Google Alerts!...and then sifting through them

In my quest to stay on top of emerging trends, and just keep up on news in areas that interest me, I subscribed to Google Alerts. 


Now, after a few months of "alerts", I have a sizeable collection of articles, resources, and internet detritus - its a mixed blessing. The articles are mostly gleaned from periodicals, online publications, and local newspapers. I get news on suburban agriculture from all over the place, and in every context. The result - a nation-wide perspective of a locally-focused trend. Every town, city, county, and state is addressing food, and land in a new light, specific to their own concerns and each facing its own challenges. The picture that is peiced together is one of ingenuity, resilience, and people working hard to change the status quo. No matter what BigAg says, its clear people are beginning to understand that a diet based mostly on corn byproducts (whether consumed whole or fed to livestock to be consumed) can't be very good for you. At a minimum, people are interested - interested in how thing grow, and what they can do themselves.


So, here, today, I present to you a filtering (wide mesh) of the vast haul google has trawled from the internet for me.


I will add a very brief description for each, and I will try to make this a more regular thing to avoid the build-up Im dealing with now.


Enjoy!


Chicago - Subruban Moms meet framers to discuss farm practices and learn about agriculture
http://wjbc.com/suburban-moms-meet-up-with-farmers-in-chicago/


Kentucky - Dr. David Wicks lists 21 ways to green a city
http://blogs.courier-journal.com/davidwicks/2011/12/01/true-green-21-ways-to-plant-a-city/


Cuba - Suburban Agricultrure dry season production
http://www.cadenagramonte.cu/english/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=8367&Itemid=14


    -  further reading
http://www.radiorebelde.cu/english/news/cattle-raising-in-suburban-agriculture-20111201/


Michigan - Placemaking in conjunction with urban agriculture to rebuild declining industrial cities in the midwest. "Creating 21st century communities"
http://rustwire.com/2011/11/29/can-placemaking-save-michigan/


New Jersey (in the future) - A slightly bizzare, fictional account of what shopping might be like in 2021 in northern New Jersey, need I say more?
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/perlow/retail-in-2021-when-clicks-have-buried-bricks/19344


Detroit - Urban farms exempted from traditional farming laws. BigAg - not happy.
http://www.freep.com/article/20111128/NEWS06/111280346/Bill-would-create-Right-Farm-Act-exemption-Detroit?odyssey=nav%7Chead


NRDC, National - House prices slump+Food prices rise = suburbs reverting to, or integrating, farming.
http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/kbenfield/back_to_the_farm_subdivision_l.html


Indiana - Future Farmers of America (FFA) expands scope and stays relevant!
http://www.ocala.com/article/20111111/ZNYT01/111113011?p=2&tc=pg


Maine - finding the space to encourage suburban/small scale farming in built up areas.
http://www.kjonline.com/opinion/protecting-encouraging-farming-must-start-at-the-local-level_2011-11-10.html


California - The fate of our fine friends Apis mellifera, aka. BEES!
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=the-pollinator-crisis


Cuba - The suburban and urban ag. capital of the world!
http://www.cadenagramonte.cu/english/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7997:cuban-urban-agriculture-an-emerging-alternative&catid=27:economy&Itemid=24


Oakland - The legal and neighborly hazards of urban farming. Oakland adjusts laws and ordinances to reflect rise in urban homesteading.
http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/11/07/362467/urban-homesteading-popular-trend/


More BEES! - Small-scale bee keepers may be the solution to colony-collapse disorder. Pending ordinances to facilitate
http://grayslake.patch.com/articles/local-beekeepers-may-play-role-in-saving-food-supply-e34860c7


*MUST READ* - Small cities are the place to be post-oil
http://www.grist.org/cities/2011-10-31-why-small-cities-are-poised-for-success-in-an-oil-starved-future

PORTFOLIO - done for the moment...

Im sure there will be many more iterations to come. view as spreads.


Feedback is welcome, enjoy!

Drawings from my senior project

First in set of 3. Led to some great design discoveries.

Found these while assembling and editing the latest round of my portfolio. 

