Associate professor in MLA (master of landscape architecture) program, Address: Department of Architecture
School of Design and Environment
4 Architecture Drive
Singapore 117566
Natural disaster recovery is a critical issue in rural Japan, yet repairing infrastructure, stabi... more Natural disaster recovery is a critical issue in rural Japan, yet repairing infrastructure, stabilising landscapes, and aiding those displaced is exceedingly expensive. Restoration of disaster affected landscapes mainly focuses on infrastructure repair, with less attention to socio-ecological activities pre- and post-disaster. The absence of integrated socio-ecological perspectives to disaster restoration creates missed opportunities for approaches more sensitive to local needs and resources. Coupled human and natural systems (CHANS) frameworks attempt to bridge social and natural sciences with the effect that interactions between human and natural systems can emerge that might not be apparent by studying them separately. However, application of CHANS frameworks in the context of natural disaster recovery in rural Japan is limited, and more consideration of the challenges is needed. The aim of this paper is to describe the design of a CHANS project and summarize lessons learned in a...
Neighbourhood landscapes are the quintessential forms of urban landscapes in most cities worldwid... more Neighbourhood landscapes are the quintessential forms of urban landscapes in most cities worldwide. They are pervasive, and hence experienced by the large majority of urban dwellers in their everyday life. More than parks, nature reserves or nature areas which are visited as destinations, neighbourhood landscapes provide the most immediate, frequent and convenient form of nature experienced by urban dwellers on a daily basis. They are also valuable as social spaces to bring residents together, foster social ties, and strengthen communities. Despite their importance, surprisingly little has been written to guide the planning and design of neighbourhood landscapes. This book is written for a specific purpose, to illustrate how the design of neighbourhood landscapes helps to deliver more benefits for urban dwellers and, at the same time, protect ecosystems that facilitate human well-being. This is in turn important as the synergistic relationships between human well-being, quality of biophysical urban environment, and health of human–environment interactions fundamentally underpin urban sustainability. The authors emphasize the role neighbourhood landscapes play in forging connections between people and nature, people and people, and people and place. Most of all, the book highlights the role of focusing on people in this endeavour, as it is only when landscapes are appropriately designed, and when people recognize these benefits, that they become valued and protected as a community resource. This book is organized into two parts. Part 1 focuses on the conceptual foundations that underpin the neighbourhood landscape design guidelines being developed. In this section, the authors describe the key concepts relating functions of neighbourhood landscapes to the key urban development goals of sustainability, liveability and reliance; how they can be represented in a framework; and how a synthesis of current knowledge of cities as socio-ecological systems helps to identify principles that can guide the designing of neighbourhood landscapes. Part 2 is more application focused, and is centred on neighbourhood landscape design guidelines inspired by the concept of ecosystem services. The guidelines consist of design approaches, practical strategies, design targets and performance monitoring indicators for tracking the performance of neighbourhood landscapes. The book is written for readers in academia and design practice, and anyone who has a role in shaping neighbourhood landscapes for the benefit of urban dwellers
Heat island effects and their thermal impacts have become a key consideration in the environment ... more Heat island effects and their thermal impacts have become a key consideration in the environment of tropical cities. In the face of such conditions, the land use planning and conservation authority of Singapore currently has an on-going island-wide study and plans to manage urban heat at the macro level, but there have been few considerations for the actual thermal environment within these spaces. In tropical climates, solar radiation is the greatest source of heat, and mitigation of solar and terrestrial radiation by landscape design is of utmost importance as compared to other microclimatic factors.
Abstract Singaporean parks are generally planted and managed, but their contribution to urban div... more Abstract Singaporean parks are generally planted and managed, but their contribution to urban diversity may alter over time. This study examined the key growth patterns of managed vegetation and factors influencing floral diversity through short-term observation of vegetation changes in a typical tropical urban park setting. The study selected 222 plots using a 10m × 10m grid in three Singaporean parks and surveyed their species richness and spatial distribution. It studied factors affecting vegetation flourishing or decline using multiple on-site mappings and interviews with managers in 2018 and comparison of these findings with vegetation as it had been planted in 2012 or 2015. The study found that diversity in species and structure and vegetation area consistently increased over time despite regular maintenance. Initially planted vegetation, geographical characteristics, and diverse maintenance activities all played an essential role in shaping the parks’ microhabitats, affecting the emergence and growth of plant species. We argue that the role of spontaneous vegetation is critical in the tropical park context, as it contributes to landscape heterogeneity without intensive maintenance. At the same time, however, not all spontaneous vegetation contributes to floral diversity. The findings may help landscape designers and managers understand the opportunities and challenges of tropical planting which can contribute to the long-term biodiversity of an urban ecosystem.
