Come together
Design of a collaborative model for stakeholders based on research on LÜvgärdet’s square invisible context and participatory approach
Master thesis project plan
Aleksandra Pucolowska ARK641 Master thesis preparation course part 2 - Urban challenges thesis direction
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context stakeholders power relations visable invisable sustainability social inclusion owners society associations million home programme middle-man spatial agent medaitor urban context research design politics v a c u u m ego architects discourse meaningfull analytical holistic invastigation change management logic problemsolving methodology workshops interviews case study theory collaboration model timeline communication context stakeholders power relations visable invisable sustainability social inclusion owners society associations million home programme middle-man spatial agent m e d a i t o r urban context research design politics vacuum ego architects discourse meaningfull analytical holistic invastigation change management logic problem-solving methodology workshops interviews case study theory collaboration model timeline communication context stakeholders power relations visable invisable sustainability social inclusion owners society associations million home programme middle-man spatial agent mediator urban context research design politics vacuum ego architects discourse meaningfull analytical holistic invastigation change management logic problem-solving methodology workshops interviews case study theory collaboration model timeline communication context stakeholders power relations visable invisable sustainability social inclusion owners society associations million home programme middle-man spatial agent m e d a i t o r urban context research design politics vacuum ego architects discourse meaningfull analytical holistic invastigation change managements logic problem-solving methodology workshops interviews case study theory collaboration model timeline communication context stakeholders power relations visable invisable sustainability social inclusion owners society associations million home programme middle-man spatial agent m e d a i t o r urban context research design politics vacuum ego architects discourse meaningfull analytical holistic invastigation change managements logic problem-solving methodology workshops interviews case study theory collaboration model timeline communication context stakeholders power relations visable invisable
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Contents
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Project plan 5 abstract 6 thesis question 7 written manifesto 8 graphical manifesto 9 thesis background 10 personal background for the thesis topic 11 purpose & subject 12 delimitation diagram 13 context 14 stakeholders 15 methodology 17 timeline diagram 22 exhibition layout idea 23 background 25 bibliography
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Abstract
What knowledge does an architect should have before he starts to design? Is it enough what we see? How the invisible context influence this what is visible? Through this master thesis, I want to investigate a hidden cause of the current situation of Lövgärdet’s square, listed as one of particularly exposed area (Sw. Särskilt utsatt område) according to Police report. Through the participatory process with stakeholders, I will define the current state of the area and design a collaborative model for stakeholders, which will be a starting point for a sustainable change in the region, a base which will create an anchor for cooperation in the area.
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Thesis question
How an architect can work with stakeholders in order to establish cooperation leading to joint work on improving the situation of the area?
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Written manifesto
‘’Planner do not work on a neutral stage, an ideally liberal setting in which all affected interests have choice; they work within political institutions, on political issues, on problems whose most basic technical components (say, a population projection) may be celebrated by some, contested by others. Any account of planning must face these political realities”. Forester, J. (1989). Planning in the face of power. United States: University of California Press
It is time to rethink who we are as architects. We tend to look at the visible context and design only in the visual plane. Time to open our eyes for what is invisible. It’s time to limit our selfish motives and look at our work as a mission. We don’t design in a vacuum. We cannot pretend that our world is an idyllic context, which is just and free from power relations. We are not only to demonstrate our design capabilities but to meet the needs of society, to improve the quality of lives. We need to stand as a mediator in an urban context, be conscious about invisible just as well as we are aware of what is visible. We need to know where we work, why we work and for whom. We need to create an understanding of both context layers and the power relations before we start to design.
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Graphical manifesto
POWER RELATIONS
COLLABORATION
SPATIAL POLICY DECISION PROCESS COMMUNICATION REGULATIONS & LAWS
METHODOLOGY CHANGE MANAGEMENT
SOCIAL PROCESSES
FINANCING
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Thesis background The topic of the master thesis originates in the summer internship in First to Know AB company, which every year creates a project name The Summer Space. The project team included 4 international master students, 8 Angeredsgymnasiet students and 3 workers of the company. Through 2 months process, the team analyse the context and on the basis of this propose areas of intervention and their direction. The square Inviting and functional public spaces
The acivity house Collaborative meeting places
Surtesjön and the shores Vättlefjäll / Connection to nature
One Lövgärdet Society / Community awareness and engagement
Master students are both team leaders and managers of the whole process. They were also mentors for high-schools students at their first job. The whole process was a combination of teambuilding activities, participation activities and activities building knowledge. This year The Summer Space project was located in Lovgardet. Students choose to focus on the following 4 aspects: - the square - the activity house - the natural area - building area’s identity. My team took care of the last topic creating a deep understanding of local problems with identity and suggesting a strategy to unify the
Although the projects were different, each group came to similar conclusions. Each group after developing the analysis and project proposals concluded that the reason for the failure of earlier projects and the current state of these areas is the lack of cooperation between companies owning properties in the region.
