IFLA Newsletter

International Federation of Landscape Architects Fédération Internationale des Architectes Paysagistes

NO. 105 JUNE 2013

NEWSLETTER

IFLA

THE INTERWOVEN CITY

N A T U R E C U L T U R E L A N D S C A P E mail ifla@iflaonline.org web site www.iflaonline.org cultural landscape committee www.iflaclc.org

CONTENTS FROM THE PRESIDENT

Desiree Martínez

2

Puri at The Center of it’s Universe

Archana Gupta Anshuman Gupta

3

Mexico City, The Un-interwoven City Mónica Pallares-Trujillo

6

Rediscovery . Cultural Landscape

Klara Salzmann

10

World Landscape Art Exposition

Alan Titchener

13

Celebrating Our Uniqueness

Jaime Cruz

14

The Museum of Chinese Gardens

Prof. Xiaoming Liu

17

World Rural Landscapes

19

Dato Ismail bin Ngah

Hangzhou Declaration

20

Vice-President Americas Region

Interview Gonçalo Ribeiro Telles

Desiree Martinez

24

Book Review, Geodesign

Jeff Thurston

26

IFLA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE President

Desiree Martinez IFLA_President @iflaonline.org

Secretary General Ilya MOCHALOV mochalov@alaros.ru Vice-President European Region

Nigel THORNE

n.j.t@btinternet.com Vice-President Asia/Pacific Region dibn57@gmail.com

Carlos JANKILEVICH carlos@tropicaintl.com

Editor IFLA News Shirah CAHILL shirahcahill@yahoo.com

Potential contributors please contact shirahcahill@yahoo.com Deadline for articles (500-1000 words plus illustrations) last day of the preceding month

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 FROM THE PRESIDENT

May was quite a month! First there was the successful opening of the Jinzhou Landscape Art Exhibition, where IFLA, supported by our dear colleagues from CHSLA helped to choose 20 landscape architects from all around the world to participate in designing a garden. It was the climax of a lot of work from all participants on the project: the Jinzhou authorities, our colleagues from CHSLA, the participating landscape architects, the construction firm, many landscape architects, landscape constructors and of course our dear friends from IFLA, Alan Titchener, Ismail Ngah and Xiaoming Liu. Alan has submitted a longer article on our point of view regarding this important project.

Right after this remarkable event, I was invited to attend the UNESCO Congress in Hangzhou, “Culture, Key to Sustainable Development”. Martha Fajardo, former IFLA President, was also invited to intervene on a panel presentation. She talked about the positive social outcomes of the “public space politics” in Medellin Colombia, and made reference to the importance of the landscape approach taken in the Latin American Landscape Initiative, which is a bottom up strategy to get landscape politics onto the world agenda, following the example of the European Landscape Initiative.

The major outcome of the Congress was the “Hangzhou Declaration” which has been circulated

through all our media and states that culture is an indispensable part of sustainable development and therefore, in my perception, landscape is the territorial dimension of culture.

The Hangzhou Declaration will definitely reinforce the specific weight of culture in UN politics and thus in all countries. A tremendous achievement for UNESCO! Congratulations to Mme. Irina Bukova, Director General and to our dear friend Francesco Bandarin, Assistant Director General for Culture.

In a couple of weeks I will have the honor to attend an homage to Prof. Gonçalo Ribero de Telles in Lisbon. I am very excited to have the opportunity to congratulate him personally on the Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award on behalf of all of his IFLA colleagues.

Additionally, we have continued working on the Strategic Plan which I will report on shortly through the President´s Bulletin.

June is almost finished and many of us will have the opportunity soon to take a break, myself included! I wish you all a wonderful beginning to the 2nd half of the year!

With a big hug, Desiree Martinez

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 june 2013 PURI – At The Center of It’s Universe Archana Gupta Anshuman Gupta

Some of the greatest historical cities of India are also its greatest religious centers – these “tirthas” are often a combination of a number of elements - both sacred and profane. They are a combination of random occurrences and events and definitive geographic and natural features. The city of Puri, in Orissa, India is one such place. It is on the face of it one finds a combination of the classic Kalinga style Lord Jagannath Temple on the mound called Nilagiri, the mighty ocean Mahodadhi and the grand festival of the Rath Yatra, all of which are bound and encompassed by the omniscient presence of Vishnu. These are all intertwined together in an intricate pattern of thought and ideology which manifests itself in the physical morphology of the town of Puri.

The myth of the creation of Puri interweaves fact & legend, juxtaposing the mainstream Sanskritized Puranic tradition with the marginalized Tribal The Jagannath Temple viewed folklore.

The politics of change and hierarchical from the Temple social structure of itsRoad time manifests itself into the current town of Puri which still holds at its notional center “The Jagannath Temple”.

The Jagannath Temple viewed from the Temple Road

A good historical city opens one up to the possibility of many lives – of others and oneself. It has interwoven within its own fabric the many narratives of history, myth, culture. When these layers of tradition come together and begin to express themselves through the mosaic of myths and symbols apparent in their very nature then cult centers are established which create a sacred geography.

Historical cities are usually the outcome of many forces – both circumstantial and evidential; a combination of chance events and implacable ground conditions, which render the site fertile for the proceeding play of history.

The story of the legend of the creation of the myth of Jagannath is replete with symbols of nature and fertility and the cyclic aspect of nature. After Krishna died at the hands of the hunter Jara, 36 years after the Mahabharata war, he was cremated, and his heart which survived the blaze was cast into the sea. This transformed into an image, which was found by a tribe in Orissa & this image was called the Nilamadhava. King Indradyumna wanted this image to be enshrined in a canonical temple and not a tribal cave, and through a story replete with treachery and cunning he tried to appropriate it. The image disappeared and the King was repentant, so in a dream the Nilamadhava advised the king to take a walk along the seashore where he found a log with the mark of Vishnu.

Refer “The Pilgrimage, Rituals and Worship – A Study on Puri as Tirtha Kshetra” by Sunil Kumar Patnaik, Orisa Review, July 2008

For a detailed version of the story one can refer to “Hands of Jagannath” by Devdutt Pattanaik, Mid Day 06/09/09

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013

The Formal Public Space At the Dhola Mandap Sahi & The open space between the Sea & The Fisher-people Colony

This log was converted into the desired image of Krishna, and his siblings Balbhadra & Subhadra, albeit in incomplete form but redolent in imagery of the local tribes. Every 12 years these images are re-carved and replaced in an elaborate ceremony which also involves all sections of society from the king to the tribes which not only keeps the balance of the formal and informal in nature and society but also reinforces the cycles of life and death.

