Perspective on a Changing Climate

International Federation of Landscape Architects Fédération Internationale des Architectes Paysagistes

NEWSLETTER

IFLA

No. 100

A u g u s t 2 0 1 2

PERSPECTIVES ON A

CHANGING CLIMATE

mail ifla@iflaonline.org web site www.iflaonline.org cultural landscape committee www.iflaclc.org

Topic

Author(s)

Page

From The President

Desiree Martínez

2

Climate Change and LA

Anita Tikoo Matange

2

Trees for Concrete

Claudia Suárez

5

What would it take to open our windows? Tamar Darel-Fossfeld

6

LA, a Tool to Help Revert Climate Change Mónica Pallares

9

Playground the Natureluur in Amsterdam Truke van Koeverden

12

Secretary General Ilya MOCHALOV mochalov@alaros.ru

IFLA AMERICAS Regional Conference

Martha Fajardo

17

EDAP Program

Gloria Aponte García

27

Vice-President European Region

ELEPA 2012

Gloria Aponte García

27

7th European Biennial of LA, Barcelona

Marina Cervera i Alonso de Medina

28

ICON-LA (EFLA 2012) Conference

Diane Menzies

31

tma.titch@xtra.co.nz

The OPPTA Competition 2011-2012

32

Vice-President Americas Region

Beyond Rio+20 People’s Summit

Saide Kahtouni Martha Fajardo Virginia Laboranti

33

Going up the wall in New Zealand

Leigh Nicholson

37

IFLA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE President

Desiree Martinez IFLA_President @iflaonline.org

Nigel THORNE

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

Alan TITCHENER

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 100 August 2012 FROM THE PRESIDENT Desiree Martinez participating in a course at the Botanical Garden of Xochitla

Hello everyone from rainy Mexico! We have not seen the sun for almost a week which is very uncommon here! I can remember as a kid having Spanish neighbors who used to say that during the rainy season in Mexico City it rains at 4:00 in the afternoon. Now we call the rainy season, the Hurricane season and we are always hearing in the news which region was hit by the winds and floods.

Names like Gilbert and Katrina bring back painful memories, and somehow despite summits and meetings and even good will, the economic and political agendas of many countries fail to really commit to a more sustainable future. Over and over again, the outcomes of these summits are very disappointing!

Nevertheless good things are happening at the local, regional and even National level and landscape architects are actively contributing to mitigating the consequences of Climate Change. Through small steps we may be more efficient than high profile politicians’ meetings. Through small steps we can generate awareness and foster both environmentally and socially responsible behavior.

This number is dedicated to such initiatives, projects and work.

On another topic, we are about to fly to Cape Town and meet again. It is going to be a wonderful congress in a city located within an amazing landscape. Once again, it is time for landscape and we hope to see you all there!

With a big hug, Desiree MartĂ­nez

Climate Change and Landscape Architecture Anita Tikoo Matange Fellow, ISOLA Climate change is no longer the debate. The debate is whether we have time for preventive action or if we must address adaptation and mitigation. It has been established that anthropogenic activities, particularly since the industrial revolution, have accelerated the emission of greenhouse gases which are directly implicated in climate change. The major thrust of the discussion so far has concentrated on reducing greenhouse gas emissions by effecting reductions in the burning of carbon-based fuels.

This can be achieved by increasing efficiencies and developing alternative energy sources.

What is impressive is that of all the energy consumed since the industrial revolution, half has been consumed in the last 20 years! The recent spurt in urbanization all over the world can only extend this trend unless we find new ways to grow.

Large metropolitan areas, new cities and regional centers are emerging. By 2015, 50 world cities are likely to have populations in excess of 5 million inhabitants; 20 of these are going to be in Asia.

Increasing populations not only create increased demands on existing resources but they also need to be provided protection from natural hazards and extreme events which are predicted to become more frequent in a changed climatic regime.

Burning of fossil fuel for generating power makes up the bulk of greenhouse gas emissions. The second sector that contributes to greenhouse gas emissions is land-use change (Cities and Climate Change, 2011). With increased urbanization will come rapid changes in land-use. Landscape architects and planners are in a position to direct this change in a manner that reduces vulnerability of land (and therefore, cities) to disasters and makes them more resilient. The principles of landscape ecology can guide development; environmentally sensitive areas can be identified and marked for protection.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 A landscape is the physical expression of the natural systems that operate within it. The terrain, vegetation, hydrology, and soils are tied together in a complex system from which we derive direct and indirect benefits. Landscape architects are helping guide land-use change in ways that can protect the ecosystem functions of the landscape. This is of particular interest in the context of Asian cities faced with rapid urbanization. At the regional level then, incorporating natural systems into urban renewal as well as in the making of emergent cities helps create sustainable communities with greater resilience and adaptability to unpredictable future change. Even environmentally sensitive coastal cities like Kochi in Kerala, India, offer plenty of space for growth that is sustainable and protects landscapes of ecosystem value (Mary, 2012). The protection of such landscapes maintains the complex links of the natural system such as biodiversity and habitat protection while also offering infrastructure services such as flood mitigation, waste assimilation, recycling and the improvement of water quality. The recently proposed Zonal Master Plan for the Mount Abu Eco-sensitive Area (Rajasthan, India) also has as its primary objective the protection of natural resources, which form the backbone of Mt. Abu’s economy, while outlining directions for future growth. Vulnerability studies identify zones with varying development suitability (Fig. 1) and suggest appropriate development.

Urbanization also causes habitat fragmentation that reduces the overall size of a habitat patch and creates disconnected patches that have limited ecological value. To this disturbance, the future is adding the flux of climate change and increasing

Fig1: Transect through Mt Abu ESA showing landscape suitability and ecological vulnerability

the vulnerability of already stressed ecosystems.

Open space master plans, in addition to providing for recreation, can be designed to improve connectivity of fragmented habitats so that their ecological functions may be strengthened. Open space greenway connections can provide dispersal corridors, especially in the urban landscape, where large chunks of contiguous land are hard to spare.

The natural component most impacted by landuse change is water. The 6th World Water Forum has proposed urban water safety as one of seven target areas to respond to climate and global challenges to an urbanizing world. The stated target is to “prepare integrated urban water safety plans incorporating risk management and resilience to climate change as well as climate adaptation and water safety plans for utilities.” (“Respond to climate and global changes,” 2012). Water is very much in the purview of a Landscape Architect’s responsibilities. With climate change, changes in rainfall distribution patterns and water management have become even more complex and challenging. On the one hand, the addition of impervious surfaces in the urban environment results in increased runoff that overwhelms the storm water systems; while on the other, the same factor also reduces water recharge in the city already straining under water shortage. Increasingly, urban areas source their water from further and further away.

Recently, a new hydro-electric project has been approved to bring water to Delhi from 250km away.

Careful site planning at the neighborhood level, a sector that forms the bulk of a conventional landscape architectural practice, can bring about

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Residential landscapes in an urban lot retrofit showing series of interconnected planters, green roof, and a rain garden with recharge pit

a drastic change in how water moves through the landscape. Just between 5-15% of open space, when designed using permeable surfaces combined with judicious use of lawn areas, and the use of native plants in the landscape can ensure that 80% of the peak flow of a 25 year storm can be absorbed in the landscape in a conventional high density neighborhood in Delhi (Jainer, 2012).

Imagine the impact of such an approach on street flooding during monsoons, water recharge potential and quality of urban runoff.

At the house level, the retrofit of the typical city lot house can also ensure a zero contribution to the storm system by the first inch of rain. Green roofs, planters and rain gardens are components that can be incorporated into any city house. The simple incorporation of recharge pits at the house level all over the city of Chennai almost doubled water recharge (from 0.36cum/sqm on 1995 to 0.65cum/ sqm in 2000) (Jebamalar).

Landscape architecture, as part of a multi-level (regional, neighborhood and residential), multidisciplinary approach, is critical to the planning and development of sustainable cities and settlements that are adaptable to the challenges that a climatically changing world will bring. Whether it is locally sourcing materials in the landscape, looking at the landscape to be more than surface treatment or being more productive and more respon-

sive to the ecosystem functions that are impacted, the writing is on the wall that no proposal can now afford to be just decorative.

References: 1. Cities and Climate Change: An Urgent Agenda. 2010.

Retrieved August 13, from http://siteresources.worldbank. org/INTUWM/Resources/340232-1205330656272/CitiesandClimateChange.pdf 2. Jebamalar, A. (n.d.). Impact of rain water harvesting in Chennai city. Retrieved August 16, from www.igcpgrownet.org/collaborators/rain-harvest.pdf 3. Jainer, S. 2012. Storm water drainage and resource management: Case Study - Dwarka. Unpublished master’s thesis, School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi.

4. Kalnay, E. & Cai, M. (2003, May, 29). Impact of urbanization and land-use change on climate. Nature, 423, 528-531.

5. Mary, L. 2012. Strategies to integrate landscapes of ecosystem value into land use planning for Kochi Metropolitan Region. Unpublished master’s thesis, School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi.

6. “Respond to climate and global changes in an urbanizing world.” (2012). Retrieved August 13, from http://www. worldwaterforum6.org/en/commissions/thematic/priorities-for-action-and-conditions-for-success/priority-for-action-33/?id=141 Anita Tikoo Matange is an adjunct professor in the Dept. of Environmental Planning at the School of Planning and Architecture in New Delhi.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Trees for Concrete, An initiative to Combat Climate Change Claudia Suárez Trees for Concrete is an initiative of the Cultural Landscape Foundation to fight for and promote environmental consciousness in schools regarding the topic of Climate Change. The Foundation’s main objective is to contribute to restoring the intricate balance between natural and human communities through landscape interventions (in the broadest sense).

