Ecological Approach to Urban Design: Meanings and Pathways [Predavanje po pozivu]

Abstract

It has been widely assumed that responding to contemporary environmental challenges requires a shift towards an ecological approach to how we plan and design cities and that ecological urban design can bring positive changes to urban life and the environment. But in practice, “ecological design” is often interpreted in a simplistic way (e.g., as “green” technical solutions) and does not use the full potential of the urban design – ecology nexus. The lecture provides an overview of different meanings of ecology and the ways they relate to urbanism in theory and practice. We explore how different understandings of “ecology” and “ecological” influence the purpose, scope, scale, and process of urban design. The aim is to reveal and discuss contemporary pathways to linking ecology and urban design and to outline the implications of the findings for architecture and urban design education. We argue that a broader understanding of ecology is needed if we are to respond to environmental challenges in a creative and place-specific way through urban design. In the broad sense, ecology is about relations and relationships in different realms, at different scales and times. An ecological approach to urban design is, therefore, not only about knowing when and how to implement “ecological measures” as instant solutions, but also how to creatively restore broken links and develop strategies for the new, life-supporting ecologies to occur. By encouraging ecological thinking, academic education should help students develop ecological literacy and worldview.