But it was during the 12th century that Puri assumed the morphological form it retains today and became one of the most prominent temple towns under the rule of the Imperial Gangas. This is when the existing Purusottama – Jagannath temple was built in the predominant Kalinga style of the period and the region and eventually by the 16th century the importance of Puri as a major pilgrimage center transformed it to epic status as the center of the Vaishnava cult in the whole of Eastern India.

The elaborate system of ritual worship can be seen mirrored in the elaborate ordering of the social hierarchies of the town around the main shrine.

The temple is ringed by a series of small shrines, subsequently ringed by 2 sets of boundary walls.

The whole complex sits on a mound Nilagiri which is 20 feet high and one is unsure if it is a wholly natural land formation or a man made structure built on the debris of the past. Around the complex is an elaborate network of neighborhoods, called SAHIS, which were said to be structured around hierarchical considerations of who served in what rank at the temple. Like the temple complex,

which mirrors theFormal city asPublic a complete self sufficient Space At Dhola the Dhola The The Formal Public Space At the entity, each sahi also had within its area a series of Mandap Mandap SahiSahi & & The The openopen Temples, Tanks, Maths, and Akhadas apart from space between the Sea & The Fisherspace between the & together The Fisherthe residential quarters.

TheSea Sahis form people Colony people Colony a complete part of the complex whole of the Town of Puri, each with its own identity and history.

Even today the various Sahis and their sub parts define the town in conjunction with the center. The organic mass of the surrounding Sahis are woven together and symbolically divided by the presence of 3 major roads, the Bada Danda, the temple road & the Swargdvara Road. The Bada Danda is the main processional road which links the main temple with the Gundicha temple, which is said to be representative of the maternal home of Krishna & his siblings and has befittingly been designed in a manner to recall the gardens of Vrindavan where Krishna spent his childhood. The famous Rath Yatra happens along this path way. Though the Rath Yatra finds mention in the Puranas, the existing roads and infrastructure are much later additions.

But the massive road widths, the viewing balconies on either side and the complete lack of any landscaping features or trees along the stretch completely define the role of this road and the activity which happens along it for 9 days of the year.

The Swargdwara is as important a road as the Bada Danda because unlike the annually recurring procession of the Jagannath Yatra this road symbolizes the final journey of man after death which culminates into the burning and the dispersal into the ocean. At the end of this road, the cremation

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 june 2013

The Formal & Informal Streets of Puri

ghats and the ocean create a sense of finality. The – even through the urban design of the formal Theright Formal & Informal Streets of Puri of the Sahis and their Streets in contrast The Formal Informal Puri structures Temple Road sits& in front ofStreets the mainof eastern gate to the temple complex, from which perhaps to the amorphous nature of the fishermen village it derives its name and beginning with commercial along the edge of the settlement. The town-like activity it locates along it many of the important nature of Puri with its municipalities, sit side by public / government buildings of the town, eventu- side with the Fishermen village of Puri which grows ally ending in the Marine drive, which is like a surincrementally and organically. The disparate forms real medieval sea shore town completely antitheti- and architectural vocabulary find their meeting cal in its frivolity to the existential nature of the place in the timeless nature of the rituals of livSwargadwara Road and the Juggernaut ritual of ing - the daily casting of the net with the hourly the Bada Danda Road. changing of the clothes of the idol; the irregular vagaries of nature and climate with the continuous Each road, each temple, each tank, each square uncertainty about the future – the sacred and the echoes the intricate rituals on which the Jagaprofane, the historic and the contemporary find nath Temple is built, creating a timeless sense of their common meeting ground in this unique town identity with the metaphysical that is completely which has the Ocean defining its limit. enmeshed and embedded with the daily business of livelihood. This duality defines Puri at every level

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013

Looking towards the Jagannath Temple Along the Bada Danda Road

Looking towards the Jagannath Temple Along the Bada Danda Road

If one looks at the oldest living cities around the world – which still exist, thrive and pulsate with life, one can discern the core. This core, also defined as the center, seems like a light source from which the surrounding pattern and morphology of the space originates. This center in terms of volume may seem much “smaller” in a physical sense in comparison to the surrounding “body”, but it is the main generator – it is the soul of the place which cannot be fixed and it is the main determinant of the nature of the city. It is what sustains it, allows it to not only transcend but also transform the forces of today to survive till tomorrow. This core is the center of its own universe. It need not always remain the same – it may shift spatially, it may translate its original meaning, it may split up and create sub cores, but its very existence maintains the city. The space then becomes a sum total of all its histories. That is Puri.

ARCHANA GUPTA is a Delhi based Architect, teaches at University School of Architecture & Planning.

ANSHUMAN GUPTA is an Architect based in Mumbai Photo credits: SHALEEN SHARMA

The Shwetganga one of the many tanks which dot the landscape of Puri

Mexico City: The Un-interwoven City Mónica Pallares-Trujillo Mexican Society of Landscape Architects- Vicepresident The origins of Mexico City are from the pre-Columbian period, the former Tenochtitlan founded by the Aztecs. It was an integrated city related to the natural context where a rich culture took place.

The site where the Aztecs established is a natural deep valley surrounded by mountains with two volcanoes, the famous Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl.

The runoff from the mountains filled a great lagoon integrated by five lakes: Chalco, Xochimilco, Texcoco, Xaltocan and Zumpango, which were at different levels and also varied in that some were salt water while others were freshwater.

Tenochtitlan was a city where people lived according to their environment. Their method of transportation was with canoes through canals that connected the city and defined the structure of it. There was an engineering system formed by sluices that controlled the different levels of the lakes as well as dikes that separated the saline lakes from the freshwater ones. A great dike, Nezahualcóyotl’s Albarradon- surrounded the city to protect it from flooding.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 june 2013

Conformation of Tenochtitlán

The Aztecs developed a technique to gain land in the lacustrine zone known as chinampas or floating gardens. They had a rectangular shape contained with canes, filled with silt from the lakes and bordered with Ahuejote trees (Salix bomplandiana) which were planted to anchor the plots. Examples of the chinampas still exist in Mexico City’s district of Xochimilco.

