This is the second publication of the series “From work desks to work platforms” in which we share the strategies and tools that we have used doing remote-work even before the Coronavirus Pandemic. Here we present two of the nine tools we use. In the next posts we will share more.
File Sync, File Sharing, File Versioning: Dropbox
This is the second post of a series exploring how different city actors could act together towards a good city in the organization of an Autumn Academy in Berlin. Follow us for more updates.
Issues that modern cities are facing today are too big and complex for one actor or one sector to effectively manage. New capabilities are needed to help people think and act differently to adapt to rapid change. At present, across Europe city residents are engaged and motivated to demonstrate their ability in creating innovative solutions for important social issues. In this context cooperation between diverse partners from public, private, and community- based organizations is needed to foster equal footing to impact the city. Working together actors could empower each other with knowledge and expertise creating a better city.
The Coronavirus pandemic is omnipresent in our society, where ‘social distancing’ neglects our everyday’s life and our common behaviour patterns. Schools and shops are closing, we all work from home and visit neither family nor friends. This is a challenge, as social interaction and discussion is key for the urban planning domain since local knowledge and participation have a huge impact on the process and the outcomes of a project.
Together with Zebralog, we were facing this issue and asked ourselves the following questions:
In June 2019 the appointed Curator of the 17th Venice Architecture Biennale Hashim Sarkis introduced the theme of the next year’s event “How will we live together?” where architects were invited to think of a new spatial contract in the context of widening political divides and growing economic inequalities. Today, the main premise remains the same, yet the context now involves the consequences of a pandemic. So we at TSPA now ask ourselves “How Will We Act Together?” This is a relevant moment to think of the role of cooperation, self-organization and knowledge exchange to deal with long term crises.
With an aim to discuss the core composition of TSPA, our team went on a small trip to Coconat space a “workation retreat”. In this co-working space we got to workshop our ideas on values, goals, vision, structure and organisation for the future of our company.
This was a very valuable opportunity for us to get to know each other as a team and decide where to direct our energies in the future. With many recent additions we feel optimistic and happy to be part of a group filled with talented, smart and friendly people.
We chose a location in the countryside close to Berlin.
Public toilets in a city are relevant since they tackle a basic need. Everyone in a city, visitors, inhabitants, young and old will eventually have to use a restroom.
Currently, TSPA works together with Zebralog in the provision of a city-wide strategy for the provision of toilets in the city of Düsseldorf. This ongoing project has given us insight into the real impact of public toilets on the city and its residents and has taught us a range of new skills and methods for dealing with a large amount of unstructured data from various stakeholders.
To explain this in detail, our colleague Jan Cyganski shared some insights and learning outcomes in an interview.
The current stage of the project
So far, we finished the analysis of the existing toilets. We did a lot of GIS analysis using data from the city, such as toilet facilities and site visits. At this phase, the participation was already essential.
Data collection process
In the data collection, it was TSPA, different departments of the city -like the social department, the gardening department, the urban planning department, traffic department- and the district’s representatives who gave their input on missing locations.
We all delivered the inputs that our partners Zebralog managed, processed, and organised and we prepared the output.
Exciting updates about the TSPA Indonesian adventure!
Recently, part of our team flew from Berlin all the way to Indonesia to carry on another step of the inclusive process that is having place in the amazing context of Java Island. The ambitious goal is working together, with international partners and local experts, to define sustainable and shared ways to deal with the multiple issues that the Indonesian cities are facing. Currently, back in Berlin, we are finalising the outputs of the path started on field, paving the way for the future phases. But, let’s take a step back…
Last week our team joined Bureau B+B in Amsterdam for an intensive design workshop.
Together, we developed the concept of our design proposal for Blankenburger Süden, a 120 hectares urban development on the north edge of Berlin.
The results of our collaboration provided ideas and images to develop a new structural and utilisation concept for the largest urban expansion site in the city.
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TSPA together with B+B has been selected as one of the teams that will form part of the cooperative workshop process in the development of Blankenburger Süden, Berlin largest urban expansion site. Starting in autumn 2019 and continuing until spring 2020, four teams will develop as many different test designs as possible for the planned new city district. The resulting ideas and images will be used to develop a new structural and utilisation concept (so-called “Alternative D”) for the south of Blankenburg.
