Image:RepairingtheleveeatNewOrleansattheexpenseoftheUnitedStatesGovernment,sketchedbyanoccasionalcorrespondent.Source:http://www.sonofthesouth.

net/

KnownUnknowns:ArchitecturesEcologicalConsciousness Spring2012ArchitectureA6160 Time:Thursday,4:00pm6:00pm,Location:200BuellHall Instructor:JanetteKim,jkk16@columbia.edu

[T]hereareknownknowns;thereare thingsweknowweknow.Wealsoknow thereareknownunknowns;thatistosay weknowtherearesomethingswedo notknow.Buttherearealsounknown unknownstheoneswedon'tknowwe don'tknow.

FormerUnitedStatesSecretaryofDefenseDonald Rumsfeld,ataFebruary12,2002pressbriefingregarding weaponsofdestructioninIraq.

Thisseminarwillinvestigatearchitecturesagencyinthepoliticalecologyofclimatechange. Thepotentialhazardsofawarmingplanetparchedfields,swellingoceans,anddwindlingspecies counts,amongothersconfirmthatcontemporarylifeisboundinarisksociety.Ecologyhasshown thatorganismsandenvironmentsarelinkedthroughaneconomyofresources.Inturn,riskexpandsthis studytoanatmosphericscale:thewidespreadcollateraldamagesofmodernmarvelsdefinenew, greatercollectivesofsharedinterest.Forarchitectureandurbanism,impendinghazardscallforrisk managementstrategies:thedesignoftropicaltouristdestinations,agingpowergrids,andcarbonfree citiescanmitigateclimatedisasterswhilegeneratingnewones. Inthiscourse,wewillaskhowarchitecturesresponsetoclimateriskimaginesnewcollectives.Wewill beginbyreadingmajortextsoutliningtheoriesofriskandtheirregistrationincontemporaryinsurance marketsandlandusepractices.Wewillthenexamineaseriesofecologicalmodelsthathaveemerged inarchitectureandurbanismoverthepastcentury,andevaluatetheirrecycledroleincontemporary practice.FromUrbanEcologytoSpaceshipEarth,wewillinquireabouttheethicalassertionsofeach modeltotesttheirpoliticalimplicationsagainstrisktheories.Wewillstudyprojectstoidentify architecturaldesignstrategiesandanalytictechniquesassociatedwitheachmodel,andtoevaluate theirimplicationsforcontemporaryriskmanagement. StudentswillauthorAnAtlasofClimateRisk,abooktobecreatedbytheseminarasacollective project.Eachentryistocombinetext,documentation,anddiagramsinawaythatbestcommunicates therisks,rewards,collectiveinterests,architecturalstrategies,andtechniquesofanalysis.Studentsare encouragedtoexperimentwiththeformatandmethodsintheirwork.

PartOne:IntroductiontoRiskandClimateChange InPartOnewewillexaminetheoriesofrisksocietytoaskhowtheyframethepoliticalimplicationsof climatechange. SeminarsinPartOnewillinvolvereadingdiscussionsandonepinupfortheAtlasproject(apreviewof PartThree).Eachweek,studentsareexpectedtosubmitforeachrequiredarticleonemanifesto statementsummarizingtheauthorsargumentfromhisorherperspective,andonecountermanifesto statementsummarizinganyopposingperspective.Allwrittenresponsesaretobesubmittedviaemail by1pmeachThursday.Note:Requiredreadingsarelistedinblack,additionalreadingreferencesingray. AllrequiredreadingsareavailableviacourseworksoreBooks,andwheneverpossiblereadingswillbe shelvedonAveryLibraryHoldShelf#349. 1:January19SeminarIntroduction 2:January26PoliticalEcology Readings: Giddens,Anthony,ThePoliticsofClimateChange(Cambridge;Malden,MA:Polity,2009).(1 34,4972,162181).[courseworks] Shellenberger,MichaelandNordhaus,Ted,BreakThrough:FromtheDeathofEnvironmentalism tothePoliticsofPossibility(Boston:HoughtonMifflin,2007). 3:February2RiskSociety Readings: Beck,Ulrich,RiskSociety:TowardsaNewModernity,(London;NewburyPark,Calif.:Sage Publications,1992)(2084).[CLIOeBook] Latour,Bruno,PoliticsofNature:HowtoBringtheSciencesintoDemocracy(Cambridge,Mass.: HarvardUniversityPress,2004).[ebook] Luke,Timothy,Capitalism,Democracy,andEcology:DepartingfromMarx(Urbana:University ofIllinoisPress,c1999). 4:February9TrackingRisk Readings: Greeley,Brendan,TheGodClauseandtheReinsuranceIndustryBloombergBusinessweek, (Sep21,2011)(19)[courseworks] Davis,Mike,EcologyofFear:LosAngelesandtheImaginationofDisaster(NewYork:Vintage Books,1999)(95147)[courseworks] Sloterdijk,Peter,FoamCity,Log9(WinterSpring2007):6376.[courseworks] Sloterdijk,Peter,CellBlock,Egospheres,SelfContainer,Log10(SummerFall2007):89108. Sloterdijk,PeterFoams.HarvardDesignMagazine29(FallWinter20089):3852. Levy,Jonathan,TheWaysofProvidence:Capitalism,RiskandFreedominAmerica(ProQuest, 2008)[courseworks] Ackerman,FrankandHeinzerling,Lisa,Priceless:OnKnowingthePriceofEverythingandthe ValueofNothing(NewYork:NewPress:DistributedbyW.W.Norton,2004)(6190) [courseworks] Revesz,RichardandLivermore,Michael,RetakingRationality:HowCostBenefitAnalysisCan BetterProtecttheEnvironmentandOurHealth(Oxford;NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress, 2008).