AbstractAlthough numerous planning and design guidelines have been developed to guide landscape i... more AbstractAlthough numerous planning and design guidelines have been developed to guide landscape implementation in urban areas, there is scant information on how they are validated before their appl...
The International Journal of the Constructed Environment, 2013
Urban heat island effect has been the subject of numerous studies in recent decades in highly urb... more Urban heat island effect has been the subject of numerous studies in recent decades in highly urbanized cities like Singapore. Most studies pointed out that ensuring enough greenery is a fundamental solution to mitigate the increasing urban temperature. Beyond the common quintessential results, studies on providing applicable landscape strategies at the micro level are seldom conducted. The research starts from the belief that the microclimatic data of built sites can be resources for designing cooler outdoor spaces. The existing park connectors, which are the most distinctive feature of manmade greeneries in Singapore, are recorded primarily by thermal measurement, and supplemented by visual notes of site conditions and additional microclimatic measurements where appropriate. The data obtained from this research highlights that the air temperature along the footpath is influential on the environmental quality of the space and that the cooling effect from greenery is significant, and can be improved by considering site orientation, location, and nodal points. Therefore, landscape designers should focus on tree canopy coverage by selecting appropriate vegetation and spatial configurations. Ultimately, all findings guide ways to optimize the cooling effect of park connectors, as well as serve to enhance the quality of urban landscape.
Purpose This study recognizes that a number of socio-ecological impacts will result from current ... more Purpose This study recognizes that a number of socio-ecological impacts will result from current and future secondary forest loss in Singapore. Addressing the gap between ecological design principles and the generation of actionable design strategies, the paper draws a more explicit link between them to guide future attempts to generate design solutions to the issue of secondary forest loss. Design/methodology/approach The study identifies actionable and contextualized design strategies from 18 academic design studio projects dealing with threatened secondary forest sites in Singapore and examines the ecological concepts which underpin the design strategies. These design strategies were then mapped to urban ecological principles. Findings Fifteen actionable design strategies, aligned with 4 urban ecology principles, were identified for addressing the impacts of secondary forest loss in Singapore. Originality/value The paper makes an attempt to bridge theoretical principles and desig...
Purpose Secondary forest loss in Singapore has recently emerged as a contentious issue that tests... more Purpose Secondary forest loss in Singapore has recently emerged as a contentious issue that tests the relationships between state, public and civil society, but debates on this issue have occurred without the benefit of supporting information on the spatial extent, and understanding of multiple socio-ecological impacts arising from their gradual disappearance. The purpose of this paper is to fill these knowledge gaps to contribute to development of approaches to manage land developments on secondary forests. Design/methodology/approach This study evaluated the past and potential future losses of spontaneous re-growth forest through spatial analyses of vegetation cover maps combined with national land use plans using remote sensing and GIS. The socio-ecological impacts of such losses were interpreted from published writings, which comprise scientific publications and public opinion in news media. Findings Secondary forest losses accounted for more than half of total vegetation cover ...
Abstract As Singapore is near the equator, heat is a concern, especially given the increasing yea... more Abstract As Singapore is near the equator, heat is a concern, especially given the increasing yearly average temperatures and significant urban heat island effects. National greening policies propose increasing the number of parks; this may indirectly benefit thermal conditions at a macro level, but there has been little consideration of the thermal environment within these spaces. This study examined micro-scale thermal conditions within 10 urban parks at the hottest period of the year, assessing operative temperature with three measurement variables: air temperature (t a ), globe temperature (t g ), and wind velocity ( v ). It found that 1) thermal performances between and within parks range widely, and 2) critical thermal points in the respective parks highlight the value of shade, especially in terms of volume and continuity over a length of path. The findings suggest the need for a quantitative study of design factors to guide the future planning and design of climatically adapted parks in the tropics.
