There are 3 projects and 3 positions listed on this page
VIKRAM BHATT
RESEARCH AREA: Urban Planning: Urban Design
TITLE: Making the Edible Campus
PROJECT NUMBER: ARCH003
DESCRIPTION: Edible Campus Project is a true University Community Partnership bringing together local NGO partners with University researchers. The project uses University's Lower campus to demonstrate how productive growing can be creatively woven in the urban fabric of the city. The garden, designed by staff and students in the School of Architecture, was installed by and being maintained by volunteers who are coordinated by our NGO partner Santropl Roulant; they also use the harvest from the garden for their meals on wheels program. In season, more than 30% of the daily produce needed for the kitchen that serves between 80 to 100 clients daily is produced from the garden.
Since its installation in 2007, the garden has grown every year and there are further plans to expand and consolidate the garden in the coming years including incorporation of more permanent planters and a greenhouse.
Cities, where more than half the humanity now lives, are pivotal in reducing the global warming, which need both design solutions and concerted social action. According to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (2006), up to half of Canada’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (350 million tonnes) are under the control or influence of municipal governments, hence in the context of urban environmental degradation and increasing food insecurity, both in quality and quantity, greening of the cities can play an important role. Greening of cities cannot be left solely in hands of local authorities, their resources are stretched beyond limit and any added responsibility will raise their operating and recurring expenses, requiring higher taxes, which are not welcome by ordinary citizens. To overcome this impasse, for last five years, our team has been seeking innovative ways, social, institutional and technological, to valorize the greening of the city by fostering participatory cultivating "Edible Landscapes" in cities. The Edible Campus is the prime example of this action research project.
TASKS:
You will work closely with the staff of Santropol Roulant in setting up of the garden, prepare educational and communication documents, design display panels to inform visitors and guide them through the garden, keep record of the activities and output of the garden and prepare the seasonal report of the garden's annual progress. In addition, working under the guidance of the Project Coordinator you will prepare design proposals for the expansion and consolidation of the Edible Campus. It may also include the actual construction of a greenhouse on the Burnside Hall Plaza.
DELIVER:
Production of communication panels and design proposals for the consolidation and expansion of the Edible Campus to make it a model of urban agriculture for Montreal and beyond.
AVI FRIEDMAN
Tel.: 514-398-4923
RESEARCH AREA: Architecture: Housing
TITLE: Sustainable Dwellings
PROJECT NUMBER: ARCH002
DESCRIPTION: Current modes of dwelling design are facing challenges of both philosophy and form. Common approaches that have prevailed in past decades no longer sustain new demands and require innovative thinking.
The need for a new outlook is propelled by fundamental changes that touch environmental, economic and societal aspects. The depletion of non-renewable natural resources, elevated levels of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change are a few of the environmental challenges that force designers to reconsider conceptual approaches in favour of ones that promote a better relationship between dwellings and nature. Design for passive solar gain, solar-powered homes, minimizing the dwelling’s physical footprint, Net-Zero residences and preserving the site’s natural assets are some of the contemporary strategies that architects and builders are integrating into their thought process and practice.
The need to think innovatively about the residential environment led to the idea to write this book. The intention is to offer information on contemporary design concepts and illustrate them with outstanding designs.
TASKS:
Conduct background research based on notes and bibliography provided by Dr. Friedman on the projects listed below. Write a summary of principles in each subject.
Net-Zero Dwellings; Solar-Powered Dwellings; Innovative HVAC; Healthy Indoor Environments; Passive Solar Designs; Edible Landscaping; Green Roofs; Built with Nature; Xeriscaped Outdoors; Homes Built With Recycled Materials; Water-Efficient Dwellings
DELIVER:
Short papers with annotated bibliography and illustrations explaining the principal ideas behind the listed homes.
RESEARCH AREA: Urban Planning: Urban Design
TITLE: Research on Small and Mid-Sized Towns
PROJECT NUMBER: ARCH001
DESCRIPTION: Small and mid-sized suburban towns house two-thirds of the world’s population and are currently the fastest growing municipality group in the U.S. for example. The post- World War II evolution of cities and small towns has represented a significant deviation away from old planning traditions, with a concurrent decline in community sustainability. As societal trends threaten the future functioning of urban neighbour¬hoods, the need to realign small towns with sustainable patterns has awakened a renewed interest of town planners, urban designers and architects.
Current modes of planning small towns are facing challenges of both philosophy and form. Common approaches that have prevailed in past decades no longer sustain new demands and require innovative thinking. Rather than dismissing small towns as unat¬tractive suburban sprawl, the book will offer ideas and methods on how small isolated and edge towns can be designed and retooled into sustainable, affordable and adaptable communities.
The need for a new outlook is propelled by fundamental changes that touch on envi¬ronmental, demographic, economic and societal aspects. The depletion of non-renew¬able natural resources, elevated levels of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change are a few of the environmental challenges that force designers to reconsider conceptual approaches in favour of ones that promote a better relationship between the built environment and nature.
TASKS:
Identify in literature or on websites case studies that demonstrate forward thinking ideas in planning and retooling small towns for sustainability in the areas of Urban Renewal, Transportation, Economic Development, etc.
DELIVER:
Summaries of case studies and contact information, as well as graphic material on projects that demonstrate urban design and renewal of small towns.