Designing Sustainable Urban Living
Submitting Institution
University of BrightonUnit of Assessment
Art and Design: History, Practice and TheorySummary Impact Type
SocietalResearch Subject Area(s)
Built Environment and Design: Building, Design Practice and Management
Studies In Human Society: Policy and Administration
Summary of the impact
Research focusing on sustainable urban living explores design innovation
at the intersection of technology and policy. Its impact has been through
the co-design and co-development of integrated systems for securing a
sustainable future in collaboration with user groups and communities. The
research has reduced energy consumption and increased well-being through
innovations in `whole system' retrofitting combined with user
participation in the UK and France. It has also led to the development of
`living laboratories' and exemplar projects for both the construction
industry and building users, demonstrating ways of `locking-in' and
reusing waste material in building construction. Influential in the
development of planning policies for urban agriculture in London and
Berlin, the research has also been instrumental in empowering and
mobilizing communities in cities worldwide.
Underpinning research
Research into sustainable urban living includes work over the past
fifteen years by three interconnecting research programmes:
MCEVOY and SOUTHALL in passive ventilation systems; VILJOEN and BOHN in
urban agriculture, and; BAKER-BROWN in the re-use of waste materials for
building construction. Collectively, the research has generated new design
thinking and innovations that advance the integration of human,
technological and legislative solutions for making urban environments and
lifestyles more sustainable.
MCEVOY and SOUTHALL's research has embraced the complex technical
challenge of adapting existing social housing stock across Europe whilst
enhancing the health and well-being of residents. Their research has
developed `supply air' windows combined with `passive stacks' that result
in a holistic ventilation system, incorporating heat reclamation without
the use of electricity. The research has shown that environmentally
friendly methods for `whole-house ventilation' can be based on energy
saving construction involving air-tightness while maintaining indoor air
quality [references 3.3 and 3.4]. Funded by the DTI, EU and EPSRC, their
research has advanced and generated new knowledge through a series of
high-profile practice-based projects. MCEVOY founded the spin-off company
`Dwell Vent' in 2005, which tested and refined the design innovations in
ventilation with partners in Denmark, Ireland and Poland through a €278k
EU Intelligent Energy Europe Programme grant: Advanced Ventilation
Approaches to Social Housing (AVASH), 2007-2008. In 2009, The Dwell Vent
system was awarded the Built Environment Prize from the Institution of
Engineering and Technology (IET). The high profile of the system led to
the formation of links with new partners and, in 2011, the development of
a €3.1m EU Interreg IVA project: Innovation for Renewal (IFORE) [3.4]. Led
by MCEVOY, this project, which has had additional private investment from
two housing associations, put forward a new approach to eco-retrofitting
through the adaptation of MCEVOY's integrated ventilation system to 200
social housing units in the UK and France.
BAKER-BROWN's complementary research explores how to improve the existing
housing stock and uses living laboratories and exemplar projects to
demonstrate how new builds can be constructed at lower cost and more
sustainably. BAKER-BROWN has used construction prototypes to develop
partnerships, undertake research and create new audiences. The building
featured in Channel 4's `The House That Kevin Built' was a
low-budget straw-bale building and the first A+ environmentally-rated new
building; this approach to prototyping was advanced at the University of
Brighton with `The Brighton Waste House'. This project demonstrates that
it is possible to design and construct a contemporary, low-energy,
domestic building using over 85% waste material and to `lock-in' to the
construction toxic, oil-based waste (predominantly plastic), thus creating
value from waste and surplus materials [3.5]. The use of exemplar projects
has allowed `cradle to cradle' design principles to be developed,
stimulated productive and constructive dialogue with construction industry
professionals and engaged their apprentices in new methods and models of
construction.
VILJOEN and BOHN's research extends our work on housing to look at
sustainable urban design in public spaces. Conducted worldwide (in Europe,
Cuba, and the USA) over a period of ten years, the highly regarded
research has looked at how agriculture can be integrated into the urban
fabric to increase the health and economic well-being of people who live
in cities. Using a grounded theory approach, they have shown that to
increase biodiversity and decrease carbon emissions, policy-makers and
communities need to be strategically committed to interconnecting green
spaces [3.2]. The way to do this, VILJOEN and BOHN found, is by combining
productive with continuous urban landscapes, as detailed in the
influential book Continuous Productive Urban Landscapes: Designing
Urban Agriculture for Sustainable Cities [3.1]
Key researchers:
Duncan Baker-Brown: |
Senior Lecturer (Oct 1995–to date). |
Katrin Bohn: |
Senior Lecturer (Sept 2001–to date). |
Mike McEvoy: |
Professor of Architecture (Feb 2007–to date). |
Ryan Southall: |
Research Fellow (Sept 2005–July 2006), Senior Research Fellow (Aug
2006–Aug 2012), Senior Lecturer (Sept 2012–to date). |
Andre Viljoen: |
Senior Lecturer (Aug 2001–Aug 2009), Principal Lecturer (Sept
2009–to date). |
References to the research
[3.1] VILJOEN, A. and BOHN, K. eds. (2005) CPULs
continuous productive urban landscapes: designing urban agriculture
for sustainable cities. Oxford: The Architectural Press.
