Important Public Space Research Articles

Embodying Tahrir: bodies and geopolitics in the 2011 Egyptian uprising

The 2011 Egyptian uprising, which brought an end to Hosni Mubarak's 30‐year presidency, focused attention around the world on Cairo's Tahrir (‘Liberation’) Square. This became a focal point both for demonstrators and the Mubarak regime (not to mention media and commentators worldwide), and the ‘vital signs’ of both the uprising and the regime were frequently read through the events taking place in Tahrir at any given moment. Three years later, any ‘revolution’ remains far from complete, but I suggest that the occupation of Tahrir during 18 days of January and February 2011 can teach us a great deal about the revolutionary potential of the body and the importance of public space in producing new social and political structures through embodied practices. Feminist geographers have illustrated how geopolitical conflicts at the national and international levels create crises for bodies on the ground, and in the context of the Egyptian Uprising, anti‐regime protestors indeed faced manifestations of the same violence on which the regime long rested its security, embodied by security forces and their instruments of inflicting harm and limiting mobility. At the same time, however, we can see in Tahrir the body's potential for creating crises for the state. In this article, I examine the ways in which the body, and groups of bodies, resisted the Mubarak regime and produced Tahrir as a revolutionary space, relying on media accounts, including media live‐blogs that incorporated protestors' reports from the square, and a ‘how‐to‐revolt’ guide circulated by activists.

The Struggle to Reclaim the City

The potential for citizens to reclaim and reappropriate the physical spaces of their city has garnered a great deal of attention over the past year or so. The Occupy movement, “Arab Spring,” and various social protest movements around the world have all reinvigorated debates over the political importance of public space. These movements posit an alternate historical trajectory to the one depicted by urban theorists and sociologists over the past half-century, who lament the steady “decline” of public space. One of the most vocal critics of the detrimental effects of contemporary urban planning for the sanctity of public space and urban life is the New York–based architect, academic, and architectural critic Michael Sorkin. Sorkin is currently Distinguished Professor of Architecture and Director of the Graduate Urban Design Program at the City College of New York. He is the author of several books and hundreds of articles on buildings, cities, and urban planning and design. In this interview, Sorkin weighs into these debates over the political and social importance of public space in cities and the challenges to disempowerment and disenfranchisement in urban environments. He discusses his early influences, the ongoing importance of Jane Jacobs to urban planning, sustainable living and “the possibility of New York becoming completely self-sufficient within its political boundaries”; as well as his views on the Occupy movement and post-9/11 surveillance and paranoia.

Sculpting the nation in early republican Turkey

Public monuments and statues of Ataturk, the founding father of the Turkish republic, are everywhere in modern Turkey. By the time Ataturk died in 1938, hundreds of busts, statues and monuments of him had already been erected in most important public spaces in Istanbul, Ankara and other major cities in Turkey. They exemplify one of the most effective instruments of the elite-driven projects of modernity by revealing the ways in which Ataturk and his political elites attempted to establish a new official public culture and official history. They have been instrumental in the formation and reproduction of Turkish nationalism since the beginning of the Turkish republic. If statuary is accepted in today's Turkey (marking a shift from the perception of figurative forms as something against the Islamic canon) the statues, monuments and busts of Ataturk have played a central role in this. However, they have also dominated open spaces in a way which has prevented city dwellers from constructing local identities through allegorical representations of the history of their cities.

Study on the Design of Urban Public Space in City Complex

Combined with the example of Namba Parks in Japan, this paper analyzes and summarizes how the public space are created , and then elaborates the importance of public space showing in city complex ,in order to provide valuable reference for city complex construction in our country.

Assessment Sense of Place, Citizens of Urban Public Space, with Emphasis on the Street a Case Study, Imam Street Mahabad

Socio-demographic features have been reported as an important factor in human attachment to places in several studies. So, regarding the role of public spaces on human social life, this study tries to examine this effect in a certain case in Iran regarding some socio-demographic indicators like: gender, age, education, marriage statue and job. With this aim, we surveyed place attachment in one of the most important public spaces in Mahabad, based on four its dimensions: functional, emotional, behavioral and cognitive attachment. Therefore, significance of the correlations between those socio-demographic indicators and different aspects of place attachment was evaluated. The interviews carried out with 598 of Mahabad citizens that participated in this study by random selection. We analyze the result with SPSS software applying T-test, Pearson correlation and F-test (ANOVA) exams. The results indicate, in comparison with other examined indicators; only user’s education level had significant relation with the place attachment degree and its emotional dimension. In addition, singles, older participants and also labors group reported more behavioral attachment to the place.