Perception of park vegetation might change over time in alignment with changes in vegetation. Thi... more Perception of park vegetation might change over time in alignment with changes in vegetation. This study examines perceived attributes of tropical park vegetation and associated perception of changes in the park vegetation over time by comparing 'first recollected visit' (when recollecting their first visit) and 'the current visit'. We conducted onsite interviews with 310 users of the Bishan-AMK park, Singapore. We found that respondents rated perceived attributes of the park more favourably during the current visit than when retrospectively rating their first recollected visit to the park. Cooling, aesthetics and naturalness were the main perception differences between the first recollected visit and the current visit. Moreover, users who noticed changes in natural elements, had a high visitation frequency and had visited the park for 5 or more years tended to respond positively regarding vegetation growth. The findings may be useful for park management and serve as a spatial decision tool for improving the quality of urban green spaces.
To reconceptualise the different types of natures that live in cities to strategise how existing,... more To reconceptualise the different types of natures that live in cities to strategise how existing, new and recombinant natures can be governed in innovative ways. A cross-disciplinary event with people attending from cities around the world.
Many studies on disparities in the distribution of urban green space (UGS) focus on the quantity ... more Many studies on disparities in the distribution of urban green space (UGS) focus on the quantity and accessibility of designated open spaces. However, when all types of UGS, including unmanaged green areas, are accounted for, claims of green space distributive injustice become more complicated. We conducted a preliminary investigation questioning the common Global North assumption that the poor have less access to the benefits of green space, using the cities of Mumbai and Jakarta as case studies as, in their respective countries, wealth inequality has grown at a higher rate than in other Asian countries. We employed four sets of geospatial data to analyze green space distribution patterns and probe the relationship with UGS inequity in different land value districts. We found that the lower land value districts had more vegetation coverage with a higher vegetation density, mainly due to a large quantity of unmanaged greenery. The relationship between the status of urban development...
Natural disaster recovery is a critical issue in rural Japan, yet repairing infrastructure, stabi... more Natural disaster recovery is a critical issue in rural Japan, yet repairing infrastructure, stabilising landscapes, and aiding those displaced is exceedingly expensive. Restoration of disaster affected landscapes mainly focuses on infrastructure repair, with less attention to socio-ecological activities pre- and post-disaster. The absence of integrated socio-ecological perspectives to disaster restoration creates missed opportunities for approaches more sensitive to local needs and resources. Coupled human and natural systems (CHANS) frameworks attempt to bridge social and natural sciences with the effect that interactions between human and natural systems can emerge that might not be apparent by studying them separately. However, application of CHANS frameworks in the context of natural disaster recovery in rural Japan is limited, and more consideration of the challenges is needed. The aim of this paper is to describe the design of a CHANS project and summarize lessons learned in a...
Neighbourhood landscapes are the quintessential forms of urban landscapes in most cities worldwid... more Neighbourhood landscapes are the quintessential forms of urban landscapes in most cities worldwide. They are pervasive, and hence experienced by the large majority of urban dwellers in their everyday life. More than parks, nature reserves or nature areas which are visited as destinations, neighbourhood landscapes provide the most immediate, frequent and convenient form of nature experienced by urban dwellers on a daily basis. They are also valuable as social spaces to bring residents together, foster social ties, and strengthen communities. Despite their importance, surprisingly little has been written to guide the planning and design of neighbourhood landscapes. This book is written for a specific purpose, to illustrate how the design of neighbourhood landscapes helps to deliver more benefits for urban dwellers and, at the same time, protect ecosystems that facilitate human well-being. This is in turn important as the synergistic relationships between human well-being, quality of biophysical urban environment, and health of human–environment interactions fundamentally underpin urban sustainability. The authors emphasize the role neighbourhood landscapes play in forging connections between people and nature, people and people, and people and place. Most of all, the book highlights the role of focusing on people in this endeavour, as it is only when landscapes are appropriately designed, and when people recognize these benefits, that they become valued and protected as a community resource. This book is organized into two parts. Part 1 focuses on the conceptual foundations that underpin the neighbourhood landscape design guidelines being developed. In this section, the authors describe the key concepts relating functions of neighbourhood landscapes to the key urban development goals of sustainability, liveability and reliance; how they can be represented in a framework; and how a synthesis of current knowledge of cities as socio-ecological systems helps to identify principles that can guide the designing of neighbourhood landscapes. Part 2 is more application focused, and is centred on neighbourhood landscape design guidelines inspired by the concept of ecosystem services. The guidelines consist of design approaches, practical strategies, design targets and performance monitoring indicators for tracking the performance of neighbourhood landscapes. The book is written for readers in academia and design practice, and anyone who has a role in shaping neighbourhood landscapes for the benefit of urban dwellers
Heat island effects and their thermal impacts have become a key consideration in the environment ... more Heat island effects and their thermal impacts have become a key consideration in the environment of tropical cities. In the face of such conditions, the land use planning and conservation authority of Singapore currently has an on-going island-wide study and plans to manage urban heat at the macro level, but there have been few considerations for the actual thermal environment within these spaces. In tropical climates, solar radiation is the greatest source of heat, and mitigation of solar and terrestrial radiation by landscape design is of utmost importance as compared to other microclimatic factors.