RiskPaneldiscussion,TheUnderdomeSessions.[courseworks]

ResearchProjectDraftPresentation(v1) Identifyoneormorepotentialhazardthatcouldbecreatedbyclimatechange.Designagraphic methodtocommunicatetoapublicaudience:(1)whatthishazardis,(2)itslikelihoodtooccur, and(3)thepotentialmagnitudeofitsimpact.Presentthisinformationusingdata,diagrams, images,text,andanyothergraphictoolsofcommunicationona24x24poster.Examples include:tides,floods,rainfall,hurricanes,temperatures,coolingloads,pollencounts,airquality, specieschange,biodiversity,waterquality,fuelsource,nationalsecurity,profitloss,insurance rates,waterquality,foodsupply,populationmigration,realestatevalues,humanhealth,et.al. Regardinggraphiccommunication,consider:Howcanthisinformationbeconveyedinaway thatcanbestspeaktothepublic?Regardingrisk,consider:Howdoweperceiveriskand abstractquantities?Whatarethecontexts,orconditionsofthisrisk?How,ifatall,isthisrisk relatedtootherones?Underwhatcircumstancesmightthesehazardsoccur?Regardingdata analysis,consider:Howcertainisthisdata,andwhereisitcomingfrom?Howdoquantitative andqualitativedatarelate?Referencetext:IntercontinentalPanelonClimateChange. PartTwo:ModelsinArchitecturesEcologicalConsciousness InPartTwowewillstudyecologicalmodelsthathaveemergedinarchitectureandurbanismoverthe pastcentury.Ourgoalistoexaminetheethicalandmoralattitudesofeachapproachtowardsnature, ecologyandpublics;andultimately,tothinkcriticallyabouttheirimplicationsforclimaterisk management. Eachseminarsessionwillinvolvealectureonaprojectandreadingdiscussions.Wewillaskhoweach modelconceivesofnature,collectiveinterest,andethicalresponsibility;andexaminethetechniquesof design(e.g.curtainwalls,landstabilizationtechniques,landuselaw,ecologicalengineering)and representation(e.g.demographics,heatmapping,photography)employed.Eachweek,studentsare expectedtosubmitmanifestostatementsasdetailedinPartOneabove.Eachstudentisalso responsibletomakea1015minutepresentationonacontemporaryexample(s)fromarchitectureand urbanismthatrevisitsand/ortransformstheecologicalmodelinsomeway. 5:February16:Preservation Project:TheNationalParkService Readings: Worster,Donald,Nature'sEconomy(NewYork,NY,USA:CambridgeUniversityPress,1994) (339420).[courseworks] Cronon,William.TheTroublewithWilderness:Or,GettingBacktotheWrongNature,in UncommonGround:RethinkingtheHumanPlaceinNature(NewYork:W.W.Norton&Co., 1995),(6990). Oelschlaeger,Max.TheIdeaofWilderness:FromPrehistorytotheAgeofEcology(NewHaven: YaleUniversityPress,c1991) Carr,Ethan,WildernessbyDesign:LandscapeArchitectureandtheNationalParkService (Lincoln,Neb.:UniversityofNebraskaPress,1998) 6:February23:UrbanEcology Project:TheCity(Burgess) Readings:

