Priority and responsibility - the world cases of reconstruction of cities after wars and destruction have shown to the Ukrainian communities
Professor of Architecture Matthew Bell from Maryland University give lecture at Community Recovery Academy.
On October 17, the first open lecture organized by a global educational project "Community Recovery Academy" was held, - more than 130 students from different regions of Ukraine joined the event.
The lecture "World experience of reconstruction of cities after wars and destruction: cases and decisions" was read by a professor of architecture at Maryland University Matthew Bell, a specialist with more than 30 years of experience in urban and architectural projects. Mr. Belle is a partner of an international company for the city design, planning and strategic consulting of Perkins Eastman (Washington, USA), a researcher of the topic of cities recovery after catastrophes and has many professional awards, including from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and Congress of New Urbanism (CNU).
Mr. Bell began the lecture with the thesis about the importance of learning both on successes and failures. The first part of the meeting was devoted to the principles of creating public spaces. He outlined five common issues of general planning, since most plans are not realized because of uncertainty about what and how to start.
The lecturer emphasized the key principles of creation of the urban environment, in particular in the framework of reconstruction: new life for old streets and buildings, curbing road traffic, combination of "big" and "small" stories, integration of ecological design and diversification of residential development, etc.
Do not try to rebuild everything and right away, but use the opportunity to correct past mistakes
The second part of the lecture was devoted to the practical cases of reconstruction of cities. Mr. Bell spoke about how the cities of France were rebuilt after the catastrophic destruction of World War II, when much of the urban infrastructure was destroyed. He stressed that it was necessary to make decisions quickly and involve local architects and planners.
We need to live in the communities, so there should be everything you need: parks, schools, shops, cafes. But most importantly - working cities. We have to be responsible to these cities so they really become better
In addition to theoretical knowledge and practical advice, the participants were able to join and ask questions. One of them was a request for the reconstruction of small communities, because they often have limited resources. Mr Bell noted that the successful restoration and development of small communities does not necessarily require large financial infusions. He emphasized the importance of a priority analysis of community needs and capabilities.
It is worth understanding that you are primary, and this should be concentrated. Locals should also be involved in organizing joint events that will help create public spaces. These can be simple but effective solutions such as the arrangement of parks, squares or playgrounds
Matthew Bell's lecture has once again proved that the restoration of cities and territories requires not only financial resources, but, above all, a deep understanding of his own needs. The key aspects are a thorough approach to planning, working together on creating comfortable and accessible public spaces and focusing on simple but effective solutions. Mr. Bell stressed that successful recovery begins with the determination of priorities that can focus an effort, which, in turn, will contribute to the sustainable development of communities and improving the quality of life of their residents.
The Community Recovery Academy continues to work on building an expert partnership so that its students (within the curriculum) and a wider range of communities (within open events) were able to study the best practices for the restoration and development of affected territories.
Community Recovery Academy founded by the Association of Ukrainian Cities and NGO Mariupol.Reborn, aims to prepare municipal managers for the recovery period. The project is implemented with the support of the UK government under the UK International Development and the International Republican Institute (IRI UKRAINE) in partnership with Metinvest and SCM. The educational partners of the project are Metinvest Polytechnic and National University "Kyiv-Mohyla Academy".