Abstract Singaporean parks are generally planted and managed, but their contribution to urban div... more Abstract Singaporean parks are generally planted and managed, but their contribution to urban diversity may alter over time. This study examined the key growth patterns of managed vegetation and factors influencing floral diversity through short-term observation of vegetation changes in a typical tropical urban park setting. The study selected 222 plots using a 10m × 10m grid in three Singaporean parks and surveyed their species richness and spatial distribution. It studied factors affecting vegetation flourishing or decline using multiple on-site mappings and interviews with managers in 2018 and comparison of these findings with vegetation as it had been planted in 2012 or 2015. The study found that diversity in species and structure and vegetation area consistently increased over time despite regular maintenance. Initially planted vegetation, geographical characteristics, and diverse maintenance activities all played an essential role in shaping the parks’ microhabitats, affecting the emergence and growth of plant species. We argue that the role of spontaneous vegetation is critical in the tropical park context, as it contributes to landscape heterogeneity without intensive maintenance. At the same time, however, not all spontaneous vegetation contributes to floral diversity. The findings may help landscape designers and managers understand the opportunities and challenges of tropical planting which can contribute to the long-term biodiversity of an urban ecosystem.
AbstractAlthough numerous planning and design guidelines have been developed to guide landscape i... more AbstractAlthough numerous planning and design guidelines have been developed to guide landscape implementation in urban areas, there is scant information on how they are validated before their appl...
The International Journal of the Constructed Environment, 2013
Urban heat island effect has been the subject of numerous studies in recent decades in highly urb... more Urban heat island effect has been the subject of numerous studies in recent decades in highly urbanized cities like Singapore. Most studies pointed out that ensuring enough greenery is a fundamental solution to mitigate the increasing urban temperature. Beyond the common quintessential results, studies on providing applicable landscape strategies at the micro level are seldom conducted. The research starts from the belief that the microclimatic data of built sites can be resources for designing cooler outdoor spaces. The existing park connectors, which are the most distinctive feature of manmade greeneries in Singapore, are recorded primarily by thermal measurement, and supplemented by visual notes of site conditions and additional microclimatic measurements where appropriate. The data obtained from this research highlights that the air temperature along the footpath is influential on the environmental quality of the space and that the cooling effect from greenery is significant, and can be improved by considering site orientation, location, and nodal points. Therefore, landscape designers should focus on tree canopy coverage by selecting appropriate vegetation and spatial configurations. Ultimately, all findings guide ways to optimize the cooling effect of park connectors, as well as serve to enhance the quality of urban landscape.
Purpose This study recognizes that a number of socio-ecological impacts will result from current ... more Purpose This study recognizes that a number of socio-ecological impacts will result from current and future secondary forest loss in Singapore. Addressing the gap between ecological design principles and the generation of actionable design strategies, the paper draws a more explicit link between them to guide future attempts to generate design solutions to the issue of secondary forest loss. Design/methodology/approach The study identifies actionable and contextualized design strategies from 18 academic design studio projects dealing with threatened secondary forest sites in Singapore and examines the ecological concepts which underpin the design strategies. These design strategies were then mapped to urban ecological principles. Findings Fifteen actionable design strategies, aligned with 4 urban ecology principles, were identified for addressing the impacts of secondary forest loss in Singapore. Originality/value The paper makes an attempt to bridge theoretical principles and desig...