THE PROGRAM The urban lifestyle has disconnected us from the Earth as both our origin and provider of all that we need to live in the urban environment. With the development of technology, hyper-communication and the advancement of virtual reality, our degree of alienation is accentuated and children are the most vulnerable to this phenomenon of alienation.

On the other hand, the issue of climate change has been widely accepted by society, even young children are concerned about their environment.

However, outside of recycling, few options are presented in which children can participate actively for a better future.

In the urban environment, the loss of green space in favor of asphalt and concrete areas exacerbates the heat island effect, decreases rainwater infiltration and therefore contributes to global warming.

In Mexico most schools (at all scholarly levels), have paved over their open spaces and recreational areas with concrete with little or no vegetation.

These schoolyards are truly inhospitable places, esplanades with microclimates in which the concept of environmental comfort doesn’t exist and doesn’t provide any stimulation to students.

THE IDEA: The initiative of the Cultural Landscape Foundation is very simple: Planting fruit trees in schoolyards, breaking the concrete pavement, creating a surface that provides environmental functions and contributes to the development of the students’ environmental consciousness.

Planting trees is an active contribution to fighting climate change, as a tree requires open soil i.e. soil that is capable of providing nutrients, absorbing water and harboring life. In addition, a tree actively contributes to enhancing air quality and cooling the atmosphere through evapotranspiration and shadow generation.

WHY PLANT A FRUIT TREE? A fruit tree demonstrates our dependence on the Earth’s resources to cover all of our necessities.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 - We will schedule the day of installation and sign an agreement.

INSTALLATION DAY: The Cultural Landscape Foundation team gives a lecture whose content is dependent upon the scholarly level of the students on the importance of trees, open soil and the benefits of the initiative.

-We will demolish at least 3 square meters of concrete to plant trees.

-Improve the soil.

-Plant and water the trees.

The flowers and fruit from fruit trees are of extraordinary beauty, they mark the change of the seasons and can provide milestones to celebrate at school and even became a source of identity.

WHAT DO WE WANT? - To reinforce the link between the children and the Earth.

- By planting many trees in many schools and recovering open space within the expanses of concrete, we want to restore vital areas of open soil with vegetation as a contribution to the mitigation of global warming and the promotion of rainwater infiltration.

- To foster school relationships and communication between schools regarding sustainable topics.

HOW WE PUT IT INTO EFFECT? The Cultural Landscape Foundation programs are funded by voluntary contributions from individuals, companies, associations, schools, etc. We also encourage the recipient school to collect the donation with their students in order to involve them from the beginning of the project. This is implemented as follows: - The Parent’s Association or school’s principal will contact us.

- Detail the tree pits and place a commemorative plaque.

The Cultural Landscapes Foundation, through the Trees for Concrete program seeks, among other things, to show that a local initiative can have important effects and therefore that individuals can also make concrete changes for a better future. For more information about the Foundation and its programs, or to contribute to this initiative through donations, diffusion or volunteering, visit our website at www.paisajesculturales.mx or write to us at central@paisajesculturales.mx.

What would it take to open our windows again?

Thoughts on Landscape Architecture and Global Warming Tamar Darel-Fossfeld Former president of the Israel Association of Landscape Architects Looking back over the years, I can recall when I used to drive my car to meetings with windows down, anticipating the ever-changing smells of the agricultural countryside on the outskirts of Kfar Saba, my home town, whether they be the smell of fresh earth after the first winter rains or the

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Looking towards the entrance to a building.

Blurring the boundaries between the apartment building lots and the public space (paths, playground etc.) in the design of the neighborhood has extended the sense of ownership and belonging of the residents beyond the threshold of their apartments into the public realm itself, encouraging and enhancing use and connections.

Design: Yahalom-Zur Landscape Architecture- 1985 Kfar Saba- Israel Photography- Tamar Darel-Fossfeld

Looking towards the public space from a building entrance. The plot boundary is not apparent.

Looking towards one of the building complexes from the street.

Raising and privatizing the open spaces of apartment- building plots to create “garden apartments� over storage and parking has created high walls and very defined boundaries between the housing complex and the street. There is no room for connection, interaction, contribution, sharing or enhancing the neighborhood experience. The entrance to the building is defined by the black tire marks on the footpath and there is no sense of belonging or ownership beyond the threshold of the apartment.

1990 Azar Street, Kfar Saba- Israel Photography- Tamar Darel-Fossfeld Looking towards a building complex entrance along Azar Street and one of the building entrances. Nothing in the development or the landscaping can create the sense of ownership and belonging to extend beyond the threshold of the individual apartment. It is not a place that encourages outside use.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 life and I’ve become rather finicky and impatient of any discomforts in my regulated spaces whether they are while travelling, at home, in the office and so on. I’m not unique in my demands but definitely represent the norm - a common variety “urbanite”!

And when multiplied by the actions of millions of others like myself, the ever increasing demand for energy to create, expand and improve artificial and well-regulated environments, contributes its fair share towards global warming even though the consumption may delight the Israel Electrical Company. As Landscape Architects, we have to ask ourselves if the trend is reversible, and what would it take to get us to “open our windows” and accept a less regulated environment?

New “Green Neighborhoods” currently under construction in Kfar Saba - 2012.

High walls define the streets with the open spaces between the buildings located above- over the at-grade parking. Connection between the spaces is via pedestrian bridges.

The fact that this solution was found to be acceptable as “green” is questionable, but something that can be changed with education if green-building codes define the attributes of the plot boundaries.

Photography- Tamar Darel-Fossfeld

fragrance of orange blossoms from the orchards in spring. Unfortunately, these everyday experiences have mostly become a thing of the past. I now drive from place to place with my car windows up, carefully regulating my micro-climate for comfort and minimal interference as I use my speaker phone to talk with family, colleagues and clients.

Even while travelling by train with trusty lap-top at hand, commuting has evolved into quality worktime with high expectations to complete lengthy “to-do” lists.

This seemingly inconsequential act of “closed car windows” is translated into other aspects of my

Green Building codes established over the past years, such as LEED, BRE, Green Star etc., advocate and advance environmentally responsible development in the concepts, policies, design and construction of the built environment, providing tools to calculate and monitor the carbon footprint of each action and product in the battle against climate-change. The codes provide amazingly detailed lists of characteristics that influence overall plans and “products”, explaining how each quality is assessed, graded and prioritized. They deal with a multitude of issues, including the judicious use of resources, siting of a building, design, construction, operation, maintenance, renovation, demolition, life-cycle analysis of materials and more.

Though the lists are seemingly all-encompassing, landscape architects who’ve been creating “green” over centuries have been completely sidetracked and the codes, becoming ever-more popular, have basically relegated landscaping issues to the back row with minimal scores! Architects and engineers, though well-meaning, have managed to educate the public that the concept and issues of “green building” only deal with the buildings, materials and incorporated technologies!

The unfortunate outcome is that when contractors aim for high scores and top certification according to these codes, their time, money and effort is better spent on the incorporation of energy efficient processes and technologies, renewable energies,

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 smart grids, minimizing resources, making buildings better and healthier etc, than trying to gain points via the incorporation of the very things that comprise and define our profession. Of course I may be prejudiced in my criticism, but to date, in a nutshell, “green building” is not identified with landscape architecture. Neither can demanding that a tree or wetland be preserved or that the earth be suited to the local vegetation, or that runoff be utilized for planting etc., be considered enough regarding the contribution of our profession to the issue at hand, no matter how important the attributes.

I believe that landscape architects need to be much more involved in the definitions of the current green building codes - the individual home, apartment, office or public building etc. When huge budgets are being allocated towards “green” whether it be “green building”, “retrofitting”, “building it back green” or any other “green”, it is not sufficient to assess “green” by filling a quota or checklist of paved-non-paved areas, trees, etc. or the “beautification” of a contained space. Landscape architects should be defining attributes that make people want stay outside.

After green building codes have proven their ability in educating the general public and professionals regarding improvements in the built environment, it’s time to get the message across that landscape architecture has the ability to improve the way we live, learn, work, connect and interact with each other and the environment. It enables us to feel safe and facilitates the use of open space. It provides opportunities for creativity and contributions that are imbued with meaning and stories that help us take pride in the public realm to the point that the sense of belonging and ownership is not limited to the threshold of the individual home, but extends to the entrance of the building plot or to the end of the street; to the entrance of the neighborhood and beyond. It has to do with integrating concepts of “green neighborhoods” in the individual plot itself, not only outside the plot boundaries and dealing with these boundaries to make them more than something that delineates

space and property rights. It’s true that the issues and characteristics may be difficult to measure and quantify as they have more to do with quality than quantity, but it’s not impossible. And though having a separate “landscaping” code like the “Sustainable Sites Initiative” is commendable, I doubt it will achieve the vast influence of the “green-building” codes.

In an effort to broaden the definition of “greenbuilding” in Israel and in tune with “practicing what I preach”, I became an active partner in the establishment of the Israel Green Building Council as representative of the Israeli Association of Landscape Architects. After much effort, the first revision of the current Green-building code in Israel has started to address the issues described above.

In comparison to “green technologies”, energy efficiency and the like, the issues dealing with landscape architecture are still much less important, but the process has started and hopefully, future revisions will be more orientated towards our profession defining what would make us open our windows and keep them open, tolerating conditions that are less than perfect because we don’t want to miss what’s going on outside!

