The Finalists for the 2014 Urbanism Awards

The European City of the Year
Istanbul – Turkey
Malmö – Sweden
Marseilles – France

The Great Town Award
Buxton – Derbyshire, England
Cork – County Cork, Ireland
Hastings – East Sussex, England

The Great Neighbourhood Award
Grand Canal Quarter – Dublin, Ireland
Saltaire – Bradford, England
West End – Glasgow, Scotland

The Great Street Award
Lamb’s Conduit Street – London, England
North Street, Bedminster – Bristol, England
Park Lane / Poynton High Street – Cheshire, England

The Great Place Award
Cathedral Square – Peterborough, England
Custard Factory – Birmingham, England
St. Nicholas Market – Bristol, England

For more information about The Urbanism Awards please contact Stephen Gallagher on +44 (0) 20 7251 8777 or email sg@academyofurbanism.org.uk.

The Academy Congress VIII
The Producer City

15-17 May 2013
Bradford

with The City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council
Meyer Bergman
Westfield
Leave your thoughts with us about The Academy Congress VIII: what did you learn? did you meet make new friends? have you picked up any inspiration that you will take away with you?

Leave your comments below – we would love to hear your thoughts!

Long term Academician and Director of Aspinall Verdi, Atam Verdi AoU, talks us through the premise behind his workshop:

“The Westfield retail development is the largest private sector investment in Bradford City Centre for several decades. Its opening in 2015 will change the geography of Bradford City Centre, shifting the focus of the retail offer to the south and east. At a time of the decline of the High Street, this workshop will explore the challenges, actions and interventions to maximise the benefits of Westfield and revitalise and find new uses for the historic streets which lie between the Westfield development and the existing Kirkgate Shopping Centre.”

We are delighted to present the 50 places shortlisted by our panel for The Urbanism Awards 2014:

The European City of the Year
Istanbul – Turkey
Liverpool – England
Malmö – Sweden
Marseilles – France
Rotterdam – Netherlands
San Sebastian – Spain
Sarajevo – Bosnia and Herzegovina
Turin – Italy
Vienna – Austria
Zurich – Switzerland

The Great Town
Aberystwyth – Ceredigion, Wales
Bury – Lancashire, England
Buxton – Derbyshire, England
Cork – County Cork, Ireland
Haddington – East Lothian, Scotland
Hastings – East Sussex, England
Letchworth Garden City – Hertfordshire, England
Middlesbrough – Teesside, England
Wakefield – West Yorkshire, England
Wells – Somerset, England

The Great Neighbourhood
Bermondsey Street Area – London, England
Chorlton – Manchester, England
Devonshire Quarter – Sheffield, England
Great Notley – Braintree, Essex, England
Ipswich Wet Dock – Ipswich, England
Hackney Wick – London, England
Wolverton – Milton Keynes, England
West End – Glasgow, Scotland
Grand Canal Quarter – Dublin, Ireland
Saltaire – Bradford, England

The Great Street
Biggar High Street – Biggar, Scotland
Bridge Street / North Street – Taunton, England
Kempock Street – Gourock, Scotland
Lamb’s Conduit Street – London, England
Manor Street – Dublin, Ireland
Newry Street – Banbridge, Northern Ireland
North Street, Bedminster – Bristol, England
Park Lane / Poynton High Street – Cheshire, England
South Promenade – Bridlington, England
Venn Street, Clapham – London, England

The Great Place
Cathedral Square – Peterborough, England
Custard Factory – Birmingham, England
Duke of York Square – London, England
Greengate Exchange – Salford, England
Milk Market – Limerick, Ireland
Old Market Square – Nottingham, England
Ouseburn Valley – Newcastle, England
Phoenix Initiative – Coventry, England
Southend Pier – Southend-on-Sea, England
St. Nicholas Market – Bristol, England

The Next Stage

Vote for our Finalists
Academicians are now invited to vote for their top three places in each category. These places will progress to the next round as Finalists. Visit our voting page.

The Finalists Announcement – The Congress Dinner
The results of this round of voting will be announced at The Congress Dinner taking place on the evening of 16 May in Bradford. For more information on The Annual Congress – this year focusing on the theme of The Producer City – please visit the Congress page.

Assessment Visits – Open to All Academicians
Following the announcement of the 15 Finalists during The Congress Dinner in May, the Academy will embark on a programme of assessment visits. The visits take place between July – September and are only open to Academicians. We are still looking for Academicians to take on the role of Deputy Assessors. Please contact Stephen Gallagher if you are interested on +44 (0) 20 7251 8777 or sg@academyofurbanism.org.uk.

Press Contact
For press enquiries, please contact Stephen Gallagher on +44 (0) 20 7251 8777 or email sg@academyofurbanism.org.uk.

Take part in one of six participative workshops on the main plenary day – 16 May – to look at placemaking issues in Bradford and beyond:

1. The Constant Re-making of Place
2. Culture & Skills for a Producer City
3. Economic Strategy & Prosperity
4. Property, Investment & Economic Geography
5. Place Learning Networks & Exchange
6. Digital Urbanism & Smart Cities

Preview – Workshop 6:
Digital Urbanity & Smart Cities

In advance of the digital urbanism workshop, Dr Rick Robinson AoU, Executive Architect for IBM Smarter Cities, talks us through his session:

Can digital technology help us build better cities? Should these technologies change the way we design and build cities, and if so, how? Do technologies offer solutions to difficult problems such as offering more flexible, coordinated transport services? Or are they a distraction on focusing on what really matters – the physical, social and economic needs of people and their communities?

The digital urbanism workshop will feature opening contributions from speakers from a variety of backgrounds, and with differing opinions on the value and relevance of digital technology to good urbanism. Our intention is to stimulate an informed and frank debate to follow; from which we hope that useful, practical insights will emerge on whether and how the technology agenda is relevant to cities.

To join this workshop book your Congress ticket here. Find out more about digital urbanism on Dr Rick Robinson’s blog.

Image: (Protesters at Occupy Wallstreet using digital technology to coordinate their demonstration. Photo by David Shankbone)

Copenhagen City Architect to speak on afternoon of Thursday 16 May

Professor Tina Saaby will join us from Copenhagen to talk about ‘Urbanism and the Unlearning of Architecture’. Prof Saaby will appear during the afternoon of the main plenary day, Thursday 16 May 2013.

Tickets to Congress are now selling. Don’t miss out on learning and lessons from Copenhagen and a host of other leading places – book your tickets now for The Producer City Congress at http://www.academyofurbanism.org.uk/congress/2013-bradford/

Introduction to the Debate
17 April 2013, London
Hosted by Grosvenor

It’s not unusual for particularly resonant ideas to be appropriated to support diverse agendas. ‘Garden cities’ has been repackaged over the past century to reflect the latest iteration of the ever-popular, romantic appeal of living in an environment that combines the perceived advantages of town and country living.

The original ideals of Howard, Unwin and Parker – that “the advantages of the most energetic and active town life, with all the beauty and delight of the country, may be secured in perfect combination” – have been copied, reinterpreted, compromised and misrepresented over the past century. Inter- and post-war municipal housing estates; 1960s new towns; the proponents of ‘new urbanism’, have all promoted images of how we could and should live in harmony with each other and with the environment, drawing from the legacy of the originators.

For those responsible for meeting the demand for housing, economic well-being, social justice, cultural diversity and energy efficiency, this popular ideal has to be translated into practical, affordable, fundable and politically realistic components.

This event will try to by-pass the political and environmental hyperbole and identify fundamental and unique characteristics by which we might define this particular kind of settlement. It will explore the extent to which it demands a green field site and whether such characteristics might be applied through the adaptation of existing settlements.

It will explore the economic bases for such communities and whether the original principles of common ownership, walkability and self-sufficiency are realistic today.

If there really is a future for ‘garden cities of tomorrow’ how can we support the initiatives of the Town and Country Planning Association and others in bringing it about?

This provocation was produced by Steven Bee AoU, Director of the Academy, as part of the Academy’s debate around the relevance of Garden Cities. The debate will be held on the evening of Wednesday 17 April 2013, and is hosted by Grosvenor.

For more information on the Academy and Garden Cities, please contact Stephen Gallagher on +44 (0) 20 7251 8777 or email sg@academyofurbanism.org.uk.

The Academy’s 8th Annual Congress
15-17 May 2013
Bradford, UK

Open to all

Event sold out!

We are delighted to invite you to the inaugural event for The Academy of Urbanism’s Young Urbanists.

Join us to find out more about this exciting new network of students and early career professionals who are interested in developing their knowledge and skills in urbanism.

Our panel of speakers span three generations, providing a varied wealth of experience, knowledge and perspectives on urbanism. They include a Young Urbanist in the early stages of a promising career, an Academician who is successfully creating her own vibrant practice, and an established Academician with an impressive career that spans decades and continents. They will discuss their past and present work, what led them to the field, and share their thoughts on the challenging question: what is urbanism?

The event will be chaired by Steven Bee AoU, Director of The Academy of Urbansim, and our inspiring panel comprises:

Rosie Haslem – Consultant of Space Syntax
Angela Koch AoU – Director of ImaginePlaces
John Worthington AoU – Director of The Academy of Urbanism & Co-Founder of DEGW

Please add the date to your diary and RSVP to Bright Pryde (bp@academyofurbanism.org.uk) to reserve your place. Please note the event is FREE to attend but spaces are limited.

We encourage you to pass this invitation on to any colleagues or students who might be interested in attending – help us build the Young Urbanist network.

Hosted by Grosvenor

18:00-21:00 17 April 2013
Grosvenor
70 Grosvenor Street
London W1K 3JP

Cost: Academicians free /
non-Academicians £20+VAT

SOLD OUT! We are now operating a waiting list for this event. If you would like to register for the waiting list, please contact Bright Pryde (bp@academyofubanism.org.uk)

The Academy is delighted to once again hold its Spring Reception and Debate with Grosvenor. This year, we will commence with a lively exchange on the historic purpose and contemporary relevance of Garden Cities and Suburbs.

Originally an anarcho-syndicalist manifesto for balanced, self-sufficient developments, Garden Cities are now in vogue again politically, despite the earlier abandonment of the UK’s postwar New Towns programme.

We will explore whether Ebenezer Howard’s 19th century Garden City approach:

• Is still the right way forward for urbanism and development in the 21st century
• Can deliver the full range of community facilities and services?
• Can be successfully procured alongside local authorities?
• Will affect the physical and economic well-being of our existing towns, cities and neighbourhoods?

Hear our panel of experts outline their thoughts on Garden Cities, engage in the lively discussion that will follow, and enjoy the opportunity to network with our specially invited guests.

The debate will be chaired by David Lock CBE AoU of David Lock Associates, and our specialist panel comprises:

Debbie Aplin AoU – Managing Director, Crest Nicholson Regeneration
John Best AoU – Director, John Best Re.Generation Limited, & ex-CEO Milton Keynes
Kate Henderson – Chief Executive, TCPA
Saffron Woodcraft AoU – Founding Director, Social Life

Please note spaces are limited. Please RSVP to Bright Pryde (bp@academyofurbanism.org.uk) to reserve your place.