Purpose Secondary forest loss in Singapore has recently emerged as a contentious issue that tests... more Purpose Secondary forest loss in Singapore has recently emerged as a contentious issue that tests the relationships between state, public and civil society, but debates on this issue have occurred without the benefit of supporting information on the spatial extent, and understanding of multiple socio-ecological impacts arising from their gradual disappearance. The purpose of this paper is to fill these knowledge gaps to contribute to development of approaches to manage land developments on secondary forests. Design/methodology/approach This study evaluated the past and potential future losses of spontaneous re-growth forest through spatial analyses of vegetation cover maps combined with national land use plans using remote sensing and GIS. The socio-ecological impacts of such losses were interpreted from published writings, which comprise scientific publications and public opinion in news media. Findings Secondary forest losses accounted for more than half of total vegetation cover ...
Abstract As Singapore is near the equator, heat is a concern, especially given the increasing yea... more Abstract As Singapore is near the equator, heat is a concern, especially given the increasing yearly average temperatures and significant urban heat island effects. National greening policies propose increasing the number of parks; this may indirectly benefit thermal conditions at a macro level, but there has been little consideration of the thermal environment within these spaces. This study examined micro-scale thermal conditions within 10 urban parks at the hottest period of the year, assessing operative temperature with three measurement variables: air temperature (t a ), globe temperature (t g ), and wind velocity ( v ). It found that 1) thermal performances between and within parks range widely, and 2) critical thermal points in the respective parks highlight the value of shade, especially in terms of volume and continuity over a length of path. The findings suggest the need for a quantitative study of design factors to guide the future planning and design of climatically adapted parks in the tropics.
Perception of park vegetation might change over time in alignment with changes in vegetation. Thi... more Perception of park vegetation might change over time in alignment with changes in vegetation. This study examines perceived attributes of tropical park vegetation and associated perception of changes in the park vegetation over time by comparing 'first recollected visit' (when recollecting their first visit) and 'the current visit'. We conducted onsite interviews with 310 users of the Bishan-AMK park, Singapore. We found that respondents rated perceived attributes of the park more favourably during the current visit than when retrospectively rating their first recollected visit to the park. Cooling, aesthetics and naturalness were the main perception differences between the first recollected visit and the current visit. Moreover, users who noticed changes in natural elements, had a high visitation frequency and had visited the park for 5 or more years tended to respond positively regarding vegetation growth. The findings may be useful for park management and serve as a spatial decision tool for improving the quality of urban green spaces.
To reconceptualise the different types of natures that live in cities to strategise how existing,... more To reconceptualise the different types of natures that live in cities to strategise how existing, new and recombinant natures can be governed in innovative ways. A cross-disciplinary event with people attending from cities around the world.
Many studies on disparities in the distribution of urban green space (UGS) focus on the quantity ... more Many studies on disparities in the distribution of urban green space (UGS) focus on the quantity and accessibility of designated open spaces. However, when all types of UGS, including unmanaged green areas, are accounted for, claims of green space distributive injustice become more complicated. We conducted a preliminary investigation questioning the common Global North assumption that the poor have less access to the benefits of green space, using the cities of Mumbai and Jakarta as case studies as, in their respective countries, wealth inequality has grown at a higher rate than in other Asian countries. We employed four sets of geospatial data to analyze green space distribution patterns and probe the relationship with UGS inequity in different land value districts. We found that the lower land value districts had more vegetation coverage with a higher vegetation density, mainly due to a large quantity of unmanaged greenery. The relationship between the status of urban development...
