MODULE DESCRIPTION

UD5601 URBAN DESIGN STUDIO 1

The first urban design studio focuses on establishing a comprehensive understanding of urban design procedures. Following UD5622, the studio explores a deeper understanding on various urban systems (urban form, public space networks, transport/infrastructure networks, green/blue networks) and their synthesis. Students are expected to work in groups on all studio tasks. The studio is broken down into two stages – in the first stage, all groups propose different guide plans for an urban district; in the second stage, all groups are assigned with different sites for developing masterplan and urban design guidelines. Along with the design process, students are expected to conduct case studies, socioeconomic and geospatial analysis using knowledge from other modules. Instructors from other modules also engage in the studio’s review activities, in order to foster multi-level collaborative learning.

UD5602 URBAN DESIGN STUDIO 2

Building on the learning outcomes of Urban Design Studio 1, this module comprises three independent design studios, each aiming to tackle a contemporary urban challenge that is aligned with the studio leader’s expertise. Students are expected to work in groups, conducting systematic theoretical research, analysing urban design precedents, articulating urban design strategies, and developing fine-grained urban design schemes. Each studio usually includes a field trip to a city either within or beyond the region that is in line with the studio theme, allowing students to expand their horizons and gain experiences of working with local authorities and institutions (the field trip has been suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic).

UD5221 URBAN DESIGN THEORY AND DISCOURSE

Urban design is a discipline that focuses on the interaction of groups of buildings, streets and open spaces within a larger context. This introductory module will focus on some of the physical elements that impinge and influence urban design. The module aims to impart knowledge, understanding and analytical skills in urban design, through lectures, reading discussions, fieldwork and case studies analysis in order to develop the capacities of the students to: Describe city fabric and its material stocks, flows and their interdependencies; Understand the socio-economic drivers and catalysts for urban design; Appreciate and evaluate the performance of city elements in time; and Formulate well-reasoned criteria for analysis and assessment of contemporary urban design conditions of varying scales, complexity and contexts.

UD5622 FRAMEWORK OF URBAN DESIGN AND ANALYSIS

This course is taken in conjunction with urban design studios. Approaches of urban analysis and urban design will be taught to enable the students to tackle urban design projects of varying scales in the following studios, UD5601. This module is conducted as an intensive workshop on a daily basis over a period of three weeks (usually week 0 to 3 of Semester One). The various aspects of urban design, including urban structure, urban form, transportation, infrastructure, parcellation, etc. will be introduced through lectures, hands-on tutorials and group work. Each group of students will produce and present a schematic spatial framework for a community. Upon finishing the workshop, students will get spatial and scale senses on urban design and become familiar with the local urban environment.

UD5625 METHODS AND TOOLS FOR URBAN DESIGN

This module is intended for MSc in Real Estate and MAUD students and others at the Business School and the School of Design and Environment who aspire to learn about geographic information in the urban context and attain basic GIS skills. This interprogramme module has a multidisciplinary touch and much of it is focused on a variety of applications. The module focuses on urban problems, but the generic skills you develop in this module will be useful for a wide range of data, and give you a solid foundation to explore particular and focused problems. This module is composed of lectures, demos, tutorials, readings and range of assignments, providing hands-on the state of the art tools, datasets, and methods to manipulate, analyse, and visualise geospatial data. Upon completion of the module, students will be able to: Start thinking about data spatially; Collect appropriate geospatial data and assess its suitability; Use QGIS, one of the most widely used GIS software packages; Conduct data processing and spatial analysis; Portray the results in an effective way; Be critical with maps and spatial

UD5626 URBAN ECONOMICS

This module is a shared module between MAUD and MUP programmes. It explains the economic forces that shape urban development and create a multitude of urban challenges we face today. It aims to provide a holistic framework for evaluating urban planning and design interventions devised to tackle these challenges. After reviewing the relevant fundamental economic forces, the module examines urban challenges arising from disruptive technologies and the governance gaps in globalization that threaten economic inclusiveness and environmental sustainability. It further examines citymaking visions to tackle these challenges and the creation of public resources and private incentives for realizing these visions. UD5628 CRITIQUES OF CONTEMPORARY URBAN DESIGN

This module aims to help students develop a critical understanding of emerging urban challenges through assessing a series of contemporary urban design projects. In the face of accelerating technological advancement, exacerbating environmental degradation, and in particular unexpected threats such as the Covid-19 pandemic, our cities are confronted with many emerging challenges. This requires us to reflect on and reconceptualise urban design practice. By examining the latest debates and discussions, and through conversations with experts from practices, government agencies, and academia, this module will provide students with a multi-perspective platform for them to develop their own critical views and convictions of urban design.