'Afloat 2.0' competition launched to design Competition for water resilient habitats by?UNI.xyz
Fig: 1 – Melting Glaciers due to climate change (Credits- Annie Spratt)
Addressing climate change
Climate change is not a new concept to us. We have been a witness to its impact and awareness for at least two decades. To reduce greenhouse gases, control waste, air pollution, promote sustainable living, and plant more trees are some efforts that we as a community are taking to make a gradual change. But it seems that the scale is somehow imbalanced, as more people are contributing to our inevitability. Moreover, this is not only through minor negligence but encompasses a spectrum of capitalism, social,and even basic human factors.?
While some climate change solutions might be working for today they might prove insufficient for tomorrow. Effects from issues such as rising sea levels and increasing air pollution have already commenced in the form of flooding and health problems in cities. Core environmental problems involve a lot of problem-solving on a macro scale. So for now,?can we begin to accommodate these changes and plan for the future through positive design solutions?
?Fig: 2?– Rise in sea-levels (Credits- Nguygen Kiet)
Rising sea levels
A growing number of communities both inland and coastal are going underwater.?Sea-level rise, extreme weather,and other climatic factors and human intervention are to blame for these issues.
Floods are natural disasters that have affected mankind since their inception, evidence of ancient underwater cities proves that even the best-designed cities are nothing in comparison to the force of nature.?
While nature always acts promptly to balance itself, human activities such as ocean pollution and land reclamation have put untimely pressure on the oceans and nature. We have made nature's clock move faster. And it has?resulted in estimates that major world cities will sink by 2050.
It indicates that flooding will cause land subsidence as well as a major housing and infrastructure problem for thousands of communities living in coastal cities.?
?Fig: 3?– Rapid infrastructure growth in cities (Credits- Afif Kusuma)
Tackling urban flooding
Living in urban areas is an expensive deal in terms of capital, standards,,, and also the overall health of a person. Though demands of high living and rising prices irrespective of the region have attracted people to cities for better income. The increase in population has made cities vulnerable to climate change, especially in developing regions.?
Such cities/countries are striving to come up with their fast-growing sectors, but as a result, it has led to ignorance in lack of infrastructure, environmental issues, transport,,, and public housing. Dense coastal cities with poor infrastructure are facing major problems of water-logging and displacement every year. Governments make relocation policies and flood resilient strategies to help people every year. But it makes us question what about the flood damage done throughout the years to cities as well as the coastal belt? These policies might work for a period of flooding but don't improve the situation at large.
Fig: 4?-Tidal Flooding in Semarang (Credits- Media Indonesia)
City of?Semarang
Semarang is the capital and largest city of Central Java, Indonesia. It symbolizes a major port during the Dutch colonial era and thus houses beautiful heritage architecture. Though as a capital Semarang is a center point for migration, the city has?1.76 million inhabitants and is estimated to rise to approx 7.15 million in 2030. Despite this growth as a capital city, the population growth is higher than the surrounding areas, making it the eighth-most populous city.?
The growth of the city is also, unfortunately, proving to be its undoing as Semarang is prone to massive floods each year. The development has resulted in monsoon flooding in low-lying areas. The city also faces tidal flooding due to reclamation near the old port town. The exploitation of groundwater for industrial and commercial purposes has caused land subsidence.?This risk further enlarged because of changing climatic patterns causing disruptions in wet and dry seasons. This change has resulted in more droughts and water supply problems.?
Fig: 5?– Conceptual solution-Adaptive Dwellings/Afloat (Credits-Misak)
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Brief of the competition
Semarang is vulnerable to various hazards, stresses,,, and shocks because of flooding.?
The issues of infrastructure and housing are also prevalent in the city due to overpopulation and create an unpredictable future for a living.?While moving major capitals like Jakarta has been provided as an official solution, ?it has raised questions of deforestation and destruction of traditional villages at selected sites
Moreover, replanning and uprooting such packed cities can be a daunting task for people with low-income and permanent housing, so in such dire situations can we provide a solution that tackles existing issues in the region itself? By doing this, how can we improve/change the housing and infrastructure of a city??
Brief: The challenge is to propose a mixed housing unit in the city of Semarang,?providing innovative housing solutions to prevent flooding.?
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Design objectives
The participants are to design the mixed housing for three groups?(i.) The fishermen community that occupies the coast. (ii.) The demographic belongs to the midscale and upscale lifestyle of the city.?
The site must contain about 400 housing units on the given site, resilient to rise in water levels. 200 Units for the Lower Income Group, 150 for the Middle Income Group,,, and 50 for the Higher Income Group.
The design solutions should be in light of land subsidence and also in an aim to keep maintaining the heritage of the city.??
Program outline
The program of the?Flood Resilient Neighbourhood?has been broadly categorized into the above based on the typology of the structure. However, the participants are free to add other programmatic facilities depending on their design.?
The number of floors for each housing unit is dependent on the design and structural strength. Additionally, apart from the residential facilities, the rest of the provisions only need to be earmarked/designated on the master plan and not detailed.?
Site
?Fig: 6 - Site image
The site selected for this project is a part of?Tambakharjo, west of Semarang.?It undergoes tidal flooding every year. It is the second most?flood-prone area?in Semarang. For this challenge the plot must be considered already submerged and a prototype zone for development.
Find all the competition brief, terms, and other registration guidelines on this
Originally published at https://uni.xyz.