Finding space for nature in cities: the considerable potential of redundant car parking
Written by Tom de Aizpurua Major cities can play a vital role in creating biodiversity gains through Nature Based Solutions (NBS). Finding space in dense and heavily congested urban environments is difficult, but research conducted at ICON Science shows that remodelling redundant car spaces to make way for green space could solve many city issues, […]
Why we should shatter Melbourne’s concrete creeks
Written by Tom de Aizpurua Our connection to nature continues to change over the years, for better or worse. Only in the 1960s did engineers and town planners decided to tame some of Melbourne’s vital rivers and streams with concrete to reduce the flood risk throughout the city, with the idea to protect neighbouring communities […]
Enabling Biodiversity Inclusive Design
In the day and age of the biodiversity emergency, architects, landscape architects, urban designers and even engineers are looking for answers to the question “How do we design for biodiversity?”. The ‘Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework’ specifically calls for the rise of biodiversity inclusive urban areas (See Target 12, Convention on Biological Diversity 2022). Biodiversity Inclusive […]
Integrating biodiversity as a non-human stakeholder within urban development.
We call this, biodiversity inclusive design. Check out our paper for more information! References
Examining connection to nature at multiple scales provides insights for urban conservation
New research into Melburnians’ connection to nature is helping the City of Melbourne understand how to engage its community members in conservation efforts. The study, led by RMIT University in collaboration with the City of Melbourne and Queensland University of Technology, surveyed over 1,500 City of Melbourne residents and visitors on their connection to nature and found […]
The vast majority of Melburnians want more nature in their city, despite a puzzling north-south divide
When we were asked to survey people in Melbourne about their relationship with nature, little did we know our findings would reinforce a well-known cultural divide between those living north and south of the Yarra River. Residents of neighbourhoods to the south were overall less connected to nature. But perhaps a more important finding was that people in Melbourne […]
Practical Solutions for Regenerating Natural Systems in our Cities
Recently, myself and another PhD Student in the ICON Science lab attended an event at the MPavillion initiative. The MPavillion is an annual celebration of architecture and design in Melbourne, coordinated by the Urban Design Forum. Specifically, it focuses on creative collaboration for community art and wellbeing. Each year since its inception in 2014, the […]
PhD Opportunity: Beyond green facades – integrating natural ecologies and the built environment
PhD Advertisement Title: Beyond green facades – integrating natural ecologies and the built environment Description: This PhD challenges the status quo of ‘green’ architecture by addressing critical research gaps in the fields of natural ecology and the built environment to develop ecologically-driven architectural/landscape/urban design. By integrating ecological knowledge and understanding, designers can produce urban environments […]
PhD Opportunity: Nature as medicine: can a dose of the outdoors cure loneliness?
PhD Advertisement: Nature as medicine: can a dose of the outdoors cure loneliness? Description: This PhD is part of an NHMRC/European Commission funded project exploring the benefits of prescribing nature-based social activities to reduce loneliness and improve mental health. The project aims to better understand the effects of green space and biodiversity on loneliness and […]
From ‘day of the species’ to ‘protecting species every day’
In April, I attended an art exhibition that helps people visualize the biodiversity crisis in Australia. ‘Day of the Species’ is a community art project with contributions from 200+ artists. As a contributing artist, you get to learn about and draw Australian biodiversity under protection by the EPBC Act. As a viewer, you can see […]
