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Dr. Steffen Lehmann is a Full Professor of Architecture and Urbanism at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, where he is the Founding Director of the Urban Futures Lab and former Director of the School of Architecture. Prior to this, he has been a tenured professor in the UK and in Australia and a practicing architect in Berlin.
How are our cities using nature-based solutions to confront the challenges posed by a warming climate, the loss of biodiversity and major resource depletion? This article discusses the opportunities and benefits of applying the concepts of regreening and rewilding of cities. The article engages with key sources and summarizes the background and development of regreening and nature-based solutions and important policies, concerns and perspectives of international and national organizations. It introduces the integration of nature-based solutions (NBS) as a strategy in urban planning with the aim to strengthen urban resilience and to slow down the biodiversity decline. Rewilding areas in cities has become a powerful strategy to bring back butterflies, insects, birds, and wildlife. In contrast to highly managed parks and gardens, these rewilding initiatives are leaving allotted spaces mostly uncultivated and self-regulated. Contact to nature is essential for human existence, urban wellbeing, and good quality of life. Green spaces in cities—big or small—all contribute to the health and wellbeing of residents. However, many cities do not offer residents easy access to green space within the city. Improving the better distribution of and access to green spaces and extending gardens and parks is likely to deliver a large number of benefits, such as: ecosystem services, better water management for enhanced urban flood control, slowing down the biodiversity loss, contributing to food security, and restoring damaged ecosystems. Furthermore, additional green space and NBS help to keep cities cool during heatwaves and improve the urban microclimate. Rewilding has emerged as an important part of new public parks and gardens. The next step is to up-scale citywide climate intervention strategies deployed to keep cities cool. However, as the discussion of this article shows, it is essential that the design of these NBS strategies is fully integrated with other complementary planning interventions and seeks synergies across all sectors.
Steffen Lehmann. Growing Biodiverse Urban Futures: Renaturalization and Rewilding as Strategies to Strengthen Urban Resilience. Sustainability 2021, 13, 2932 .
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Growing Biodiverse Urban Futures: Renaturalization and Rewilding as Strategies to Strengthen Urban Resilience. Sustainability. 2021; 13 (5):2932.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2021. "Growing Biodiverse Urban Futures: Renaturalization and Rewilding as Strategies to Strengthen Urban Resilience." Sustainability 13, no. 5: 2932.
How are our cities confronting the challenges posed by a warming climate, the loss of biodiversity and major resource depletion? ―This article discusses the opportunities and benefits of applying the concepts of renaturalisiation and rewilding of cities. It introduces Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) in urban planning that are integrated with the aim to enhance urban resilience and to slow down the biodiversity decline, which can be applied in two areas: through the conception of new green neighbourhoods; and through the regeneration and re-greening of existing but neglected parts of the city, such as postindustrial brownfields or economically weak districts. Contact to nature is essential for human existence, urban wellbeing and a good quality of life. Green spaces in cities –big or small– all contribute to health and wellbeing. However, many cities, including in the U.S. and in Europe, do not offer residents easy access to green space within the city. Improving better access to green spaces and extending gardens and parks will deliver a large number of benefits, such as ecosystem services, better water management for enhanced urban flood control, slowing down the biodiversity loss, contributing to food security, with the potential to restore damaged ecosystems. Furthermore, additional green space and NBS help to keep cities cool during heatwaves and improve the urban microclimate. As most of our cities keep growing and warming, the scale of the issue is significant. For example, in 2020, cities in the European Union were home to over 70 percent of Europe’s population, and this figure is expected to increase to over 80 percent by the middle of the century. This translates to 36 million new urban citizens in Europe by 2050 alone, who will need housing, employment, health care and access to green spaces (EU-Commission, 2018). In this context, nature-based solutions and re-greening can generate significant benefits for citizens, improve urban health and well-being, and offer an opportunity to effectively deploy nature in helping to resolve major societal challenges ―such as social inclusion, food security and disaster risk reduction. However, as the discussion of this article shows, it is essential that the design of NBS is fully integrated with other complementary planning interventions and seeks synergies across all sectors.
