Land Art Generator Directors will be speaking during:
The role of renewable energy in post COVID-19 public spaces
Thursday August 27, 2.00 - 3.30pm CET
Series 4 (August) - Webinar 4
More here >
This webinar is part of the initiative '2020: A Year without Public Space under the COVID-19 Pandemic'.
Research into energy transition from carbon to renewable energy sources points to the importance, and possible conflicts, of enlarging the footprint of renewable energy generators into the public space. The future planning of our cities will require a greater sensibility to the integration and occupation of space by ever more present PV panels, microturbines, etc. However, the current planning system is ill-equipped to this task while there are many issues related to the public opposition to the visual, sound, and space impacts of renewables.
At the same time, the experience of the COVID 19 pandemic has exacerbated the pressures about the use of public space by introducing a new concept in our design approach: “the physical distancing”. Physical distancing promises to contain the spread of the pandemic by 1. Stay at about 2m from other people; 2. Do not gather in groups; Stay out of crowded places and avoid mass gatherings. Whatever approach we use, the concept of the physical distance results in an “enlargement” of our footprint resulting in an increasing need for public space.
For example, some municipalities have proposed to give businesses the possibility to use part of public space for free. In this way, it has been argued, it would be easier to attract customers and ensure the physical “distancing”. In a few cases, agreements have been reached between different businesses such as restaurants so that the same tables could be used for different purposes at different times of the day.
However, this is creating the unfortunate situation that businesses and private citizens are competing for the use of public space since not everyone can afford to seat in a restaurant or drink a Starbucks coffee. The likely outcome of it is more inequality between who can pay for accessing some services and who cannot.
Our point of departure is that this “scramble for public space” has to be tackled with an integrative perspective. This means that the design thinking process has to deal at once with the triple issue of making public space accessible to all while generating energy for the public and be of support for the new physical distancing requirements for the businesses.
We would like to discuss how integrated urban design with renewable energy systems can contribute to re-imaging the future public space. Some questions to be explored are: how to design new concepts for public spaces, that couple the energy generation function with other, new functions, that are people-oriented? How to involve the citizens in the process of producing the energy they need in a socially and economically sustainable way while preserving the living environment?
Event Managers
Ying Fen Chen & Stephanie Cheung, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Hosts
Luisa Bravo, City Space Architecture & The Journal of Public Space, Italy
Hendrik Tieben, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, School of Architecture, Hong Kong
Co-hosts
Alessandra Scognamiglio, ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development), Italy
Agatino Rizzo, Luleå University of Technology, Sweden
Introduction
Agatino Rizzo, Luleå University of Technology, Sweden
Discussion chair
Alessandra Scognamiglio, ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development), Italy
Speakers
Björn Ekelund, Luleå University of Technology, Sweden
Daniele Santucci, Climateflux, Germany
Robert Ferry and Elizabeth Monoian, Land Art Generator, United States
Taichi Kuma, Kengo Kuma and Associates, Japan
Jorge Toledo García, University of Alicante / Ecosistema Urbano, Spain
Commentator
Vincent Kitio, UN-Habitat, Chief of the Urban Energy Unit
Round Table Discussion, moderated by Alessandra Scognamiglio and Agatino Rizzo
Q&A with the audience, moderated by Ying Fen Chen, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong