2021 ASLA Student Awards

Tianjin, as the port city with an ongoing legacy of coastal trades and industries, is now facing severe hydrological problems: the scarcity, accelerating upstream pollution, and high groundwater salinity. Situated in such context, compounded by its unique industrial heritage now threatened by the top-down land-use&relocation policy, the town of Gegu with Rockcheck Steel Plant as its biggest manufacturer urges a resilient framework to both honor its cultural identity as

This project in its ambition to tackle complexities in the wicked problem of undesirable “dryness” that persists in Barcelona’s postindustrial waterfronts and urban fringes, aims to leverage the concept of “wetness” in its various interpretations and representations in order for reimagination of a better future by building resiliency, vitality and adaptability. Through rigorous cross-scale analytical processes to unfold the multidimensional existing qualities surrounding the site and its larg

This research project focuses on soil rebuilding processes through the introduction of mortuary composting burial procedures in the semi-arid endorheic basin of the Owens Valley, California. Excess salinity in this region is exacerbated by severe access to water issues and generations of contentious water politics, and constructed hydrologic conditions, that have dammed/damned and depleted regional ecologies, habitats and resources. The proposal defines phased parameters&n

Kingsbury Run, an abandoned landfill in the heart of the Kinsman neighborhood in Southeast Cleveland, has long been neglected and labeled as a brownfield site. Despite its current appearance, it was once an ecologically rich watershed. Presently, this land is perceived as an eyesore due to it’s embedded history of precariousness, segregation, and racism. This negligence has created opportunities for nature to take over. Wildlife and flora has repopulated the land, including invasive

Our design location is Ger in Ulaanbaatar. A large number of herders gathered around Ulaanbaatar, which intensified the desertification of the city and caused socio-economic, health and environmental problems. In 2019, the COVID-19 epidemic raged, and a large number of discarded masks caused serious pollution. We explore ways to apply discarded masks to desertification control. The three parts of personalized water and electricity supply, personalized mask reuse, and personalized change stru

The site locates in Ipswich, England. The project focuses on Urban Rewilding. It can enhance the resilience of the ecosystem and maintain biodiversity. It has an important and unique value in reconnecting people with nature and maintaining ecosystem services.

Hedgehog is one of the sharp declines of various wildlife species in recent years due to urbanization in the UK. And it has a very wide range of habitat types in the city, overlapping with many wildlife habitats types. Therefore, w

People in the city of Jaipur, India have always been struggling with water scarcity during dry seasons and inundation during monsoon seasons throughout history due to the semi-arid climate and improper water use.

Based on investigations on the current water use at housing, community and urban scale, the project envisions an alternative way to manage the whole water lifecycle including water supply, water consumption, water disposal and water harvesting, by the design of various water in

Jaipur, the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan, has faced many of the problems associated with population growth in its rapid development, such as water shortages, untreated sewage and heavy solid waste pollution. The site we are working with is along Mount Rd, an important road between Aravalli Hills and slums, connecting the northern and southern part of the city. By creating an ecological corridor with a circulatory system for both water and waste, we collect and

Over a billion people around the globe live in unplanned of self-constructed settlements frequently at peri-urban locations, excluded from the benefits of city life, and occupying high-risk sites. Latin America is still considered the continent with the highest social inequalities, manifested in the disconnection between the formal and the informal areas. These areas are characterized by environmental/health problems, the lack of communal services, infrastructure and public spaces, poor acces

Taking urban water shortage as a point of departure, this project aims to construct an urban water management framework for Varanasi，India. We propose a flexible urban design and provides regulation, supply, culture, support, and other services. The design is divided into two strategies: one is to restore the existing water supply bodies and form different landscape functions combined with different water site characteristics; the other is to provide new water supply forms t

Caracas, Venezuela is a city of inequalities. The city's informal settlements are marked by stigma of poverty and crime. In these communities, structural misgovernance has turned violent criminal gangs into normalized institutions. Consequently, Caracas is one of the most dangerous cities in the world. In response, this project proposes spatial strategies for reducing risk factors that drive children toward violence as means of survival in informal communities. Using interdisciplinary methods

In 2020, Kenya suffered a once-in-70-year locust plague. The locusts caused heavy losses in Kenya, where agriculture is a pillar industry, and a large number of people died of famine and poverty. The "World Food Security and Nutrition Report 2020" pointed out that nearly 690 million people will go hungry in 2019, and several East African countries in the Red Sea with agriculture as the main pillar industry are facing persistent locusts while a large number of people are dying. disaster. Altho

This project aims to use belt spaces to protect Yi villages from wildfires in Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture while preserve their life culture. Yi people believe in fire. Fire has always been the first necessity of their life. But when their life style combines with a large areas of the Yunnan Pine forest and complex environment in Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, they become the biggest potential wildfire threat. The immigration helps them away from the fire, while their belief in fir

This project aims to provide a reimagination of the Kingsbury Run Nature Reserve for, with, and most importantly by the surrounding local communities that have been long under-served from a deeply embedded long history of environmental injustice. In collaboration with a non-profit community development corporation known as Burten, Bell, Carr Development Inc. (BBC), the project puts a heavy emphasis on analysis and planning exercises with inclusion of community engagement aspects that begins t

