SOCIAL URBANISM IN REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT: AGENCY AND ADAPTATION OF THE EXISTING TEJAS SAIYYA

Conflicts on antagonistic political claims over the geographical space cause unrest leading to war and crisis, leaving long-term tangible and intangible scars. As citizens in those regions try to escape seeking safety from persecution and political upheaval, a second crisis unfolds, the emergence of the refugee. Growing through a lengthy process to achieve this status, refugees embark on a journey that may leave them in refugee camps for many years1 while they wait to be transferred to the final destination through the refugee resettlement program2.

While many US cities view refugees as an opportunity rather than a burden3, it is the refugees who face many challenges in integrating into the host society. In the US, the challenges depend on their migration experience, their resources to function in unfamiliar environments, and the receptiveness of the receiving cities4. With these challenges in mind, host cities are expected to create an environment that adapts and responds to the needs of incoming refugees, allowing them to integrate into a new urban environment. How can designers help create more adaptive and resilient urban environments for refugee populations while also serving the needs of the current residents?’

Many US cities recognize refugees’ potential to reactivate their economies and social fabric in urban areas struggling with population loss. Southeast Michigan, for instance, is home to about half of all the refugees resettled in Michigan over the past ten years 5 and the local economic impacts of the refugees on their communities are widely felt6. Further raising the productivity of the city, they access the job market, stimulate returns and investment, boost innovation, and grow the local enterprise7. Yet, refugees face many challenges and require a solid social network of support. . The research studies the city of Inkster in Michigan as new grounds for accepting refugees through the lens of social urbanism - mapping the social structure, ecology, and infrastructure that exists. Counteracting the trauma induced by war and ensuring a dignified, equitable life for refugees of all backgrounds seeking asylum in new territories should be a priority for urban designers. With the world facing an unprecedented refugee crisis, helping cities become safe heavens is imperative for their resiliency. Therefore, through the social urbanism lens, this research questions agency of refugees and the role of social infrastructure in aiding the regeneration and anchoring of the communities? This research shows how urban designers can contribute to the co-creation of socio-spatial frameworks that provide resilience through social infrastructure.

Keywords

Social Infrastructure, Social Ecology, Egalitarian Communities, Agency URBANISMS

Social Urbanism, Crisis Urbanism.

Notes

1. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, “Resettlement,” UNHCR, 2018,

2. “The U.S. Refugee Resettlement Program – an Overview,” www.acf.hhs.gov, n.d.

3. Philippe Legrain, “Refugees Are Not a Burden but an Opportunity - OECD,” www.oecd.org, 2016.

4. Uma A Segal and Nazneen S Mayadas, “Assessment of Issues Facing Immigrant and Refugee Families,” 2005.

5. “Economic Impact of Refugees in Southeast Michigan Immigration Research Library,” www. immigrationresearch.org.

6. “Economic Impact of Refugees in Southeast Michigan the Background 4,” n.d.,

7. Philippe Legrain, “Refugees Are Not a Burden but an Opportunity - OECD,” www.oecd.org, 2016.

Urban Parks As Infrastructur In New York City

Dongdong Shu

What is an urban park? In Basies Landscape Architecture, park, in urban terms, is an often green and pleasantly landscaped area of land set aside for public use, in particular sports, recreation and relaxation, and also valuable for its ecological functions.”1 The main feature being its public nature, urban parks represent equity. As spaces that everyone can enter and use without additional conditions. Ownership and management considerations are critical in the sustainability of urban parks. When public, the government manages and operates them, but many privately owned park are also publicly accessible. Urban parks are critical infrastructures providing a wide range of social, ecological and cultural services for all citizens. More and more private capital pumped for enter the construction and operation of the parks.2 The relationship between the park and the city is starting develop a new dynamics that may challenge their public nature, and as such, the notion of the park as an open and egalitarian urban space. So how can we reveal this dynamic relationship between the production of public assets and the aggressive logics of private capital fueling urban development? What kind of future may this render and how can the urban designer take part on it?

This research focuses on the production of urban parks in New York City and uses the lens of landscape and empirical urbanisms in its development. The research develops a taxonomy of urban parks and maps and analyzes their key features. 3 4 Six types of urban parks include: the extra-large carpet, the waterfront theme, the infrastructure ground, the community commons, the pocket node, and the plaza. The analysis of elements includes: edge, size, program, ownership, access, management and operation. Thorough an in-depth analysis of Brooklyn Bridge Park and Bryant Park address the key factors of its formation, the main spatial types, and the relationship between private capital and public interests. As popular public spaces, urban parks are not only a place for outdoor activities, and entertainment, but also a habitat for a host of ecologies to thrive. Good design should integrate people and wildlife and consider the role of parks facing a changing climate in our cities. The layers of management and operation of such space resources is central to make them an important space asset for cities. Urban designers can contribute beyond space design integrating life cycles and programmatic and management regimes in their design for the parks in the city.5

Keywords

Urban Parks, Infrastructure, Landscape Urbanism, Publicity, Operation

Urbanisms

Landscape Urbansim, Empirical Urbanism.

Notes

1. Waterman, Tim, and Ed Wall. Essay. In Basics Landscape Architecture 01: Urban Design, 170. London: Bloomsbury Visual Arts, 2017

2. KAYDEN, Jerold S. Privately Owned Public Space. The New York City Experience. Toronto, John & Wiley & Sons, 2000.

3. Cranz, Galen. The Politics of Park Design: A History of Urban Parks in America. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1989.

4. “OneNYC 2050: Building a strong and Fair City.” 2019. #OneNYC. https://onenyc. cityofnewyork.us/.

5. Low, Setha M., Dana Taplin, and Suzanne Scheld. Rethinking Urban Parks: Public Space and Cultural Diversity. University of Texas Press, 2006.