Landscape: A Model for Urbanism

Mostafavi’s view of urban ecology, of different characters, interests, etc existing in a balanced system does not tend to appear in daily life. People rarely see themselves as part of a greater existence, collective, or part of a natural cycle. We often focus too much on individual actions instead of our responsibilities to the larger community in which we live. As we become too focused on ourselves, we forget that we have a great deal in common with people and the environment beyond ourselves. By forgetting the common ground on which we live, we will form disagreements with our neighbors, with whom we can no longer relate.

Landscape, natural or designed, is the model by which urban life should exist. We seem to accept, both as communities and individuals, that a landscape setting, where species of plants and animals live as part of an ecosystem (community), is not a place of private ownership. Take Rock Creek Park, a large preserve in the heart of Washington, DC. No single person owns the place, yet every resident, and tourist for that matter, is welcome here to use the park as they please. Bikes and cars share the roads, joggers and families the walking paths, neighbors the clearings in the woods. The park is generally looked after by those who use it, who are responsible to each other.

http://www.travelguideofamerica.com/landscapes/RockCreek.jpg

This a place to escape the hardness of the city, the conflict, but without truly leaving. It is a place where people seem to understand, perhaps subconsciously, that they exist for more than themselves and that their actions can affect others, that they share common ground.

This is the nature of sustainability. Not that we necessarily seek out to preserve certain things, but that we choose to live in a manner that respects our world for the benefit of all. Certainly architecture and design can contribute to lessening the stresses on our natural world, but perhaps it is first necessary to become more aware of how to better exist in a community. If we get that far, sustainability won’t be a battle we have to fight, but would be a necessity for the common good.