When we do this, I’m sure that landscape architecture will have the most profound and positive influence on our everyday lifestyles and on global warming as well.

Landscape Architecture:

The Tool to Help Revert The Negative Effects of Climate Change Mónica Pallares Mexico’s IFLA Delegate Climate change is a current theme that we cannot question or ignore. It is a reality that we are living day by day. In our memories the weather is not the same as it used to be ten or twenty years ago.

Climate change is not a phenomenon of the future; it is something that we have to deal with because it is happening and in most cases we cannot prevent its consequences.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 future in this world. Therefore we need to rethink the configuration and structure of our cities. This does not mean that we need to rebuild them, that would never be possible, but we can start their transformation through precise interventions that together can generate real change in our environment.

It is a fact that the structure and the way of life of our cities has caused enormous damage to our planet and that climate change is the biggest consequence. The real facts are that 50% of the world’s population lives in cities and it is calculated that in 2025 this will reach 75%. At this point 75% of the global pollution will be living in cities and 70% of the generated energy in the world will go to urban areas.

Therefore we need to start improving the quality and the characteristics of our urban environments in order to mitigate for the damage caused to the global ecosystem. Right now landscape architecture can be a good intervention tool in order to counteract the effects of climate change, as well as to start a process of transformation in our cities to improve their quality.

The landscape is the image that reveals the transformation of our environment and the devastation of our ecosystems. Deteriorated landscapes clearly reflect the cost that human activities are having on our planet.

Deforestation, pollution and global warming are just a few of the causes for the change in our climate. This is evident in glacial melting, flooding, drought and their implicit consequences.

Nevertheless, while some of our current landscapes are the result of human deterioration, a well planned and designed landscape can generate improvements in our environment and especially in our settlements, that can help to revert the negative effects of climate change.

We must first change our approach to landscape to not simply ornamental, the landscape is currently needed to ensure responsible development for the

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For Landscape Architects, as well as for other professionals responsible for the planning and design of our cities, it is a challenge to create new design alternatives through landscape design. It is also a challenge to work together with decision makers in order to generate consciousness regarding the value of landscape.

To work with the landscape architecture of a structured city implies reinventing design alternatives; to reconstruct, to restore and to re-create.

We have to conceive of the urban landscape with a new focus and the landscape itself is our inspiration and our guide.

The landscape is constantly transforming and adapting, learning from the landscape can give us new strategies to deal with the issues that make a city a complex system. Small but well structured interventions can make a large difference in the quality of an urban environment.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012

Landscape architecture can be a detonator of urban restoration through the reconstruction of public spaces. It can also be a detonator through the integration of small places into the green structure of the city in order to convert them into centers that have the ability to expand their benefit through the urban area. This is how landscape architecture can work as a tool to reinvent our urban spaces.

This idea proposes to strategically generate green nuclei where sustainable activities can be developed, not only recreational, but also urban agriculture, water retention and management, areas for social interaction and so on. Keeping in mind the benefits of a well planned area will provide us with the elements to improve the places where we intervene.

A spiral system can be created within the city and can generate an exchange of energy and elements that can take place there through the benefits of a well designed landscape. That is why public spaces have high potential to be the centers of the re-developed city and landscape architecture is the way to achieve this.

Considering theory on landscape ecology, patches and corridors are the most important elements of fragmented ecosystems. An urban structure can be seen as a fragmented system even though it can be understood the other way around when a green structure interacts within it. The green structure is the element that integrates the fragments into a whole.

Within green spaces in an urban environment it is possible to conceive green corridors and by extension, ecological corridors. Green and alive elements are part of our urban landscape. Additionally, large volumes of animals and insects are part of this ecosystem. Considering these living systems can enrich our approach to urban landscape design.

This is why landscape architecture currently plays a very important role in the improvement of our cities and as a result in our quality of life. Landscape architecture can help us to create a new vision and to understand our relationship with nature.

The city must be seen as a whole and not as isolated elements. If we design a park, it is not only for the piece of land where it is created, its impact goes far beyond a few meters or kilometers.

It has an impact beyond borders, especially with

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 But how does a well planed green space improve the urban environment?

It can reduce the urban heat island effect. A heat island is as its name recalls, an isolated or specific area where an elevation in temperature occurs.

This effect is caused by radiation that rises from asphalt, concrete, or mirrored surfaces, to mention a few. The green space can work as a sponge that traps the heat through vegetation and water elements.

A green space as a natural forest does, can be an instrument to manage storm water runoff. It becomes a sponge that absorbs water and slows down the runoff. Allowing rain water capture can help to improve the drainage system and control flooding.

These are the facts that make landscape architecture presently the best way to improve the urban environment. Understanding the landscape but also understanding the facts and the benefits of green space, it is possible to recreate imagination and develop interesting projects that will improve the places where we live and contribute to the restoration of our global environment.

P RO J ECT the fauna and insects that interact with the living structure we are creating. This is the essential difference between landscape design and other design disciplines, we work with living elements.

Re-thinking the urban environment and its structure can be the beginning of the transformation of our cities. If we conceive every transformed public space and we consider it as a green patch, that interconnects with the green structures that already exist in the city: parks and avenues lined with trees among others, we can think about creating an ecosystem submerged in the urban space that responds not only to recreational needs, but also to the needs affecting quality of life such as fresh air, heat reduction and rain water management.

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Playground the Natureluur in Amsterdam A Demonstration Project of Adapting Urban Green Physical Planning Department Amsterdam Truke van Koeverden

DEVELOPING THE WESTERN GARDEN CITIES OF AMSTERDAM The ‘Western Gar-

den Cities’ (Westelijke Tuinsteden) have been built as the example of post war functionalist urban extension. It was designed by the famous urban planner Van Eesteren of the City of Amsterdam

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012

The extension plan by Van Eesteren

To a vibrant urban space

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012

From city beach to underused green space

(1929 till 1959. The plan was profoundly inspired by the De Stijl art movement of the early twentieth century with Mondriaan and Rietveld as its renowned representatives.

The district has a growing, multicultural population. Of the 133,000 residents over half are minority groups. The annual family income is 15-20% below the Dutch average. Almost a quarter of the families earn the minimum wage and a relatively high number of households are on welfare.

There are persistent social problems, unhealthy lifestyles and out-dated, underused and polluted blue and green spaces, such as the Sloterplas and Sloterpark. This is partly due to the fact that the water in the Sloterplas is polluted by blue algae.

This has destroyed the successful city beach of the seventies and eighties. The area has a lot of watchgreen, with very few attractions or places to meet.

The Amsterdam City Council approved the Economically Strong and Sustainable Structural Vision: Amsterdam 2040 in 2011. It is the first strategic vision with ambitious policies on CO2 reduction, sustainable development and climate change. The focus will have to be on its implementation in the coming years. At the same time the economies are putting heavy strains on the available budgets and economic revitalization has become an important theme. According to the strategic vision 2040, Amsterdam is determined to extend the economically successful city center towards its outskirts. To that end the Sloterpas area is expected to become a metropolitan area attracting local Amsterdam citizens and businesses as well as a new mix of inhabitants.

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A PLAYGROUND AS ACCELERATOR OF URBAN DEVELOPMENT Past attempts at developing the Sloterplas area as an urban meeting place have failed. The development of the natural playground

by C-Change, an Interreg IV B project of the European Union, is the first major attempt to upgrade the green space around the Sloterplas. The playground is to enhance the famous heritage of Van Eesteren and invite people to meet, enjoy, teach and empower them to champion climate change solutions. The playground should preferably attract about 30,000 visitors per year, thus becoming a true metropolitan urban space. A careful process to engage the residents has been the strategic key to the success of this project.

THE PROCESS OF MAKING THE DESIGN

PARTICIPATION AND CO-CREATION The design of the natural playground was developed in a co-creation process with children, parents, residents, stakeholders, professionals and politicians. The participation process aimed at engaging the residents of the area, especially the hard-to-reach groups: children and parents in the area with diverse cultural backgrounds. At the same time the climate-change theme was introduced to them.

By means of street-interviews residents were asked about their ideas on the natural playground.

They found it hard to imagine such a place, which necessitated the development of more creative approaches. A tinker afternoon with children was organized at the yearly neighborhood festival.

There, children could make their own playgrounds of natural materials like twigs, moss and cork. The children loved it and they created about 30 models of natural playgrounds. Via a junior creation team the co-creation process was developed further with site visits and an interactive afternoon with parents, experts and politicians. The children presented their dream playgrounds. Designing them with a senior creation team was the next step. At first no representatives of the Moroccan and Turkish mothers participated. Special parent meetings at a school were organized to engage them. After that a stakeholders meeting was organized. Although not many stakeholders took part, it was a creative event and yielded lots of ideas for the

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Designed playground Denatureluur

playground. During 6 months a group of 15 children, aged 9 to 11 (the children’s press agency) focused on the natural playground by holding interviews with different stakeholders, such as the playground’s landscape architect, the Alderman of the city district and residents. This activity was embedded in the curriculum of the primary schools in the neighborhood. Finally, the draft design of the playground was discussed by a parent’s panel brought together in one of the schools on afternoons for mothers, and a wealth of ideas was delivered as input for the final design.

The participants of the co-creation process expressed the following wishes incorporated in the final design: • A protected place for very young children and an adventurous place for the “older” ones, a flower and herb garden for the young children and a wild nature place for the bigger ones.

