Many young women feel insecure when moving around in public spaces because they feel that they lack a sense of safety. This leads to the mobility of these women being restricted due to the feeling of not being safe. The Ålidhem forest is an area in Umeå municipality that is located between the districts Ålidhem and Carlshem. Moving in the forest during the day can be experienced as peaceful while the same area can be transformed into an experience of unsafety and uncertainty when the darkness has settled, and less people are in movement. The purpose of this study is to examine young women's experience of security in the Ålidhem forest.  The results from this study are based on a qualitative method through semi-structured interviews with seven young women who move in the area with varying extent during both the day and the evening. The results from this study show that young women appreciate staying in the area during the day but experience the forest as an unsafe place they rather avoid during the night. The main reason for this is the dense forest, limited lightning and the feeling of being alone in the forest in the evenings. According to the women from the study, the municipality should take physical measures to improve the design of the area in order for the forest to be perceived as safer. Planning a safe environment contributes to more people wanting to move around in that area, which in turn will lead to fewer people being limited.

Waterfront space is an essential urban component that protects inner land and functions as an interface between nature and the built and human environments. Researching both theoretical and practical resources could be helpful in determining their prospective roles and benefits. Instead of being used solely as a public space, it should be a site that combines urban and natural environments. The Bund in Shanghai is an ideal location for studying the development of a more sustainable environment and investigating the relationship between urban and natural environments. The current Bund is in response to a row of buildings built during the period of foreign settlement and has weak connections to both the city and the river. As a first step toward reimagining its role and relationship with its surroundings, I investigate the site's design development history, site features, and people's needs. The general design direction is guided by two design principles. First, the proposed Bund is strongly associated with its history, natural environment, and urban context. Thus, the new development is inextricably attached to its location and environment. In addition, the new Bund provides more micro-spaces that people can utilize based on their activities. These spaces are interconnected, but their occupancy by different people does not conflict. The Bund's function and relationship with the urban environment, people, and nature will be redefined through the analysis and design phases. / Master of Science / Cities adjacent to bodies of water, such as the ocean, a river, or a pond, have waterfront space. It protects the city and is also a popular outdoor space. It is essential to understand its roles and functions thoroughly. Exploring and utilizing the potential benefits of waterfront space could create a more enjoyable and sustainable outdoor space for the public and the city. The Bund in Shanghai is ideal for studying the function of urban and natural environments and their relationship. The location would be evaluated and experimented with to create a better public space for the city and its inhabitants. The design development could be used as a waterfront prototype and standard for communities seeking a harmonious environment among the city, nature, and people.

A city walkable is about re-imagining spatial justice through access and public space in North End, East London, South Africa. The research questioned the state of East London's public space, its inner-city decay, and its vehicular dependency. East London lacks good quality public space that is walkable and accessible. A city walkable has streets that are comfortable, safe, interesting and offer choice. The urban environment must foster walkability. Before Apartheid, North End was a mixed-race community that was spatially integrated with the city because of its proximity to the CBD and its urban fabric. North Enders never needed to own a vehicle to access amenities. People could access their everyday amenities on foot and felt safe walking day or night. North End was a walkable, mixed-use neighbourhood. However, due to the Group Areas Act of 1950, people were forcibly removed from the city and relocated to what is now known as townships. Due to this removal people are forced to rely on public transport or private vehicle for mobility. Townships are not mixed-use, and streets do not foster walkability. By removing people from the city, Apartheid removed walkability. The fundamentals of living in a city are access to the convenience of amenities and work. Denying access to the city is a spatial injustice. This denial has resulted in a lack of walkable streets, unsafe public spaces, and car dependency. Since the forced removals of 1950' North End has been rezoned as a light industrial area. The research aimed to unlock the potential for walkability in East London. North End is re-imagined not only a walkable neighbourhood, but as a neighbourhood that is integrated with both township areas and the CBD. The links used to create linkages are a series of urban mixed-use corridors. Thus, creating a city that is spatially just. This makes North End a strategic place in the city which has the potential to become East London's 'knuckle'. Through various interventions, spatial strategies, and framework a more just, walkable city is envisioned.

To mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic, unthinkable restrictions and measures were enforced. In a few weeks’ time, the greatest part of the global population went under strict lockdown policies. In this new reality, Italians took advantage of their balconies and started engaging in collective actions of communal and national solidarity. Unable to be outdoors in any other way they reinvented the balcony as the focal point of their everyday interactions in times that called for social distancing and became ‘viral’. Balconies are a common feature in dense urban settings of South Europe, and transformed into an outdoor territory, which demonstrates architectural innovation, bridging dipoles, of interior and exterior, of individual and collective, but mostly of private and public. Given the circumstances, one can provocatively suggest that balconies are public spaces, especially under the scope of pandemic urbanism. Recognizing public spaces as open, publicly accessible places that facilitate popular activities necessary for community building, we introduce balconies as hybrid and heterotopic spaces mediating the private and public realm. Defined by clear and strict borders, yet accessible in terms of sight and sound, balconies potentially create a wider social network within the city, which should be enhanced. In terms of methodology, besides the literature review, ‘on a balconé’ (sic). ‘Balconer’, in French translates to watch closely from a balcony, without taking part in what is happening and such methodological practice complemented the research, by recording direct and indirect personal observations. As a result, an online international survey was conducted in April 2020, open to subjects both having and not having balconies. Firstly, the perception of balconies in general was investigated, along with an effort to map out regular activities and objects that synthesize such places. Moreover, it was explored whether the viral scenes from all over the world were more than a momentum and an ‘Instagrammable’ trend or whether new synergies underlain beyond, especially in the scope of social interactions and solidarity. The research advocates reconsidering balconies as an important element of building structures, especially in cities. Comparing how previous pandemics and diseases shifted urban planning and design principles, it is high time to discuss the proliferation of balconies as a feature of pro-equal societies. Nevertheless, balconies should be understood as spatial manifestations rather than merely architectural typological elements. In that sense, porches, patios, terraces and rooftops bear the same opportunities. Placemaking and urban policies calling for dense public life should start taking into account places that exceed the street level perspective. Finally, in some languages, balcony is a slang word for female breasts. Reversing this metaphor, as breasts are life-giving, balconies also are life-supporting elements of the buildings and of cities and should be regarded as such.

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The study explores the infill of public presence in an urban gap in Pretoria's CBD. Urban cultural diversity is used as a point of departure, to propose a public facility in the city centre to become part of a network of public spaces in the area and provide a backdrop for restorative action through the lived experience of the user. / Dissertation (MArch(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2005. / Architecture / unrestricted