They were all drawn in late 2009 and early 2010, for my senior project - The Estuary District. They are a mix of site analysis, concept development, and the general working out of ideas.

Enjoy -

2 of 3

3 of 3 ... discovery!

What do I have to work with? What does it want to be?

What do I want it to be?

What grows here now? How does it do it?

How did these buildings function?

Whats going on underground? What could that become?

Preview of portfolio - the inside cover/table of contents

New blogs and website links

Here are a few of the new website and blogs that I’m following. You can also find them now in the sidebar!


If anyone has any others they highly recommend – I’m always interested.


Enjoy!




An exploration of what makes old cities work and how we can apply that to the cities of today.

http://oldurbanist.blogspot.com/

The intersection of capitalism and urbanism.

http://marketurbanism.com/

A look at the policies and ‘best practices’ guiding the development of modern cities.

http://www.urbanophile.com/

Environmental news, sustainable home-ec, DIY projects, and a dash of politics.

http://www.thegoodhuman.com/

Steve Jobs quotes

I have discovered a few interesting quotes from Mr. Jobs over the past few days, and some great writing about his influence on things such as leadership, design, innovation, and consumerism. I'll continue to add to this post as I find them.


Enjoy -

"I read a study that measured the efficiency of locomotion for various species on the planet. The condor used the least energy to move a kilometer. Humans came in with a rather unimpressive showing about a third of the way down the list....That didn't look so good, but then someone at Scientific American had the insight to test the efficiency of lomotion for a man on a bicycle and a man on a bicycle blew the condor away.

That's what a computer is to me: the computer is the most remarkable tool that we've ever come up with. It's the equivalent of a bicycle for our minds."

-Steve Jobs
-- Interview for the documentary "Memory and Imagination," 1990

Thanks: Huffington Post

“We don’t have good language to talk about this kind of thing,” Mr. Jobs replied. “In most people’s vocabularies, design means veneer. It’s interior decorating. It’s the fabric of the curtains and the sofa. But to me, nothing could be further from the meaning of design. Design is the fundamental soul of a man-made creation that ends up expressing itself in successive outer layers of the product or service. The iMac is not just the color or translucence or the shape of the shell. The essence of the iMac is to be the finest possible consumer computer in which each element plays together. ... That is the furthest thing from veneer. It was at the core of the product the day we started. This is what customers pay us for — to sweat all these details so it’s easy and pleasant for them to use our computers. We’re supposed to be really good at this. That doesn’t mean we don’t listen to customers, but it’s hard for them to tell you what they want when they’ve never seen anything remotely like it.”

- Steve Jobs

-- Quoted from The New York Times, Oct. 7, 2011 

"Stay hungy, stay foolish"

- Steve Jobs

-- Numerous sources


...damn straight, Steve. RIP.

Physical Diplomacy

(The anniversary of 9/11 brought about a flood of emotion. The media forced us to replay that day; it took me back to being 14 – a sophomore in high school – and the wild range of emotions this new, shocking event evoked. My 9/11 (2011) started with a little NPR that resulted in much soul-searching, and ultimately I resorted to driving in silence with my thoughts.)

Maybe we lack, as a nation, a certain type of vanity. The kind that would cause us to pause and consider what the rest of the world thinks of us. There are plenty of voices screaming, “who cares!?” And while that may not be the official line towed by our noble diplomats, it is the voice of our physical legacy in the places we have entered in the name of peace and stability.

Field of abandoned blast-walls - Iraq
Courtesy: http://gocomics.typepad.com/the_sandbox/2008/08/graveyard-of-ol.html

BLDGBLOG ran a timely post on 9/11(http://bldgblog.blogspot.com/2011/09/shape-of-war.html). Studio-X NYC hosted a discussion with photographer Simon Norfolk, focused on the spaces and technologies of post-9/11 warfare. While the discussion will surely explore the photographic qualities of such surreal places, and their modern implications, I would like to look at these new battlefields in the context of future diplomacy.

The physical works of militaries are some of the longest standing and most iconic on earth. We humans have a violent history; there is no doubt about that, and the infrastructure of conquest, control, and defense has long shaped our understanding of nations. The very need to build, the root of architecture, was to protect one’s self from the elements, the beasts, and inevitably, one’s neighbors.

Great wall of China. Thanks Wikipedia.

 Today we see the remains of warring, turbulent ages in the form of the majestic castles of Germany, France and England, the Great Wall of China, Hadrian’s Wall in Scotland, even the Acropolis in Athens. These iconic fortifications now help to form a national identity; they speak to a shared heritage and remain as symbols, sometimes painful ones, of pivotal points in a nation’s development. While these fortifications were useful in their own time, almost all were overrun by superior technologies or ceased fulfilling their intended purposed due to diplomatic resolutions.

Edinburgh Castle, Scotland. Thanks Wikipedia.

Military infrastructure, like built work of any kind, is a cultural barometer. The materials used, the methods employed, all illuminate the greater political forces at work, and can even point to the source of conflict. The Castles and Fortresses of Medieval Europe, adorned with Christian imagery, speak not only to a time of adherent devotion to faith, but also to the wars being waged amongst Christian kings, each proclaiming divine right to rule.

Similarly, CHUs (containerized-housing-units), blast walls, fields of storage tanks, sallyports and bunkers all speak not only to the style of war being fought, but also to the resources and capabilities of the opposing forces. The physical presence of our military is indicative of a globalized force. Support systems are all containerized, ready for shipment to any corner of the globe. Bases are a package of components, each ready to plug-and-play in rapid deployment. And while these technological advances allow for the economical fabrication of miniature cities, they have come to demonstrate the kind of commercialization that has overrun our culture and permeated the military. In parts of the world where vast open land is part of tribal heritage and western notions of land owenership are foriegn, the imported 'Wal-Mart-esque' sprawl of bases and facilites convey a message of 'land-grabbing'. All of this is the result of a quick-fix mindset (the “surge” anyone?); whereas less economical solutions might prompt the more thoughtful allocation of resources, and greater emphasis on long-term strategic vision. Most importantly, we could leave a light footprint, and meaningful physical legacy; indicative of a country that respects the sovereignty of other nations and respects the future of its own image.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hesco_bastion
Thanks: US Navy

  The Romans built castras, the source of the word “castle”, many of which served not only as military outposts, but also as centers of trade, and provided the foundations of great cities around the Mediterranean and throughout Europe. Then again, maybe a comparison to the most notorious empire in history is not a good place to start a discussion on modern American diplomacy. The fact remains, the Roman Empire spread language, learning, governance, and commerce in a way never before witnessed. Starting to sound like familiar foreign policy? And the staying power of their outposts is evidenced by the great cities that sit atop their foundations today.

Roman "castra" - this one failed to become anything greater than a fort.
A view into the future?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castra

Regardless of our best diplomatic efforts, oratory and written resolutions have little staying power in the lives of those affected by conflicts. The places built, and things left behind will influence their collective feelings towards a foreign force that came in the name of peace and prosperity.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Camp_marmal02.JPG


These ideas are too readily dismissed as phenomenology, when in fact there is an undeniable truth that the built environment speaks; and is much longer-winded than even the most verbose politician.

See also: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/26/iraq-withdrawal-us-bases-equipment_n_975463.html

More on this to come…

Bikes - for real this time

Today I came face-to-face with the realities of modern transportation.

My beloved truck, a 2004 Nissan Frontier, may have finally died after struggling for several years with a bad supercharger. As I waded through rush hour traffic in the rain the rumbling under the hood grew from concerning to deafening and downright alarming not only to me, but also to the other drivers in traffic – that’s when I knew it was bad; I had other drivers yelling their personal diagnosis’ at me above the roar of metal on metal.



There she is - hiding in the woods

 The shock of the proposed repair bill was enough to make me laugh at the mechanic, who smugly starred me down,  his body language conveyed the message clearly, “well, I’m your only chance, so you better just pay up”, ha, little did he know who he was dealing with. I walked away (actually got a ride from a coworker) with my head up, committed to washing my hands of the trucks and suvs I had become so accustomed to and devote myself to my bike.


