CUDRR+R hosts colleagues from the PLINIVS Study Centre, Naples

ZUCCAROMATTIA

 

During the week of April 18-22, CUDRR+R hosted Professor Giulio Zuccaro and researcher Mattia Leone from the PLINIVS Study Centre for Hydrogeological, Volcanic and Seismic Engineering at the University of Naples Federerico II, in Italy.

Zuccaro and Leone made presentations on the activities of the PLINIVS Centre including both Seismic and Volcanic Risk Assessments as well as the first presentation of the Lunchtime Seminar Series at CUDRR+R with a presentation on “Resilience based design and disaster risk mitigation as opportunity for urban regeneration.” Going forward, CUDRR+R and PLINIVS will continue collaboration on joint research activities.

 

CUDRR+R joins the General Assembly of Partners for HABITAT III

logo GAP

 

CUDRR+R became a member of the Civil Society Organizations (CSO) Partner Constituent Group of the General Assembly of Partners (GAP), a special initiative of the World Urban Campaign mandated to last until the end of the Habitat III Conference in Quito, Ecuador in October 2016.

The aim of GAP is to support stakeholders’ engagement and contribution to the Habitat III Conference and in particular to the New Urban Agenda.

A study on alternative housing “Kimbilio” for internally displaced populations

Esra Akcan co-directed (with Prof. Henry Richardson) Lily-Love Toppar’s master’s thesis “Kimbilio” in the Department of Architecture at Cornell University. Lily-Love Toppar directed her curiosity onto one of the most urgent world issues: refugees and internally displaced populations in conflict zones around the world. Lily-Love proposed a settlement that would provide a safe refuge for the internally displaced people during the times of war, and one that would turn into a sustainable city in times of peace. She pursued a comprehensive research on the current practices of refugee camps, such as the Dadaab Refugee Camp, where she intelligently identified the most hidden but consequential problems, including over-reliance on international aid organizations, lack of diversity, lack of adaptability for future growth, unequal access to resources, and permanence despite being planned for temporary living conditions. The Kimbilio that she designed after this critical analysis sought to create a counter-model to the dominant mode of camps that perpetuated refugees’ problems and confined them to a life of dependence rather than empowerment. She designed a Kimbilio by considering its multi-disciplinary aspects, including regional planning, urban layout, typology of architectural units, and construction systems. Her proposal advocated for a participatory design process where the refugees would determine the final site plan by translating her diagram into a physical settlement, would choose their own permutation from the diverse types of dwelling units, and would build their own houses by using their past expertise or current training in bamboo crafts.

Partnership with Efficiency Lab

CUDRR+R Associate Aybars Asci established Efficiency Lab for Architecture, which is committed to a better understanding of efficiency in the built environment through research and design.

CUDRR+R will partner with Efficiency Lab to develop resilient research and design ideas for the urban environment.

For further information about Efficiency Lab, please see

http://www.efficiencylab.org/

Ebru Gencer will speak at the Geography 2050

Ebru Gencer will speak at the GEOGRAPHY 2050: Exploring Our Future in an Urbanized World. The Conference, hosted by the Earth Institute at Columbia University will take place on November 19-20, 2015.

Dr. Gencer will speak at the Plenary Session on Cities at Risk of Disaster on November 20.

For more information about the Conference and to register, please see

http://www.geography2050.org/

CUDRR+R’s Esra Akcan will moderate a Discussion on Latin America in Construction

CUDRR+R’s Esra Akcan will moderate a panel that will discuss the exhibition “Latin America in Construction: Architecture 1955–1980,” displayed at the Museum of Modern Art. After Barry Bergdoll’s presentation on his experience of co-curating the exhibition, Mary Kate O’Hare, the curator of the award winning exhibition “Constructive Spirit: Abstract Art in South and North America” (Newark Museum, 2010), and Zeuler Lima, the author of the acclaimed biography Lina Bo Bardi about the Italian-born Brazilian architect (Yale University Press, 2013), will comment on the exhibition in relation to their own contributions on writing and curating the history of artists and architects from Latin America. A brief response by Jim Williamson and a discussion moderated by Esra Akcan will follow the presentations.

Location: AAP NYC, 26 Broadway, 20th Floor, New York City

Date and Time; July 2, 2015 at 6.30 pm.

Register at:  http://aap.cornell.edu/news-events/writing-architecture-ofin-latin-america-global-context-discussion-latin-america#sthash.3nLkHNyz.dpuf