• Playing with the four seasons, different altitudes and water • Elements appealing to the senses • Challenging and exciting playground equipment such as a cableway, a look-out • A marker for its entrance • Supervision • Lavatories THE FINAL DESIGN The final design of the natural playground was ready December 14, 2010 and presented to the Council Meeting, New-West. The members of the Council Meeting discussed whether they should confront children with information on climate change. A majority agreed to do so, thus championing climate change approaches. The necessary additional budget for upkeep and a host offering a variety of activities kept the discussion going during four council meetings. Since the borough faces severe cutbacks in expenditure, the Borough

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Playing with running water

Tag tour

Tag tour fairy tale version for small children

Council had to scrutinize every increase of its budget. The participation process and co-funding by the Interreg IV B project C-Change, protected the playground from being dropped. Finally, the Council Meeting approved the design in its meeting on March 2, 2011.

PLAYING AND EDUCATION ON CLIMATE CHANGE AND HEALTHY LIFESTYLES

The natural playground is a demonstration model of innovative multifunctional green spaces leading to climate-proof cities. Various functions are combined: it is a favorite meeting place, a challenge to move and play, it provides education on climate change, the promotion of healthy lifestyles and enhances the attractiveness of the area for the right investors.

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In the playground natural materials have been used to make children and their parents feel con-

nected with nature. The themes energy, water and biodiversity have been elaborated in the final design and climate change model-like examples showcased, such as: • A natural (helophyte) filter to clean the water will create the enhancement of joy, room to play and instruct on climate change, this element will tell part of the story about how the water quality in the Sloterplas can become cleaner.

• A running water stream to turn the stationary water nearby into running water which is also a fascinating place to play in or around.

• Soft borders along the stream to improve its selfcleaning capacity.

• The marker of the playground will showcase biodiversity and wind energy.

• Herb gardens and fruit trees like walnut and quince are to be planted.

• Different ways of producing renewable energy: solar and wind.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Natureluur tag tour trees explaining their importance for clean air

2. The natural playground De Natureluur is a demonstration model of multifunctional green spaces leading to climate-proof cities. Different functions are combined: a favorite meeting place to build a stronger community, which challenges children to move about and play, educates on and showcases climate change in a practical way, promotes healthy life-styles and enhances the attractiveness of the area for the right investors.

3. The design of the natural playground has been successfully developed in co-creation with inhabitants and stakeholders, the strategic key to success.

Hard-to-reach groups came on board because of a flexible and creative approach.

Natureluur tag tour wise owl telling about biodiversity

Digital story-telling on climate change and healthy lifestyles has been developed as well. It is a new application which uses a smart QR code and interactive story-telling on smartphones. To use a smartphone application seems appropriate because over 90 % of the New-West inhabitants are expected to have a smartphone by 2013. The concept of digital story-telling was “borrowed” from the cultural heritage sector. Two stories have been developed first: a fairy tale version for children under the age of six and an interactive adventure version for children over six. It is a flexible system and it will be easy to add new stories in the future.

CONCLUSIONS 1. The Amsterdam playground of the C-Change project is important for the realization of a climateproof Amsterdam, because it does not only showcase solutions for the implementation of climateproof urban development at a grass roots level, but it also demonstrates manners of engaging people in different ways by means of relatively low cost and flexible story-telling and co-creation

Truke van Koeverden has worked for the City of Amsterdam as a manager and senior advisor. From 2006 onward he has worked on the development and transformation of Amsterdam’s green areas. Playground the Natureluur is part of the project C-Change, which is a territorial cooperation project, funded under Priority 4 of the Interreg IV B Program of the European Union. C-Change aims to achieve a “sea-change” in attitudes, behaviors and practical responses to the challenges that climate change raises for city regions.

IFLA AMERICAS Regional Conference Invitation IFLA SAP 2012 October 17-20 Martha Fajardo Conference Chair IFLA Former President The International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA) and the Colombia Society of Landscape Architects (SAP) invites you to participate in the International Conference in Medellin on October 17th through the 20th entitled: Borders “landscapes on the alert”

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 engineering, art, and social sciences. Among the international keynote speakers we have the honor to have Maguelonne Dejeant-Pons, Diana Balmori, Frederic Rossano; Juan Figueroa West8 ; Elisabete Franca, Patricia Johanson, Pere Sala, Jeppe Andersen, Kathryn Moore, and the Colombians Alejandro Restrepo, Jorge Perez, Martha Fajardo, Diana Wiesner, Tomás Andrés Elejalde Escobar and German Ignacio Andrade.

The event will take place at the Plaza Mayor Convention Center located in an exceptional environment of urban rehabilitation. You will get to know the living and entertaining areas of the Plaza Mayor and enjoy its squares, parks, bamboo forest and restaurants.

The organizers of the conference are promoting an environmentally friendly conference (paperless); participants will perceive sustainable practices and Medellin will take steps towards being green.

Medellin, the city of eternal spring, which enjoys constant sunshine, would like to share these weeks devoted to LANDSCAPE with you. This is a city with the privilege of being surrounded by mountains that remain green year round that are home to a variety of beautiful trees, flowers, birds and butterflies. Medellin is a city of progress, tradition, industry, museums, theaters, concert halls, art galleries, a botanical garden, two airports, libraries, parks, green belts, and the sustainable metrocable transportation that make it in ideal location for a truly unique landscape experience.

The conference is structured around a series of dialogs, city visits, exhibitions, workshops and open lectures. It will challenge the international and regional panelists to go beyond the concept of borders and explore it as a design opportunity and environmental challenge; foreseeing a multi-scale approach when addressing diversity and landscape resilience.

The Conference program will be led by renowned international and local speakers coming from a large array of disciplines such as ecology, geography, architecture, landscape architecture,

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Within the framework of the event, we designed numerous parallel activities for the recognition and promotion of Landscape architecture: - The Signing of the LATIN AMERICAN LANDSCAPE INITIATIVE (LALI): This is an opportunity for the conference program to be reinforced with the ratification and the signature of the Latin American Landscape Initiative on October 19th 2012. This movement will transcend the city, country and region and you can be part of this landscape initiative!

- The International Student Competition as well as the International Photography Competition - Technical tours will travel through Medellin’s boundaries and appreciate its urban and social transformations - 30 year celebration of the Colombian Society of Landscape Architects (SAP) - Welcome ceremony at the Explora Park; Closing ceremony in the Orquideorama in the Botanical Garden of Medellin.

- The Americas Exco meeting and the five committees working groups at the Botanical Garden LALI FOREST planting ceremony: During the conference we will be implementing carbon-offset programs to make up for the fuel burned by those traveling to the event. There is a formula that can estimate the amount of carbon dioxide (a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming)

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012

generated by attendees. Using this formula, we have asked the airlines and our participants to donate trees. With these trees, we will be planting a small forest called “Bosque LALI” or “LALI Forest” a distinctive border project designed by Colombian landscape architects which symbolizes the signing of the Latin-American landscape Initiative.

Through photosynthesis, trees devour the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide and give oxygen in return. Trees are considered to be nature’s most efficient carbon sinks.

In order to gather multiple perspectives within the general framework of Borders: Landscapes on the Alert, the organizers SAP, IFLA and Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana (UPB), through its role as academic coordinator, have selected 26 speakers.

The discussion will focus on THE LANDSCAPE and remain within one of the following four themes:

1) Geographic reality vs. Forms of Occupation 2) Marginality vs. Identity 3) Public Policy vs. Landscape 4) Local innovation in the intervention There will be additional educational activities coordinated by the UPB in Medellin (through the “Landscape Design Master’s Degree”, chaired by Gloria Aponte) and the EDAP program (Educators in Landscape Architecture) as well as the continuation of the Uruguayan colleagues with ELEPA II, which is a second version of the Latin American Meeting of Landscape Students. All activities described will make this event truly unique.

Other opportunities to discover Colombia, a paradise for landscape lovers, will also be available.

“Colombia, the only risk is wanting to stay” Do not miss this opportunity to be part of these weeks devoted to LANDSCAPE! For more information, visit our webpage at: www.iflasap2012.com

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012

August 10, 2012

IFLA 2012 Americas Region Conference October 17 to 20

Programme http://www.iflasap2012.com/

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OPENING CEREMONY Marcelo Bedoya SAP President Desiree Martinez IFLA President Carlos Jankilevich Américas IFLA Vice President (Room 1 /2) MEDELLIN A CITY TRANSFORMED Panel of local speakers Alcaldía Medellín: a City in transformation Metro Medellín: a sustainable mobility system Tomás Andrés Elejalde Escobar UPB University: The academic challenge / Jorge Perez Urbam EAFIT: Bio 2030 Valle de Aburra/ Alejandro Echeverri (Room 1 / 2) BORDERS: LANDSCAPES ON THE ALERT Keynote Speaker Frédéric Rossano (Room 1/ 2)

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LANDSCAPE THE NEW TOOL IN PUBLIC POLICY The European Landscape Convention Public Policy vs. Landscape Session Theme Keynote speaker Dr. Maguelonne Dejeant-Pons (Room 1 / 2)

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SECOND NATURE Local innovation in the intervention Session Theme Keynote speaker Juan Figueroa West 8 (Room 1 /2)

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IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 25 min 25 min 25 min 16:30

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SAP 30 YEARS Celebration

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ELEPA UPB CONCLUSIONS (Latin American Landscape Architecture Students Gathering) STUDENT COMPETITION AWARDS Gloria Aponte, Carlos Sabogal (Room 1 / 2)

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SAO PAULO AND THE WATER RESOURCES PROGRAM Marginality vs. Identity Session Theme Keynote speaker Elisabete França (Room 1 / 2)

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ART AND SURVIVAL SOLUTIONS TO ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS Geographic reality vs. Forms of occupation Session Theme Keynote speaker Patricia Johanson (Room 1 / 2) DEBATE BORDERS: NEW VALUES, NEW IDENTITIES International and Local Speakers Kathryn Moore, Jeppe Andersen, Germán Ignacio Andrade (Room 1 / 2) Meeting Break (videos sponsors) SIMULTANEOUS SESSIONS

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SESSION ROOM 2 Public Policy vs. Landscape 30 min Towards an International Landscape Convention ILC Kathryn Moore 30 min The Colombian Landscape Charter JBB

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IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Speaker 1 Speaker 2

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BORDERS: THE CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW LANDSCAPE STORY Conference by Keynote speaker Pere Sala (Room 1 / 2) A LANDSCAPE MANIFIESTO Conference Theme by Keynote speaker Dr. Diana Balmori (Room 1 / 2)

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IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Initiatives Proposed to Contribute to a Paperless and More Environmentally Friendly Conference Parque Botero

3. Creating an eco-friendly event through social media networks: Event promotion through social media is one of the most environmental friendly and cost effective means of marketing.