Now, this poses several issues – all surmountable, but not without some sacrifices. First and foremost, we live in a country built on the personal automobile. Never mind the cultural stigma of not owning a car, in most of this country it is simply impractical to use it as a means of real transportation as opposed to a hobby. The infrastructure is single-purpose, the planning is short-sighted, and distances between many necessary, day-to-day places too far. I won’t belabor the point that the current state of our transportation infrastructure has been influenced by corporate interests, market demand, and cultural flaws, but it has subsidized an addiction to oil and the automobile.


Here is the point I will belabor – we are primed to become a nation of the Bicycle.



"Yeah! Burn those dinosaurs!"

 

Lets start with the freedom of the car. A selling point of every car commercial – the open road with the wind in your hair – it plays to powerful underlying sentiments quintessential to American culture. In keeping with the tradition of freedom of movement and individual choice (long used as rallying cries against trains and other mass transit) the bicycle is champion. Conveniently, few car owners have ever thought of freeing themselves from the constraints of gas station locations, but it is a limiting factor. The bicycle takes these shared ideals and brings them to a whole new level: they allow you the ultimate freedom of movement as far as your own legs will take you. You simply fuel yourself, and hop on your self-powered machine. No more burning subsidized dinosaur goo – how is that for real personal freedom?

In terms of the physical makeup of our towns and cities – think for a second how much surface area is devoted to the automobile. Parking lots, highways, interstates, all built to store and accommodate our two-tons of personal armor, our carapace of sorts, enclosing a living room on wheels. Our cities have been transformed into places for our cars, not places for people. The bicycle, as opposed to an automobile, is a human-scale machine. They lack noisy, polluting combustion engines, can only go as fast as you can peddle, and cost far less over a lifespan. Most of the mechanical needs of a bike are so simple a child can do it. Gone are the days of DIY auto repair, today it requires specialist, a computer technician, and a garage full of specialized tools – not so with a trusty bike.





The only parking lots I dream about. Thanks Wikipedia.



On the East Coast, especially New England, towns were spaced a long walk apart, usually about 6- 10 miles. With sprawling infill and urbanization, the density is perfect for biking. So many times I hear people in the dense, older suburbs of DC where I live in say, “ I could walk it, but its just a bit too far”, that’s where the bike comes in. It is ideal for the suburban ring, as well as the city of course, but it expands your radius of travel 10-fold without burning anything except a few calories.


On that note: http://velocracy.com/2011/07/12/how-the-transportation-future-was-won-by-the-dutch/


Can you imagine, for a second, a city devoid of all combustion engines? There is a place you can experience this phenomenon – Venice, Italy. As night falls in the city, and the bustling crowds retreat, the silence becomes conspicuous. No rumbling freeways in the distance, no blaring horns, just the quiet lap of water in the canals. Imagine instead hearing birds, quiet sidewalk conversations, and the “whizzz..” , of a bike zipping past.

Couldn't have said it better myself...

Ok, do you want to tie this to some of the political issues of the day? Sure, let’s go there:

·         Riding a bike could greatly reduce obesity = lower healthcare costs.

·         Riding a bike reduces pollution – air particulates and smog, noise pollution, and runoff of all the fluids that leak from our beloved vehicles. = lower healthcare costs from environmental hazards, lower environmental cost of clean-up and regulation.

·         Riding a bike saves money – no more car insurance, maintenance bills, gas bills, and car payments = lower household debt.

·         And, in this political season it must be said, riding a bike could help create more jobs – with an increase in demand for bicycles there will be an uptick in small business (bike retailers, many locally owned), manufacturing, and all the related apparel and accessory industries. As well as infrastructure/construction jobs to widen the roads a bit and paint all those bike-lane lines.