Tenochtitlan was an urban settlement developed understanding the landscape and what we know as the Genius loci –the spirit of place. The way the city was interwoven was the result of understanding the place and designing with it, not on it.

Tenochtitlán, we were astounded. These great towns and temple and buildings rising from the water, all made of stone, seemed like an enchanted vision from the tale of Amadis. Indeed, some of our soldiers asked whether it was not all a dream. It is not surprising therefore that I should write in this vein.

It was all so wonderful that I do not know how to describe this first glimpse of things never heard of, seen or dreamed of before…

After the conquest, the structure of Tenochtitlan was almost lost. The aim of the conquerors was to

Bernal Díaz del Castillo, a foot soldier in the army of Hernán Cortés that conquered the Aztec empire, wrote the True History of the conquest of New Spain where he stated how the conquest of Mexico took place. In a section of his narration he describes how they discovered Tenochtitlan as they were approaching: And when we saw all those cities and villages built in the water, and other great towns on dry land, and that straight and level causeway leading to Construction of chinampas

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 Crown in the Valladolid Ordinances emitted by King Carlos V on June 26th 1523.

The conquerors were not familiar with the lacustrine environment and they planned the city as if it was established on flat firm land. Hence they began to dry the canals and ditches and parts of the lake. This, along with the exploitation of groundwater aquifers and the excessive deforestation of the mountain forests caused climatic alterations and a great deterioration of the ecosystem.

The new city based on the Spanish model

As the dike that protected the city from flooding was destroyed, there was a great amount of erosion as a result of deforestation and Mexico City suffered several floods. The three most relevant were in 1450 and 1555 when the city was under water for 3 days, the most significant flood taking place in 1629 that lasted till 1633, causing great damages.

Even when the ordinances emitted by King Felipe II on July 13th 1573 counseled not to construct near lagoons, ponds or swamps, Hernán Cortés made the decision not to move the location of the city because it would represent a high cost.

In the first half of XX Century Mexico City can be defined as a friendly, livable city

destroy the existing constructions more as a military strategy, intending to destroy the culture and prevent the revival of the Aztec’s settlement. Díaz del Castillo described it in these words: …But today all that I then saw is overthrown and destroyed; nothing is left standing.

Hernán Cortés entrusted the soldier Alonso García Bravo to work on the first layout of the new City of Mexico on the former Tenochtitlan. Garcia did it with the Spanish configuration based on the renaissance city with quads that started from a central square where the civil and religious powers were established. It also considered the instructions for the layout by mandate of the Spanish

Mexico City continued developing against the natural conditions of the valley, contrary to what the Aztecs had done. With time the lakes were dried and the canals and rivers that crossed the city were redirected through underground tubes, creating a new city that up until the present has to live with the consequences of altering the landscape, the ecosystem and the natural context.

With the passing of the centuries, as a result of drying the lakes and exploiting the groundwater, the city is sinking. Since 1856 it is estimated that the city has sunk about 9 meters. The central area sinks about 6-7 cm per year; accordingly the city’s drainage must be pumped. Paradoxically, what used to be an aquatic environment currently has severe problems with its water supply.

Even though Mexico City grew with certain order, it was integrated by planned neighborhoods and a

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 june 2013

What once was a green iconic area in Mexico City is now a big hole for vehicular transit

functional system of roads, it can be said that the different structures that integrated the city were interwoven. Since then it has sprawled, invading the surroundings that were once agricultural land and forests. In the last 40 years Mexico City has radically transformed and the governors and decision makers continue to not consider the natural characteristics of the valley where the city is settled, forgiving our history.

The city expansion with settlements in dangerous areas

In the last 10 years Mexico City has been destroyed through bad political decisions. Urban planning, considering there is such a thing, is still based on avenues for vehicle traffic. A huge system of elevated highways has been built instead of planning a functional public transportation system.

Even when it has been demonstrated that elevated highways do no function in cities like San Francisco, Boston, Vancouver and Toronto (among

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 the planning process we are intending to destroy the city, its history and therefore our culture.

Rediscovery of a Cultural Landscape The Sudet region landscape

Klara Salzmann, landscape architect Pilsen, Czech Republic In the aftermath of WW2, the natural development Mexico City, a former lake has severe flooding of the Pilsen region cultural landscape became seriously disrupted, especially in the time followothers), where they have been removed and have ing the year 1948. not created solutions for vehicle congestion. They The most serious continue to be built and as it happened after the threat was the conquest, more as a political strategy. Mexico City state takeover of is losing its character, its livable neighborhoods, agricultural proantique parks with their ancient trees, the urban duction land. All of forests and the former road system. Citizens are a sudden the land losing their city and it is more and more an unconlost owners and nected place with borders and frontiers that do not managers. The acerage outlines disappeared along allow pedestrians to move freely. with many historic roads, the brooks were diverted into piped underground drains, numerous small The remaining ecosystems in this huge city are sacral architecture items ceased to exist. The local now in danger because of unplanned highways and landscape has been very negatively influenced by unplanned programs that are interfering with the a forced evacuation of the native Germans. They urban area and are not proposing real integrated/ were replaced by newcomers who took a long time interwoven solutions. Xochimilco, a remnant of to adapt to landscape as their own. Many settleTenochtitlån’s design is in danger due to poor ments, churches, old historic roads, chapels, peace urban policies and bad decisions that are causing cornerstones and crosses along the border were extreme pollution of canals and chinanpas and en- destroyed. More than 70 years has passed since dangering endemic species near extinction, such as that time, yet the wounds of the landscape have the axolote (Ambystrona mexicanum), a descendstill not healed to this day. ed of what were once terrestrial salamanders.

It is imperative to take a look to the past and appeal to our historic memory. We need to learn from the way our ancestors were able to coexist with nature through understanding it. Important natural resources are being destroyed, urban ecosystems are altered, air contains high pollution levels, water is contaminated, the urban landscape is not friendly anymore and Mexico City is becoming an unlivable city. If we do not integrate nature as part of

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The regional line of the project European Capital of Culture Pilsen 2015 provides a chance for cultural landscape revival. There is a chance to reunite this region as a natural unit sharing many common elements. After all, we do breath the same air and the mountains are drained by the same river. The birds and animals do not respect the borderline anyway.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 West Bohemia UUD studios located in the endangered or ruined church buildings and used-to-be villages. Various land-art activities are also taking place there and some of them are to be completed during this year.

