Green Infrastructure Practicum: Sample 18-Hour Syllabus
Course Description Green infrastructure uses natural ecological processes to address environmental and social challenges in urban environments. Urban planners are increasingly seeking to use green infrastructure to provide ecosystem services such as stormwater management to local communities, and the range of possible benefits and design options continues to expand. This course will use the Vacant to Vibrant project, a green infrastructure project spanning three U.S. Midwest cities, as an extended case study to draw out broader themes in urban planning, design, and sustainability. Lectures and group exercises will help to integrate learning of conceptual knowledge, planning process skills, and problem solving skills. The course will begin with an overview and discussions of urban land vacancy, stormwater management, and neighborhood dynamics, with a focus on the three cities participating in Vacant to Vibrant. We will then discuss Vacant to Vibrant project planning, design, implementation, and long-term maintenance while translating relevant process skills to our local context. Finally, we will use lessons learned from Vacant to Vibrant to envision opportunities and challenges related to scaling green infrastructure pilot projects beyond the neighborhood level. Course Learning Goals By the end of this course, students will be able to: 1. Explain the multidisciplinary processes involved in developing, carrying out, and sustaining urban green infrastructure projects. 2. Use knowledge of organizational, historical, social, environmental, and economic context to solve green infrastructure planning and design challenges. 3. Select candidate project sites and plantings using public data and technology tools. 4. Engage diverse stakeholders in project planning and feedback processes. Course Expectations Required Textbook Albro, Sandra L. 2019. Vacant to Vibrant: Creating Successful Green Infrastructure Networks. Washington, DC: Island Press. 190 pp. ISBN-13: 978-1-61091-900-5 [Clarification of expectations with regards to, e.g., requests for disability accommodations, course format, timeliness of completing assessments, make-up work for missed class time, etc., can be included based on instructor’s preferences and institutional requirements.]