For a complementary list of additional factors that keep us in our cars, look no further:
http://www.theurbancountry.com/2011/05/making-sure-nobody-walk-or-bikes.html


So, if we assume some of the infrastructure is in place(http://velocracy.com/2011/07/11/the-case-for-separate-bicycle-infrastructure/ ) – paths, roads, trails, alleys, etc. (ah, the versatility of the bike!) – minus a few extra bike racks, what is holding back the bicycle uprising? It is held up by oil subsidies, cultural norms perpetuated by archaic industries, and the lack of a legal framework that gives bikers rules and rights like the auto-driving public. Historically, the “right-of-way” that we refer to as our roads were reserved by the government for the travel of all people; cars are just big enough, loud enough and dangerous enough that they have edged out everything else. In the US, biking remains the marginalized mode of transportation. Many cities have taken steps to remedy this, most recently, L.A., an auto-addicted metropolis if there ever was one. The recent legislation, Rosendahl’s Ordinance, (http://articles.latimes.com/2011/jul/22/opinion/la-ed-cyclists-20110722) outlines the rights of bikers not be harassed or otherwise intimidated by drivers. While cities continue to build bike lanes on the unprotected shoulders of busy streets, they often fail to acknowledge the real needs of the biking community. 


With a continued focus on national health and the economic issues facing America’s urbanizing population, planners, politicians, and drivers should take note. Increased use of bikes, through ownership and bike-share programs, is a continuing trend. As personal vehicles become less attractive, due to costs and associated health and environmental issues, biking has the potential to become a dominant mode of transportation in some parts of the US. 


If you are interested in reading more on bikes, and lots of beautiful picture of people on them, you need to check this out:
http://www.velocracy.com/
From the Velocracy site: "Worldwide, less than 8% of the population owns cars, but everyone is paying a huge price for their existence and abuse, and the Western world, even the United States, is starting to realize that."


For the truly chic:


Courtesy: Copenhagen Cycle Chic



http://www.copenhagencyclechic.com/

If you want to be on the cutting edge of biking, and have the hottest set of wheels when gas gets to $10 a gal. check this out:

http://weburbanist.com/2009/03/03/futuristic-strange-concept-bicycles-designs/

And to wrap it up, a short photo study from Amsterdam. Here it is understood that the bike possesses all the desirable qualities of urban transportation - and they do it with class:


http://www.ski-epic.com/amsterdam_bicycles/ 



Courtesy: www.ski-epic.com

 

 It amazes me that a country with such a strong cultural tradition of personal independence, DIY ethic, and appreciation for the self-driven (literally!) that the bicycle has remained marginalized, for hobby and recreation, in the US. I think its time we give bicycles serious consideration as an integral part of our transportation system.



Reflections on Montana

Photo: Adam Sexton

It’s really a matter of scale. At least that is what sticks with me.  I had never really felt the sensation of “vastness” before this trip, not in the way I experienced it in Montana.

First it was the mountains. While driving up and out of Helena, MT our first day there, we ogled the craggy hills that dwarfed just about everything on the east coast. A friend of mine remarked, “every hill here would be a historic monument back east”, true, I guess it’s all relative.

In Butte, Mt, we witnessed the one of the largest Superfund sites in the nation – the Berkeley Pit. This mother-of-all-pits has water with the same acidity as lemon juice, is home to a few bacteria that thrive on heavy metals, and is threatening the local water supply with serious consequences predicted by 2024. Dug out of what was called “the richest hill on earth” by the Anaconda Mining Co. it produced a staggering quantity of copper from 1955 till its closure 1982. At a mile and a half wide and nearly as deep, it is a testament to human power. As disturbing as it is to see environmental degradation on such a massive scale, it is consistent with its surroundings. In a place where human and geological scales are in such apparent contrast, it seems as if the pit is simply the human response to a landscape so vast. As much as it was necessary to open this hill in order to extract the ore as efficiently as possible, it is hard to ignore the human tendency to feel insecurity and belittlement in a place where the natural world is as raw, and survival as harsh, as it is in these dry mountains. What better way to assert man’s dominance than to make an inverse mountain?

