Urban heat island effect is measured as the temperature difference between the air within the urban canopy layer and that measured in rural areas.  Built urban environments can suppress air movements, obstructing cool flows and exacerbating pollution.  However, as Alexander Robinson argues in his research for SWA, “high density cities may be our best sustainable… Read more »

YingYuHung

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With an estimated 1.5 million deer killed annually on US roads , and potentially a greater biomass of smaller animals killed, wildlife crossings reconnect remaining land patches to facilitate healthy metapopulation function (Forman).    The emerging science of Road Ecology in the U.S. has studied wildlife connectors, and claims that the combined use of fencing… Read more »

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The 48,876 miles of national highways consume 1% of the land in the U.S., which is about the size of South Carolina. This network conceived our sprawling land use habits, extended our commutes and expanded our waistlines. In Los Angeles, the nation’s capital of traffic jams, the average person loses 93 hours yearly sitting in… Read more »

GALVESTON-BAY

Experiencing severe coastal storms has always been part of living near the sea; however, current planning models and infrastructures are putting residents in positions equivalent to placing their heads in the sand. On September 13, 2008 Hurricane Ike struck the upper Texas coast, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and washing away entire communities. In response, SWA… Read more »

How can a transportation corridor be diversified? Is there a way to do this and make it more efficient and flexible? The Gran Via in Barcelona, designed by Arriola & Fiol Arquitectes, is a notable precedent for its activation of a single-use sunken freeway. This project carefully orchestrates uses, creating a sectionally-rich transportation corridor from… Read more »

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atlanta-connector

The Atlanta Connector will remain the City’s most significant and visible infrastructural corridor for the foreseeable future, so  any transformation has to embrace the Connector as an integral part of the City of Atlanta. This project aims–not to make the Connector disappear–but to use the Connector as a transformative piece of the City’s open space… Read more »