Avocado trees consume a lot of water, and with the sharp increase of avocado exports, there is a conflict between water resources and deforestation. Since the large-scale planting of avocado, the water level of Petorca river began to drop. Until 1997, the Petorca river had basically dried up. In Cabildo County, there is a serious water shortage, because the proportion of avocado planting is as high as 97%.  Because the privatization of land and water rights makes a lot of land and water

The Tillamook Bay watershed has a long history of flood events and salmon fishing. Over the years, people placed hundreds of stream barriers against floods. These infrastructures created bottlenecks throughout the watershed and caused many issues for fish and the community. Besides, the broken river system has prevented much habitat restoration and protection for decades. So, there is a growing call for removing these barriers and getting Salmon "Back to the River”. This is a historic opportu

The Mississippi River is the primary navigation and shipping artery of the United States’ heartland, connecting croplands and communities. Throughout the past two centuries, locks and dams were constructed on the Mississippi river to maintain waterways for inland navigation. Levees were constructed to protect croplands and towns, thereby securing economic growth. But this “20^th century” mode of development is not sustainable anymore. Due to dams, the free flow of sedim

After Plastics is a transitional landscape – from glacial to post-glacial – where microplastics play a critical role in the development of a new plant growth pattern, strategically augmented through the intervention of the landscape architect. The production of the garden is in continuous evolution as the landscape is perpetually reformed through a new compositional stratum of the post-Anthropocene material: plastics. Its operation relies on a metabolic process that transforms a

Healthy waterways and integrated water management systems are essential for a resilient future. Unfortunately, with a growing worldwide population, our waterways have seen rapid urbanization and subsequent anthropogenic impacts, including ecosystem degradation, over-extraction, and nutrient loading from various land uses. In places like the Everglades, where historical ecosystems and hydrological processes have become severed, we see how land use, habitat fragmentation, development, and

This project explores the potential between the ecological services of mosses and designed ceramic substrate using 3D printing for creating ecologically enhanced landscapes. Communities and environments are negatively affected by areas with impervious surfaces and pollution. Typologies in landscape architecture, such as living walls, could be improved with mosses’ ecological benefits. This research-through-design approach interrogates the potential growth of mosses vis-a-vis experiments of 3D

As an immersive and interactive video game, Eastern Newt Simulator focuses on the ecological dynamics of a particular sensitive indicator species in the Carolina Bays. Building on previous studies, the dynamic simulation raises awareness of climate change and its impact to fragile ecosystems. Utilizing the Unity game engine software, the project allows players to be a eastern newt larva and embark on an adventure to survive, grow and eventually find a mate to reproduce.

Through the high

The 'Be-Living' Project is a series of promotional materials for Buddhist believers to provide scientific guidance on 'Fangsheng' activity, a popular Buddhist ritual in which captive creatures are freed to demonstrate compassion and earn merit. However, thousands of 'Fangsheng' activities occur annually without guidance, causing the low survival rate of released animals and follow-up ecological issues.  As landscape architects, we hope to play not just the role of designers or educators

For  The  Birds is the culmination of a  year-long independent study exploring the relationship between buildings, landscape, and bird collisions. Approximately one billion birds die globally each year due to collisions with buildings a result of extensive glass facades, confusing interior and exterior lighting, and foliage that attracts them toward windows.  Design has played a key role in this, as the human desire for aesthetics often takes precedence over the

Human food waste is important anthropogenic food subsidies used by different animal species, especially birds. But the unmanaged litter increases the risk of toxic ingestion and occasionally cause conflicts between human and birds.

Shanghai, with 9,000t wet garbage (mainly food waste) every day and thousands of birds spotted around, is a perfect site for seeking solutions for this phenomena. It is currently under reforming of garbage classification and disposal system and has great pote

Magical Foodscape will prioritize food and catering as a factor in urban planning for effective food distribution, thereby increasing the risk resilience of the food supply and catering sector in the face of disasters.

The project is sponsored by Shanghai Maixi Consulting & Planning Co.,and the Department of Landscape Architecture at Shanghai Jiaotong University. The project was led by Xiwei Shen, Teaching Fellow at Shanghai Jiaotong University (20-21')，and collaborat

With increased high-density urban development, public space in old communities is becoming increasingly compressed, and nature-deficit disorder in children is increasing. Little or no time in the natural environment can lead to physical and mental problems, including anxiety and distraction. The Back to Nature project is based on children’s natural education. Through micro-transformation and public participation, the team and residents co-constructed a community garden that helps people conne

Behind a nondescript brick wall, an overgrown residential lot is transformed into a verdant public garden celebrating the life and work of local activists Cass Turnbull and Kay Bullitt, champions of the diverse lives of plants and people. Over 10 weeks, this exploratory design-build program brought students out of the isolation of remote learning into the tactile realities of working on-site. Through this process students were challenged to bring their designs to life, respond to site co

Students in cities rarely have the opportunity to be exposed to nature, school green spaces are the best place for them to contact with nature in daily lives. However, it seems that evergreen and easy-to-maintain plants are not attractive enough to catch students attentions. The LA Students in agricultural college comes an idea to replace normal green space into a cotton field. Through a variety of festivals, activities and outdoor lessons, students can enjoy the happ