Steffen Lehmann. Nature in the Urban Context: Renaturalisation as an Important Dimension of Urban Resilience and Planning. MÓDULO ARQUITECTURA CUC 2021, 26, 161 -190.
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Nature in the Urban Context: Renaturalisation as an Important Dimension of Urban Resilience and Planning. MÓDULO ARQUITECTURA CUC. 2021; 26 ():161-190.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2021. "Nature in the Urban Context: Renaturalisation as an Important Dimension of Urban Resilience and Planning." MÓDULO ARQUITECTURA CUC 26, no. : 161-190.
The ‘unplannable’ is a welcomed exception to the formal order of urban planning. This opinion article explores some examples of informal urbanism and discusses its ambiguous relationship to public space and unplanned activities in the city. The informal sector offers important lessons about the adaptive use of space and its social role. The article examines the ways specific groups appropriate informal spaces and how this can add to a city’s entrepreneurship and success. The characteristics of informal, interstitial spaces within the contemporary city, and the numerous creative ways in which these temporarily used spaces are appropriated, challenge the prevalent critical discourse about our understanding of authorised public space, formal place-making and social order within the city in relation to these informal spaces. The text discusses various cases from Chile, the US and China that illustrate the dilemma of the relationship between informality and public/private space today. One could say that informality is a deregulated self-help system that redefines relationships with the formal. Temporary or permanent spatial appropriation has behavioural, economic and cultural dimensions, and forms of the informal are not always immediately obvious: they are not mentioned in building codes and can often be subversive or unexpected, emerging in the grey area between legal and illegal activities.
Steffen Lehmann. The unplanned city: Public space and the spatial character of urban informality. Emerald Open Research 2020, 2, 16 .
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. The unplanned city: Public space and the spatial character of urban informality. Emerald Open Research. 2020; 2 ():16.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2020. "The unplanned city: Public space and the spatial character of urban informality." Emerald Open Research 2, no. : 16.
Urban density is a term used in urban planning and design to refer to the number of people inhabiting in a given urbanized area. Density and compactness are two closely related, but different, criteria relevant for the transformation of cities to become more resilient to climate change. While a high degree of compactness is desirable, too much density can be detrimental to liveability, health, and social well-being. More compact cities are an advantage and will help in curbing urban sprawl, but a consolidated urban form requires urban infill at densities that support compact self-reliant districts and mixed-use neighborhoods. The social dimension of such density increase is likely to be a future challenge and face community resistance. This essay argues that a quantitative approach to describe urban density helps to better understand cities; however, urban form is always more than just a mathematical formula, including nonquantifiable qualities of cities.
Steffen Lehmann. Understanding and Quantifying Urban Density Toward more Sustainable City Form. Mathematical and Numerical Foundations of Turbulence Models and Applications 2019, 547 -556.
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Understanding and Quantifying Urban Density Toward more Sustainable City Form. Mathematical and Numerical Foundations of Turbulence Models and Applications. 2019; ():547-556.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2019. "Understanding and Quantifying Urban Density Toward more Sustainable City Form." Mathematical and Numerical Foundations of Turbulence Models and Applications , no. : 547-556.
In this part, the Urban Manifesto lays out a set of urban regeneration design principles. To underpin the ten strategies, the book presents examples of thirteen UK cities that have tested these design principles. It illustrates positive cases where the strategies were adopted and put into reality.
Steffen Lehmann. Examples of the Ten Urban Regeneration Strategies in Practice. Urban Regeneration 2019, 157 -215.
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Examples of the Ten Urban Regeneration Strategies in Practice. Urban Regeneration. 2019; ():157-215.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2019. "Examples of the Ten Urban Regeneration Strategies in Practice." Urban Regeneration , no. : 157-215.