At the same time, we are inviting landscape architects from all parts of the world to rediscover this cultural landscape. We are keen to implement the fresh ideas of students, young professionals and recognized specialists to do our job even more efficiently.

The chapel in Výťkovice

Two Land Art Centers established in St.George Park in Pilsen and Furth Wald in Bavaria can be perceived as the beginning of a renewed friendship and cooperation between our neighboring nations. This opens the door for renewal of the west Bohemian landscape by extending the across-theborder cooperation. Additionally, projects linked to the Impuls 2015 can participate. Today, many close-to-border regions do successfully cooperate already.

Presently, we interconnect the land art centers in Pilsen and Furt in Wald by a network of trails displaying the sculptures made by the University of

The village of Pořejov in 1948

Our intention is to announce an international competition consisting of two parts. The first will be to evaluate the ideas and proposals for continuing development and renewal of the western part of the Pilsen region. The second should deal with a specific destroyed village or church building.

The competition will be announced in early 2015.

The subject will be a selected typical abandoned and desolated village area in the west region of the Czech Republic. Today, only a one family house and a small chapel remain. The task - and a challenging question is what to do with the multitude of these communities in the future. Should they be preserved as historic monuments or rebuilt and revived to allow for new and flourishing life? The sudet landscape is full of these abandoned places generating a mood of sadness and negligence. It

The same village in 2012

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013

The church building in Otín u Plané, land art My Mind – author: Štěpánka Kotková

The church building Luková u Manětína, land art The Believers, author: Jakub Hadrava

seems that the culture of this landscape was taken by the original inhabitants to their new homes.

Here you have to start anew and build up the new culture from scratch. The newcomers are just in the process of doing so, they are searching for and forming a new landscape and working to fill it up with new meaning.

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This is the duty and true mission of landscape architects. Let’s help them in this noble task.

Landscape design of the territory should include the realization of components designed to remain and stay as well as land art compositions, the re-

building of old historic roads, renewed viewpoints, crosses, etc. It is up to the authors to read the local landscape and find the tune.

One very important factor for the local landscape is the perception from outsiders, how the people of the World and Europeans in particular see the issues. Of course the Czechs are strongly influenced by historical (namely the communist) development. Many people living here today still harbor fears of a German comeback forcing them to abandon their property.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 This old wound in the very heart of Europe remains yet unhealed. In our view, it is imperative to forget the tragic past and employ our forces to study the historic co-relations while trying to cooperate with the remains of the original population on repopulating this landscape and bringing back life and well balanced cultural links.

IFLA’s involvement in the project began in July 2010 with the signing of an agreement between Jinzhou City and IFLA, whereby IFLA undertook to select 20 leading landscape architects from IFLA Member Associations all over the world to design feature gardens which would form the cornerstone of a new park development, itself a feature of a New City development for Jinzhou.

Opening of The World Landscape Art Exposition in Jinzhou, China

After short-listing by a selection committee with representatives from all four IFLA Regions, approximately 45 landscape architects submitted concept designs. A jury comprising personnel from Jinzhou City, IFLA, AIPH and JCom (the organization led by Master Landscape Architect and former IFLA Vice President Haruto Kobayashi, who prepared the initial 2-square-kilometer Master Plan for the Expo then selected the chosen 20 landscape architects.

Alan Titchener Past IFLA Vice President Asia Pacific Region The opening of the World Landscape Art Exposition in Jinzhou, China took place on May 10, 2013.

Jinzhou City has a population of around 3 million and is located in Liaoning Province in the Northeast of China at the head of the Bohai Sea. The Expo was officially opened by Mr.Wang Min, the CPC Committee of Liaoning Province. China former Vice Prime Minister Mr. Hui Liangyu, Liaoning Province Governor Mr. Chen Zhenggao, and officials and experts from other different governments and organizations at home and abroad attended the event. IFLA President Desiree Martinez was one of the official speakers at the Grand Opening. Past and present members of IFLA Exco, including Past President Diane Menzies, representatives of the Chinese Society of Landscape Architecture (CHSLA) as well as the 20 IFLA landscape architects who prepared designs for the Expo, also attended the opening.

The Expo is a partnership between Jinzhou City and IFLA, supported also by AIPH (the International Association of Horticulture Producers), the Chinese Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the National Tourism Association of the People’s Republic of China, the State Oceanic Administration, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and the Government of Liaoning Province.

The final 7-square-kilometer Master Plan was completed by an American design office and the detailed design of the expo was done by several Chinese design companies The selected 20 were then paid to further develop their concept designs and detailed construction drawings were prepared by the Landscape Architecture Corporation of China. (Chinese law requires that design detailing must be done by Chinese practitioners). Unfortunately, the garden designed

by Singaporean landscape architect Maurene Tan was not constructed due to the high estimated cost involved.

Initially, an area of coastal escarpment overlooking the shrimp beds adjoining the Bohai Sea was selected as the site for the Expo. After further consideration a bold new plan was proposed for the Expo utilizing land reclaimed from the sea, with the theme “City and Sea, Harmonious Future”.

In an astonishingly short period of time of less than two years, the marine site of about 7 square kilometers was transformed to create the World Landscape Art Exposition, one of the biggest exposition parks in the world. Of the 7 square kilometers, 3.3 square kilometers are land, the remainder being water.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 The Expo site is divided up into six districts exhibiting various facets of landscape and seascape. Of these, the area dedicated to the gardens designed by the IFLA landscape architects is definitely a highlight of the Expo. Gardens featuring the work of landscape architects from Australia, Columbia, Denmark, India, Iran, Lithuania, Mexico, The Netherlands, New Zealand, The Philippines, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom are included.

The quality of the finished gardens is exceptionally high and the IFLA designers have been able to demonstrate clearly the diversity and creativity of top quality landscape design. Inevitably some discrepancies (generally minor) between design concept and finished product have occurred, but steps are being taken to correct these.

Visitors to the Expo are given the opportunity to vote for their favorite gardens. At the end of the Expo, the gardens receiving the most votes will receive additional prizes for 1st, 2nd and 3rd.

Apart from the IFLA Gardens, there are other stunning features including: landscapes representing many of the other cities in Liaoning Province; an amazing valley of flowers displaying 3 million tulips; an Ocean Scientific Pavilion featuring in state of the art technology various aspects of marine life; a Paleontology Museum with life-scale dinosaurs; and the extraordinary Water Dance Theatre which utilized superb theatrical and lighting effects and was simply brilliant!