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Personal background for the thesis topic
Who I am as an architect? The architect is designing... It is just about this what is physical? How this what we design and build affects people who use the space? After all, the project does not end at the construction site, it is just beginning at this moment. What is next then? Do we know where we are working while just looking and materially analysing the site? What with all of these which is not material? All these questions came up on my path towards this thesis. I realised that I don’t want to be just and architect who make nice buildings. I want to understand. I want to be aware of what do I work with, where do I work and how should I work. I believe this is the key to making the built environment, which we create through material design, useful and lasting long after the construction. Considering the topic for my master thesis I came back to my experience of the summer internship. I realised that the answer to all the problems was collaboration. All groups, working separately came to the same conclusion - that nothing is going to change for good if there will be still lack of communication between companies. I saw that it’s responsibility for the architect to take care of context which affects the design.
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Purpose & subject Purpose: creating a cooperation platform for stakeholders creation of cooperation means testing participatory methods in the work of an architect the positioning of an architect in the design context establishing own’s position of mediator in an urban context
Subject: invisable context of Lövgärdet’s square an architect’s proffesion
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Delimitation diagram
public space physical context buildings
ARCHITECTURE
housing square
job opportunities
urban context
diversity
SOCIETY
inclusion just
middle-man spatial agent artist
ARCHITECTS
designer project manager
social
SUSTAINABILITY
mediator
economic environmental
theory
sustainable theories
associations structures with other companies
CHANGE COLLABORATION
values within companies communication between the companies
within companies local
POWER RELATIONS
municipal national
MASTER THESIS 12
Context
Angered
Göteborg
Lövgärdet
Lövgärdet’s square Although the square lies on side of one housing company, it lies in the interest of the whole area. The square was listed as a „particularly exposed area’’ on Police lists continuously through a few years. Two housing companies in this area made efforts to change this situation. Unfortunately, their non-collaborative strategies didn’t bring expected outcomes. Both companies, Poseidon Bostads AB and Victoria Park, are in a process of establishing companies’ strategies for this area. However, they do it separately even if the interest is common - to improve the area’s situation. This seems a perfect moment for the to realise that they can achive more by collaboration and joint efforts. 13
The square is also a core public place for Lövgärdet. Comparing to similar places in Angered district, such as squares in Hammarkulen or Hjallbo, this place has very few facilities and meeting places, is unpleasant and unsafe in local society’s opinion (conclusion derived from interviews with 2% of area population). Furthermore, there were projects aiming to improve the square, but none of them came to happen.
Stakeholders
Leading company
Housing companies
Authorities
Associations and others
First to know Scandinavia Local level: Poseidon Bostads AB Framtiden AB Victoria Park
Rosa huset Lövgärdeskolan Kryddan
Lyftet
Municipal level: Göteborg stad Police
Bussiness Region Gothenburg Social Inclusion group
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Methodology Methodology key aspects: participation communication collaboration
Tools: Literature studies - theory of change management and urban context Interviews Mind maps - visual tools to get complexity of context Cognitive mapping - define the problem complexity Stakeholder maps - representation of complexity of power relations in the area Mental model diagrams - understanding driving forces of individual stakeholders Thematic networks Timeline diagram - a method of organising the whole thesis process
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Timeline diagram draft In the process of creating thesis topic it was important also to start project management process at its early stage. The following timeline diagram explains thesis phasese, activities, level of involvement of each stakholder and both analysis and design part of the project in relaton to the time.
LEGEND: design inquiry design analysis partipation The master thesis project consist of 5 phases: 1. Preparation (plan) 2. Design of methods 3. Understanding invisavle context 4. Methods implementation - collaboration inquiry - main phase 5. Conclusions & delivery
In each of the project phases activities are devided into three groups : design, analysis and participation. Methods in activities part are positioned in time as well in relation to stakehoders involvement
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It also postition the master thesis in time in relaton to The Summer Space project and Social Inclusion project.