Centre for Urban Greenery & Ecology (CUGE), Jun 10, 2015
Beyond the perception of spontaneous vegetation as insignificant weeds, the ecological value of s... more Beyond the perception of spontaneous vegetation as insignificant weeds, the ecological value of such greenery has been highlighted by many ecologists who argue that our categorisation is grounded in value judgments. Spontaneous vegetation deserves a place in our city given that it functions as part of the wider ecosystem, acting as an ecologically critical element in the urban landscapes. The novel visual forms offered are also opportunities to be explored as a means to evoke a sense of place and as a medium to synthesise into urban ecological design. In fact, considering spontaneous vegetation as a component of manmade landscape is not new. It has been widely applied in Dutch heemparks since the 1920s under the name ‘managed naturalism’. Such application extends the role of the landscape manager to become a mediator between the people and nature. Nevertheless, nature-dependent landscape management strategies are still held in low regard and have little influence on the landscape industry in Singapore.... (to be continued)
The socio-economically deprived urban populations often have no choice but to live in risky areas... more The socio-economically deprived urban populations often have no choice but to live in risky areas, such as flood-prone area with insufficient infrastructure and over-crowded housing. This is demonstrated in Manila, one of the most rapidly growing megacities, where nearly one-third of the population suffer from poverty. Under a national initiative “Out of Poverty”, led by a local non-profit organization—Gawa Kalinga (GK), over 300 “GK villages” have been established to replace the slums for 6,000 of the poorest families since 2003. However, recent flood disasters expose the vulnerability of the villages located in flood-prone areas. One of such villages is Brookside, situated at the low-lying floodplain along a garbage-choked stream at the northern border of Metro Manila. In the past decade Brookside has seen increasing flood disasters. This paper presents an ongoing project, in which the authors—as designers, researchers, and educators—work with GK and local residents of Brookside to build flood resilience through landscape architectural interventions.
The land of Singapore has accordingly changed from a primary forest to a full concreted city for ... more The land of Singapore has accordingly changed from a primary forest to a full concreted city for the last few decades. 90% of the land consists of built-up environment, whereas only 4.5% of its land is regarded as genuine nature. Situated in southern patch of the forest, Bukit Brown is one of the few existing cemeteries in Singapore which has not only historical value, but is most importantly full of diverse habitats. However, the ongoing development plan states that the dual four-lane expressway will cut through the site in the next couple of years. The development plan also shows that the 200hec-sized undeveloped greenery will finally become a new housing district for 50,000 residents in 30 years. It is obvious that these intensive human interventions will significantly threaten the current rich ecology.
Then how could landscape architects balance between the increasing built environment and decreasing nature? When the city has an unavoidable development plan, how do we guide our environment towards a more ecologically sustainable direction? Would we work as mediators by logical assessment on the environmental impact of the site? The project aims to answer these questions by site-specific research associated with multiple issues of identity, connectivity, and livability.
Site specificity is fundamental and convincing research methodologies for the project and the value can only be realized through intensive field research. The paper contains the full range of research processes at the variety of scale, describing layers such as its context (urban & nature), its depth (history & socio economic considerations), and its flows (ecology & system). The identified local characteristics through various mapping and recording skills would be used in examining the relationship between documentation and analytical research. Consequently, the project highlights how actively these intensive research data interweave and integrate with actual site proposal towards our ecological and social responsibility in the field of landscape architecture.
Moving towards the practical implementation of an integrated design approach under given limitati... more Moving towards the practical implementation of an integrated design approach under given limitations, I would rather like to speculate on redefining scopes of landscape architects and involving ecologists in the design process. To what extent does the scope of landscape architecture design work need to be expanded in design projects in order to implement ecological knowledge effectively? When are the appropriate timings to invite ecological inputs from experts throughout the design processes? These questions have been explored to be answered through design studios, which I have conducted for the last couple of years in Singapore on the transformation of secondary forests into new residential towns. This is a common land development pattern that has far-reaching impacts, as these developments typically do not account for the ecological, biophysical, and socio-cultural values of these forests.
Singapore is a city-state in the Southeast Asian tropical region, and is characterized by high-de... more Singapore is a city-state in the Southeast Asian tropical region, and is characterized by high-density urban development with a corresponding high degree of manmade greenery in built environment. Much of its original biodiversity of the tropical rainforests have been lost due to deforestation and later urbanization, so that only little remains on the island today as intact biodiversity hotspots. There is a question of how biodiversity can be further re-introduced into the manmade greenery which characterizes most of the island.
