by Brenner and Roy as that of critical imagination and rejection of definition; contexualized as historically urban and increasingly planetary by Harvey, Brenner, and Schmid; and actualized by Kaika and … Read more
Navigating GeoPandas and the Digital Wilderness
“Start the machine” …was the first operation in mind when asked to perform a task with Python script. One of the motivations to learn Python as an urban designer is to organize geospatial data with accuracy and legibility. Before we dive into the digital wilderness, of data trees and data frames, it’s important to note … Read more
From Guest to Spatial Data Analyst
Introduction Airbnb is a well know marketplace that connects people who want to rent out their property with people who are looking for accommodations, typically for short stays (Investopedia, 2023). As a powerful tool to connect people to hospitality supply around the world, and provide them quality spaces to stay, it heavily relies on the … Read more