Our team is happy to be part of a cooperative workshop process in which teams create the test designs simultaneously. The workshop process is the third building block of the so-called laboratory phase. The first two building blocks of the laboratory phase are “Sharpening key objectives” and “Clarifying framework settings”.
The area to which the sketches will be tested is of around 150 hectares. It extends from the former location of the Fachhochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft (FHTW) in the north to the approx. 90 ha core area – formerly a Rieselfeld, today arable land – to the Heinersdorf industrial estate in the south. In addition, the test designs will focus on the connection to the neighbouring neighbourhoods.
Some of the topics we will be discussing critically and creatively are: uses and functions, urban planning, open spaces and ecology, mobility and transport, and interdependencies with the neighbourhoods.
We are very happy to exchange ideas in this workshop with our salted collegues:
YelowZ
bgmr Landschaftsarchitekten
UmbauStadt
MLA+
Fugmann Janotta und Partner
CITYFOERSTER
Felixx Landscape
The south of Blankenburger Süden development is a response to the housing shortage in the state of Berlin located in what is still considered “a phantom” of green grounds and one of Pankow’s most rural regions. The 90 hectare core area projects to accommodate 5,000 to 6,000 apartments.
“Four teams of planners with a focus on urban development and landscape architecture will take part in the cooperative, urban planning workshop procedure. These four teams were selected via an EU-wide award procedure” explains Katrin Dietl, spokeswoman for the Senate Department for Urban Development (Schubert, 2019;Berliner Morgenpost).
In response to the housing shortage in the state of Berlin, the last legislative period prompted the search for suitable locations for housing construction throughout the entire Berlin city area. In spring 2016, the choice fell not only on ten further locations but also on the state-owned properties in the south of Blankenburg.
When the test drafts are available in spring 2020 – they should be as varied as possible and deliver concrete ideas and pictures – a draft can be derived from them which the Berlin House of Representatives will finally vote on.
Senatsverwaltung für Stadtentwicklung und Wohne, “Blankenburger Süden Aktuelle Entwicklung” (2019)
Schubert, Thomas. “Ein „Klimawald“ für den Blankenburger Süden” ( 23.08.2019)
This 4th and 5th of November TSPA presented the current state of the city vision developing in the city of Chemnitz as part to Chemnitz-Strategie 2040 through workshops and meetings with the current project group and the city administration.
In partnership with the government of Uganda, giz, UN-Habitat, and Pedro Ortiz, Thomas of TSPA will facilitate a workshop in Berlin to promote a compact, socially inclusive, integrated and connected system of cities in the Greater Kampala metropolitan region.
The MetroHUB workshop approach will combine capacity development in planning, governance and finance aspects and with “hands-on” team work on acupuncture projects. The main elements of the capacity development workshop in Berlin are a series of seminars and lectures, presentations on planning, governance and finance, exploration of and discussion on case studies and good practices, field visits, and the definition of acupuncture projects in Uganda.
Context (concept note):
Uganda is experiencing rapid urbanization which has serious implications in terms of demand for land, housing, water, health, education, jobs and urban services. While the country urbanization is still low at 15 % and young compared to her East African counterpart such as Kenya and Tanzania, the country has a high rate of urban growth estimated at 5.1% per annum. The country’s capital, Kampala remain the dominant city with a population of 1.5 million, but a clear growth of secondary towns remain evident with 50% of the urban population living in 22 designated municipalities and 174 town councils. It’s projected that the year 2035, 30% of the country’s population will be living in urban areas.
Over the past two decades, remarkable economic growth at an average rate 7 per cent in 1990s and early 2000s, coupled with political stability have led to increased urbanization and agglomeration of people and higher order economic activities. Within this context and unless urban areas are managed properly they will grow into large unplanned settlements. Currently, the country cities and urban areas are already experiencing urban planning and development challenges including congestion, development of slums and informal settlements, urban sprawl, environmental degradation, high levels of unemployment, urban poverty and crime, a clear indication that the urbanization process in the country needs to be better managed.