Field Measurement and Analysis of the Micro Climate of a Campus Square

A square is an important multi-functional public space on campus, which can be used as a venue for traffic, gathering, recreational activities and cultural events, and thus the thermal environment of the campus square will directly influence the overall environmental quality of campus. This paper studies a campus square in the summer-hot and winter-cold region, selects typical positions to conduct actual measurement of parameters, such as temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and solar radiation, which indicate the thermal environment. Based on data collection and analysis, it is concluded that the thermal environment of the campus square is affected by microclimate factors such as the square underlying surface properties, vegetation and building and road orientations. This paper is aimed at exploring the regularity of the correlation between microclimate factors and thermal environment in order to facilitate the improvement of the thermal environment of the campus square, make it more comfortable and provide ideas for the landscape and architectural environment design.

Espacios públicos y privados de sociabilidad e intimidad en la ciudad de León en el siglo XVIII

En el artículo se estudia, por una parte, los espacios públicos de ocio y reunión más importantes que existían en la ciudad de León en el siglo XVIII: desde la Plaza Mayor, con su espectáculo estrella que eran los toros, hasta el Patio de Comedias, pasando por los pórticos de las iglesias y las tabernas. Y por otra parte, el novedoso espacio privado de las casas y dependencias de la burguesía, analizando, a través del mobiliario y la decoración de las estancias y sus cambios, la funcionalidad de dichos espacios.

The Mixed-Use Sidewalk

Problem, research strategy, and findings: Around the globe, streets and sidewalks in cities are being contested as spaces that should be used for more than transportation. This article challenges our understanding of both property rights and public space by applying a property rights framework to situate sidewalk use debates. It analyzes and maps the sidewalk property regimes of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, through a novel integration of surveying and ethnography. The case illuminates the feasibility of a mixed-use sidewalk that can be shared between various kinds of uses and users. A mixed-use sidewalk that is both cooperative and livable is possible if planners incorporate time into planning space in order to expand the sidewalk's flexibility and if local society can renarrate and enforce new legitimacies on the sidewalk. Takeaway for practice: Sidewalk space deserves more attention as an important public space. In our era of historic urbanization, we should reconceive sidewalks as a mixed-use space rather than an exclusively pedestrian zone. Moreover, North American planners would benefit from engaging with public space experiments happening in cities in the developing world. Research support: This research was supported by MIT's School of Architecture and Planning, Department of Urban Studies and Planning, and the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program.

The Interior Design Study on Modern Underground Stations in Europe Countries

Nowadays, in modern cities, the underground station is becoming one of the most important public spaces. With the fast rhythm of modern people’s life, the previous small station is unable to satisfy their demands not only in any functional aspect but also in appearance. Therefore, to create a modern underground station is particularly important for satisfying the functional requirement and for protecting the traditional art and culture. This essay will talk about the interior design for modern underground stations in Europe countries.

Urban Planning and Design of Pedestrian Space from Perspectives of Fitness

Walking is one of the most common and simple methods of fitness, and the best way of fitness may be walking in the 21st century. Pedestrian space, as one kind of public resources, provides a pedestrian's access way as well as an important public space, therefore fitness walking should be taken into full account in the planning and design from aspects such as paving material, air quality, micro-climate, and others in order to facilitate fitness walking activities and realize the desire “Better city, Better life”.

小樽市における明治期および昭和初期に整備された主要公園の計画について

Recently, the importance of public spaces has been pointed from the view of establishing the character of the area. In Otaru, some parks planed in Meiji and the beginnig of Syowa era are functioning as central park, forest park, green belt and so on. It is important to reveal the history of these park, because the changing of the roles of these parks had present the transition of their functions in urban structure. This paper, thus, explores planning processes of Otaru park, Temiya park and Hiraiso park, that are originally planed in Meiji and the beginning of Syowa era.