Courtesy of Wikipedia

Our traveling band moved on the next day to Glacier National Park. This unbelievably majestic patch of earth is a real national treasure. Despite being heavily visited by tourists from all over the globe, the park has managed to avoid the ‘amusement park’ feel that might overwhelm any other place. This park is immune to such plights. You could see it in the faces of the visitors, no matter how many trinket shops and faux chalets greet you at the park entrance, the mountains steal the show. The land held the power to shut people up. The mountains looked down upon the people with a smug regality: “Yes, you can admire us, and yes, nature has the power to wipe you from the face of the earth without a trace.” We had entered a time warp of sorts. The world we entered operated in centuries and eons, not days and hours. Tourists openly gawked and snapped pictures with hopeful desperation, trying to preserve their sense of wonder and amazement, and bring it with them. Looking back through my pictures I now realize it is not a sensation that transports well.

Photo: Adam Sexton

The four+ hour drive back to Helena is when it hit me. Descending from the jagged peaks and valleys of the Rocky Mountains and arriving on the high plains we were met with a landscape surreal and completely alien to me. Let me just say now, I have only been west of the Mississippi one other time, and my appreciation for land and space at that time was quite limited. A golden, gently undulating surface, stretched to the horizon. Crumbling rock broke the surface at the crest of the steeper hills, like white-caps on the open water, and the vast openness was overwhelming. For miles we drove, cresting over slight hills that opened onto 10 mile straight-aways. Even at 90 mph the land seemed to slowly drift by as dusk set in over a hazy saw-blade in the distance.

Photo: Autumn Visconti

I can’t quite explain all the emotions brought about by being in a place so vast and devoid of other people. I may have discovered I have slight agoraphobia. Maybe it was the contrast to our Prius, packed with 5 people and all our stuff? Maybe it was sheer exhaustion? Or, most likely, it was the result of spending 3 days within 10 feet of of my closest friends. Whatever is was, the landscape of Montana  provided more than just an incredible backdrop for a group of friends reuniting; it had the power to set the mood, consume our attention, and overwhelm our senses.

Photo: Adam Sexton

Greening the Military

http://money.cnn.com/2011/08/17/technology/military_energy/index.htm

Some of the numbers in here are staggering!
“$15 billion on energy” “…80% of the federal energy budget..”


From a design standpoint, here are the needs of your client:

 A portable, non-explosive, simply constructed, lightweight, renewable, energy source that is as durable as the Marines it serves. No problem, right?

What interests me are the ExFOBs (Experimental Forward Operating Bases). See the movie Restrepo, you’ll quickly get the idea of an FOB: Spartan living in a remote outpost, usually under some kind of attack. Think “hill-fort”, like the ones from the Bronze Age, its not far off, sans machine guns. These experimental bases are at the crossroads of an ancient goal (the ultra-efficient, swift and effective fighting force) and modern technological advancements. As much as gas-power has allowed modern militaries to be highly effective (just ask the Polish Calvary from 1939), it has become a leash and limiting factor when establishing outposts in highly remote locations and, as a result, a financial burden as well.
Making these outposts truly self-sufficient has great implications for the ability of the armed forces to stretch even further. An FOB’s success is inherently based its ability to carry out functions with as little material support as necessary. Currently, they are reliant on convoys, whether by overland routes or by air, for food, fuel, and supplies. Total self-sufficiency might be impossible. There will always be a need for ammunitions, equipment, and things to be fixed or replaced. But, if fuel could be taken out of that equation, there could be a significant change in the strategic abilities of that unit.

So, what are we talking? Roll-out solar arrays? Hybrid fighting vehicles? Maybe, but maybe the solution is more outside the box than that. Recent work has been done of fuel producing algae that might be able to provide a continuous energy source without compromising power and without the weight of batteries. On a less appetizing note, we must not forget that energy can come from biological waste as well. If MREs are already being brought in, why not use them twice, once for the soldiers, once after the soldiers have processed them.

To find a really groundbreaking solution to this problem is going to require rethinking how we look at our energy sources. Looking at energy beyond the current linear mindset (oil=power, food=energy, etc.) and begin thinking of energy in all of its various forms. Whether its solar rays, plant sugars, fats and oils, or methane from decomposition, it will most likely take a multi-pronged approach to create a highly efficient, versatile force.

And here is the best part – who has ever been snuck-up-on by a Prius? Yeah, those things are stealthy.