Over the years there have been significant advancements and developments in the field of technology. The Internet has transformed into one of the most effective tools in marketing and is widely used to promote events and reach out to a wide range of potential participants. We have been able to set up iPads, iPhones and mobiles with an app to display important messages at the registration desk.

During the last year of conference promotion we have developed the following procedures:

Sustainability (paperless) is a growing tendency worldwide and is now finding its way into mainstream congresses, conferences, and events with regard to the decision to plan and attend meetings at convention centers. The following strategies demonstrate how the Colombian landscape architects’ Americas Regional Conference organizers are promoting a more environmentally friendly conference.

TOWARDS BEING GREEN 1. Working together: We requested the Aviatur operator, Plaza Mayor convention center, the Medellin Bureau and our partners to empower all people in Medellin involved (government, civil society, institutions, academia, etc.) to share as many environmentally friendly practices as possible before and during the conference.

2. A paperless conference: we asked that the use of paper at the conference be greatly reduce. This was done by converting documents and other papers into digital form. The landscape architect organizers maintain that “going paperless” can save money, save space, make documentation and information sharing easier, boost productivity, keep personal information more secure and help the environment.

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i. Set up the event’s website ii. Leverage the network iii. Involve efficient people and influence the networks iv. Reach out to relevant communities; Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, IFLA and Colombian Institutions among others v. Create a community around our event vi. Publish statements, the program content (and additional activities) and encourage others to create content 4. The five sectors of the Convention Industry Council CIC’s sustainability: in 2011 the CIC introduced the first comprehensive model which set the standard for environmentally sustainable meetings. IFLA_ SAP 2012 Americas Regional Conference chair recommended the Plaza Mayor Convention Center, Medellin Bureau and our Operator Aviatur to address the five sectors of the CIC’s sustainability model that directly impact the meeting venue; transportation; communication; destinations; exhibits and food/beverage.

5. At the convention center we ensure that free WiFi is available to facilitate the paperless programs and available information.

6. There will be a shuttle service for participants and their transportation needs.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Plaza Mayor Medellin

13. Eliminate use of Styrofoam and other difficult to recycle products 14. Provide alternatives to individual plastic water bottles 15. Institute a composting program for food waste 16. Instead of printing signs or banners, we will be using projectors and monitors. Projectors and monitors can offer more flexibility and a more interesting and animated way to display sponsor logos.

20.Offer incentives to exhibitors to become a “Green Exhibitor” by leaving all paper at the office.

These exhibitors will be marked with a “Green Exhibitor” badge at the booth. Instead of brochures, they will use TV and video as well as app publicity.

These interactive tools are more valuable for the exhibitors than a high gloss brochure in the trash can.

21. Arrange for exhibitors to donate leftover materials, exhibits, giveaways or booth decorations to local schools or nonprofit organizations.

Aerial view of the Convention Center

22. Ask exhibitors to minimize packing materials and to use recycled and reusable materials in their booths. If exhibitors need to hand out promotional products, we encourage them to consider items made from recycled or sustainable materials.

7. Recycle/Reuse programs

Registration Fees adjusted due to great support from our institutional and 8. We have educated convention center staff about commercial sponsors the sustainable options available.

9. Energy efficient lighting will be utilized as well as natural lighting whenever possible.

REGISTRATION ONLINE IS OPEN!

Register today and take advantage of the NEW reduced early fees.

10. Volunteer excursions to benefit the local community

All prices are in COLOMBIAN PESOS ($COP). US $ as of June 8, 2012

11. Energy saving equipment (such as timers, motion sensors, photocells)

Use the Currency Converter to see the price in DOLLARS

12. Locally sourced, green and healthy food will be provided

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Regular Fee Early Fee COP $ 380.000* US $ 215 until July 31 /2012 Standard Fee COP $ 480.000* from August 1 until October 17 /2012 Student Fee Early Fee COL $ 120.000* US $ 68 until August 31 /2012 Standard Fee COP $ 150.000* from September 1 until October 17 /2012 Day Ticket Standard Fee COL $240.000* only available onsite, no online booking possible Student COL $80.000* only available onsite, no online booking possible Especial Fee IFLA Delegate’s and Professors IFLA Delegate’s COL $300.000* US $ 170 until August 31 /2012 Professors COL $300.000* until August 31 /2012 Standard Fee COP $ 380.000* from September 1 until October 17 /2012 * All Fees VAT incl.

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Technical Tours Medellin

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 *IFLA Delegate’s list supply by DIANA WIESNER *Professors must attach current certificate that confirms them as teachers FOR MORE INFORMATION REGARDING THE TECHNICAL TOURS, VISIT US AT: http://www.mindomo.com/es/view.htm?m=31df047 286e944ae92cb5ed23160df09

ture), with 100 classroom hours. It has a solid group of teachers, mostly from North America, where landscape is an established profession with more than a century of tradition.

LOGISTICS The course will be given at the Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, Laureles (Block 9, shown in fig 1.), which is located in an easily accessible area of the city.

Addressed to Latin-American Landscape Educators Gloria Aponte García Education in landscape becomes more urgent and unavoidable every day. Training landscape professionals is a non-delayable responsibility and promises to contribute to the integral development of our environment. In this sense, IFLA (International Federation of Landscape Architects) and the Master of Landscape Design at the Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana in Medellín, have established an agreement to develop a certified course.

WHAT IS IT ABOUT? The edap program is a teaching qualification and updating project to promote training for landscape architecture development in Latin American countries by building teaching capacity in this discipline at the university level.

The program is scheduled in two parts: PART I: October 8th through the 17th, (Linked to the IFLA Regional Conference 2012).

PART TWO: March 8th through the 27th, 2013 (during the first days of the Easter holiday).

In academic terms, the program is designed as diploma certifiable (Colombian educational struc-

The yellow dashed line indicates the Cra 70, a street with plenty of accommodation. Those interested will be asked to fill out the proper documentation. It is estimated that tuition costs will not exceed 1,200 U.S. dollars.

The objective of ELEPA, is to motivate students’ participation in idea generation regarding the central themes of the Regional Conference.

As part of the Americas Regional Conference, IFLA 2012, the ELEPA will be held at the Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, Medellín. It will allow for a time of reflection and an intellectual exchange for students in the region in which the students’ perspectives will open debate on the theme “Borders: Landscapes on the alert.”

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 To meet this goal the agenda is as follows: 1. Welcome and conference: Professor Carlos Mario Cano of the UPB will provide an introduction to initiate the academic discussion.

2. Urban Tour: led by host students who will pose questions intended to open debate.

3. Presentations by countries: on what would be considered a “Landscape on the Alert” in their particular context.

4. Central debate: will be the framework for developing a Manifesto. This document will summarize the meeting and present its conclusions.

5. Results: student representatives will present the Manifesto and a summary of its findings at the IFLA Regional Conference on Friday the 19th, at the Convention Center Plaza Mayor.

7th European Biennial of Landscape Architecture in Barcelona Marina Cervera i Alonso de Medina Member of the Scientific Committee of the European Biennial of Landscape Architecture of Barcelona Among the wonderful events offered next September 2012 regarding landscape architecture (IFLA World Congress, ASLA Congress, ECLAS General Assembly, etc) I have to call attention to our humble European Biennial of Landscape Architecture in Barcelona.

Our 7th edition has to be inscribed within the framework of Spanish circumstances and therefore this edition should be valued as a small miracle performed at a national and European level to maintain the center of gravity of the profession for 3 days in the south of Europe, in Barcelona.

It is a huge collective effort, finally blossoming and therefore we have to admit we are very proud to announce the panel for the next edition.

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THE SYMPOSIUM: The symposium in its modernist splendid venue at the Palau de la Música, will last three days (Thursday 27th, Friday 28th and Saturday Morning 29th) and includes talks, presentations by the finalists of the Rosa Barba European Landscape Prize, round tables and discussions where it will be possible to track and evaluate the evolution of landscape design in Europe.