[Quality validation: this book was nominated as the Royal Institute of
British Architects (RIBA) book of the week and has been cited as suggested
reading by the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution. In 2007 it was
shortlisted for the RIBA President's Award for outstanding university
research. This book was also submitted to RAE 2008 — Output quality
profile for RAE 2008: 81% 2* and above.]
[3.2] VILJOEN, A. and WISKERKE, S.C. eds. (2012) Sustainable
food planning: evolving theory and practice. Wageningen:
Wageningen Academic Publishers. [Quality validation: the papers in this
edited collection were peer reviewed by an international panel for the
conference and then peer reviewed once more during editorial selection.
The book has also been submitted to REF 2014, see VILJOEN, output 3.]
[3.3] MCEVOY, M.E. and DYE, A.R (2008) Environmental construction
handbook. London: RIBA Publications. [Quality validation: this
output resulted from the EPSRC-funded project ECONSTRUCT, an interactive
CD-ROM illustrating the sustainability debate in relation to buildings
(GR/R79852/01). The EPSRC's evaluation of the final report was `Tending to
outstanding'. The book has also been submitted to REF 2014, see output 1.]
[3.4] MCEVOY, M.E. and SOUTHALL, R.G. (2010) A programme of testing to
evaluate a passive approach to whole-house ventilation. Construction
Innovation, 10 (4), pp.395-407. [Quality validation: this
peer-reviewed journal paper was the culmination of previous work stemming
from 2005. The resulting EU Interreg IVA project, Innovation for Renewal
(IFORE), was given funding of €3.1 million. The article has also been
submitted to REF 2014, see SOUTHALL output 2.]
[3.5] BAKER-BROWN, D. (2013) The Waste House. [Quality validation:
submitted to REF 2014, output 1. This project began life as Channel 4's The
House That Kevin Built (2008), which featured the building of the
first A+ environmentally rated building.]
Details of the impact
The underpinning research has resulted in international impact in the
ecological, economic, social and political aspects of advancing
sustainability in urban environments within the UK, Europe, North and
South America, and South Africa. It has:
Reduced energy consumption: MCEVOY and SOUTHALL's work has
enhanced domestic eco-retrofitting and reduced carbon footprints. Under
MCEVOY's leadership, the EU IFORE Interreg IVA project has resulted, as of
July 2013, in the retrofit of 100 social housing units in deprived areas
of Isle of Sheppey (by the end of the project an additional 100 units in
Nord-Pas de Calais, France will have also been retrofitted). Two
large-scale social housing organisations, Amicus Horizon and Pas-de-Calais
habitat, have invested in excess of €4 million, a substantial amount for
private organisations, on new ventilation technologies and
resident-oriented education and advice solutions (source 5.1). Although
data for this winter (2013) remains to be collected to confirm the annual
energy savings, it is expected that the project will reduce carbon
emissions by 4,693kg CO2/yr per unit, generate energy savings
for residents at £512/yr, and eliminate condensation, damp and mildew.
Residents have already noticed a drop in their energy bills (5.2). Amicus
Horizon confirmed that the retrofit in Rushenden `is the exemplar for our
forthcoming rollout of retrofit throughout our other communities' (5.3).
The project has also benefitted residents in deprived urban communities
through the establishment of community liaison roles that advise residents
on ways to save energy. The Green Doctor has, according to the housing
association, strengthened relations with tenants, with one participant
saying that the project had `made me aware of the technical improvements
that had been made in my house so that I could use them properly and
efficiently' (5.3).
Developed cutting-edge ideas about re-using waste material: The
work of BAKER-BROWN has changed attitudes to thinking about waste both
regionally and nationally. The House that Kevin Built was featured
on Channel 4 to an average audience of 1.78 million per episode (5.4) and
showed how straw can be used to construct a sustainable and efficient
building. The Brighton Waste House, constructed with `waste' material on
the university's estate as an early-stage prototype, has been a unique
demonstrator vehicle for engaging learners through hands-on activities
linked to cutting-edge sustainable construction techniques. The project
has allowed educational activities to be developed for over 30 local
schools and further education learners that champion sustainable building
design. On-site construction activities have played a central role in the
training of 60 apprentices for the Mears Construction Company and Brighton
City College, with the innovative nature of the learning through direct
interaction contributing to Mears being awarded Regional Employer of the
Year 2012 by the National Apprentice Service (5.5).
`The Brighton Waste House' has been adopted as a `living laboratory' by
Brighton and Hove City Council, which has changed planning practices and
policy in the city to encourage eco-retrofitting, promote sustainable
design, and reduce waste during construction phases (5.6).
Eco-retrofitting research projects by BAKER-BROWN are described by the
Head of Planning as exemplars that show developers `it can be done', and
have contributed to the Council's award-winning Sustainable Design and
Waste Minimisation Planning Strategy (5.7).