The potential of green roofs as an ecological measure seems to be overlooked while green roofs in Singapore largely have focused on functional and economic benefits to mitigate urban heat island effects, or to simply increase the area of greenery for man’s pleasure. Beyond physical or aesthetical parameters, the research investigates the biodiversity potential like the flora-fauna relationships of green roofs, where it may be an ideal niche with minimal human disturbance for the recreation of wild habitats in the context of land scarcity.
With this in mind, utilizing self-generated and self-sustained vegetation may be an alternative method of creating highly bio-diverse habitats in a typical extensive green roof setup with minimum cost and maintenance. The research looks at the creation of pilot sites within NUS to test-bed a palette of such spontaneous vegetation species and to observe its performance as a local habitat. It is expected that findings from the sites would be a new precursor to the implementation of larger scale extensive green roofs towards the more ecologically sustainable urban greenery for a tropical city.
Even when an apparently perfect plan is conceived, it may not translate into a perfect place. The... more Even when an apparently perfect plan is conceived, it may not translate into a perfect place. The reason is that the real world includes all of the contingencies such as naturally growing landscape and human’s behavior that could make a place more valuable and more livable. These variables are phenomena beyond landscape architects’ initial imagination during the designing stage. Then what can we do to assimilate these contingencies into our thinking? Is there any methodology to analyze these ambiguous elements so that we can propose more of a realistic approach in practice? Ultimately, would a research contribute to demonstrate our ecological and social responsibility in the field of landscape architecture? The talk addresses four ongoing research projects that arose from these questions.
Despite academic awareness of the environmentally significant impacts of deforestation and the ec... more Despite academic awareness of the environmentally significant impacts of deforestation and the ecologically important role of urban forests in the attainment of sustainable cities, the socio-cultural aspects of urban forests are not widely discussed in Singapore. The article explores various opinions of different stakeholder groups on the positive and negative issues of living near forested areas and on various aspects of deforestation management. It uses Tagore forest, an ecologically strategic location that will be developed as a housing district in the immediate future. Personal interviews were conducted with 40 respondents slotted into four groups: those living near forests; members of the general public not living near a forest; those in professions related to landscape architecture and/or urban ecology; those in architecture, building, planning, and/or real estate. Interestingly, the study found two clusters, and these clusters did not respect the original four divisions: the first appreciated the forest and/or living near the forest, and the second thought managed green parks were more aesthetically attractive and useful. Although generally speaking, the four original groups’ responses were similar, the nature-related profession group highlighted the importance of pre-emptive biodiversity assessment. Overall, the article addresses the socio-cultural, economic and environmental concerns raised by various stakeholder groups as a baseline for reconciling discourses on deforestation management in a tropical city.
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Then how could landscape architects balance between the increasing built environment and decreasing nature? When the city has an unavoidable development plan, how do we guide our environment towards a more ecologically sustainable direction? Would we work as mediators by logical assessment on the environmental impact of the site? The project aims to answer these questions by site-specific research associated with multiple issues of identity, connectivity, and livability.
Site specificity is fundamental and convincing research methodologies for the project and the value can only be realized through intensive field research. The paper contains the full range of research processes at the variety of scale, describing layers such as its context (urban & nature), its depth (history & socio economic considerations), and its flows (ecology & system). The identified local characteristics through various mapping and recording skills would be used in examining the relationship between documentation and analytical research. Consequently, the project highlights how actively these intensive research data interweave and integrate with actual site proposal towards our ecological and social responsibility in the field of landscape architecture.
The potential of green roofs as an ecological measure seems to be overlooked while green roofs in Singapore largely have focused on functional and economic benefits to mitigate urban heat island effects, or to simply increase the area of greenery for man’s pleasure. Beyond physical or aesthetical parameters, the research investigates the biodiversity potential like the flora-fauna relationships of green roofs, where it may be an ideal niche with minimal human disturbance for the recreation of wild habitats in the context of land scarcity.
With this in mind, utilizing self-generated and self-sustained vegetation may be an alternative method of creating highly bio-diverse habitats in a typical extensive green roof setup with minimum cost and maintenance. The research looks at the creation of pilot sites within NUS to test-bed a palette of such spontaneous vegetation species and to observe its performance as a local habitat. It is expected that findings from the sites would be a new precursor to the implementation of larger scale extensive green roofs towards the more ecologically sustainable urban greenery for a tropical city.