DAY 1: PRESENTATION OF THE ROSA BARBA EUROPEAN LANDSCAPE PRIZE FINALISTS. The International Jury Panel Members (IFLA President Desiree Martínez, Kathryn Gustafson, Karin Helms and Carme Ribas) have selected the finalists for the Rosa Barba European Landscape Prize from among the projects presented. A selection of 7 firms has been made from the 352 presented projects, all of them are works built in Europe between 2007 and 2011. The Jury was especially satisfied with the finalist short list that was agreed upon promptly and almost unanimously after several pre-finalist rounds during the spring virtual meetings.

The 7 selected works offered a representative and kaleidoscopic overview suitable for all audiences and ranging in scale. From the precious projects of The Written Garden ‘Gardens of the World’ by Marianne Mommsen or the delicate intervention of Michael van Gessel in “Twickel Estate, renovation of the historic park of Twickel Castle” to huge regeneration interventions such as the “Ettara, Effluent water treatment station” by Joao Nunes or Tudela Restoration in Cap de Creus by Martí Franch Batllori to the outstanding parks with social success “Ile Seguin, jardin de prefiguration“ by Michel Desvigne or “Martin Luther King park” by Jacqueline Osty both in Paris and the magnificent “Mangfallpark Rosenheim” by Robel Steffan.

DAY 2: BIENNIAL VS BIENNIAL Biennial against Biennial wants to be present at the discussion of what should be current landscape design and planning aiming to provide a plausible (and exciting) future. Consequently, the biennial will review formats, formulas, concepts and professional practice objectives while critically evaluat-

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 ing itself as the main living platform for European Landscape and a watchtower of the International Landscape Architecture movements. Within this framework, our keynote speakers will present and debate on our profession’s internationalization and the future.

Marieke Timmermans Landscape Architect , Head of the department of Landscape at Academy of Architecture Amsterdam and Owner at la4sale, The Netherlands.

Julie Bargmann Landscape Architect, Founding Principal of DIRT Studio and Associate Professor at Virginia University, USA. ROUND TABLE: Innovation in Education Chaired by Dr. Carles Llop Architect and Head of the Department of Urban Planning and Territorial Development at UPC and Founding Principal of Cabinet - Jornet - Llop - Pastor, Spain Dr. Manuel Bailo Architect and lecturer at the Department of Urbanism at UPC and Founding Principal of Bailo + Rull I ADD + Arquitectura, Spain Dr. Cristina Castelbranco Landscape Architect, Professor at Instituto Superior de Agronomia de Lisboa, UTL and Founding Principal of Acbpaisagem, Portugal Marc Claramunt Landscape Architect, Professor at “École Nationale Supérieure de La Nature et du Paysage” in Blois and CEO of FFP, French Landscape Architects Federation, France Dr. Ana Luengo Landscape Architect and Founding Principal of Citerea, Spain Dr. Lisa Mackenzie Landscape Architect and Lecturer at Edinburgh College of Art, United Kingdom Jorg Sieweke Landscape Architect and Assistant Professor at Virginia University (USA), Germany Dr. Sue Anne Ware Landscape Architect and Professor at Melbourne University, Australia

Manolo Ruisánchez Architect and Professor at the Department of Urban Planning and Territorial Development at UPC and Founding Principal of Ruisánchez arquitectes, Spain Gilles Vexlard Landscape Architect, Founding Principal of Latitude Nord and Professor at ENSP in Versailles, France.

ROUND TABLE: Innovation in Prof. Practice Chaired by Álex Giménez Architect and Professor at the Department of Urban Planning and Territorial Development at UPC and director of the project “Racons Públics”, Spain Bet Capdeferro Landscape Architect and Founding Principal of Studio Bosch-Capdeferro, Spain Dr. Matteo Gatto Architect, Professor of Landscape Architecture at Milan Politecnico and Chief Architect of Expo 2015, Italy Vicent Guallart (to be confirmed) Chief architect of the city of Barcelona , General Director of Urban Habitat since 2011 and Founding Principal of Guallart Architects, Spain Nigel Thorne Landscape Architect and President of the IFLA European Region, United Kingdom Ramon Torra (to be confirmed) Architect and CEO of Área metropolitana de Barcelona, Mancomunitat de Municipis, Spain Craig Verzone Landscape Architect in the state of Massachusetts (USA), member of the Swiss Federation of Landscape Architects and Founding Principal of Verzone Woods Architectes, Switzerland DAY 3: BIENNIAL FEATURING TOPOS: Under the title of “The World of Landscape Architecture” and by the hand of different landscape designers and governmental technicians we will give an over view of the last 20 years of the discipline according to Topos lecture on the occasion of the Topos silver jubilee.

Robert Schäfer, Topos: Challenges and Visions Sébastien Penfornis, Taktyk, Paris/Brussels, About Representation

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Topos Landscape Award 2012 Reiulf Ramstad, National Tourist routes Norway, Oslo, Architecture and Landscape Topos Jubilee Award 1 Christina Tenjiwe Kaba, Abalimi Bezekhaya, South Africa Cape Town, Micro Farming and more Topos Jubilee Award 2 Herbert Dreiseitl, Überlingen/Portland/Shanghai/ Singapore Green-Blue Infrastructure Kathryn Gustafson, Seattle/London, Concept and Design THE EXHIBITIONS The second strategic initiative aims to present all stages of work to Biennial participants and outside viewers. From student projects to professional works, the compendium of works express our desire to intently study and discuss landscape interventions, as much from the perspective of landscape architecture as from other disciplines that are linked to its study and evolution.

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Urbanism in Barcelona. It is the rearrangement of the 12 gates to the main city Park located in the mountain of Collserola. The works of national and international colleagues will be shown in the Architectural Association in order to generate debate on the city’s future and its strategic plan.

THE PUBLICATIONS We are proud to think we helped to facilitate the European professional evolution overview throughout the 6 catalogs covering a wide range of landscape intervention from 1990 to 2010.

Each European Biennial of Landscape Architecture can be traced to two complementary publications disseminating the contents of the Biennial and the Rosa Barba European Landscape Prize.

The main publication is of course the catalog. The Catalog of the 6th European Biennial of Landscape Architecture is in fact the physical outcome where the text of the lecturers can be found and the projects selected for exhibition in the European Biennial of Landscape Architecture are published.

Rosa Barba European Landscape Prize exhibition A selection of the presented projects, works built in Europe between 2007 and 2011, will be available for viewing at the Architectural Association in Plaça Nova at the permanent exhibition on the ground floor. Those projects are the ones to be compiled in the Catalog of the 7th European Biennial of Landscape Architecture.

Complementary to this, we always have a program for the event comprising our pre-catalogue. This booklet was humbly laid out as a collection since its 1st edition in 1999. It has a compilation of the illustrated CV’s of all lecturers, Jury, curators and organizers in order to provide information on all of our participants on the moment of the arrival (digital version of the 7th available on our website)

International exhibition of Landscape Schools For one final year, Barcelona holds the International Exposition of University Projects in the Schools of Architecture and Landscape. The organizing committee considered that the participation of the didactic works remarkably contributed to enriching the debate on landscape architecture. The final outcome represented 92 schools worldwide, proudly defining transcontinental best practices in our profession.

COMPLEMENTARY LANDSCAPE ACTIVITIES Last but not least, we would like to resume the compendium of parallel activities organized during the biennial, thanks to the viral effect of the Biennial in Catalan society and the resulting initiatives that complement the experience of the event. The importance of these additional events is paramount. Additional events speak volumes about an event’s success.

COLLSEROLA GATES EXHIBITION This is an open exhibition showcasing the outcomes of the latest competition in Landscape and

AWARD CEREMONY A remarkable Award Ceremony will take place in the Palau Auditorium: the Announcement of the 7th Rosa Barba European Landscape Prize winner,

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Part of the green and blue infrastructure of Helsinki visited by conference participants, photo by Maria Ignatieva

followed by the announcement of the International School Exhibition winner, the announcement of Barcelona’s latest Landscape Architecture Competition winner and the Public Opinion Award.

SATURDAY EVENING AND SUNDAY GUIDED TECHNICAL VISIT The Commission wants to point out once again the importance of experiencing firsthand 3 of the city’s latest landscape projects.

A guided visit to the Llobrebat river restoration by the Mancomunitat de Municipis will be provided on Saturday Evening. A bike Tour to the waterfront of the city and a slow food itinerary through the renewed Montjuic mountain landscape will be available for Sunday Morning visitors.

As above mentioned, next September offers many attractive traveling opportunities for professionals aiming to visit and learn about our profession at an international scale. Barcelona is an inexpensive alternative to focus both on education and the future of professional practice while enjoying the end of summer in our beloved city. Looking forward to meeting you all there!

ICON-LA (EFLA 2012) Conference 11-17 June 2012 “Green Infrastructure: from Global to Local” Diane Menzies Past IFLA President If representation by landscape architects from a wide range of countries is the criterion for a successful international conference, the ICON-LA conference of 2012 excelled. There were 307 participants from 41 countries and while cultural diversity adds richness to conference proceedings, there were many other special features of this event as well. IFLA Europe chose to hold their annual Grand Assembly in St Petersburg, the initial venue for the conference, the weekend beforehand. This helped to broaden the conference attendance from those who remained after the meeting. It also allowed the Grand Assembly participants to take part in tours arranged to magnificent city parks as well as cruise the city waterways by night. Thank you to Nigel Thorne, IFLA Vice President; and Ilya Mo-

chelov, Secretary General, for their contribution to later proceedings.

