1,100 students from 150 universities respond to the call for ideas to reinvent parts of their cities.
18 teams of university students are celebrating today, as the winners of the Students Reinventing Cities competition were announced. The successful teams were picked from more than 1,000 students from 150 universities that submitted their ideas to the competition, spearheaded by C40 Cities.
Mayors and elected officials from 18 cities – Athens, Auckland, Barcelona, Bogota, Buenos Aires, Chicago, Dakar, Delhi, Dubai, Madrid, Melbourne, Montreal, Paris, Quezon City, Quito, Reykjavik, Seattle, Washington DC – have identified areas that need to be reinvented or revived. Together they have invited students and academics from all over the world to help them design solutions and turn these areas into green and thriving neighborhoods.
Today C40 and these 18 cities are celebrating the creative ideas and concrete solutions proposed by students to rethink how neighborhoods are planned and designed and to build a more sustainable and inclusive vision for cities everywhere.
Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, Mayor of Buenos Aires and Vice-Chair of C40 Cities, said:
“The international competition “Students Reinventing Cities” was a very enriching experience. We were able to meet proposals from students from around the world to rethink cities and new greener solutions to the challenges we have.”
Carlos Moreno, Professor & Scientific Director “Entrepreneurship, Territory, Innovation”, Sorbonne University IAE, said: The Students Reinventing Citie initiative will provide tools to apply the 15 minute City concept around the world, by acting for ecological, economic and social transformation.”
Martha Thorne, Dean of the University School of Architecture and Design and Executive Director of the Pritzker Prize, said: “Academic Institutions have a crucial role in joining cities, leading and working with students and young people in the fight against climate change”
The Winning Projects
Athens, winning project: OASIS
The team’s goal for a green and thriving neighborhood uses one of the most underused, yet multifunctional natural resources available in the urban fabric, its soil capital.
Athens, OASIS team “Our project was designed to be for and with the people. Through partnerships with local leaders, we connect modern concepts with local culture.”
Auckland, winning project: Brisbane Designers
The Brisbane Designers envisioned a green and thriving neighbourhood through technological and infrastructure interventions and shifting car-dominated Northcote to a more pedestrianized space.
Brisbane Designers team: “We’ve proposed technological and infrastructure interventions that empower individuals to collectively minimize their community’s impact on the planet.”
Barcelona, winning project: 22@ a time
“22@ a Time” is based on innovative solutions, urban transformation, self sustainable urbanization and placemaking. The objective is the reduction of GHG emissions through means of infrastructural hubs and programs.
22@ a Time team: “Our project is based on self-reliant urbanism and placemaking through a co-design and co-management process.”
Bogotá, winning project: Eco-Barrio 7 de Agosto
By reorganizing a challenging market area, the team proposes a highly inclusive and positive project for the city with ideas that can be replicated in other districts.
Eco-Barrio 7 de Agosto team: “As future architects and policymakers, we must incorporate climate-resilient solutions into every facet of our design.”
Buenos Aires, winning project: Balvanera 2030
This project is based on sustainable development and the amplification of green areas for the community.
Balvanera 2030 team: “Students from different social backgrounds can create comprehensive solutions for greener nerighbourhoods.”
Chicago, winning project: McKinley Mills for the New Millennium
The team re-envisioned a disused, formerly industrial site in Chicago’s McKinley Park neighborhood as a mixed-use, sustainable community, fine-tuned for both current residents and the future planet we want.
McKinley Mills for the New Millennium team: “Our project re-envisions a disused, formerly industrial site in Chicago as a mixed-use, sustainable community, fine-tuned for both current residents and the future planet we want.”
Dakar, winning project: Dëkk-raw
The team proposes interventions that transform Dakar into a neighbourhood that promotes public transport and non-motorised movement whilst at the same time preserving the culture of the people of Dakar.
Dëkk-raw team: “Our proposition builds on the 15 minute-city concept. We want the residents of Dakar to meet their essential needs close to their home.”
Delhi, winning project: Chhav
The team designs a human scale development for Bhalswa, based on the idea of reimaging the classic housing block as several smaller buildings, independent yet interconnected. The aim is to develop compact, mid-rise and efficient dwelling units, with open spaces and amenities for the people, while promoting the local economy, capacity building and skills development through employment.
Chhav team: “Our project is a case for dignified, low-carbon affordable housing at Bhalswa”
Dubai, winning project: Studio Dar
Studio Dar presents ‘La Karama’ an intervention that aims to apply a bottom-up approach that first and foremost caters to the users of the area and invites others to visit it.
Studio Dar team: “La Karama follows a bottom-up approach that largely places the needs and wants of the dwellers of the area first and foremost.”
Madrid, winning project: Barrio Catalyst
The team’s project recommends several interventions in three focus areas: Environmental Adaptation, Social Streetscapes and Community Engagement. Through the proposed natural engineering strategies and urban greening, the city can successfully mitigate effects of climate change.
Barrio Catalyst team: “Our vision for the future is a sustainable holistic approach for the area of the Gran Blas Sur”
Melbourne, winning project: Planscape
The team centered their design around the notion of connection. The design revolves around placing a largely busy intersection entirely underground and rebuilding the community around this new space.
Planscape team: “This competition allowed to think beyond conventional practice to envision a design which is encompassing of sociological, environmental and economical factors.”
Montreal, winning project: ELA
The proposal aims to achieve carbon neutrality for the Sud des Faubourgs neighbourhood by developing efficient buildings in terms of energy and environmental standards.
ELA team: “We have focused all our efforts on achieving carbon neutrality for our neighborhood.”
Paris, winning project: Nouvelles Connexions Urbaines
The aim is to give more visibility to this complex district, to do this the team has encouraged the emergence of different centralities in the district.
Nouvelles Connexions Urbaines team “Bringing together two visions, that of the students and that of city officials, enriches the discussion and creates new possibilities.”
Quezon City, winning project: Gold Gears
Gold Gears entirely re-imagine the landfill area through a holistically sustainable approach which revolves around the full remediation of the project site’s soil, air and water.
Gold Gears team: “A green and flourishing neighborhood needs a thorough and holistic approach”
Quito, winning project: Step8
The aim of this project is to improve public space by creating streets, improving lighting and neighborhood etiquette with social infrastructure that benefits the population.
Step8 team: “Our vision is a neighbourhood that both guarantees the right to the city and the right to nature”
Reykjavik, winning project: Green Lab
Green Lab presented a pedestrian-focused design to promote a more lively, safe and green streetscape in Breiðholt, a place for everyone and a place for the community to take part in each other’s lives.
Green Lab team: “Underused parking lots provide excellent sites for lightweight pop-up installations and pavilions.”
Seattle, winning project: Westwood Next Door
In strengthening connections within the neighborhood the team envisioned an intervention in the area characterized by a major shift from a car-oriented to a people-oriented urban design.
Westwood Next Door team: “Our measures are based on the principle of using incentives and offering alternatives to encourage people to adopt a more sustainable lifestyle.”
Washington DC, winning project: Ivy City Renaissance
Ivy City Renaissance created a holistic project that addresses three key areas: mobility, community, and sustainability.
Ivy City Renaissance team: “We need to make sure every group, including minorities, gets what they need to succeed – that principle must be central to our designs.”