Influenced strategic planning around urban architecture: VILJOEN
and BOHN's research has changed urban policy in Middlesbrough, London and
Berlin as well as in South Africa and South America. Redesigning urban
space to incorporate food growing has impacted on how major cities promote
sustainability through the management of greenspace. In 2008, the Greater
London Assembly (GLA) developed the policy paper Why London needs to
grow more food with one GLA member stating that VILJOEN and BOHN's
research had been `significant in helping to frame the growing interest in
policy related to urban food systems and the future shape of London'
(5.8). In 2012, the Berlin Senate and the Department for Urban Development
and the Environment incorporated the CPUL concept within the Landscape
Plan (Strategie Stadtlandschaft — natürlich urban produktiv) for Berlin as
one of its three visionary themes for the development of open space in the
German capital (5.9) The CPUL concept has also been incorporated into
community projects in Rosario (Argentina) and Bobo Dioulasso (Burkina
Faso) (5.10). In Rosario, there are now 22ha of multifunctional productive
areas of park land that are cultivated by several hundred different
producers. As a direct result of VILJOEN and BOHN's participation in the
Design Council's DOTT 07 project that took place in Middlesbrough in 2007,
17 new allotment sites have been developed, an annual town meal which
regularly feeds over 2,500 local residents with locally grown food has
been established, and over 30 schools in the area now use school-grown
food in their kitchens (5.11). Having demonstrated the CPUL concept at
venues including the Venice Bienniale (2012), the Graham Foundation Exit
Arts, New York (2009), and the British Council in Cuba (2006), this
concept and examples of its practical implementation were cited by the
United Nations University Institute for Advanced Studies in a 2010 report
as model examples for delivering urban sustainability (5.12).
Sources to corroborate the impact
5.1 Extract from the IFORE project grant that details the match funding
provided by Amicus Horizon and Pas de Calais Habitat.
5.2 Amicus Horizon website containing: project details, energy saving
statistics and a project film that highlights the benefits felt by
residents as a direct result of the IFORE project. Available at: http://www.amicushorizon.org.uk/IFORE
[Accessed: 12 November 2013].
5.3 Testimonial available from the Regional Asset Director at Amicus
Horizon. The testimonial draws attention to learning through co-production
and the benefit of the project to the communities involved.
5.4 Viewing figures for the five episodes of Grand Designs Live
featuring The House That Kevin Built. Data provided by the
Broadcasters' Audience Research Board.
5.5 Testimonial available from Mears Construction that draws attention to
the importance of BAKER-BROWN's work in forging and delivering their
apprenticeship scheme.
5.6 Brighton and Hove One Planet City Sustainability Case Study Spring
2013. Available at:
http://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/content/environment/sustainability-city/one-planet-city
[Accessed: 12 November 2013]. Supplementary evidence includes the One
Planet City Sustainability Action Plan and the invitation for BAKER-BROWN
to have his work cited as a model example in the Horizon2020 Science
Europe Report (invitation request July 2013, report published September
2013).
5.7 Testimonial available from Head of Planning at Brighton and Hove City
Council that highlights BAKER-BROWN's contribution to council projects and
the importance of his work as a model for the city. Details of awards
received by the council in which BAKER-BROWN played a significant role are
also included.
5.8 Testimonial available from Green Party Candidate and Member of the
GLA that highlights the contribution of VILJOEN and BOHN to policymaking
and papers.
5.9 Strategy document for the City of Berlin: Strategie
Stadtlandschaft Berlin: natürlich, urban, produktiv (October, 2012).
This document shows the ways in which CPULs will be embedded into Berlin's
urban landscape. Available at:
http://www.stadtentwicklung.berlin.de/planen/stadtforum/downloads/SF_Gruen_Dokumentation_bfrei.pdf
[Accessed: 12 November 2013]. Supplementary evidence includes a series of
reports that also draw on the work of VILJOEN and BOHN: Brighton and
Hove's One Planet City Sustainability Action Plan (2012-13); an
article on the use of CPULs in Almere (The Netherlands) in RUAF's Urban
Agriculture Magazine (2011); the GLA's Report Cultivating the
capital: food growing and the planning system in London (2010); The
Building Centre's report London yields: urban agriculture (2009),
and; an extract from the website Cultivating Kansas City on urban
agriculture (2013). Reports available on request.
5.10 Testimonial available from the Director of the RUAF Foundation that
demonstrates VILJOEN and BOHN's contribution to policy and thinking about
urban agriculture and the projects worldwide that have adopted this
approach.
5.11 Design Council website featuring the outcomes of DOTT 07. Available
at:
http://www.designcouncil.org.uk/Case-studies/Urban-Farming/The-outcomes/
[Accessed: 12 November 2013]. Supplementary evidence includes an email
detailing further developments, events and actions resulting from the
project from Middlesbrough Council's Urban Regeneration Department.
5.12 Policy report by the United Nations University Institute for
Advanced Studies. Cities, biodiversity and governance: perspectives
and challenges of the implementation of the convention on biological
diversity at the city level (2010). Available at:
http://www.ias.unu.edu/resource_centre/UNU-IAS%20Cities%20and%20Bio%20e-ver.pdf
[Accessed: 12 November 2013].