St. Petersburg has a wealth of grand venues and the Marble Palace, where the first stage of the conference was held was entirely fitting for dialogue on the conference topic. The main objective of the conference was to raise attention and awareness among scientists, urban planners, landscape architects, city administrators and other stakeholders about the importance of creating sustainable green infrastructure in cities. This was achieved through the presentation of a large range of papers, and the publication of proceedings, but also through: • Press conferences and media presence • Visits to the recently rehabilitated Summer Garden of Peter the Great, which had given rise to considerable debate • Transfer by train through the wetland and forest landscape of the Finish/Russian border • A tour to sites around the harbour of Helsinki • A ferry transfer overnight through the Swedish archipelago to Stockholm and short presentations in the evening on the ferry • Visits to parks and heritage buildings in Stockholm and beyond which included crossing a lake, again by boat and an inner town walk along a river in Uppsala, allowing reflection on water quality and management in the three cities visited • Paper presentations in both St Petersburg, supported by convenor Irina Melnichuk of St Petersburg State Forest Technical Academy, and at

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Participants applaud a presentation at the workshop on the ferry to Stockholm, photo by Maria Ignatieva

My lasting memories of the conference are discussing the bog landscape we were passing in the train to Helsinki with a Bulgarian lecturer in professional practice, and standing under shared umbrellas in the eco-village on the last day with those who were still eager to take part, although almost sleep walking.

All the rich memories I have from my participation in the ICON-LA conferences have been thanks to student support, but primarily to Maria Ignatieva who, with her colleagues in Russia, and now Sweden, has provided the professional leadership and vision that benefits our profession.

Uppsala University in Sweden convened by Tuula Erickson, Per Berg, Rolf Johansson and Clas Florgård.

• A visit to an eco-village near Uppsala led by Per Berg who, with his family, hosted visitors at his home in the village The 6th ICON-LA conference was the most ambitious and stimulating of a series of conferences in St Peterburg which have included a collaboration between Lincoln University in New Zealand and regular support from the city of St Petersburg through Larisa Kanunnikova, the city’s chief landscape architect. The aim of the first conference was to make a contribution to the emerging landscape architecture profession in Russia. However as each event expanded in breadth and participation, international participants have also appreciated the cultural landscape of St Petersburg. The Russian profession has expanded and participants from all over Russia have attended the events.

Landscape architects always welcome the support of allied organizations and the ‘Green Infrastructure’ conference had the benefit of financial support in St. Petersburg from the City Administration and FTU as well as in Sweden from SLU (Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences), the Swedish Institute and FORMAS. A warm thanks to all. This enabled participation from a broad range of nationalities, particularly from those who otherwise would not have been able to attend and contribute.

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Winners of the OPPTA Competition 2011-2012 Emergency Interventions

12 prizes awarded from a total of 71 proposals received.

The selected teams go on to the second phase towards project execution.

MADRID, JULY 3RD 2012. The Pan-American Observatory has just released the list of winners of the OPPTA Competition “Emergency Interventions” for each of the 5 sites participating in this first edition: Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru.

The Competition, the first call of its kind in Latin America, has been a great success, with over 100 registered teams who submitted a total of 71 proposals: 11 from Peru, 13 from Brazil, 14 from Mexico and Chile and 19 from Colombia.

The international Jury, formed by Raquel Barrionuevo (Peru), Felipe Correa (Ecuador), Derek Dellekamp (Mexico), Juan Freire (Spain), Rodrigo Pérez de Arce (Chile), Carlos Arroyo (Spain) and Camilo Restrepo (Colombia), convened in the

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012

School of Architecture at the Ponti cia Universidad Católica of Chile during the st and nd of June to choose the winning projects The OPPTA Competition established its prizes in two phases The rst phase o ers a cash prize of for each winning team up to a maximum of per site and the second phase during which the winning teams have the opportunity to present their proposals at a Negotiation Table with the municipalities and agents involved in local national development OPPTA makes it possible and easy for professionals institutions and multilateral agents to gather and determine the feasibility of the projects After two days of deliberations the Jury decided to award the prizes to the following teams BRAZIL Matías Nieto Tolosa Gonzalo Castro Fdez Palacios José Ramón Guerra del Moral and Edgar Ignacio Mazo Lucía Martín López and Gonzalo Muñoz Bartolomé CHILE Anna Gutiérrez Merin José María Sánchez García Jorge Nieto Pujol and Tadea Ipiña Mariscal Benedetta Rodeghiero Elena Gimeno and Jordi Marfá Bayés COLOMBIA Amaya Barrera González Daniel González Ochoa and Antonio Luigi Stella Richter

Elena Gómez Merino Juana Canet Rosello and Rut Cuenca Candel PERU Jaime G Méndez Quintero and Yesenia I Teles de Aguiler MÉXICO Anna Gutiérrez Merin David Ortega and Alberto Odériz Additional information on the composition of the teams and the Jury s minutes can be found at http://concurso.oppta.org/en.

The winning projects will be coming soon to our website More information: OPPTA Public Relations Karina Scarone k.scarone@oppta.org www.observatoriopanamericano.org

Beyond Rio People s Summit Latin America Taking the Lead Saide Kahtouni Martha Fajardo Virginia Laboranti The Rio People s Summit has con rmed that sustainable development will only be achieved through the leadership of a bottom up approach and the new paradigm Harmony with Nature to replace the prevailing model based on endless economic growth

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 The International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA), put forward a resolution to recommend the development of a UNESCO International Landscape Convention (ILC). The aim was recognition, in the final declaration of the Rio+20 Conference, of landscape as one of the fundamental elements of sustainable development and the consideration of all landscapes, including the significant, everyday and/or degraded landscapes as well as every kind of space (urban, rural, natural).

This conference paralleled the Peoples’ Summit, Rio +20. Martha Fajardo, IFLA former President, and Saide Kahtouni, ABAP former President were invited as keynote speakers. The event took place at the Institute of Architects of Brazil on June 21st with the participation of many Latin Americans from diverse professional backgrounds, the executive committee of the CAU-Br and the president of the International Union of Architects (UIA) Mr. Albert Dubler.

UNESCO has begun a reflection on the feasibility of a new world instrument on landscape. The urgent need for an International Landscape Convention (ILC) should take advantage of the strong interest in this proposal worldwide. It will provide leadership and additionally complement and reinforce the bottom up approach which has led to existing and proposed landscape charters in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela, national charters in Australia and New Zealand, regional charters in the Mediterranean, Africa and the European Landscape Convention (signed by 37 nation states).

During the Rio+20, the IFLA Americas Region came together with the Latin American Landscape Initiative (LALI), the Brazilian Landscape Charter and Latin American landscape Charters from various national associations, institutions, civil organizations and environmentalists to recommend practical landscape solutions to meet current sustainable development challenges.

RIO+20 PEOPLE’S SUMMIT CONFERENCE AND THE IFLA LANDSCAPE INITIATIVES The realization of the Rio+20 People’s Summit Conference, June 2012 in Brazil, proved to be an excellent opportunity for public discussion of the landscape charters, in particular the Brazilian landscape Charter (lead by Saide Kahtouni), within the regional context of LALI and the Global perspective of the ILC. The Council of Architecture and Urbanism of Brazil (CAU-Br), created on December 30th 2010, after 50 years of debate, promoted this Conference providing a direct connection with the organization Rio +20, Brazilian architects and urban planners. This initiative also had the support of the post-graduate Program in urban planning and landscape architecture at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and the Brazilian Association of Landscape Architects (ABAP).

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The event started with an address delivered by the counselor Miguel Pereira, representing the president of CAU-Br followed by Jonathas Magalhães, president of the Brazilian Association of Landscape Architects (ABAP). Miguel Pereira emphasized the need for landscape architects and architects to understand the earth as a small planet in the universe. The sight of the moon and stars were persistent in his youth which made him worry about our potential future. He remembered well the relationship of poetry to the landscape and all of the connections made possible within this theme.

Martha Fajardo, Latin American Landscape Initiative (LALI) Chair, made a presentation on the advancement of the process initiated by UNESCO concerning the development of a global instrument on landscape and the need to bring the discussion to all relevant international actors; institutions, civil society, and the economic sector.

Through illustrations, Martha drafted the LALI; a declaration of fundamental ethical principles to promote the recognition, assessment, protection and management of Latin American sustainable landscape planning, through the adoption of conventions (laws-agreements, decrees, ordinances) that recognize diversity, local, regional and nation-

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 al values, tangible and intangible landscapes and the principles and processes that safeguard them.

The implementation of LALI demands instrumental support, both from institutions and from professional organizations, to ensure and encourage professional development processes, planning and habitat management that is respectful and harmonious with the landscape.

“Gross national happiness (GNH) is more important than Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and is needed to integrate sustainability and equity in the post2015 agenda” “Happiness must be the pure goal of development, so why do we trivialize it? Because we trivialize happiness and the purpose of life, and therefore pursue the wrong things.”

Prime Minister Jigmy Thinley of Bhutan Through strategies, she highlights how the initiative’s goal is to add the full value of the landscape to the economic value of natural resources in each country. Towards this end, the discussion stresses the imperative to recognize this generation’s responsibility to the landscape now and in the future.

She points out that economic activity aimed at gaining a return on territory in the short term is depleting natural resources and irreversibly destroying the wealth of the regional landscape.

LALI is a starting point to guide and unite Latin American efforts in the pursuit of conservation, protection and sustainable management of the landscape. The speech ended inviting the participants to be part of the group endorsing the initiative. The LALI will be signed by IFLA delegates, members, civil society, supporters, ONGs and institutions during the closing ceremony at the IFLA/SAP Americas Regional Conference, in Medellin, Colombia, on October 19th, 2012.