The urbanization challenges experienced in Uganda force the country to now proactively manage urbanization within its town councils, cities and in the secondary towns to ensure a better urban future for its residents. There is need to move fast as it is always easier to establish competitive cities by building solid foundations when the rate of urbanization is still relatively low. To do this, capacities of both central and urban local governments to manage the country’s urbanization process and partnerships to effectively manage urban growth need to be enhanced.
TSPA has been invited by the city of Ufa in Russia to facilitate a workshop on Instruments for Sustainable Urban Development from 2 to 3 December 2016. Expected participants are representatives of the municipal planning departments and urbanists from Yekaterinburg, Krasnoyarsk, Kazan, Saint Petersburg, Moscow, and Ufa.
The objectives of the two day work session are the:
We will work towards than in four work session with focus on
Urban form, Planning process, Legal instruments, and
Financial instruments.
Berlin’s housing stock becomes less and less affordable. Who doesn’t own an apartment yet, hasn’t got much room to move, speculation is rampant. We’re looking for new solutions. On Friday, October 14, we have shown as part of urban coop berlin, how alternative models can work:
Als erste Projektentwicklungsgesellschaft für Wohnbaugenossenschaften in Berlin zeichnet sich das Team mit Architekten (deGiovannini), Stadtplanern (TSPA) und Sozialwissenschaftlern (Sustainable Services) durch breite und vielfältige Kompetenzen und Erfahrungen im Wohnbau, Nachhaltigkeit und Gemeinwesenentwicklung aus.
Die urban coop berlin ist eine Plattform für alle, die anders wohnen und gemeinsam bauen wollen. Unter den Werten fair, flexibel, gemeinsam und verantwortungsvoll werden autonome genossenschaftliche Wohnprojekte geplant und umgesetzt, die sich zukünftig in einem Netzwerk gegenseitig unterstützen.
Fair bedeutet bezahlbar und nicht spekulativ; flexibel bedeutet einfacher Ein- und Austritt, Veränderungsmöglichkeiten innerhalb des Gebäudes und anpassungsfähige Wohnflächen; unter gemeinsam versteht man die Beteiligung der Bewohner bei Planung, Bau und in der Wohngenossenschaft und zu guter Letzt steht verantwortungsvoll dafür, dass sozial und ökologisch verträglich entwickelt und gebaut wird und zum Beispiel ein Nachbarschaftscafé eingerichtet oder der Gemeinschaftsgarten für andere geöffnet wird.
Die Herangehensweise an ein Bauprojekt unterscheidet sich im Vergleich zu Baugruppen dahingehend, dass bereits alle organisatorischen Strukturen geschaffen sind, die es ermöglichen, schnell zu agieren, sobald ein Grundstück verfügbar ist, die Sicherheit geben in Verfahren und im Ablauf – vom Kauf bis zum Abschluss des Baus – und die die Wünsche und Präferenzen der Wohnungsanwärter bereits vorab abfragt.
Insgesamt zeigt das große Interesse der fast 60 Teilnehmerinnen und Teilnehmer an diesem Abend, dass wir ein Thema aufgreifen, das vielen unter den Nägeln brennt. Viele haben sich direkt vor Ort als Anwärter registriert und wollen, neben dem Wunsch nach bezahlbarem, gemeinschaftlichen und sicherem Wohnraum, auch beitragen zu einer veränderten Bau- und Wohnungspolitik in der Stadt.
See the presentation here, and check here, how to join urban coop.
From 4th to 11th of June Thomas was invited to the seminars in the cities of Tete and Nampula, Mozambique. The events are part of a series of workshops guiding the development of the Nacala Corridor, supported by UN-Habitat and Cities Alliance.
One of the issues raised was the need for more tools to operationalize existing plans. The workshop establishes processes and tools to ensure plan implementation following the parameters of their plans.
The report of The Passenger City workshop held at Augsburg University of Applied Sciences’ International Design Week last year has been released.