Edible landscaping - right around the beltway

I am always on the lookout for other companies that do what Yardcraft does. So far we have found a handful around the country, but today, much to my surprise, I found one in our backyard! Thanks to an article in the Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/realestate/green-scene-planting-a-garden-thats-both-ornamental-and-edible/2011/08/12/gIQAexUgPJ_story_1.html) written by Joel Learner, the CEO and founder of Environmental Design, I have now found another like-minded professional right on the other side of the beltway. Unbeknownst to me, he has been writing an occasional column for the Washington Post on gardens. I think I have ever referenced several of his articles without putting it all together - but now here we are.


I'd like to point out one fact this illustrates - that no matter how much Google searching of "key words" I do, the landscape/gardening community is so diverse, each subculture and generation with its own language of trends and methods, there is always the chance that people like Joel exist right around the corner. There is nothing that can replace personal connections in order to learn more and open the doors of opportunity.


More on cultivating these relationships later…I am off to Montana!

Embassy design in The Economist

http://www.economist.com/node/21524909


The Economist does an excellent job of highlighting the issues currently faced by those building US embassies. As a designer, I can’t help but be saddened by the physical presence we bring to so many countries. The problems are clear; bureaucracy surrounding the low-bid process, hyper-sensitivity to global threats, and some willingness to ignore a basic fact of foreign policy – that action speaks a lot louder than any policy document.


Imagine for a second, you are a resident of some impoverished third world metropolis. You are one of a lucky few who work hard and receive an education. You consider immigrating to another country where you can apply your skills and better your life. Will you apply for a visa at the embassy located in town, say within walking distance, maybe even within the range of what public transit there might be? Or will you apply at the embassy located 10 miles outside of town, accessible only by private vehicle? Will you be attracted to the high-profile country that exports a culture of freedom and inclusivity, but builds fortresses?


All I am going to say is this: embassies are the one component of a “national image” we can control. We can’t do a thing about the crappy reruns of Friends we export or the corporate opportunism prevalent in some place. If we are serious about creating, and leaving, a good impression on the rest of the global population, we might benefit from having our only physical presence be well-designed and more in-sync with the official dialogue.


Here are some excerpts about projects I was directly involved with:

"Thomas McCarthy of Page Southerland Page, a Texan firm which has designed 17 American diplomatic compounds, is very proud of the tributes to local tradition it incorporated into the embassy in Ouagadougou, for example, in the form of a shaded but open-air waiting area and a zigzag decorative motif..."

In Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso I developed the paving patterns based on tribal patterns and motifs. We began by looking at decorated items of cultural significance, focusing mostly on basket weave patterns. In the culture in Burkina Faso patterns woven into baskets convey a variety of meanings; this is where the design inspiration came from. Without becoming so specific that we might convey an actual meaning, intended or unintended, we developed a pattern language with the architects which was applied to the building façade and arrival plaza.



U.S. Embassy. Ouagadougou, Brukina Faso. Photos: B.L. Harbert International

“…in Kigali, excavations for the foundations unearthed human remains; in Kiev the winters are so cold that it was hard to keep the concrete from freezing; and in Monrovia an arms embargo impeded the import of the explosives needed to blast away some awkward rocks.”

Our office had a hand in all of the projects mentioned above. Needless to say, it keeps things interesting.

An addition to the previous post

The residence in question

Some further research revealed a few interesting links related to the last posting.


An organization created by the author of a book with the same name.
http://www.foodnotlawns.net/


A great book, and Fritz is a good speaker as well if you ever have the chance to see him.
http://www.fritzhaeg.com/edible-estates-book.html


And this book as well.
http://www.amazon.com/Edible-Front-Yard-Grow-More-Beautiful/dp/1604691999


Another site that picked up this story:
http://www.theagitator.com/2011/07/07/does-michelle-obama-know-about-this/


Here are a few of my favorite comments from the various re-postings of this story from around the web.


Reggie Hubbard
The important thing for the city to remember is that this woman is clearly the type to resist any sort of government action so in future altercations, a SWAT team should be sent to her home so ordinary police officers aren’t put in harm’s way by this obvious lunatic.


