Digital Tools for Environmental Analysis | Porto

When it comes to designing sustainable urban spaces, understanding the local climate and environmental factors is crucial. This analysis on environmental conditions for Porto focuses on climate, thermal comfort, solar radiation, wind analysis, and urban heat mitigation. Here are the key takeaways from this comprehensive research. Climate Analysis: Understanding Porto’s Unique Conditions Porto’s climate is … Read more

‘COMPound’ – Revolutionizing Access to Credit

‘The project envisions the use of novel data collection strategies for the purpose of increasing access to formal credit for MSMEs in the F&B Space. Across the globe, cities face a pivotal challenge: unlocking the potential of their micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to drive both urban transformation and national economic growth. These enterprises, … Read more

First Steps into Fabrication

In the first phase of the discipline of Collaborative Design Studio, our group reimagined the rooftop playground of the primary school of Colegi Mare De Deu dels Angels in Barcelona, focusing on enhancing the children’s well-being. Through site visits, movement mapping, and participatory workshops with students, parents, and teachers, we identified key needs such as … Read more

ILLA DE RAVAL

This project focuses on establishing a community-centered public space in Santa Coloma. Situated at Block Illa de Raval, a designated “green finger” of the Pinta Verde initiative, the project seeks to improve accessibility, enhance social engagement, and address infrastructural needs based on local context and community input. HUMAN Research and analysis The research highlighted several … Read more

Ecological Intelligence 1. Trimester 2024/25

In our seminar with Michael Salka and Mariano Gomez Luque, we explored the meaning of ecology and the multifaceted challenges of sustainability, materiality and humanity’s relationship with the planet. Over eight weeks, we delved into two distinct but deeply connected approaches to build with ecological thinking and addressing climate change as well as envisioning a … Read more

Redefining the Urban

MICRO-ESSAY BY REUBEN DIAMOND “ A new conceptual lexicon must be created for identifying the wide variety of urbanisation processes that are currently reshaping the urban world” (“Planetary Urbanization,” Brenner, N., & Schmid, C., p. 13) BOUNDARIES DISSOLVED As planetary urbanization reconfigures social, economic, and spatial relations, the traditional frameworks of urban studies encounter profound … Read more

Innovative Urban Planning in Singapore: The Urban Playground Project

In the rapidly urbanizing landscape of Singapore, the demand for innovative urban planning solutions is paramount to accommodating the growing population while preserving the city-state’s unique cultural and environmental heritage. This project proposes an exploration of a playful design methodology to devise novel urban block typologies tailored to Singapore’s specific needs and constraints. This research … Read more

THE PLANETARY GUIDEBOOK: (IN)COMPLETE URBANIZATION NARRATIVE

“ Critical theory is thus not intended to serve as a formula for any particular course of social change; it is not a strategic map for social change; and it is not a ‘how to’-style guidebook for social movements.”Neil Brenner (2009) What is critical urban theory? THE STATEMENT …settlement – rural/urban – city – megalopolis … Read more

Human-Technology Entanglements, Urban Evolution, and Capitalist Forces

Entangled Life by Tomáš Orbán

“We have lost fear of getting lost in the urban environment. New entanglements with artificial systems mean our experience of the urban is changing.” – Mariano Gomez-Luque I’m learning that the ways in which humans engage with artificial systems and urban environments are far more intricate than I had imagined. These entanglements redefine how we … Read more

Transhistorical Urbanization

Key words: Neoliberalism/ Critical Urban Theory/ Spatiotemporality/ Planetary Urbanization The accelerated development of communication and technological systems, and more precisely of intelligent technologies, has significantly changed the ways in which human and non-human coevolution is shaping. Implications for theoretical frameworks include broadening definitions of consciousness beyond the human, reshaping cognitive boundaries in an assemblage between … Read more

Urban Complexity: Rethinking Space & Knowledge

01 Reading as Urban InsightIn a rapidly urbanizing world, the ability to read critically across diverse mediums—both digital and print—serves as an indispensable tool for interpreting the complexities of urban theory. Techniques like HYPERREADING, which facilitates navigation through vast digital information, and CLOSE READING, which emphasizes deep textual analysis, are crucial for decoding the nuanced … Read more

Designed Realities

“The artificial refers not to the fake, but to what is deliberately created, designed with purpose, and capable of reshaping both human and planetary futures.” Benjamin Bratton In recent years, the notion of artificiality has evolved from being seen as an imitation of the natural, to an integral part of planetary and urban systems. Benjamin … Read more

Community Haven

This project focuses on establishing a community-centered public space in Santa Coloma. Situated at Block Illa de Raval, a designated “green finger” of the Pinta Verde initiative, the project seeks to improve accessibility, enhance social engagement, and address infrastructural needs based on local context and community input. At the project start, several assumptions guided the … Read more

FLOWS 4 SANTA COLOMA

Abstract Flows 4 Santa Coloma is a project in the city of Santa Coloma, taking into consideration the Pla Pinta Verde proposed by the municipality of Santa Coloma. The project aims are aligned with the aims of the Pla Pinta Verde of connecting the existing green spaces to bridge the gap created because of the … Read more

The Gòtic Quarter: A Sustainable Economic Model or Not?

Located in the heart of Barcelona, where the history of the city began, the Gòtic Quarter is an iconic neighborhood, we sought to understand its complex dynamics and whether its economic model could truly be called sustainable. From Roman foundations to bustling contemporary streets, the Gòtic Quarter embodies a story of transformation. But behind its … Read more

CARABASSES

The aim of this workshop was to propose an interview in one of the many farms in Parc Agrari complex. It is understood by local municipality and consortium of the park that the whole Parc Agrari has been suffering pressure from the real state market, in order to give the land up for the construction … Read more