This section of Roots has the main aim of bridging the gap between the modern urban human and nature across all kingdoms encouraging a desire to learn about the natural world around us. This aim is achieved by creating different types of habitat in one unit of urban space and by offering opportunities for contemplation, discovery, and education.
Glasgow Roots includes contextual considerations of place identity, utilisation of indigenous materials, and design that responds to the ecological systems of the area and foster community.
[...]
Billionaires never grow out of doing that same math
with years. Can’t conceive of counting past their own lifespans.
Believe the world ends the day they do.
Why are the keys to our future in the hands of those
who have the longest commutes from their heads to their hearts?
Whose greed is the smog that keeps us from seeing
our own nature, and the sweetness we are here to protect?
Do you know sometimes when gathering nectar
bees fall asleep in flowers? Do you know fish
are so sensitive snowflakes sound like fireworks
when they land on the water? Do you know sea otters
hold hands when they sleep so they don’t drift apart?
Do you know whales will follow their injured friends
to shore, often taking their own lives
so to not let a loved one be alone when he dies?
None of this is poetry. It is just the earth
being who she is, in spite of us putting barcodes on the sea.
In spite of us acting like Edison invented daylight.
[...]
Homesick: a plea for out planet, Andrea Gibson
Spatiality and Materials
Gabion Terraced Seats
Inequality manifests in different shapes and forms. One of these is the access to safe and green outdoor spaces. The Office for National Statistics declared that one in eight British households has no access to green space at home, whether a private or shared space. That inequity was starker among ethnic groups. Moreover, there is some evidence of inequities to accessing safe outdoor space, particularly in low-resource communities. Glasgow Roots aims at tackling these inequities creating a plaza in front of a new Comunity Centre.
The main plaza features a gabion terraced seating area, long enough to accommodate a larger number of citizens who would like to either gather together for communal events and performances, or to individually sit in a safer and cleaner outdoor space.
Gabion seats are:
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cheap
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very durable (typical lifespan 50-100 years)
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do not require a concrete foundation
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reuse of waste material from construction site
Forest Lookouts
The lookouts are planned to be small destination points and discreet landmarks in the heart of the new urban forest. Their scope is to invite the community to quietly experience the forest environment at different levels, to sit and relax, and to observe the natural world unfolding and thriving.
“Nature can deepen our lives, strengthen a sense of meaning an purpose, foster greater connectedness to place and comunity, and generally improve the quality of the lives we lead” (Beatley, 2021)
Info Panels and QR codes
Eduscape wants to offer a playful way to learn about the natural world that surronds us.
This is achieved via traditional information panels and fliers, but also via technology. Discreet wooden stands with a smaller information panels are placed near typical plants. They offer a QR code linked to this website supporting the development of this proposal.
The QR code is functioning, try and scan it if you like.
Cherry Walk
Modern cities have fewer and fewer outdoor areas that are simply beautiful to be in.
The Cherry Walk proposed is a looping path enclosing the area left for Natural Regeneration. The visitors will have the chance to walk among beautiful cherry trees which provide interest in all seasons, and witness (to their left and to their right) the difference between two different kinds of woodland habitats.
Section AA