CANactions – An Interdisciplinary School for Urban Studies, based in Kyiv, Ukraine has just finished their final report on STUDIO #1 were Thomas was leading a 5-day workshop.
CANactions aims at the exploration of Ukrainian cities, identifying concepts and defining actions for their strategic development. The first Studio, held from August 25 – December 18, 2015, called “From General Plan to Guiding Plan: Strategic Tools for Contemporary Cities Development” was focused on urban development of Ukraine’s historical cities. The purpose of the study is to understand the specificity and strengths of this urban typology – on the local, regional, state and even global level.
To read the STUDIO#1 results please see here.
From 15th to 18th of February 2016, a UN-Habitat team led another Rapid Planning Studio – this time in Nampula Mozambique. The workshop allowed local planners and leaders to discuss potential development strategies for their rapidly growing city with the UN-Habitat experts.
Nampula – a city with an estimated population of over 600’000 inhabitants – is the capital of Mozambique’s most populous province with more than 4 million inhabitants. The city’s massive in-migration and consequent housing shortage challenges current capacities to manage land effectively.
Addressing the challenges from three standpoints – legislation, finance/economy, and urban planning/design – allowed to deliver informed and feasible outcomes. Thanks to an energetic and collaborative atmosphere among the participants, the workshop successfully promoted more sustainable urban development strategies for Nampula.
Tacloban Urban Lab, jointly prepared by the UN-Habitat Design Lab and the Dutch Creative Industries Fund, took place during the 26th – 29th of January 2016 in the Philippines. It brought together international and local expertise to exchange applied knowledge and create urban design guidelines for the capital of Leyte province. Tacloban – a city of over 200’000 inhabitants – suffered from severe damage after the 2013 Haiyan Typhoon. The Tacloban Urban Lab is thus seen as an opportunity to draft guidelines for more sustainable urban growth and post-disaster reconstruction.
“Designing a better urban future” – Urban Planning and Design Labs were established on the 15th of September 2015 by the Dutch Creative Industries Fund and UN-Habitat’s Global Network of Urban Planning and Design Labs. The Tacloban Lab was part of a one year series to support local governments in partner countries such as Myanmar, Mexico, the Philippines, Palestine and Ghana.
“With the planning labs, we promote to integrate design throughout the planning process, since design explorations can actually also contribute to problem definition and goal-setting. And as clear plans ease political buy-in, design also has the capacity to accelerate governments’ decision-making processes where plans often end up in gridlock.” says Rogier van den Berg, project leader of the Urban Planning and Design LAB at UN-Habitat.
Participating experts:
UN-Habitat: Thomas Stellmach, Chris Rolo, David Guera
UN URBAN LABS: STUDIO MAKS, Mars Architects, krill, Rademacher & De Vries
On the 2nd and 3rd day of February Thomas is participating in Barcelona EGM – URBAN LABS: “A tool for integrated and participative urban planning”
A meeting is a chance to exchange methodologies and working principles of different global labs deepening the global debates on urban labs and their methodologies. EGM is hosted by the UN-Habitat Spain and the Ajuntament de Barcelona
From 17th to 19th of December Thomas is going to speak at the UN-Habitat global experts group meeting. In these three days experts will focus on the topic of new legal frameworks for urban development.
The meeting is hosted by the UN-Habitat Spain and Ajuntament de Barcelona.
In October 2015 Thomas attended the workshop ‘Integrated Urban Management In Practice’ hosted by the BMBF Research and Development Project „Rapid Planning“ and the GIZ Sector Project „Sustainable Development of Metropolitan Regions“ at Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences as part of a UN-Habitat delegation.
We discussed and evaluated trans-sectoral approaches and implementation activities for integrated urban management.
The Rapid Planning Project is an action oriented research project that has been developed under the umbrella of the Future Megacities Research Program of the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF). Rapid Planning seeks to develop a rapid trans-sectoral urban planning methodology with a focus on urban basic services infrastructure, specifically targeting supply and disposal infrastructure. More about the project at rapid-planning.net.