Unsustainable, non-resilient urbanisation patterns and the neglect of inner-city urban areas have caused fragmentation, depletion and urban decline, led to humankind overpowering nature, causing biodiversity loss and the degradation of ecosystems and their services. Urban regeneration projects allow us to ‘repair’ and restore some of this damage while enhancing urban resilience. For instance, increasing connectivity between existing and enhanced ecosystems and restoring them within cities and at the peri-urban fringe (e.g. through nature-based solutions and the re-naturing of neighbourhoods) is necessary to strengthen ecosystem resilience and the adaptive capacity to cope with the effects of climate change. There is growing recognition of the need for daily contact with green spaces and nature in order to live happy, productive and meaningful lives.
Steffen Lehmann. Reconnecting Cities with Nature, Building Resilience at the Urban Scale. Urban Regeneration 2019, 55 -77.
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Reconnecting Cities with Nature, Building Resilience at the Urban Scale. Urban Regeneration. 2019; ():55-77.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2019. "Reconnecting Cities with Nature, Building Resilience at the Urban Scale." Urban Regeneration , no. : 55-77.
A denser and more compact city increases efficiencies in urban infrastructure and services through shorter distribution networks. Higher density cities encourage reduced transit through shorter trip lengths, since most amenities and public transport are more closely located. Can we reverse the impact of urban sprawl?
Steffen Lehmann. Understanding the Benefits of Urban Density. Urban Regeneration 2019, 79 -107.
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Understanding the Benefits of Urban Density. Urban Regeneration. 2019; ():79-107.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2019. "Understanding the Benefits of Urban Density." Urban Regeneration , no. : 79-107.
Resource challenges are particularly dominant in expanding cities and include inefficient infrastructural systems which can lead to energy black-outs, urban flooding, water leakages, lack of recycling or increased emissions and air pollution. The Food-Water-Energy Nexus is a new field of research that studies the interrelated complex system where food, water, energy and waste treatment (material flow) systems intersect (Gold and Bass 2010). It is likely that this new field will have significant impact on the future re-engineering of our cities.
Steffen Lehmann. Activating the Food-Water-Energy Nexus. Urban Regeneration 2019, 109 -131.
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Activating the Food-Water-Energy Nexus. Urban Regeneration. 2019; ():109-131.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2019. "Activating the Food-Water-Energy Nexus." Urban Regeneration , no. : 109-131.
Successful urban regeneration will be the result of a collective vision, realised through creative and enduring relationships between the community, government, developers, academia and professionals involved in its design, delivery, governance and maintenance. Strategic thinking about our cities, what they should look like and how they should perform, is more important than ever.
Steffen Lehmann. The Ten Strategies for an Urban Regeneration. Urban Regeneration 2019, 133 -156.
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. The Ten Strategies for an Urban Regeneration. Urban Regeneration. 2019; ():133-156.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2019. "The Ten Strategies for an Urban Regeneration." Urban Regeneration , no. : 133-156.
Currently, about 60 million people move into cities globally every year (UN data 2018). That is over one million more people arriving every week in cities somewhere in the world, each with an expectation of better access to jobs, better education for their children, better health care, better housing and a better quality of life (Ehrlich 1968; Lehmann 2015c; UN 2016).
Steffen Lehmann. Introduction: The Complex Process of City Regeneration. Urban Regeneration 2019, 1 -54.
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Introduction: The Complex Process of City Regeneration. Urban Regeneration. 2019; ():1-54.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2019. "Introduction: The Complex Process of City Regeneration." Urban Regeneration , no. : 1-54.
Monika Szopinska-Mularz; Steffen Lehmann. Urban Farming in Inner-city Multi-storey Car-parking Structures- Adaptive Reuse Potential. Future Cities and Environment 2019, 5, 1 .
AMA StyleMonika Szopinska-Mularz, Steffen Lehmann. Urban Farming in Inner-city Multi-storey Car-parking Structures- Adaptive Reuse Potential. Future Cities and Environment. 2019; 5 (1):1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMonika Szopinska-Mularz; Steffen Lehmann. 2019. "Urban Farming in Inner-city Multi-storey Car-parking Structures- Adaptive Reuse Potential." Future Cities and Environment 5, no. 1: 1.
