Master of Landscape Architecture / Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Jason S. Brody / Recycling programs and public art have the capacity to improve the urban environment and quality of life to enhance downtown neighborhoods for residents, employees, and visitors (Miles 1989; Kansas City Design Center 2015). Kansas City, Missouri, currently does not have a strategic recycling program in place for multi-family housing or commercial businesses. Additionally, Downtown lacks appropriate recycling infrastructure in the public realm. This lack of private and public recycling infrastructure has created a general lack of awareness within the Downtown community. Using public art as a catalyst, Downtown Kansas City has the opportunity to increase recycling participation and awareness in the public realm through an engaging recycling and public art system. This project will utilize the work from Kansas City Design Center (KCDC) spanning the Art in the Loop Vision Plan and the Recycling Vision Study. Through research and design development strategies, a cohesive system can build a network of connected sites that have strong relationships to both recycling and art narratives. These overlapping stories of recycling and art will activate the public realm driving increased awareness of the recycling issues. Collaboration with the KCDC studio and local artists has lead to the design implementation of the Showcase Node at the Main Street and Truman Road site which was established in the RE[CONSIDERED] vision proposal. This site will be activated through local artists each year and they will be challenged to utilize locally sourced recycled material to create artful and interactive installations. A temporary light frame structure will allow artist to house these rotating art installations to show the city what their recycled materials can transform into. Together, the coordination of public art and recycled materials can inspire and create a meaningful impact in Downtown Kansas City.

While youth media production work has increased dramatically over the past two decades, researchers still lack an adequate theorization of how institutionally-mediated youth production programs instigate democratic acts. Central to this deficiency ares hortcomings in the two dominant frameworks typically used to conceptualize the democratic potential of young people's media work. In response to this, I turn to the work of Hannah Arendt and use her conceptualization of public action as framed in relation to a "pedagogy of natality" to assess the relationship between creative youth practice and democracy. While Arendt's framework offers a compelling vision of democratic action, her model is also invaluable for mapping how production work affects adolescents' democratic experience. It focuses the analytic lens on agonistic struggles that expand the way youth register and pay heed to plurality. I demonstrate this utility through a critical ethnographic study of the Summer Visions Film Institute, an initiative designed around a series of two-week digital video production programs for youth aged 14-19. In examining the Summer Visions program, I address the experience of student video producers but focus close attention on the work and experience of peer-to-peer youth mentors in the program for the following reasons. First, peer education has a role in many youth media programs but there continues to be a dearth of research on peer mentorship in media production settings. Second, while student participants take part in Summer Visions for ten days, the mentors are involved in production work on a daily basis over a seven-week period. Most are also former students of the program and so they offer a more robust set of case studies. Using Arendt, I demonstrate how media production programs contribute in contradictory but nonetheless important ways to the formation of new publics, not because such work leads to straightforward forms of position taking about specific political projects, but because it leads to forms of thoughtfulness that challenge the lure of oblivion that haunts our lives and prevents us from seeing those who are different and yet part of our worlds.

While youth media production work has increased dramatically over the past two decades, researchers still lack an adequate theorization of how institutionally-mediated youth production programs instigate democratic acts. Central to this deficiency ares hortcomings in the two dominant frameworks typically used to conceptualize the democratic potential of young people's media work. In response to this, I turn to the work of Hannah Arendt and use her conceptualization of public action as framed in relation to a "pedagogy of natality" to assess the relationship between creative youth practice and democracy. While Arendt's framework offers a compelling vision of democratic action, her model is also invaluable for mapping how production work affects adolescents' democratic experience. It focuses the analytic lens on agonistic struggles that expand the way youth register and pay heed to plurality. I demonstrate this utility through a critical ethnographic study of the Summer Visions Film Institute, an initiative designed around a series of two-week digital video production programs for youth aged 14-19. In examining the Summer Visions program, I address the experience of student video producers but focus close attention on the work and experience of peer-to-peer youth mentors in the program for the following reasons. First, peer education has a role in many youth media programs but there continues to be a dearth of research on peer mentorship in media production settings. Second, while student participants take part in Summer Visions for ten days, the mentors are involved in production work on a daily basis over a seven-week period. Most are also former students of the program and so they offer a more robust set of case studies. Using Arendt, I demonstrate how media production programs contribute in contradictory but nonetheless important ways to the formation of new publics, not because such work leads to straightforward forms of position taking about specific political projects, but because it leads to forms of thoughtfulness that challenge the lure of oblivion that haunts our lives and prevents us from seeing those who are different and yet part of our worlds.