The Expo will run until the end of October, 2013, by which time it is expected that 10 million people will have visited the site. On the first Saturday alone, 75,550 people visited the Expo!

Plans are in the process of being prepared for the Post Expo use of the site. It is hoped that IFLA will have the opportunity to provide advice on this aspect of the project. In addition, it is hoped that landscape architects will be involved in further follow up work in spreading the influence of landscape architecture into Jinzhou City itself.

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The benefits to IFLA from the exposure of landscape architecture have been significant. As one of the IFLA landscape architects put it, “the opportunity to bring together a broad spectrum of designers from around the world and for those designers to express themselves with few limits and generous construction budgets, to experience the hospitality from the hosts and the chance to be part of such a prestigious international event has been unforgettable”.

Interest has been expressed at the possibility of IFLA being involved in further Landscape Architecture Expos in China. If the results of the Jinzhou experience are anything to go by, such a prospect should be looked on favorably.

Celebrating Our Uniqueness With 20 Gardens of the World Jaime Cruz There were 20 winning designs that represented a variety of landscape designs and techniques from different IFLA hemispheres. The opening day showed China’s appreciation and utter affinity with landscape and its respect for the environment.

Relentless greening and sustainable development amazed my eyes all the way to the expo site. It was a grand show, typical of China’s economic rise and global presence as portrayed in the recent 2010 Beijing Olympics. There were gala style receptions and parades that impressed the visitors.

The host city was equally hospitable providing us, the designers, exceptional accommodation and transportation from our city of origin to the host city and back. The price package for the competition was also substantial with an inherent market value. Every bit of this event gave all designers no excuse but to give our best and to showcase the newest and most impressive traits from our side of the landscape hemisphere. At the same time it was academically valuable to demonstrate our own local uniqueness and to embody the title “Gardens of the World!”

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013

UNIVERSAL APPROACH TO DESIGN The issue of uniqueness is a basic strength in landscape design. The ability of the landscape to standout and be remembered by the users is a trademark worth having in our artistic approach.

The technical approach however is another important aspect that designers must take into consideration. The experience in Jinzhou offered the foreign designers, working in an equally foreign country, a challenge that translates how we communicate design to a global client.

This is the treasure I bring back from the Expo. The learning experience that crystallized from the pressures brought on by limited time, language barriers, great distance, cultural differences, material sourcing and a host of other malevolent intricacies.

The ability to say, “this is how I want it to work”.

If designers want to evolve into a realm of global design, much like the internet has done, craft and uniformity become key.

The site is a common thing for designers; the way to design for the site in a manner people can understand must be viewed with a universal eye. The objective is “clarity of intentions”. The viewers of this design can be as varied as the global members of IFLA from the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, Africa and Middle East, so how to communicate becomes center stage; the answer is standardiz-

ing our approach. The drawings cater to different people not just to the client. The stages depict the target viewer of the design per se. I see these as SD (Schematic Design), DD (Design Development) and CD (Construction Drawings). Each one focused on advancing the design to the next viewer. The SD is meant to get the client’s approval. The DD is geared towards the professionals from whom the clients have solicited assistance such as project managers or allied fields like horticulturists, environmental engineers, et al. The last stage is CD, which are the working drawings meant for the team that will build the design.

In the case of the Jinzhou Gardens, Chinese Designers licensed to do CDs in China did the last drawings. Therefore it was a cooperative relationship between foreign and local designers.

This meant using a drawing language that can overcome the spoken language difference. As a bench mark, the American Standard for AutoCAD enumerated the drawing list as GENERAL INFORMATION: material lists and images, planting lists, general notes and instructions; PLANS: reference, setting out, levels, planting, drainage, lighting; and DETAILS: blow up plans, feature details, typical details, lighting details, planting details, illustrative perspectives, general sections, detail sections and images.

The drawings mentioned above merely touched the fundamental drawings. The tormenting facet

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 Australia

Denmark

Africa

Colombia

Holland

Lithuania Netherlands

Mexico

Iran Spain

India

Netherlands Portugal New Zealand

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Philippines

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 of adapting to the local situation in Jinzhou was grueling. For instance, is the material even available in China? Is the finish the same as the designer wants it to be? Color may be a minimal issue but for some cultures it can be a major stumbling block as some prefer subtle while others prefer flamboyant colors.

The overall installation of all gardens into form and reality was an exercise that proved that a universal approach can be mastered and rendered to its full glory. With great emphasis on the local design institutes that worked tirelessly to immortalize the gardens of the worlds, it was really a magnificent feat.

The Museum of Chinese Gardens Prof. Xiaoming Liu, Beijing Forestry University, CHSLA delegate to IFLA The Museum of Chinese Gardens (MCG) is located at the foot of Yingshan Mountain on the 510-hectare site of the 9th China (Beijing) International Garden Exposition, on the side of the Yongding River in Fengtai District in the city of Beijing. It is the first national museum for gardens and landscapes in China. This expo is open to the public

LEADING THE WAY As I look back onto the whole endeavor, I can’t help but ponder the advantage that designers have in this era of globalization. As never before, people are capable of transmitting information in real time to achieve what previously was unachievable.

Perhaps by point of comparison our design ancestors are asking why we can’t achieve more. The time is right to embrace a style that demonstrates the time we live in now. Much like the symmetry of Art Deco, the plastic culture of De Stijl, or the whiplash pattern of Art Novo. from May 18th to November 18th 2013. Following the concept “Chinese Gardens, Ideal Homes”, the Today we see the once hard landscape soften. We construction of the museum started in 2010 and achieve this by using hand and computer aided was completed in May 2013. It covers an area of software to compile previously hard corners into 65,000 m2 with 49,950 m2 of constructed floor segmented forms that harmonize with a natural space. The design of the museum combines the and sustainable landscape. We can declare our essential features of both imperial gardens and parameters and embrace our new approach. A scholar’s gardens. It has functions of display, col“Uni-Style”. A bright horizon is waiting for us to lection, scientific research, education and services. embrace. My fellow designers, let’s march forward Additionally, it works as the center of collecting and declare a defined style that can embody the garden, landscape items and antiques, publicizing ideals of this millennium. traditional Chinese culture, showing the charms of garden and landscape art and studying the value of gardens and landscapes. As a permanent public UNIQUE DESIGN cultural venue, the museum fully displays the long UNIVERSAL APPROACH history, splendid culture, multiple functions and SIMPLE outstanding achievements of Chinese gardens and landscapes.