Space, Gender, and Honor in Village Taverns

Taverns and inns were important public spaces in early modern German villages. Carefully regulated by the state, public houses served a wide local clientele, including women. Taverns were, however, problematic spaces for women, and their presence there usually led to questions about their honor. Men’s honor was also challenged in taverns, which were vital centers of village communication, gossip, and local politics. Taverns were locations for local conflict, but also for reconciliation and negotiation.

From Housewives to Activists: Lived Experiences of Mothers for Disability Rights in Taiwan

When a family has a disabled child, the mother usually takes on the caretaker role and also carries the social stigma associated with disability. Based on participant observation and in-depth interviews with members of the Parents Association for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities (PAPID), this article explores the meanings of activism for parents who participate in the disability rights movement. First, it shows the impact of disability stigma on family members, especially the mothers of disabled persons. Second, the study shows that the participants of this movement, mainly the mothers of intellectually disabled children, not only promote the welfare of their children but they also learn to confront social stigma and renegotiate their gender roles. Parents' associations have become an important public space for these mothers to escape home confinement and enjoy civic life. In contrast, the fathers who were interviewed saw activism as an obligation and were less likely to show emotional attachment to the civic organizations.

小樽における明治期の火防線と小樽公園の計画について

The importance of public spaces has been pointed out through environmental issues and disaster-prevention policy. In Otaru, present urban foundation was formed by city replanning plan after the 1904 great fire in Meiji era. With a specific focus on public spaces, this paper explores planning processes of fire prevention boulevards and parks, such as Otaru park, in Meiji era.

Nam Van Square, Macau

AbstractA peninsula, lying 60 kilometres (37 miles) to the southwest of Hong Kong, Macau is the Las Vegas of the new China. As Manuel Vicente explains, when he was asked to create an important new public space for the city it provided the opportunity to create a plaza that was able to assimilate the past forms of the historic city without absorbing the symbolism of its colonial history. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Projeto do parque da orla do Fundão: experimentação e ensino na FAU/RJ

This paper presents the Orla Fundao Park proposal, developed for the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro campus, located on the Cidade Universitaria da Ilha do Fundao, in the northern zone of Rio de Janeiro. We describe both the theory and the methodology frameworks adopted for the project, which are based on two integrated points of view: the technical and the participatory approaches, as applied to the different levels of spatial analysis: the metropolitan, the urban and the local levels. In this sense, the analytical, interpretative and prospective methods are discussed, focusing on the landscape threatment profile and the correlation between the park and the urban context with the existing and proposed land uses. The main aspects of this experience are the possibility of integrating teaching, professional and research activities and the adoption of participatory design methods in the landscape planning of an important public open space of the city.

Modernity and the Self

Modernity and the Self

Public space in the old derelict city area – a case study of Mong Kok, Hong Kong

The authors use Mong Kok, an old district as well as a shopping hub of Hong Kong, to explore the issue of public space in old derelict city areas of Asia. The research finds that the supply of public space in Mong Kok, just quantitatively, is far below the standard of other Asian cities like Singapore, Taipei, Guangzhou and Hong Kong itself. Moreover, many of the public spaces are in poor condition. Despite all this, more than 50% of interviewees find the quality of public space satisfactory in Mong Kok. Most people do not realize the importance of public space.

Urbaner öffentlicher Raum und Verhaltensregulierung

The development of urban public space has always reflected the history of the behaviour of man who figuratively forms it. Public space does not exist in its own right, it does not exists independently of man. In the historical perspective over a longer time, changes in the position of the individual in society and changes in personality become visible. Public space in the city also is affected by this transformation. Not only the structure of urban public space has changed: There has been also a shift in importance of public space as the activities of the urban public demand less social space for its conduct. The connection of public space and regulation of conduct is dealt with in this paper. Elements of an integrated theory of public space are collected in order to connect aspects of the conception of physical space of planning science with aspects of social use of spaces and of the psychogeneous dynamism of public space. It is to be shown that in future the context of design and use of urban public spa...

Negotiating access to public space in mid-nineteenth century Toronto

Public space has been unwisely neglected by the student of the modern city. This paper argues that in nineteenth-century Canada it was a significant symbol valued by the whole population, and examines the process of negotiation by which contending interests in Toronto sought to secure their rights to its use and enjoyment. In the ongoing disputation over control and appropriate uses of the street, the most important public space during the middle decades of the nineteenth century, the social significance of public space and its geography are clarified.