Cityscape: A chance to view work and talk to other professionals in the realm of urban design.
I took the opportunity to talk to a chap from Urbis a specialist lighting company about using lighting in landscape design. I also was able to talk to the Land Restoration Trust who's work has a lot in common with my own designs. They suggested community involvement was essential to successful projects.
National Gallery: Always worth a visit
National Portrait Gallery: It is amazing to walk around a room and know that each face has an amazing story to tell. Does it matter which room it is?
British Museum: To witness objects and art works that are thousands of years old is outstanding in itself each piece or cumulative pieces seeking to tell a story.
If you consider that landscape is a branch of the arts and that art is about the narrative of the senses and the expression in which it is achieved then surely this means that landscape must be born of something. It must express a narrative or be routed in the culture of which it is part. Great landscapes are not superficial they are firmly embedded within context.
BTCV
BTCV is a voluntary organisation dedicated to improving the environment.
It's vision: A better environment where people are valued included and involved
It's mission: To create a more sustainable future by improving places and inspiring people
To prevent undercutting to one of the only natural stretches of the Thames between Richmond and Kew we set about styling the river bank which is a cheap traditional way to prevent erosion
Willow steaks set in the ground are woven around using smaller branches creating a small wall around the riverbank which retains the silt the river deposits when high. The willow stakes can take root due to the voracious nature of the plant which when coupled with the retaining wall all adds to protect against erosion
It's vision: A better environment where people are valued included and involved
It's mission: To create a more sustainable future by improving places and inspiring people
To prevent undercutting to one of the only natural stretches of the Thames between Richmond and Kew we set about styling the river bank which is a cheap traditional way to prevent erosion
Willow steaks set in the ground are woven around using smaller branches creating a small wall around the riverbank which retains the silt the river deposits when high. The willow stakes can take root due to the voracious nature of the plant which when coupled with the retaining wall all adds to protect against erosion
LSEA
The LSEA (London schools environment award) is a scheme aimed at London primary schools to foster children's sense of responsibility toward the environment..
Volunteers activate the scheme through working with the schools and pupils. A team from Kingston University including myself will be volunteering to do this.
The themes that the project follows are:
Volunteers activate the scheme through working with the schools and pupils. A team from Kingston University including myself will be volunteering to do this.
The themes that the project follows are:
- Litter and local environment quality (compulsory)
- Waste and recycling
- Water
- Energy and climate change
- Transport to school
- Biodiversity
Schools must pick two themes including litter and environmental quality which is a big problem in London and are graded on the following criteria:
- Pupil and community involvement
- Effectiveness
- Sustainability
- Communication
- Innovation
- Presentation
Each borough has a winner and runner up school which are awarded £2000 and £1000 to be presented in the mayor's office.
This is a wonderful hands on approach to the 'think global act local' issue in sustainability.
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