Saide Kahtouni, Brazilian Landscape Architects Association’s (ABAP) former President, gave a brilliant speech on the Brazilian Landscape Charter and its twelve principles. In a very comprehensible way she stressed the importance of working together and how the whole Council of Architects,

Landscape Architects, Urban designers, the National Federation of Architects and Urban Planners (FNA) as well as civil society are working in synergy. Each principle was discussed and presented to the audience in a very coherent way.

She noted that in South America we learn more about the history of Europe and North America, often forgetting our closest neighbors. Our nation’s borders need to be looked at from the perspective of the landscape, overcoming mountain ranges, valleys and rivers.

Our cities were founded on the edges of the our continent while the heart was preserved in the great forests of Amazonia which currently protect the ecosystem of the Amazon rainforest and the Atlantic forest which boast the largest amount of biodiversity in the world.

For the construction of landscape design that reflects a country, like the one that Simon Bolivar dreamed of in the early nineteenth century, we need to know about and register in that territory what is important. To protect and preserve is necessary for dialogue between countries. In this way we will find many similarities in the landscapes of America. The landscape should belong to the communities and guard within it the history of their work and daily life. The Landscape Charters stress these ideals.

Saide Kahtouni stressed the urgent need for active participation of individuals, public and private institutions, NGOs and civil society in general, as essential to achieving better management of landscape heritage. These ideas lead us to “processes” that bring about successful landscape and land management plans.

Jeferson Salazar FNA President, opened debate making clear to the participants that Brazil will support the initiatives. He presented an innovative and critical thinking discourse on landscape and human rights, serving as a platform to inspire a diversity of ideas and conceptual interpretations. Landscape and its impact on both human and natural habitats requires knowledgeable tools

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 to address 21st century territorial challenges. He emphasized the need to create more legal instruments that guarantee the rights of the population to the landscape, such as the recent creation of the Statute of the Metropolis, where Brazilian architectural entities can anticipate the incorporation of the Brazilian Landscape Charter’s principles.

The Institute of Brazilian Architects (IAB) president and the UIA president, Mr. Albert Dubler delivering the opening address

WHAT IS RIO+20?

Rio+20 – is the short name for the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development which took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in June of 2012.

This conference was a worldwide opportunity to define pathways to a safer, more equitable, cleaner, greener and more prosperous world for all.

THE URBAN SUMMIT: June 18th, 2012, Forte Copacabana. “Urban summit Good Urban Development Key to Sustainable Development” organized by UN-HABITAT. Here, UN-Habitat with the support of the Cities Alliance and the United Nations Advisory Committee of Local Authorities (UNACLA), under the auspices of the City of Rio, brought together 250 local and regional government representatives to discuss their contribution to the Summit. This was an excellent opportunity to record all of the initiatives and strategies especially from Latin American participants and governors. They expressed the desire to work towards a “green society” moving from global to multi-level governance and defining strategies to achieve

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Sustainable Development Goals with the Habitat III Conference in 2016.

FORESTS. THE 8TH ROUNDTABLE AT RIO+20, JUNE 19TH: The Royal Tulip Hotel, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, hosted one of the most important environmental gatherings in a generation. Organizers identified seven key issues to form new sustainable development goals: jobs, energy, cities, food, water, oceans and disasters. However, Forests were largely excluded from most of these key issues. To ensure that forests remain high on the agenda, the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) coordinated a very large conference on forests alongside the Rio+20 Summit.

During the 8th Roundtable at Rio+20, the panelists discussed new research findings, remaining knowledge gaps and their policy implications for integrating forests into the solutions to four key challenges to a green economy: Energy, food and income, water, and climate. It was an excellent opportunity to highlight that Landscape should remain high on the agenda to achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

Additional Parallel session with the participation of IFLA Rio+20 /UNCSD: The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, held in RioCentro (a convention center 571.000 m² and a two hour drive from Copacabana), consisted of more than 500 on-site events organized by Government, Major Groups, UN Organizations and other International Organizations. The preparatory meetings The open session from left to right: Jonathas Magalhães, ABAP President 2011-2012; Miguel Pereira, representing CAU-Br; Martha Fajardo in center; Denise Machado, Post Graduate Program in Urbanism (Prourb) Director/ Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ); Jeferson Salazar, Architect Coordinator and FNA President and Saide Kahtouni.

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 Martha Fajardo, explaining LALI to FNA President and to the general public at the Institute of Architects of Rio de Janeiro with the support of the architectural entities of Brazil.

took place on June 13th . The Sustainable Development Dialogue Days were held from June 16th19th. We attend two dialogues but were unable to attend the Summit which took place on June 20th -22nd.

The organizers of Rio+20 were keen to emphasize that even as the formal proceedings turned out to be disappointing, this had been partially compensated for by the enormous networking opportunities the meeting provided for sustainable development participants. It was a unique opportunity to share dreams and real initiatives and to learn from one another. By the end of the meeting, more than 700 initiatives had been registered for concrete action by organizations, NGOs, individual institutions and partnership agreements. Together they show that a massive global commitment to sustainable development already exists, even without promises of resource transfers from political leaders.

This outcome confirms what many have been arguing: that a sustainable economy can only be built from the grassroots and with the full inclusion of community groups, civil society, institutions and other interested stakeholders. What became very clear in Rio was that the key to global sustainable development now lies in the hands of civil society, political muscle and imaginative thinking in the developing world.

To sensitize people on the matter, civil society, and particularly NGOs, will be key to advocacy. Since they work at the grassroots level through their national and local branches, they are knowledgeable regarding the needs and attitudes necessary to preserving the landscape. It is now up to us to show what we can do better, for example by taking on a key role in defining the forthcoming Sustainable Development Goals and presenting actions to make this happen along with the Latin American Landscape Initiative (LALI) and its landscape charters.

We deeply thank our colleagues from Brazil for their leadership, commitment, support and sponsorship of this event, especially our ABAP colleagues Saide Kahtouni, Jonathas Magalh達es and Lucia Costa.

Going up the wall in New Zealand Leigh Nicholson

It sounds like the start of a joke; 3 women, a French woman, a Canadian and a South African have just launched a new product for vertical gardening in New Zealand, but this is no joke and we are very excited about our new Hanging Gardens as we believe this is the first product to be truly affordable for the average home owner and presents a new environmentally-friendly opportunity for gardeners and landscape designers to go vertical!

IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 footprints. Modern architecture now places an increasing amount of attention in ensuring that the quality of life is maintained in urban areas and plants and green spaces are a vital dimension in urban design. Due to limited space, green areas are now going vertical and ‘living walls’ and ‘vertical gardens’ have become generic terms for these types of spaces. Internationally, Patrick Blanc has been influential in getting vertical gardens accepted as a viable way of cleaning the air and greening up urban spaces and he has done some magnificent vertical gardens around the world. At the latest Chelsea Flower Show, almost all the landscape designers used some form of vertical garden, but not much has happened in the suburban arena.

The global trend of increasing landfills has reduced the amount of space available for gardens and increased the number of walls and fences. Our vision is to cover the bare and ugly walls with Hanging Gardens and recreate the traditional hedgerows to provide corridors of vegetation for birds and wildlife, reduce storm-water runoff, improve air quality and transform the suburbs into the Hanging Garden of New Zealand – a new wonder of the modern world! We see great opportunities for homeowners who are running out of gardening space, have bare or ugly fences, who look out onto a blank wall or who simply want a unique and creative focal point.

We spent 8 months conducting trials on our gardens and last month launched “Hanging Gardens” in New Zealand where it is generating quite some interest.

We know that hanging gardens and living walls are not new concepts and the ideas have been around for centuries. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon date back to around 500 BC and were the second oldest wonder of the ancient world (after the Pyramids). Early civilizations used hedgerows as walls and old cities, such as the Moorish city of Cordoba in Spain, are still famous for their hanging courtyard gardens. But what has made these ideas more relevant today, is the decreasing amount of green spaces in urban areas and the introduction of legislation to control air pollution and carbon

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IFLA Newsletter Issue 100 August 2012 boat! Elderly people have commented that they are great as this eliminates bending. We have installed Hanging Gardens in driveways to improve the look of ugly fences, in courtyards to add privacy and a floral focal point, on garden fences and walls to provide a creative signature and in retirement homes to provide additional gardening space.

Hanging Gardens come in standard sizes or can be tailor-made to fit particular sites and plants. We think they can also be used on apartment balconies; one side for herbs and edibles and one side for flowers, in sub-economic townships where space, soil and water are valuable commodities, in schools for children to learn about the importance of environmental conservation and in other urban areas where a cost effective green space can provide a relaxing ambiance while quietly improving the quality of air and life.

The idea of going vertical provides all sorts of new opportunities for urban designers to contribute to the environment and a product for the home owner that will hopefully stimulate the demand for living walls around the globe. If you are interested in our product please have a look at our website on this link: http://www.hanginggardens.co.nz

Hanging Gardens can be used in sunny & shaded areas and are perfect for spring bulbs, annuals and perennial favorites. They are ideal for herbs, tomatoes, strawberries & other edibles and by going up the wall, the need for pesticides can be dramatically reduced.

Our Hanging Gardens have the unique feature of interchangeable, inner felt pockets which allow you to swap and change the plants around.

This means the vertical garden can be kept looking good throughout all seasons and this feature makes Hanging Gardens quick to install, easy to move and most importantly, great fun to play with!

Some people have bought them so they can take their herbs to the holiday home or along on the