Two-thirds of the human race, 6.5 billion individuals precisely, will be living in urban areas by 2050, increasing demand for high-capacity housing, workplaces, and overall infrastructure. Would we still be stumbling upon the obstacles of developing slums, water shortage, overcrowding, poor waste disposal systems, and urban crime, or would we rather achieve more egalitarian urban spaces by then? Jane Jacobs, an activist who influenced urban studies, stated that good design would not solve social justice issues alone, but we can’t solve those issues without good design.
Urban Architecture for all
Urban Architecture is the collaborative and multi-disciplinary procedure of shaping the physical world, including buildings, streets, and open areas. Architect Jan Gehl phrases the term ‘Life between Buildings’, demonstrating that buildings can’t be seen in isolation, but the people and life between them must be considered. While designing for the wider society to benefit political interest and investors, the marginalised, women, children, senior citizens, physically or mentally disabled, and refugees of all castes, colours, and creeds mustn’t be neglected. However, architecture often favours injustice by providing spikes to prevent homeless people from sleeping in public areas and not providing feeding rooms for women in public areas. Urban areas have been experiencing racial stratification, environmental injustice, criminalisation, and crisis in housing, education, and healthcare facilities. Edward Sooja in his book Seeking Spatial Justice, explains that spatial justice is based on the fact that being human and living life is a social, temporal, and spatial experience.
Social Justice
The emergence of industrialisation led to the segregation of industrial and residential areas that made commuting to workplaces inevitable, making it difficult for poorer communities to live at affordable prices within residential areas and women to participate, sacrificing their responsibilities as caretakers of the family. Wide highways and flyovers may cater to individuals having automobiles more than those using public transport. The noise and air pollution caused by the vehicles on these busy roads may restrict individuals on bicycles or foot to use the same. Street corners may be interactive spaces for men, but women prefer not to take that male-dominated unlit road for fear of sexual harassment. Gated enclaves and golf courses may offer luxury to the elite, but is it justice if the poor farmers were uprooted from their lands in this process?
The Gehl Institute report offers a unique perspective, proposing ways to develop healthier, more inclusive public spaces. Their Inclusive Healthy Places Framework has four key principles as below,
- Context- Social equality needs to be different in all contexts. It is essential to comprehend the existing conditions and experiences.
- Process- Using the participatory approach to shape public spaces to foster inclusion.
- Design & Program- Enhancing quality, access, safety, and diversity by designing a program.
- Sustain- Bring in stability and social resilience by engagement of local communities to make changes over time.
The Intersection of Social Justice and Urban Architecture
Tactile street design, accessible public transportation stations, public toilets for each gender, sufficient lighting and security provisions, and child-friendly open areas are some of the many small strategies that have the potential to bring social justice to urban spaces. There have been considerable efforts and strategies worldwide to foster the intersection of social justice and urban architecture.
Jaime Lerner at the Urban Planning Research Institute moulded the city of Curitiba, Brazil, by changing the land use along the public transport corridor to reduce the burden of the poor in the peripheries and popularise public transportation. He also expanded the public green areas to value sustainability along with inclusion.
The city government of Medellin initiated the Improvement without Barriers program in 2013. It focuses on advancing the living conditions of people with disabilities by providing specially designed bathrooms and improving access routes to their homes. A metro cable system has been provided to provide easy access to those who live in principally disadvantaged hilltop areas.
The administration of Pune, India, intends to improve its pedestrian and cycling environment by redesigning the arterial roads as complete streets. The design of these streets by Prasanna Desai Architects and Oasis Designs Inc. reflects social justice in urban areas. The street designs encourage informal community interactions and facilitate the uninterrupted movement of wheelchair users. Along with conserving the green cover, including technology for surveillance reassures safety.
In the growing context of the gentrification process, where high land prices make it difficult for low-income groups to sustain, architects Fernando Castillo Velasco and Cristián Castillo, together with Elías Becerra and Pamela González in collaboration with the 424 families who were going to be living there proposed exciting ways to access public housing in Maestranza Ukamau neighbourhood in Santiago de Chile.
Boston conducted a participatory budgeting program where the youth could collect ideas for capital projects and determine which projects receive funding. This was an exciting way of including the youth (ages 12 to 25) and empowering them for active participation in city building. Lusaka aims to build a slum-free city by 2030 with the participation of the urban poor in decision-making. Across the globe, freedom must be given to citizens to determine their just systems. Urban architecture being a collaborative process, it will be beneficial if each individual/group shares their responsibility towards achieving equality and justice to bring transformative results by 2050.
References:
Citations for Journal Articles accessed on a website or database:
(2018). Urban Design and Social Justice Jane Jacobs Available at:https://culturehouse.medium.com/urban-design-social-justice-jane-jacobs-af0f838fad68[Accessed: 20 April 2023]
(2018)Urban Design and social justice A Foundation. Available at : https://culturehouse.medium.com/urban-design-social-justice-a-foundation-3b87721257c8[Accessed: 20 April 2023]
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17549175.2022.2074522
FabianDejtiar https://www.archdaily.com/997064/overcoming-barriers-social-justice-in-latin-american-architecture
Amita Bhide(2022) Traditional urban planning fails women; make them visible in planning to transform cities.Available at: https://questionofcities.org/
(September 2018) Smart City – Healthy Aundh Neighbourhood Development Project Pune by Prasanna Desai Architects.Available at: https://www.architecturepressrelease.com/
Citations for YouTube videos, Documentaries:
Citizen Jane: Battle for the City”.Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKjkjntspfA.
Gary Hustwit (2011) Urbanized [Documentary]Available at: https://youtu.be/6jpN8kI0-pY[Acessed [17 April 2023]
Citations for images/photographs – Print or Online:
1_Impact of urbanization[Photograph]_https://www.taubmancollege.umich.edu/
2_Do public spaces do justice to women? [Photograph]__ ArchDaily
3_Inaccessible public spaces[Photograph]__Wikipedia
4_Inclusive Healthy Places Framework_http://ihp.gehlpeople.com/
5_Strengthening public transportation in Curitiba[Photograph]__https://guardemais.com.br/
6_Inclusion of disabled in Medellin[Photograph]__ Kyle LaFerriere
7_Aundh road fostering social justice[Photograph]__ https://www.architecturepressrelease.com/
8_Maestranza Ukamau housing_Fabian Dejtiar