Jose Antonio Lara-Hernandez; Alessandro Melis; Steffen Lehmann. Temporary Appropriation of Public Space As an Emergence Assemblage for the Future Urban Landscape: The Case of Mexico City. Future Cities and Environment 2019, 5, 1 .
AMA StyleJose Antonio Lara-Hernandez, Alessandro Melis, Steffen Lehmann. Temporary Appropriation of Public Space As an Emergence Assemblage for the Future Urban Landscape: The Case of Mexico City. Future Cities and Environment. 2019; 5 (1):1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJose Antonio Lara-Hernandez; Alessandro Melis; Steffen Lehmann. 2019. "Temporary Appropriation of Public Space As an Emergence Assemblage for the Future Urban Landscape: The Case of Mexico City." Future Cities and Environment 5, no. 1: 1.
Climate change is occurring around us and impacting on our daily lives, meaning that we have to deal with our cities in a different way. There is also increasing awareness of the need for daily contact with green spaces and the natural environment in order to live a happy, productive and meaningful life. This reflective essay tells the narrative of how urbanisation has been disconnecting humans from nature. Non-sustainable, non-resilient patterns of urbanisation, along with the neglect of inner-city areas, have resulted in fragmentation and urban decline, led to a loss of biodiversity, and caused the deterioration of ecosystems and their services. Urban regeneration projects allow us to ‘repair’ and restore some of this damage whilst enhancing urban resilience. Connecting existing and enhanced ecosystems, and re-establishing ecosystems both within cities and at the peri-urban fringe is vital for strengthening ecosystem resilience and building adaptive capacity for coping with the effects of climate change. Cities worldwide need to look for suitable solutions to increase the resilience of their urban spaces in the face of climate change. This essay explores how this can be achieved through the integration of nature-based solutions, the re-greening of neighbourhoods and by correctly attributing value to natural capital. Transforming existing cities and neighbourhoods in this way will enable ecosystems to contribute their services towards healthier and more liveable cities.
Steffen Lehmann. Reconnecting with nature: Developing urban spaces in the age of climate change. Emerald Open Research 2019, 1, 1 .
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Reconnecting with nature: Developing urban spaces in the age of climate change. Emerald Open Research. 2019; 1 ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2019. "Reconnecting with nature: Developing urban spaces in the age of climate change." Emerald Open Research 1, no. : 1.
Steffen Lehmann. Implementing the Urban Nexus approach for improved resource-efficiency of developing cities in Southeast-Asia. City, Culture and Society 2018, 13, 46 -56.
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Implementing the Urban Nexus approach for improved resource-efficiency of developing cities in Southeast-Asia. City, Culture and Society. 2018; 13 ():46-56.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2018. "Implementing the Urban Nexus approach for improved resource-efficiency of developing cities in Southeast-Asia." City, Culture and Society 13, no. : 46-56.
This article analyses the work and presents a portrait of Japanese architect Arata Isozaki. His designs and buildings span six decades and it is suggested that these can be categorised into four distinctively different phases. As a former collaborator of Isozaki during the 1990s, the author is able to draw from first-hand observations and knowledge to explain relevant projects. As the discussion points out, Isozaki’s work is highly unusual, original, complex and personal in its absorption of a multitude of influences and its interdisciplinary approach; thus, one could say that he has created ideas and concepts for spaces that defy characterisation as belonging to any single school of thought.
Steffen Lehmann. Reappraising the Visionary Work of Arata Isozaki: Six Decades and Four Phases. Arts 2017, 6, 10 .
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Reappraising the Visionary Work of Arata Isozaki: Six Decades and Four Phases. Arts. 2017; 6 (4):10.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2017. "Reappraising the Visionary Work of Arata Isozaki: Six Decades and Four Phases." Arts 6, no. 4: 10.