SUSTAINABLE

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013

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IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 displays include world famous gardens and landscapes, garden and landscape arts, garden and landscape culture and garden and landscape scientific interaction; and the temporary displays will showcase selected items from Chinese and foreign gardens and landscapes. Three thematic displays have been determined for the debut of the museum; “Heavenly Workmanship – A Display of Garden Drawings by Master Designer Lei in the Qing Dynasty”, “Brilliance on Porcelain – the Impact of Chinese Gardens on European Gardens”, and “Treasure from the Imperial Palace – Selected Garden Artifacts from Ming and Qing Gardens”.

Warmly welcomed by professionals and the public, the museum has announced three methods of collection to the public, i.e. donation, purchase and allocation. IFLA’s current and past leaders Desiree Martinez, Diane Menzies, Dato Ismail Ngah, Alan Titchener, Darwina Neal and John Easthope are invited to write congratulation comments for the museum.

World Rural Landscapes

The museum is mainly an indoor display venue, supplemented by both outdoor display areas and indoor yards. An emphasis is placed on garden exhibits that embody seasonal changes, space arts and experiences. Three indoor gardens are designed in imitation of “Changyuan Garden” in Suzhou, “Pianshi Shanfang” in Yangzhou and “Yuyin Shanfang” in Guangzhou as examples of different garden styles from southern China. As a contrast, three northern China landscape gardens are built outdoors, a hillscape named “Ranxia Shanfang”, a level garden named “Banmu Yizhang” and a waterscape named “Taying Bieyuan.”

The exhibitions are composed of basic display, thematic display and temporary display. The basic displays are focused on ancient and modern Chinese gardens and landscapes; the thematic

WORLD RURAL LANDSCAPES is an initiative launched by the International Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes ICOMOS-IFLA to foster the worldwide cooperation in the study, management and protection of rural landscapes.

Monica Luengo, president, announced that the committee launched The Initiative World Rural Landscape Website, on July 7, 2013 and that it is available at the following link: http://www.worldrurallandscapes.org/ Rural landscapes are encountering a growing interest and concern around the world. Many initiatives are being carried out to understand, protect and enhance the tangible and intangible values that the landscapes hold, as a reaction to the deep transformations they are enduring. These changes include abandonment of the land, intensification of agriculture, loss of traditional and local knowledge, pressure of urban development, etc.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 Many traditional rural landscapes have a holistic and complex character that expresses a unique sense of place, and are the key component of the identity of people. Moreover, many traditional rural landscapes are exponents of sustainable landuse acquired over years of rural practice. Such rural landscape practices respect the natural characteristics of the land they occupy, maintain the biodiversity and also keep the rich cultural diversity. In addition the rural landscape today is an economic and cultural resource for future generations and therefore, its careful protective management is crucial.

Cooperation. ISCCL asks for participation and cultural contribution of other ICOMOS ISCs, and major international institutions and organizations (UNESCO, WHC, FAO, IFLA, IUCN, Council of Europe, NGOs etc.) as well as any research center, institution, administration and cultural association interested in joining and enriching this multifaceted initiative.

The large number of theoretical approaches and operational tools to deal with the study and the safeguarding of heritage values of rural landscapes, reflects the diversity and complexity of disciplines, socio-cultural contexts and administrative organizations of each geographical area. However, what is missing is debate and a consideration of differing views so that common principles can be developed that can provide a more considered approach to interventions in rural landscapes to protect their heritage values.

Comments are welcomed in order to refine the webpage, as well as information, bibliography, links, images, etc. or whatever you consider might improve the webpage.

As regards to the World Heritage Convention, rural landscapes are within the category of evolved continuing cultural landscapes and their heritage and management is a major international concern.

The International Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes (ISCCL) ICOMOS-IFLA has launched this initiative to foster worldwide cooperation in the understanding, management and protection of rural landscapes. In support of this target the ISCCL Working Group is developing a series of documents that aim to be an international framework reference that will allow a more coherent and collaborative approach to the matter.

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This initiative is meant to allow different institutions and stakeholders to: i) exchange experiences and knowledge, and to ii) reinforce the great worth of high quality rural landscapes, based on their local distinctiveness and on the traditional knowledge and uses.

Suggestions and questions about the website can be sent to Monica Luengo (monica@atpaisaje.com) and Maria Gracia Martin (mariagama05@gmail. com) (copy to both), who developed the web page.

Hangzhou Declaration We, the participants gathered in Hangzhou on the occasion of the International Congress “Culture: Key to Sustainable Development� (15-17 May 2013), wish to express our gratitude and acknowledge the generous hospitality and intellectual leadership of the Chinese authorities and the City of Hangzhou in providing a forum to reflect on the place that should be given to culture within the international sustainable development agenda. We especially recognize the efforts and achievements made by the City of Hangzhou to conserve its heritage and promote its vibrant culture for sustainable development.

We recognize the important advances that have been made over the past decade by the international community at all levels in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and other internationally agreed development goals.

We consider that in the face of mounting challenges such as population growth, urbanization, environmental degradation, disasters, climate change, increasing inequalities and persisting poverty,

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 there is an urgent need for new approaches, to be defined and measured in a way which accounts for the broader picture of human progress and which emphasize harmony among peoples and between humans and nature, equity, dignity, well-being and sustainability.

These new approaches should fully acknowledge the role of culture as a system of values and a resource and framework to build truly sustainable development, the need to draw from the experiences of past generations, and the recognition of culture as part of the global and local commons as well as a wellspring for creativity and renewal.

We recall, in this regard, some of the most important policy documents that have underscored the importance of culture for sustainable development in recent years, including the UN General Assembly Resolutions N. 65/1 (“Keeping the Promise: United to Achieve the Millennium Development Goals”, 2010), N. 65/166 (2011) and N. 66/208 (2012) on “Culture and Development”, as well as a number of other relevant declarations, statements and normative instruments adopted at international, regional and national levels.

We recall in particular the outcome document of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development, “The Future We Want” (Rio de Janeiro, June 2012), which highlighted the importance of cultural diversity and the need for a more holistic and integrated approach to sustainable development.