THE SUMMER SPACE PROJECT
DESIGN PHASES: ACTIVITIES PLAN
PREPARATION/ SOCIAL INCLUSION PROJ.
designing work methodology
SOCIAL INCLUSION PROJECT
What should be done in the area to improve life of local society?
What the project will be about?
What MT is about?
working on the project
How to manage my MT?
final project
project plan
intervies mind-maps
MASTER THESIS
brain-storming surveys workshop 4 groups - 4 projects - the square - activity house - natural areas - area’s identity
STAKEHOLDERS: FIRST TO KNOW AB FRAMTIDEN AB GOTEBORG POSEIDON BOSTADS AB VICTORIA PARK POLICE SOCIAL INCLUSION GROUP BUSSINES REGION GBG
ANALYSIS DESIGN TIMELINE
WEEK SUBJECT
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THE SUMMER SPACE PROJECT
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46 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 THE SUMMER SPACE PROJECT
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DESIGNING METHODS
UNDERSTANDING INVISABLE CONTEXT
How to manage the work with the stakeholders?
What are the power relations in the region? Listing &scheduling interviews
read ‘’Spatial agency (...)’’
What data I want to get?
read ‘’Planning in the face of power’’
designing questions for the interviews
interview Helen from Framtiden AB How she manage her work? (as business developers social sustainability / integration specialist)
meeting with First to Know AB review the questions
Understand my role in the process
Interviews: Framtiden AB (Ulf) Framtiden AB (Shikran) Poseidon Bostads AB (Helene) Poseidon Bostads AB (Daniel) Victoria Park (Juliano) Goteborg Stad ...
meeting with the stakeholders their expectations read about change management read about team building/collaboration
interviews transcripts concluding data
design a tool for thee process management
visualising power relations who?: - makes decisions - decide on finansing
read ‘’Universal methods of design’’
on different levels: area/district/municipality
meeting with the stakeholders - how to work together
meeting First to Know AB visualising power relations
design a methodology toolbox for the thesis process
stakeholders meeting reflection: - on process - on methods - on outcome - output for next phase
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MASTER THESIS PROJECT
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METHODS IMPLEMENTATION - COLLABORATION INQUIRY - MAIN PHASE How the stakeholders should work together? How the collaboration look like now? within the companies analysing with designed methodology involve the stakeholders between the stakeholders analysing with designed methodology involve the stakeholders collaboration models read the theory How it work in other million home programme areas? conclusions How to manage a change? theory GUIDELINES/ MODEL OF COLLABORATION by designed methods involve the stakeholders GUIDELINES/ MODEL OF COLLABORATION How to implement it? theory brainstorm IMPLEMENTATION GUIDELINES
break
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CONCLUSIONS & DELIVERY What is the outcome? reflection on my working methods meeting with the stakeholders: reflections by design methods conclusions
guidelines for architects as mediators in the urban context final model of collaboration How to pass my outcomes to the stakeholders? finalise work
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EXHIBITION, REVIEW & PRESENTATIONS
Exhibition layout idea
PHASE 0 BACKGROUND
PHASE 1
DESIGNING METHODS
PHASE 2
UNDERSTANDING INVISABLE CONTEXT
PHASE 3
MAIN PHASE
PHASE 4
CONCLUSIONS
TIMELINE
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Background Design and Planning for Social Inclusion (group work) Collaboration & stakeholders Social Inclusion & participation Design thinking & mind maping Group management Methodology Mediator Games in participation Data collecting tools
Individal contibution: Managing group work, tasks distribution, technical calculation, designing participatory tools, leasing participatory workshop, leading mindmaping process
Summer internship - First to Know Scandinavia AB - Team and project coordinator (group work) Social Inclusion Stakeholders &Participation Design thinking Surveying & context mapping Individual contribution: Group & process management, team building, mentoring & working with youth, creating methodology, mapping and visualising context, workshop management 23
Managing design projects (group work) Invisable context Analysis Interviews Case study
Individual contribution: Questions for interviews, conducting interviews, mapping context, report editing
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Bibliography
Andersson P. (2018). Making Room for Complexity in Group Collaborations: The Roles of Scaffolding and Facilitation. Gรถteborg: University of Gothenburg. Department of Sociology and Work Science Awan N., Scheider T. , Till J. (2011). Spatial Agency: Other ways of doing architecture. USA, Canada: Routledge Forester, J. (1989). Planning in the face of power. United States: University of California Press Till J. (2009). Architecture depends. London/Cambridge: The MIT Press
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