Highlights•Introduces and contextualizes the remarkable work of architect Lina Bo Bardi (1914–92).•Examines the features of regionalism and identity in modern Brazilian architecture.•Discusses the adaptive reuse projects in Salvador as a new social approach.•Marks the beginning of urban renewal projects in Brazil with Bo Bardi's work in Salvador. AbstractThe architecture of Brazil, which has recently been in the focus with major events (World Cup and Olympics) holds a particular place in Latin America's architecture and is known for its bold modernism. One of the most remarkable Brazilian architects in the 20th Century was Italian émigré Lina Bo Bardi (born Rome 1914-died São Paulo 1992).This article first looks at the regional diversity in modern Brazilian architecture and then at the ways in which Bo Bardi's sustainable and socially-conscious design is informed by regionalism. Regions are defined through their local materials, tectonics and particular typologies, and the architectural character defining regional spaces, in turn, shapes, retains and enhances social identity. It is timely to reassess the diverse work of Bo Bardi within Latin-America's modernism. Arriving in Brazil in 1946, Bo Bardi was, as well as an architect, a furniture designer, urbanist, political activist, writer and curator.Previous studies have sought to identify the architects and theorists involved in the making of the modern cultural identity of Brazil, and the mechanisms that created such identity, from Lucio Costa to Oscar Niemeyer. Bo Bardi's work marks the beginning of sustainable design within Brazilian modern architecture; especially the adaptive re-use projects in Salvador, Bahia, identify the beginning of a new approach to heritage and urban renewal.Therefore, in this article I ask: what exactly is the contribution and role of the work of Bo Bardi in Brazilian modernism? And: discussing regional identity in the Brazilian context, how is such local character expressed?
Steffen Lehmann. An environmental and social approach in the modern architecture of Brazil: The work of Lina Bo Bardi. City, Culture and Society 2016, 7, 169 -185.
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. An environmental and social approach in the modern architecture of Brazil: The work of Lina Bo Bardi. City, Culture and Society. 2016; 7 (3):169-185.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2016. "An environmental and social approach in the modern architecture of Brazil: The work of Lina Bo Bardi." City, Culture and Society 7, no. 3: 169-185.
One of the most remarkable Brazilian architects in the 20th Century, Italian émigré Lina Bo Bardi (Rome 1914—São Paulo 1992) has recently been “rediscovered” and her heterogeneous and unusually diverse oeuvre been celebrated. Born in Italy and arriving in Brazil in 1946, multi-talented Bo Bardi was, as well as an architect, a furniture designer , urbanist, political activist, editor and writer and a curator of exhibitions .
Steffen Lehmann. Keeping the Existing: Lina Bo Bardi’s Upcycling and Urban Renewal Strategies. Sustainable Lina 2016, 51 -70.
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Keeping the Existing: Lina Bo Bardi’s Upcycling and Urban Renewal Strategies. Sustainable Lina. 2016; ():51-70.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2016. "Keeping the Existing: Lina Bo Bardi’s Upcycling and Urban Renewal Strategies." Sustainable Lina , no. : 51-70.
The question of density is closely connected to urbanization and how our cities may evolve in the future. Density and compactness are two closely related but different criteria, both relevant for sustainable urban development and the transformation of cities; however, their relationship is not always well understood. While a high degree of compactness is desirable, too much density can be detrimental to liveability, health and urban well-being. The purpose of this article is to report first on an extreme case of hyper-density: the Kowloon Walled City (demolished in 1993), where 50,000 residents led a grim life in one of the most densely populated precincts in the world with intolerable sanitary conditions. While the Walled City was a truly mixed-use and extremely compact precinct, it was neither a ‘liveable neighbourhood’ nor sustainable. The article then explores some more recent cases of optimized quality density in developments in Singapore, Sydney and Vancouver. This article sets out to answer the question: Since density is key to sustainable urbanism, what are the drivers and different planning approaches in relation to establishing an optimal density? And what is the ideal density model for tomorrow’s sustainable cities?Some of the critical thinking around the high-density cases is replicable and could translate to other cities to inform new approaches to quality density. Medium to high-density living is acceptable to residents as long as these developments also provide at the same time an increase in quality green spaces close by. The article explores which density types could help us to create highly liveable, economically vibrant, mixed-use and resilient neighbourhoods of the future. It concludes that every development requires a careful optimization process adapted to the conditions of each site
Steffen Lehmann. Sustainable urbanism: towards a framework for quality and optimal density? Future Cities and Environment 2016, 2, 1 .