We reaffirm that culture should be considered to be a fundamental enabler of sustainability, being a source of meaning and energy, a wellspring of creativity and innovation, and a resource to address challenges and find appropriate solutions.

The extraordinary power of culture to foster and enable truly sustainable development is especially evident when a people-centered and place-based approach is integrated into development programs and peace-building initiatives.

We also reaffirm the potential of culture as a driver for sustainable development, through the specific contributions that it can make – as knowledge

capital and a sector of activity – to inclusive social, cultural and economic development, harmony, environmental sustainability, peace and security.

This has been confirmed by a wealth of studies and demonstrated by numerous concrete initiatives.

We recognize that one size does not fit all and that different cultural perspectives will result in different paths to development. At the same time, we embrace an understanding of culture that is open, evolving and strongly framed within a rights-based approach and the respect for diversity, the free access to which enables individuals “to live and be what they choose”, thus enhancing their opportunities and human capabilities while promoting mutual understanding and exchange among peoples.

We believe that the time has come, building on these important statements of principle and lessons learnt, for the full integration of culture – through clear goals, targets and indicators – into agreed development strategies, programs and practices at global, regional, national and local levels, to be defined in the post-2015 UN development agenda. Only such a concrete political and operational framework can ensure that all development initiatives lead to truly sustainable benefits for all, while securing the right of future generations to benefit from the wealth of cultural assets built up by previous generations.

We therefore call on governments and policy-makers, who will play a role in defining the post-2015 UN global development framework and sustainable development goals, to seize this unique opportunity and give consideration to the following actions to place culture at the heart of future policies for sustainable development: INTEGRATE CULTURE WITHIN ALL DEVELOPMENT POLICIES AND PROGRAMS Development is shaped by culture and local context, which ultimately also determine its outcomes. Consideration of culture should therefore be included as the fourth fundamental principle of the post-2015 UN development agenda, in equal measure with human rights, equality and sustainability. The cultural dimension should be

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 systematically integrated in definitions of sustainable development and well-being, as well as in the conception, measurement and actual practice of development policies and programs. This will require the establishment of effective institutional coordination mechanisms at global and national levels, the development of comprehensive statistical frameworks with appropriate targets and indicators, the carrying out of evidence-based analyses and the building of capacities at all levels.

MOBILIZE CULTURE AND MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING TO FOSTER PEACE AND RECONCILIATION In the context of globalization, and in the face of the identity challenges and tensions it can create, intercultural dialogue and the recognition of and respect for cultural diversity can forge more inclusive, stable and resilient societies. They should be promoted notably through educational, communication and artistic programs, as well as through dedicated national councils, to foster an environment conducive to tolerance and mutual understanding. In areas that have experienced violent conflicts, the rehabilitation of cultural heritage and cultural activities should be promoted to enable affected communities to renew their identity, regain a sense of dignity and normalcy, enjoy the universal language of art and begin to heal the scars of war. Consideration of cultural contexts should also be integrated into conflict-resolution initiatives and peace-building processes.

ENSURE CULTURAL RIGHTS FOR ALL TO PROMOTE INCLUSIVE SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

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Guaranteeing cultural rights, access to cultural goods and services, free participation in cultural life, and freedom of artistic expression are critical to forging inclusive and equitable societies. A rights-based approach to culture and respect for cultural and linguistic diversity should be promoted within national and regional policies and legal frameworks, including consideration for minorities, gender balance, and youth and specific indigenous peoples’ concerns. Cultural values, assets and practices, including those of minorities and indigenous

peoples, should be integrated into educational and communication programs and they should be safeguarded and given adequate recognition. Cultural literacy in schools is an integral part of quality education, and it should play an important role in the promotion of inclusive and equitable societies.

Special support should be provided to cultural programs that foster creativity and artistic expression, learn from the experiences of the past, and promote democracy and the freedom of expression, as well as address gender issues, discrimination, and the traumas resulting from violence.

LEVERAGE CULTURE FOR POVERTY REDUCTION AND INCLUSIVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Culture, as knowledge capital and as a resource, provides for the needs of individuals and communities and reduces poverty. The capabilities of culture to provide opportunities for jobs and incomes should be enhanced, targeting in particular women, girls, minorities and youth. The full potential of creative industries and cultural diversity for innovation and creativity should be harnessed, especially by promoting small and medium-sized enterprises, and trade and investments that are based on materials and resources that are renewable, environmentally sustainable, locally available, and accessible to all groups within society, as well as by respecting intellectual property rights.

Inclusive economic development should also be achieved through activities focused on sustainably protecting, safeguarding and promoting heritage.

Special attention should be given to supporting responsible, culturally-aware, inclusive and sustainable tourism and leisure industries that contribute to the socio-economic development of host communities, promote cross-cultural exchanges, and generate resources for the safeguarding of tangible and intangible heritage.

BUILD ON CULTURE TO PROMOTE ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY The safeguarding of historic urban and rural areas and of their associated traditional knowledge and practices reduces the environmental footprints of

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 societies, promoting more ecologically sustainable patterns of production and consumption and sustainable urban and architectural design solutions. Access to essential environmental goods and services for the livelihood of communities should be secured through the stronger protection and more sustainable use of biological and cultural diversity, as well as by the safeguarding of relevant traditional knowledge and skills, paying particular attention to those of indigenous peoples, in synergy with other forms of scientific knowledge.

STRENGTHEN RESILIENCE TO DISASTERS AND COMBAT CLIMATE CHANGE THROUGH CULTURE The appropriate conservation of the historic environment, including cultural landscapes, and the safeguarding of relevant traditional knowledge, values and practices, in synergy with other scientific knowledge, enhances the resilience of communities to disasters and climate change. The feeling of normalcy, self-esteem, sense of place and confidence in the future among people and communities affected by disasters should be restored and strengthened through cultural programs and the rehabilitation of their cultural heritage and institutions. Consideration for culture should be integrated into disaster-risk reduction and climate-change mitigation and adaptation policies and plans in general.

VALUE, SAFEGUARD AND TRANSMIT CULTURE TO FUTURE GENERATIONS Heritage is a critical asset for our well-being and that of future generations, and it is being lost at an alarming rate as a result of the combined effects of urbanization, development pressures, globalization, conflicts and phenomena associated with climate change. National policies and programs should be strengthened in order to secure the protection and promotion of this heritage and of its inherited systems of values and cultural expressions as part of the shared commons, while giving it a central role in the life of societies. This should be achieved by its full integration in the development sector as well as in educational programs.