How will we move through our future cities? What comes after the superhighway and the failed predictions of jetpacks and moving sidewalks? Benjamin of TSPA will lead the three-day workshop “The Passenger City” at Augsburg University of Applied Sciences from November 11th to 13th, where students will speculate about the future of urban mobility and its impact on both street and city.
The International Design Week offers a wide programme of workshops, lectures, talks and an exhibition to reveal future trends on design and its related disciplines.
TSPA’s workshop at Kiev’s CANactions School for Urban Studies in Kiev reimagined a former industrial area as a creative cluster. The motto of the workshop — ‘from research to proposal’ — turned out to be very real: The site’s owner was sufficiently impressed by the results that he committed to continue the cooperation and to jointly develop the student’s ideas further to turn them into reality.
Read more about the workshop in the press here [Ukrainian: Пространство для творчества и развития должно быть комфортным] and here [Ukrainian: В Киеве состоялся совместный воркшоп школы CANactions и Арт-завода Платформа].
Many thanks to the Goethe Institute for support and to the CANactions team for organising, and especially to the participants for their great work!
How can density become a tool for an inclusive and sustainable Cape Town?
Read Brittany Morris’ interview at future cape town with our colleague Ali Saad on the project we did as Uberbau together with NL-Architects as part of the Density Syndicate initiative.
Thomas Stellmach and Benjamin Scheerbarth will travel to Rotterdam for the 51st congress of the International Society of City and Regional Planners ISOCARP. As part of the conference, Thomas will join a workshop in Dortmund on how to leverage economic growth from spatial projects while Benjamin will learn from Schiphol how to best connect airport host cities to the globalised world.
We are looking forward to seeing our colleagues there.
Thomas of TSPA will lead the project-simulation workshop “From research to project proposal” at CANactions school in Kiev, Ukraine. Students will explore a former factory area in the city and develop solutions to turn it into a creative zone and a catalyst for development of the neighbourhood. The interdisciplinary workshop will take place from 27 September to 3 October 2015, and will rapidly develop a project from analysis to idea and proposal in only a single week to then discuss the proposals with lokal stakeholders.
The CANactions School for Urban Studies is a socially-oriented interdisciplinary educational project that emerged from CANactions International Architecture Festival. It is aimed at the study and strategic development of Ukrainian cities.
More information here: CANactions Brochure [800 KB].
This workshop was made possible with the support of Goethe-Institure Ukraine.
In July, Thomas facilitated as part of a UN-Habitat team a workshop with planning professionals and city leaders in Kogi state, Nigeria discussing the municipal plans of Dekina, Kabba, Okene and Lokoja.
The studio follows UN-Habitat’s three pronged planning approach integrating legal and finance components with planning. It introduced the rapid urban planning method in Nigeria to help local experts and consultants to prepare the foundation of their master plans. This three days long studio will also allow the participants to be engaged in an interactive sessions to address different planning challenges, to chalk out alternatives and to identify possible solutions through a collaborative exercise and dialogue session. At the end of the workshop participants will be able to draw a draft plan that will be analyzed and improved further for official use.
A few days ago, Thomas traveled to Izhevsk (Russia) to take part in UrbanFest – forum of lively cities. This year the festival gathered delegates from 45 cities across Russia and abroad – urbanists, politicians, businessmen, activists and citizens. Community leaders shared their experience, explored new tools for integrated territorial development and got inspired to create a network of “lively cities” in Russia.
Together with Kees Donkers, Thomas was part of a panel on “Urban planning international experiences applicable to Russia” and led the workshop “International Urban Lab”.
As part of the forum’s programme, TSPA also presented its concept for the development of a new neighborhood in Naberezhnye Chelny to the public. Extending this concept, Thomas discussed constraints of urban planning in Russia and the aspect of possible urban drivers for retaining and attracting young people to the city together with Novaya Zemlya.
Above a roadside impression while the UN-Habitat team is on the way to Adama, southeast of Addis Abeba in Ethiopia, to discuss sustainable urban development, planning and public space issues with 40 Ethiopian mayors on 19 & 20 of February. We are promoting an integrated approach, linking urban economy and finance, urban legislation and urban planning. The training is funded by UNDP.