While youth media production work has increased dramatically over the past two decades, researchers still lack an adequate theorization of how institutionally-mediated youth production programs instigate democratic acts. Central to this deficiency ares hortcomings in the two dominant frameworks typically used to conceptualize the democratic potential of young people's media work. In response to this, I turn to the work of Hannah Arendt and use her conceptualization of public action as framed in relation to a "pedagogy of natality" to assess the relationship between creative youth practice and democracy. While Arendt's framework offers a compelling vision of democratic action, her model is also invaluable for mapping how production work affects adolescents' democratic experience. It focuses the analytic lens on agonistic struggles that expand the way youth register and pay heed to plurality. I demonstrate this utility through a critical ethnographic study of the Summer Visions Film Institute, an initiative designed around a series of two-week digital video production programs for youth aged 14-19. In examining the Summer Visions program, I address the experience of student video producers but focus close attention on the work and experience of peer-to-peer youth mentors in the program for the following reasons. First, peer education has a role in many youth media programs but there continues to be a dearth of research on peer mentorship in media production settings. Second, while student participants take part in Summer Visions for ten days, the mentors are involved in production work on a daily basis over a seven-week period. Most are also former students of the program and so they offer a more robust set of case studies. Using Arendt, I demonstrate how media production programs contribute in contradictory but nonetheless important ways to the formation of new publics, not because such work leads to straightforward forms of position taking about specific political projects, but because it leads to forms of thoughtfulness that challenge the lure of oblivion that haunts our lives and prevents us from seeing those who are different and yet part of our worlds. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Graduate

Impervious surfaces are the greatest contributors to degradation of water quality and large volumes of stormwater runoff. Green infrastructure is the holistic solution to this problem which not only reduces flooding but also actively moves towards achievement of larger environmental goals. Green infrastructure has the co-benefits of reducing the heat island effect, traffic calming, beautifying the neighbourhood, improving the canopy within the city, the creation of parks and even supports economic development. The City of Falls Church is deeply concerned with the pressing matter of flood control due to the threats to human life and property in recent flooding events. The polluted waters of Falls Church also contribute to a highly impaired watershed- the Chesapeake Bay. This thesis recognizes the environmental crisis caused by polluted runoff and places equal emphasis upon reducing runoff as well as improving water quality. In order to mitigate the effects of inundation, it is most critical to intervene at the source of locations which create the most runoff and pollution. The thesis provides a systematic methodology of identifying such areas and intervening in them. The watershed which contains the downtown area of Falls Church has the greatest amount of impervious surfaces and the highest rate of stormwater runoff. The two intersecting streets of S. Maple Avenue and Annandale Road are identified as the location of intervention after tabulating a confluence of stormwater and public realm factors. S. Maple Avenue is a part of the Falls Church bike network and is also designated to become a civic great street. Meanwhile, Annandale Road has the potential to play an active role in collection and management of stormwater. Annandale Road runs along the watershed boundary as well as crosses several tributaries which are low points in the watershed. Furthermore, there is a dynamic urban character to the street as it transitions from a residential zone to the commercial zone. Both streets present excellent possibilities for road diets, pedestrianization and traffic calming which bolsters the implementation of stormwater management in the public realm. / Master of Science / Impervious surfaces are the greatest contributors to degradation of water quality and large volumes of stormwater runoff. Green infrastructure is the holistic solution to this problem which not only reduces flooding but also actively moves towards achievement of larger environmental goals. There is a growing recognition that gray stormwater infrastructure has no benefits other than the conveyance of water away from the site. Green infrastructure has the co-benefits of reducing the heat island effect, traffic calming, beautifying the neighbourhood, improving the canopy within the city, the creation of parks and even supports economic development. There are many cities today which have had positive results by implementing a green approach towards the management of runoff. The City of Falls Church is deeply concerned with the pressing matter of flood control due to the threats to human life and property in recent flooding events. This thesis recognizes the environmental crisis caused by polluted runoff and places equal emphasis upon reducing runoff as well as improving water quality. In order to mitigate the effects of inundation, it is most critical to intervene at the source of locations which create the most runoff and pollution.The two intersecting streets of S. Maple Avenue and Annandale Road are identified as the location of intervention after tabulating a confluence of stormwater and public realm factors. Both streets present excellent possibilities for road diets, pedestrianization and traffic calming which bolsters the implementation of stormwater management in the public realm.

