CREATED SHELTER: SEMI-COVERED STREETS

047 | Jemaa El Fna, Morocco

Many African cultures and communities integrate semi-covered streets into their city planning to diffuse daylight and create shade to cool the thoroughfares. Organic matter such as sticks and vines are used to achieve this strategy - many are woven into intricate patterns and shapes, casting interesting shadows on the street.082 This strategy would be simple to retrofit into many existing downtown zones in medium to small towns and cities. Developing semi-permeable coverings for the sidewalks will reduce heat island effects caused by egregious hardscape but also allow for community expression in the style, motif, material, and design of the coverings.