An initiative of the Urban Environmental Project, the goal of both the workshop series and the project is to develop cooperative learning and research networks, programs and projects that address urban environmental issues and concerns.
"The idea of the workshop series is to bring people together from different backgrounds to discuss social, economic and environmental concerns that are relevant to living in urban areas," said Beth Dempster, project coordinator.
"There are many challenges for planning, management and decision-making in urban areas that reach across many scales, sectors, and activities. We want to provide an opportunity for addressing these challenges by learning from and integrating different types of knowledge and experience."
"Anyone interested is welcome to attend. Participation is free. Interested people will include residents; people from government and business; high-school, and university students; teachers, college and university faculty."
Dempster added that although we associate issues and concerns arising from population growth and development with large, high-density urban conglomerations such as Mexico City and Tokyo, they also arise in our own urbanized areas such as Waterloo Region.
The sessions, to be held every Thursday for five weeks, begin Jan. 13, 2000, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., at the Adult Learning Centre, 185 King St. S. (at Allen), in Waterloo.
To allow for interaction and discussion, attendance is limited to 50 people. Space will be allotted on a first-come first-served basis. To register, contact the Heritage Resources Centre at UW, (519) 888-4567, ext. 2072; e-mail: hrc@fes.uwaterloo.ca
The series is principally sponsored by the Heritage Resources Centre, with support from the Interdisciplinary Research Fund, the Dean of Environmental Studies, and the School of Planning at UW and the Kitchener Rotary Club.
Besides working toward a more desirable environment, the objectives of the workshop include encouraging open, civic and participatory approaches to planning, management and decision-making for the urban environment and establishing a network of interested people to continue working on such issues.
The workshop sessions:
• Jan. 13: Ecology and urban environments. People value green space and natural areas in cities, yet the understanding, design and stewardship of such areas present challenges. Discussion in this session will consider landscape theory, planning cities to balance economic and ecological needs, citizen restoration and management of green space, and satellite technology as an aid to encouraging improved design of buildings and natural areas.
• Jan 20: Water, water everywhere? Water is such a familiar feature that we often forget its significance, yet a clean, reliable supply is essential for living. Discussion will focus on key ideas and concerns relevant to maintaining this valuable resource in our area. Research, understanding, and actions required for developing an appropriate relationship between supply and demand will be considered.
• Jan 27: The Urban Environment as Hazard. Where natural and societal forces collide. Hazardous conditions arise from interrelationships among urban and natural forces. Discussion will consider society's fascination with disaster, examine 'vulnerability' as a social construct, and review current understanding about flooding, air quality, and other hazards that are common in our area. Implications of these issues for management will also be considered.
• Feb 3: Social Justice and Environmental Equity. Environmental risks and environmental quality are not fairly distributed in urban settings. Discussion will question how this inequity comes about, and the concepts, research and experience that might aid in understanding and changing it. The emphasis will be on implications for developing social policies to address these concerns.
• Feb. 10: Building connections for urban environmental planning, management and decision-making. A key challenge in coping with the issues relevant to urban environments is integrating the broad range of knowledge and experience essential for understanding. This last session will include discussion on how the issues and concerns raised in this series can be brought together, who should be involved, and what approaches might be useful in strengthening public understanding. What have we learned through this workshop series about the potential for sharing knowledge and for creating planning, education and research opportunities?
http://newsrelease.uwaterloo.ca/news.php?id=1352