A shift in practice towards a process-orientated and collaborative art practice within the strands of art practice in the public realm raises the question, ’what is the practical contribution artists make to society?’ which can only be answered by first understanding how artists work. Introducing the concepts of ‘context’, ‘artist-led’ and ‘residency’ with reference to the Artists Placement Group, the problematics of assessing the social contribution of context-specific art practices are presented as resting upon two difficulties, the conceptual gulf between the artworld and the public realm and the assumption that artists can or should not articulate their intentions for an artwork. Combining questions raised from practice with the problems outlined by Suzanne Lacy, the need for research into the generative process of public artists is established. The purpose of the research is to investigate and develop artists’ understanding of the generative process by examining the interaction of artists in contexts in the public realm and to make that information explicit. An appropriate methodology and theoretical framework is found by critically reviewing recent related practice-based research projects in Art and Design with special attention to the work of Ian Hunter on immersion strategies in rural contexts. The model of the artistic process as problem-solving, developed by J. Getzels and M. Csikszentmihalyi , is also examined against current theories in scientific research into creativity and theories of social policy problem-setting of Donald Schon and the pattern of inquiry by John Dewey and subsequently extended. Data was generated by recording the decisions and reflections of three artists carrying out an actual artist-led context-specific project in the public realm (‘Taming Goliath’). Data gathered by using a specially adapted method (‘Sweatbox’) were analysed by using the Generative Process Model. The results produced narratives which describe each artist’s experience and information on the methods artists use to interact with a context in the public realm, their intentions. The significance of the findings and the experience are discussed in relation to the work of Suzanne Lacy and Allan Kaprow with recommendations for further research. In conclusion, four areas contributing to knowledge are proposed: the extension of the Generative Process Model, the development of an methodology of analysis, the usage of the Sweatbox method and contributions to the body of knowledge of artists’ processes in the public realm.

Conventional street design has given drivers priority over the street. This has resulted in overall declination of the public realm. This study explored the topic of shared space, defined as an approach in which the street is designed in a way that pedestrians, drivers and other street users have equal entitlement and priority throughout the entire space. The research draws upon the literature on shared space; and case studies comprised of secondary source descriptions, key-informant interviews and on-site observation. Ensuing findings suggested that vehicles were more willing to share the streetscape with pedestrians when vehicular speeds were reduced and there was integration between sidewalk and roadway. These findings led to development of a set of principles that informed recommendations for the conceptual redesign of Toronto’s Downtown Yonge Street as a shared space.

The dissertation proposes a Community Creativity Facility in the Cultural Precinct in the lower Central Business District (CBD) of Pretoria. The client, Tshwane Leadership Foundation (TLF) and its affiliate, the School of Creative Arts (SCA), require a facility that caters for the visual arts within Pretoria’s city centre that uplifts its users on a socio-economic level. Furthermore, an arts facility in the lower CBD is absent and can contribute to inner-city activation. The dissertation investigates how a relationship can be established between the visual arts and Pretoria’s inner city community and city users. The building intends on fostering an arts appreciation and relationship through exposure, education and skills development. It seeks to educate people on the relevance and contribution of art. This will be investigated by analysing the role that art museums and galleries currently hold - the perceptions attached to them. The theory and the concept, which encourage active participation and interactivity, will inform the design of the building. The urban framework, the site analysis and the precedent studies also inform the dissertation. The design is primarily form-driven, as it was realised that the ground floor – the public realm – is the most important drawcard in exposing people to art. Thus, the spatial manipulation of the ground floor resulted in a public square that encourages exposure to art, accidental/impromptu encounters and informal activities to occur. The treatment of surface planes was also approached to allow for visual and physical connections. Commercial, educational and leisure programs were combined into a single building as a mixed-use building can further encourage exposure to art. As the building intends on facilitating creativity and creating spaces that are inclusive for its users, the design development explored this extensively through hand drawings, 3D modeling, concept models and computer generated drawings. Copyright 2011, University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. Please cite as follows: Philippou, A 2011, A community creativity facility : encouraging a public interface with art, MArch(Prof) dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd < http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-12012011-112138 / > C12/4/27/gm / Dissertation (MArch(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Architecture / unrestricted

Informal settlements are a natural and necessary part of urbanization. Occupied by victims of unsuccessful migration and viewed by the city dweller as a dystopia, these are incredibly self-sustaining parts of the city. Inhabited by the socially marginalised, informal settlements have been neglected in terms of infrastructure and public processes by the formal sectors. Recent efforts to deal with these settlements, like forced evictions, show evidence of social and spatial injustices inflicted on the inhabitants. By 2050, more than two-thirds of the global population will live in cities. Of those, one-third will live in sub-par informal settlements without their own right to the city. With this reality, is it time to reassess how we talk about informal forms of urbanization?

This research studies two memorials to the Holocaust victims in Minsk, Belarus with the aim to identify how these spaces of commemoration were formed. The study builds upon the analysis of three spheres: the physical space of the chosen memorials, decision-making process regarding their installation, and social practices that have happened around. Additionally, this thesis analyses the correlations of these areas. The methods for the research are qualitative and explorative case study analysis. An extensive review of documents and media is done. Additionally, direct observations of the urban memorials were conducted.