HARNESS CULTURE AS A RESOURCE FOR ACHIEVING SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT A vibrant cultural life and the quality of urban historic environments are key for achieving sustainable cities. Local governments should preserve and enhance these environments in harmony with their natural settings. Culture-aware policies in cities should promote respect for diversity, the transmission and continuity of values, and inclusiveness by enhancing the representation and participation of individuals and communities in public life and improving the conditions of the most disadvantaged groups. Cultural infrastructure, such as museums and other cultural facilities, should be used as civic spaces for dialogue and social inclusion, helping to reduce violence and foster cohesion. Culture-led redevelopment of urban areas, and public spaces in particular, should be promoted to preserve the social fabric, improve economic returns and increase competitiveness, by giving impetus to a diversity of intangible cultural heritage practices as well as contemporary creative expressions. The cultural and creative industries should be promoted, as well as heritage-based urban revitalization and sustainable tourism, as powerful economic subsectors that generate green employment, stimulate local development, and foster creativity.

CAPITALIZE ON CULTURE TO FOSTER INNOVATIVE AND SUSTAINABLE MODELS OF COOPERATION The great and unexplored potential of publicprivate partnerships can provide alternative and sustainable models for cooperation in support of culture. This will require the development, at the national level, of appropriate legal, fiscal, institutional, policy and administrative enabling environments, to foster global and innovative funding and cooperation mechanisms at both the national and international levels, including grass-roots initiatives and culture-driven partnerships already promoted by civil society. In this context, consideration should be given to the specific needs of different cultural sub-sectors, while opportunities should be provided to develop capacities, transfer

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 knowledge, and foster entrepreneurship, notably through the sharing of best practices.

We, the participants, share in the ideals of “Diversity in Harmony” and “Harnessing the Past to Create the Future” expressed by our Congress; We commit ourselves to developing action plans based on this declaration and to working together for their implementation towards 2015 and beyond; We believe that the integration of culture into development policies and programs will set the stage for a new era of global development; We recommend, therefore, that a specific goal focused on culture be included as part of the post2015 UN development agenda. This goal should be based on heritage, diversity, creativity and the transmission of knowledge, including clear targets and indicators that relate culture to all dimensions of sustainable development.

I NT E RV I EW GONÇALO RIBEIRO TELLES Winner of the SIR GEOFFREY JELLICOE AWARD IFLA 2013, interviewed by DESIREE MARTINEZ IFLA President DM: How did you decide to become a landscape architect?

GRT: For many reasons, I was faced with two options – the ocean and agriculture. I chose the Institute for Agriculture (Instituto Superior de Agronomia, ISA), but I felt a great enthusiasm for riding, we used to catch insects and harvest wild mushrooms, etc. I also liked to attend design lectures and workshops at the National Society of Fine Arts (Sociedade Nacional de Belas Artes).

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Upon arriving at the ISA, I met Professor Francisco Caldeira Cabral and I discovered landscape architecture. I immediately began to attend to his lectures.

DM: From your point of view, what have been the major advances in the profession in the last 50 years?

GRT: The profession has contributed to the implementation of landscape planning as a key element of regional development - introducing ecological concepts at all scales of intervention and the integration of the principles of landscape planning in policy instruments.

In Portugal it happened the first time thanks to the implementation of a project by Francisco Caldeira Cabral and two other pioneer landscape architects in the country, contributing to the enhancement of the landscape through green urban corridors and other ecological structures. He continued with the publication of key legislation for the protection of

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 Sao Jeronimo

architecture and to promote the harmonization of landscape architecture programs world-wide.

IFLA has also played a role regarding the dissemination of the important achievements of landscape architecture projects around the globe, regarding spatial planning, conservation of natural resources and landscape values.

DM: Your life trajectory is very admirable, as an academic, a practitioner, in the public service and in politics. How did you manage to reconcile all of these facets of your life?

Gulbenkian

ecological values and soils of high agricultural potential, as well as for municipal and regional planning. He also proposed the legal framework for the creation of National Parks and protected areas of different categories.

DM: What role did IFLA play in the development of the profession?

GRT: IFLA has fostered the promotion of the exchange of ideas on concrete projects among professionals word-wide.

Another important focus of IFLA has been to enhance the quality of education in landscape

GRT: I always considered the biophysical organization and the humanization of the territory as the basis for the development of human society.

DM: How do you see the future of the profession, what are the new challenges?

GRT: An integrated implementation of the landscape utilizing all economic, social, cultural and ecological objects, centering the focus on a global (integral) development of humankind.

DM: What are your recommendations to young landscape architects and to IFLA? GRT: My advice is that young landscape architects continue fighting for the recognition of the impor-

IFLA Newsletter Issue 105 June 2013 tance of landscape architecture in politics for the development of human society, working together with policy and decision makers, and that IFLA continue its work promoting the value of designing and developing landscapes as well as contributing to unite and strengthen the effort of landscape architects word-wide, always taking into consideration the conservation and enhancement of the natural and human values of landscape.

BOO K R EV I EW GEODESIGN – CASE STUDIES IN REGIONAL AND URBAN PLANNING reviewed by JEFF THURSTON The new book ‘GeoDesign – Case Studies in Regional and Urban Planning‘ by Shannon McElvaney highlights many examples of GeoDesign in practice. GeoDesign, a process for designing through the use of geography, is applicable to landscapebased design that includes planners, designers, engineers, landscape architects, public health etc.

The book begins by defining what is meant by GeoDesign. In many ways this means through taking a new approach – a geographic approach – to old ideas, in effect, re-inventing cities, locations and places.

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Based on the concepts of more citizen participation into the assessment, review, design and construction of new outcomes, this book attempts to explain how people connect with the process of GeoDesign. Topics including climate change, wildlife, Singapore’s sustainable development, site analytics and Florida 2050 are included.

Visualization is a primary component of GeoDesign planning and one might reasonably expect that the future will include a wide range of 3D technologies to properly engage GeoDesign within a more realistic framework that includes graphics.

This book is a good summary, with examples, of what Esri means when it speaks of GeoDesign, but the extended use of the approach extends to everyone involved in sustainable planning and improving quality of life for many places and situations around the world.

SPATIAL BLOG OF JEFF THURSTON http://www.3dvisworld.com/3DVW/?p=951