1 Background
The Ministry for the Environment and BRANZ Ltd undertook an initial survey in May 2004 to identify the individuals and/or organisations in New Zealand that are conducting urban design research, or research that has urban design implications (either directly or indirectly). The survey was repeated in May 2005. Key urban design practitioners were asked to fill out a template indicating what research they or their organisations were planning, had in progress, or had completed since 2000. Responses were received from a range of tertiary education institutions, local authorities, private consultants and service providers. The information was compiled to help inform the sustainable construction research agenda being undertaken by BRANZ Ltd, and to provide supporting information for the Ministry for the Environment's Urban Design Protocol and urban affairs work programme.
For the purposes of the survey, 'urban environments' was taken to include small and large towns as well as cities. 'Research' included studies, research reports, market surveys, questionnaires and statistical analysis. The New Zealand Urban Design Protocol states that:
Urban design is concerned with the design of the buildings, places, spaces and networks that make up our towns and cities, and the ways people use them. It ranges in scale from a metropolitan region, city or town down to a street, public space or even a single building. Urban design is concerned not just with appearances and built form but with the environmental, economic, social and cultural consequences of design. It is an approach that draws together many different sectors and professions, and it includes both the process of decision-making as well as the outcomes of design.
'Urban design research' was therefore classified as research with an emphasis on understanding urban environments, usually with the objective of improving urban outcomes. It included research covering one or a number of the spatial, biophysical, social, cultural and economic dimensions, and included terms or subject areas such as:
- better urban outcomes through good design at different scales (strategic, city, town, suburb, precinct, place) and for different densities
- urban design related to land use and spatial planning
- urban form and transport
- planning for urban infrastructure
- urban intensification
- urban design as part of 'smart growth' and/or related terms (eg, low-impact development, transit-oriented development, sustainable development)
- effects of urban design on social and/or cultural outcomes and the use of urban design to help achieve social and cultural outcomes
- how urban design contributes to economic, social and cultural value
- urban open space planning and design.
This report is an attempt to compile an inventory of the individuals and organisations in New Zealand conducting research that has urban design implications. It is intended for anyone interested in urban design, and forms part of the supporting material for the Ministry for the Environment's Urban Design Protocol.
It is unlikely that this report has captured all the research in New Zealand with urban design implications. Any omissions of relevant research are unintentional and updates and additions are welcome. Please contact Astrid Hutchinson at the Ministry for the Environment to update or add details (email: astrid.hutchinson@mfe.govt.nz).