Barbara Landrith
There are lots of ways to make an edible garden look beautiful. Here are some links to a few examples. Maybe a good compromise would be to submit a design plan to be approved for the front yard, so it could be beautiful and functional. Then everyone would be happy.

http://www.google.com/sear​ch?q=edible+landscape+desi​gns&hl=en&biw=1145&bih=724​&prmd=ivns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&​source=univ&sa=X&ei=2ZAcTs​aSK4fQsAPFjLmmBQ&sqi=2&ved​=0CDYQsAQ


https://www.facebook.com/p​hoto.php?fbid=202180743874​7&set=o.107040689333712&ty​pe=1&theater

http://edenmakersblog.com/​?p=246


Apryl Dionne
WOW! And what purpose does all this serve? Big Business-- that's who. The are trying to push a bill through the house to ban every American from ever growing their own food, leaving us at the mercy of corporations and their friends that must profit off the people before adhering to the Constitutional Rights. When is America going to WAKE UP and TAKE A UNITED STAND? AND RESPONSIBILTY?


ThisIsVicodin
Perhaps a pink flamingo would be more appropriate than a garden…..or since it’s Detroit, an old GM product on concrete blocks.


and, to sum it up, one very angry gentleman....


GT
Here’s my e-mail to the offensive scrote tax-parasite:
_____________________________________________________
Your persecution of Julie Bass marks you unambiguously as an ideologically hidebound idiot who thinks his tax-funded sinecure gives him rights to determine what productive members of society do with properties they bought and paid for.
You’re a career parasite every bit as bad as any ‘crack mom’ or welfare queen, and you deserve to be hounded out of office.
Expect several hundred more emails about this, from all over the world… people are sick and tired of petty tyrants whose entire lives are funded by taxes, who then turn around and bite the hand that feeds. Although they’re not remotely responsible for their father’s idiocy, I think you’ll find that as this goes viral, your kids will get hazed by their fellow students… nobody likes a kid whose father is an internationally-renowned moron.




On that note, we can see issues like this bring out passionate responses. However real or unreal the actual threat to our freedoms may be, this is an excellent example of the cross-roads between personal freedoms, land use law, design, and sustainable living.

Modern Criminals

This story can be found here:


http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/07/michigan_woman_faces_jail_planting_veggie_garden.php


and many, many other places on the web, as it has caused quite a stir. While it may be old news (and, as you will read, it has been resolved, for now) the heroine of our story, Mrs. Julie Bass, has become a sort of rallying point for those concerned with systemic issues in our currents laws and regulations.


Let's review the facts -
Mrs. Bass' lawn gets torn up, for some sewer repair.
She, being a forward-thinking, example-setting citizen, re-plants the area with vegetables.
She is then ticketed, ordered to appear in court, and threatened with 93 days in jail.


Where to start? The egregiously overzealous prosecutor? The archaic laws on the books? How about the general absence of common sense?


It would be easy here to play to the hand of the conspiracy theorists: are small jurisdiction with these laws paid by the food lobby to keep people dependent on the industrial food system? Is there some plot to keep us from being self-sufficient, as that it might harm corporate profits?


Most likely not.
But what this illustrates all too clearly is a pervasive legal pattern in the US that has built up over decades to discourage independence, and self-reliance, in the name of uniformity and predictability. Now, to bring us back to the issue at hand: these laws Mrs. Bass has found herself in violation of are laws regarding aesthetics. It would be a real stretch for even the most creative prosecutor to make a case for the negative impacts of her garden on her neighbor's health, safety and welfare. In fact, a very strong case for the exact opposite could be made! By planting a vegetable garden Mrs. Bass has set a fine example of living an active, outdoor lifestyle, eating fresh vegetables, and making her front yard a dynamic, productive place.


It is essential to the well-being of a society that the legal system be relevant to the issues of the day. Laws like the one violated in this example are a waste of everyone’s resources, to prosecute it, defend it, and blog about it.


The follow-up article is here:


http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/07/front_yard_vegetable_gardens_different_is_good.php