The project investigates urban open spaces with add-ons for social and cultural expression and the production of resources such as food, materials and energy. These are specific, urban open spaces which are determined by actions and knowledge input of its users.

Using these analyses, typologies of urban open spaces with add-ons for a strategic (urban) open space planning at different scales will be identified, which actively includes the interests of different actors, who advocate for a socially and sustainably future urban development. In the living lab, specific add-ons for an urban open space will be analyzed through interviews, mapping and field research, focusing on the micro-perspective of the neighborhood on the one hand and on the macro-perspective of the entire urban space up to the suburban region on the other hand.

For the project, the following three questions will be analyzed through the users: Which add-ons for social and cultural expression as well as the production of resources such as food, materials and energy does an Urban Open Space have? What add-ons exist in the context of the Urban Open Space with the neighborhood and suburban region? What add-ons are missing and could be added to the Urban Open Space itself and in context with the neighborhood and suburban region?

Through analysis, it will be determined which add-ons for social and cultural expression and production of resources such as food, materials and energy could be added towards a sustainable and social use of urban space. From this, a design project is formulated, which students of the TU Berlin edit and present with participatory involvement of the users and finally make available for implementation. The project is part of a research project by Dr. Carolin Mees, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation Fellow 2020/2021 at the Department of Open Space Planning, Landscape Architecture at the TU Berlin. Taking into consideration the results of that research, it is planned to determine which urban open space in Berlin is suitable for a living Lab in 2021.

The Berlin Living Lab shall be a continuation of the experience of Dr. Carolin Mees, who successfully implemented this methodology in New York City between the years 2012 to 2014. She was responsible for the participatory design and planning of 13 new community gardens for the New York City Mayor’s Office and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (see photos).

Thematic approaches:
#reallab #transformation #society

Spatial accesses:
#urbanopenspaces #publicspaces #communitygardens

Methodological accesses:
#mapping #fieldresearch #participatorydesign

Contact:
TU Berlin (FG Landscape Architecture) – Dr. Carolin Mees

Gardens for Healthy Communities, Edgemere Farm, Queens, NY, 2012- 2014 Fotos: Dr. Carolin Mees. In collaboration with: NYC citizens, NYC Mayor’s Office, NYC Parks Department