Thomas is in the Philippines to develop design briefs for planned city extensions with the municipalities of Cagayan de Oro, Silay, and Iloilo with the support of colleagues from UN-Habitat and Arcadis.
From 11 to 14 November Thomas is part of the UN-Habitat team supporting the sustainable urban development sector in Kenya as part of the Kenyan Municipal Programme (KMP). He will conduct a learning session for decision makers and a two day workshop for planners and municipal staff.
UN-Habitat started training on “Urban Planning for City Leaders (UPCL)” guide as part of its capacity development initiative since September, 2013. Under this initiative, several trainings have been successfully delivered around the world.
The rapid planning studio aims at informing local leaders of each town/county about the value that urban planning could bring to their counties and to facilitate a collaborative dialogue between local leaders, policy makers and planners on urban development especially on the themes of public space, densification, urban patterns, and connectivity including the importance of legal frameworks and urban economy.
Thomas will work with the UN-Habitat team and the colleagues at the University of Maputo on the Territorial Model and city extension plans for Nacala Porto and Nacala Velha in the North of Mozambique from 31 October till 8 November 2014.
Thomas will speak at the ‘Urban Planning for City Leaders Workshop’ in Kuala Lumpur. The workshop was organized by CITYNET in collaboration with UN-Habitat and takes place from the 22nd – 25th September 2014.
From 2 to 5 September Thomas is part of the UN-Habitat team supporting the sustainable urban development sector in Kenya as part of the Kenyan Municipal Programme (KMP). He will conduct a learning session for decision makers and a two day workshop for planners and municipal staff in Nairobi and Naivasha.
UN-Habitat started training on “Urban Planning for City Leaders (UPCL)” guide as part of its capacity development initiative since September, 2013. Under this initiative, several trainings have been successfully delivered around the world.
The rapid planning studio aims at informing local leaders of each town/county about the value that urban planning could bring to their counties and to facilitate a collaborative dialogue between local leaders, policy makers and planners on urban development especially on the themes of public space, densification, urban patterns, and connectivity including the importance of legal frameworks and urban economy.
Thomas was invited to support the first of 7 workshops in Kigali (Rwanda) on sustainable urbanisation for secondary cities in Rwanda hosted by UN-Habitat and the Rwanda Housing Authority on the 19th and 20th February 2014. Thomas will discuss UN-Habitat planning principles, urbanisation patterns and reference projects with the mayors and planners from six attending cities.
The municipality of Nilüfer, Bursa (TK) invited Thomas together with Laura Petrella of UN-Habitat to support the workshop on ‘Developing An Urban Transformation Project in Nilüfer, Bursa’ on 29 and 30 January 2014. We will present the UN-Habitat approach and principles as well as a set of best practices.
UPDATE: You can find a little TV interview with the mayor, Thomas and Laura on local TV and a print interview as also published in Hürriyet newspaper of 9 Feb 2014. Enjoy.
Thomas Stellmach was invited by the TU Berlin Campus El Gouna (Egypt) to lecture on ‘Public Space in the Arab Domain’ within the framework of the ‘Vitalize it’ International Winter School 2014.
Thomas will give a series of workshops as UN-Habitat consultant in the Philippines, Mozambique and Kenya in October and November. The Planning city extensions workshop in Manila on 23-25 October will involve 5 municipalities of the Philippines and focus on a rational ‘Back to the Basics’ approach for sustainable urban development and exemplify UN-Habitat principles. Thomas will also discuss the city-corridor developments and planning progress in Northern Mozambique in the cities of Nampula and Nacala from 3-6 November as part of the ASUD (Achieving Sustainable Urban Development) program.
Thomas and Ali of Uberbau are invited artists at the International Arts Festival De Wereld van Witte de With 2012 in Rotterdam curated by Lukas Feireiss. They’ll exhibit two timelines on streets in western countries in general and on Rotterdam’s Witte de Withstraat in specific, hold a workshop on “The Missing Street” and organize “Street Talks” with various experts. Join us from September 14th to 16th 2012 on the Witte de Withstraat in Rotterdam! [read on at the festival site]
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