Upcoming Webinar: Creating accessible and inclusive public spaces with/for resilient communities
I am very honoured to share that tomorrow I will participate in the seminar series ‘2020: A Year without Public Space under the COVID-19 Pandemic’.
Nick Stevens and I will be part of the panel and we will present and discuss a project we have been working on.
Cities will endure, but urban design must adapt to coronavirus risks and fears
Silvia Tavares, Author provided
Silvia Tavares, University of the Sunshine Coast and Nicholas Stevens, University of the Sunshine Coast
The long-term impacts of coronavirus on our cities are difficult to predict, but one thing is certain: cities won’t die. Diseases have been hugely influential in shaping our cities, history shows. Cities represent continuity regardless of crises – they endure, adapt and grow. Read more…
Sensing Cities: Smart Thermal Comfort for Climate Adaptation
Quite unexpectedly, last week I was interviewed by Channel 7 (Cairns) and WINNEWS. The interviews aired on the 26th November. Read more…
Urban growth, heat islands, humidity, climate change: the costs multiply in tropical cities
Taha Chaiechi, James Cook University and Silvia Tavares, James Cook University
Some 60% of the planet’s expected urban area by 2030 is yet to be built. This forecast highlights how rapidly the world’s people are becoming urban. Cities now occupy about 2% of the world’s land area, but are home to about 55% of the world’s people and generate more than 70% of global GDP, plus the associated greenhouse gas emissions.
So what does this mean for people who live in the tropical zones, where 40% of the world’s population lives? On current trends, this figure will rise to 50% by 2050. With tropical economies growing some 20% faster than the rest of the world, the result is a swift expansion of tropical cities. Read more…
JCU postgraduate scholarships
Applications for postgraduate research scholarships at James Cook University are now open and I’d love to hear from candidates interested in urban design, planning, urban microclimates, sensing cities, climate responsive urban design, architecture design and performance and any related topics.
Urban Planning & Design for the Sustainable Development Goals
Dr Taha Chaiechi and I are delivering a presentation this Thursday (29th August) about the JCU Urban Thinkers Campus and their related topics. Read more…
Building a climate-proof future
This article was originally published on 28th June on JCU’s Brighter website.
As climate change continues to wreak its path through tropical communities, architects and urban planners are combatting the potentially disastrous effects with innovative design solutions.
Dr. Silvia Tavares “designs cities with an eye on the climate”. A leading urban designer and senior lecturer at James Cook University, Dr. Tavares has a passion for creating places that foster connection and wellbeing, while being sustainable for the future. Read more…
‘Streetfight’
“Every community has excuses for why changing the way they use their streets is impossible, impractical, or just insane. I learned firsthand that there is no end to the reasons for inaction. But inaction is inexcusable. As our cities grow, leaders and the people they serve cannot accept dysfunctional streets; they must fight to change them. The fight for these changes—well, that’s just part of the job.”
City temperatures and city economics, a hidden relationship between sun and wind and profits
Silvia Tavares, James Cook University and Taha Chaiechi, James Cook University
Urban design undoubtedly influences the urban economy. A simple thing like designing an area to make it more walkable can boost local business profits. This can also increase real estate value, create more and better jobs and generate stronger local economies.
Street temperatures also determine their walkability. With climate change bringing longer and more frequent heatwaves, street temperatures will become even higher than at present. This will reduce walkability and, in turn, local business profitability. Read more…
Planning and designing multi-services green infrastructure: The case of Cairns, published in My Liveable City Magazine
In April this year Karine Dupré and I published an article entitled Planning and designing multi-services green infrastructure: The case of Cairns in the Indian magazine My Liveable City. Read more…
On ‘the science of building cities’
“In general, the urban community has become lost in strategic planning, masterplanning, zoning and landscaping… Read more…
Presentation recording – The city and the wild
A couple of weeks ago I presented a seminar entitled The city and the wild: Design meets ecosystems.
The recoding is now available here.
Healthy, happy and tropical – world’s fastest-growing cities demand our attention
Karine Dupré, Griffith University; Jane Coulon, École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture Montpellier, and Silvia Tavares, James Cook University
What does it take to be a happy and healthy city? In any city, myriad factors go into the mix – and of course we are not dealing with just one kind of city. But, due to the world history of colonisation, models are still too often European-centric. In particular, we need to adjust how we think about cities in the tropics. Read more…
The city and the wild: Design meets ecosystems
This Wednesday I will present a seminar on the relationships between cities and natural ecosystems, and how they can coexist. Join us in the Cairns Institute if you are in Cairns. Read more…
