University of Colorado at Denver College of Architecture and Planning URBN 6644 SUSTAINABLE URBANISM The Ecology of Place Spring

g 2011 Seminar Instructor: Richard Epstein repstein.design@gmail.com

INTRODUCTION This seminar will look at sustainability from the perspective of both systems and the resultant quality of place. There are global and local imperatives that make this particularly pressing: climate change, water scarcity, air pollution, and material and energy shortages. Social and economic dimensions also have particular urgency given the ongoing economic challenges we are facing as well as the social inequalities of our time. The city is an ideal scale by which to address these issues: nations are hard to control and individual buildings have a limited impact. With more than 50% of the worlds population now living in cities, the urban environment has both a significant impact on how we live and is at a scale where we can make a difference. This seminar will explore the special opportunities available at the urban scale to addresses these complex challenges. It will especially explore how sustainable approaches can offer insight into achieving a higher quality of life. APPROACH We will begin by looking at definitions of sustainability as well as defining the problem on both a global and local basis, particularly as relating to the city. Students will begin working in groups of 2 and pick several of the key areas to research. Each group will then be responsible for presenting their findings to class (2-3 presentations/group) on their specific area of research. These presentations will be supplemented by local experts on many of the issues. These presentations will be used as source materials for a holistic consideration of sustainability. Both the mid-term and final will be opportunities to apply this information to Denver. The class will divide into three groups and each group will focus on the synthesis of these concepts and how they can be specifically applied to Denver. Each group will focus on a particular neighborhood in transition and consider how an eco-district can be formed that brings a holistic ecological approach to an urban setting.

FRAMEWORK 1. Context: What is Sustainability a. Global Issues: Climate Change, Resource Scarcity, Inequality b. Local Issues: Energy, Water, Trash, Air and Water Quality, Habitat c. Ecological Footprint d. What is the role of the city in addressing these challenges e. The Three Legs of Sustainability: Social, Economic and Environment Urban Systems a. Energy: Local Supply and the Grid, Renewables b. Material Resources c. Water: Sources and Uses d. Waste : Integrated Approaches e. Urban Infrastructure closed loops Health and the City a. Lifestyle Diseases: Obesity, Diabetes, b. Environmental Health: Air and Water Quality c. Urban Agriculture d. Walkability Measuring Sustainability a. Carbon Footprint i. Definitions, Measurement/Calculation ii. Transportation and VMT iii. Energy, Embodied Energy, Other Factors b. Rating Systems i. LEED ND ii. Estidama Sustainability and Urban Form a. Compact Development Patterns b. Transportation and Land Use c. Energy and Land Use d. Climate Sustainability and Happiness a. Public Space b. Community c. Health d. Biophilia e. Quality of Life The Human Dimension a. Economics b. Social Equity c. Governance Sustainability and scale: what are opportunities at each scale a. Buildings b. Blocks c. Neighborhoods d. District e. City f. Region

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Key Texts: Ecological Urbanism, edited by Mohsen Mostafavi Sustainable Urbanism by Doug Farr Green Metropolis by David Owen Biophilic Cities: Integrating Nature into Urban Design and Planning by Timothy Beatley Toward the Livable City, by Emilie Buchwald Toward Sustainable Communities, by Mark Roseland and Stacey Mitchell Green Urbanism, Learning from European Cities, by Timothy Beatley The Ecology of Place, by Timothy Beatley and Kristy Manning Design with Nature, by Ian McHarg Design with Climate, by Victor Olgay Thermal Delight in Architecture, Lisa Heschong