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Sustainable urbanism: towards a framework for quality and optimal density? Future Cities and Environment. 2016; 2 ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2016. "Sustainable urbanism: towards a framework for quality and optimal density?" Future Cities and Environment 2, no. : 1.
The question of density is closely connected to urbanization and how our cities may evolve in the future. Density and compactness are two closely related but different criteria, both relevant for sustainable urban development and the transformation of cities; however, their relationship is not always well understood. While a high degree of compactness is desirable, too much density can be detrimental to liveability, health and urban well-being. The purpose of this article is to report first on an extreme case of hyper-density: the Kowloon Walled City (demolished in 1993), where 50,000 residents led a grim life in one of the most densely populated precincts in the world with intolerable sanitary conditions. While the Walled City was a truly mixed-use and extremely compact precinct, it was neither a ‘liveable neighbourhood’ nor sustainable. The article then explores some more recent cases of optimized quality density in developments in Singapore, Sydney and Vancouver. This article sets out to answer the question: Since density is key to sustainable urbanism, what are the drivers and different planning approaches in relation to establishing an optimal density? And what is the ideal density model for tomorrow’s sustainable cities?Some of the critical thinking around the high-density cases is replicable and could translate to other cities to inform new approaches to quality density. Medium to high-density living is acceptable to residents as long as these developments also provide at the same time an increase in quality green spaces close by. The article explores which density types could help us to create highly liveable, economically vibrant, mixed-use and resilient neighbourhoods of the future. It concludes that every development requires a careful optimization process adapted to the conditions of each site
Steffen Lehmann. Sustainable urbanism: towards a framework for quality and optimal density? Future Cities and Environment 2016, 2, 1 .
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Sustainable urbanism: towards a framework for quality and optimal density? Future Cities and Environment. 2016; 2 ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2016. "Sustainable urbanism: towards a framework for quality and optimal density?" Future Cities and Environment 2, no. : 1.
Urban areas currently account for 60 to 80 per cent of global energy consumption, 75 per cent of carbon emissions and more than 75 per cent of the world's natural resources. A conference on the appropriate transformation of urban systems is therefore important and timely, as it is essential to deal with the future increase in urban populations, current overconsumption and cities’ growing footprints despite finite resources and limited availability of land. Therefore, it’s timely to highlight the need for taking steps to address greenhouse gas emission reductions and the global nature of the challenge. While the knowledge of good urban design allowed us for centuries to design cities that functioned well and had beautiful proportions, now an entirely new set of questions about optimal city form and urban management have emerged that have not previously been asked. In this keynote address, firstly I will outline the qualities of authentic urban places and offer a definition of ‘Smart City’; and then I will argue that urban design still warrants a very high priority of good public space for face-to-face encounters as it sets the framework for success of any future urban development at an early stage and remains central to any successful low carbon outcomes. In all this, urban form, public space, density and the integration of low-carbon technologies all have a strong interrelationship.
Steffen Lehmann. Advocacy for the Compact, Mixed-Use and Walkable City: Designing Smart and Climate Resilient Places. International Journal of Environment and Sustainability 2016, 5, 1 .
AMA StyleSteffen Lehmann. Advocacy for the Compact, Mixed-Use and Walkable City: Designing Smart and Climate Resilient Places. International Journal of Environment and Sustainability. 2016; 5 (2):1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSteffen Lehmann. 2016. "Advocacy for the Compact, Mixed-Use and Walkable City: Designing Smart and Climate Resilient Places." International Journal of Environment and Sustainability 5, no. 2: 1.