Burgess,ErnestW.TheGrowthoftheCity:AnIntroductiontoaResearchProjectinUrban Ecology:AnInternationalPerspectiveontheInteractionBetweenHumansandNature,Marzluff, Johned(SpringerLinkebooksEarthandEnvironmentalScience.2008).(7178)[CLIOeBook] Ross,Andrew.ChicagoGangsterTheoryofLife(London;NewYork:Verso,1994)(99158) [courseworks] Mumford,Lewis,CitiesandtheCrisisofCivilization,TheSustainableUrbanDevelopment Reader(RoutledgeUrbanReaderSeries)(1519). TheCity,byRobertE.Park,ErnestW.Burgess,RoderickD.McKenzie;withabibliographyby LouisWirth.(Chicago,Ill.,TheUniversityofChicagopress,c1925)

7:March1:CivicUtility Project:NewYorkCitywatersystem Readings: Gandy,Matthew,Water,SpaceandPower,ConcreteandClay(Cambridge,Mass.:MITPress, c2002)(1976)[courseworks] 8:March8:WellTemperedEnvironment Project:EnvironmentBubble Readings: Banham,Reyner.TheWellTemperedHome,ConcealedPower,ABreathofIntelligence, TheArchitectureoftheWellTemperedEnvironment(93121,195233,290312)[courseworks] Osman,Michael,BanhamsHistoricalEcology,NeoAvantGardeandPostmodern:Postwar ArchitectureinBritainandBeyond,ed.MarkCrinsonandClaireZimmerman,(231251). [courseworks] 8.5March15SpringBreak 9:March22:ResearchProjectDraftPresentation(v2) Lookatexamplesofresearchprojects/Atlasprojects:bringindraftformatofouratlas. Referencetexts: AnAtlasofRadicalCartography,Ed.LizeMogelandAlexisBhagat Thompson,Nato,et.al.,ExperimentalGeography:RadicalApproachestoLandscape, Cartography,andUrbanism 10:March29:SpaceshipEarth Project:Biosphere2 Readings: Massey,Jonathan,TheSumptuaryEcologyofBuckminsterFullersDesigns,AKeener Perception:EcocriticalstudiesinAmericanArtHistory/edAlanC.BraddockandChristoph Irmscher(Tuscaloosa:UniversityofAlabamaPress,c2009)(189212).[courseworks] Lovins,Amory,TheRoadNotTaken,ForeignAffairs(October1976).(615)[courseworks] Anker,Peder,TheEcologicalColonizationofSpace,EnvironmentalHistory(April2005)(239 268).[courseworks] Scott,Felicity,RevolutionariesorDropouts,andAcidVisionsArchitectureorTechnoUtopia: PoliticsAfterModernism(151184,185208) Hawken,Paul,NaturalCapitalism,TheSustainableUrbanDevelopmentReader(Routledge UrbanReaderSeries)(162170).

Sorry,OutofGas:Architecture'sResponsetothe1973OilCrisis,EditedbyGiovannaBorasiand MirkoZardini.

11:April5:LandscapeUrbanism Project:FreshKillsPark Readings: Botkin,DiscordantHarmonies:ANewEcologyfortheTwentyFirstCentury,(NewYork:Oxford UniversityPress,1990)(1549,193201)[courseworks] Corner,James,TerraFluxus,LandscapeUrbanismReader,Ed.CharlesWaldheim.(NewYork: PrincetonArchitecturalPress,c2006)(2233)[eBooks] IanMcHarg,DesignwithNature McKee,Yates,HauntedHousing:EcoVanguardismandEvictioninNewOrleans, TheQuestionofNewOrleans,Ed.SpatialInformationDesignLab. May,John,BringingBackaFreshKill;NotesonaDreamofTerritorialResuscitation,Verb: Crisis.IreneHwangandMarioBallesteros,eds.(Barcelona:Actar,2008). 12:April12:TheNeoLiberalCity Project:TBD Readings: Florida,Richard,CitiesandtheCreativeClass,City&Community(2:1March2003)(117) Calthorpe,Peter,TheNextAmericanMetropolis,TheSustainableUrbanDevelopmentReader (RoutledgeUrbanReaderSeries)(7380).[courseworks] Judt,Tony,WhatisLivingandWhatisDeadAboutSocialDemocracy?NewYorkReviewof Books,(December17,2009)(116).[courseworks] DunhamJones,EllenandWilliamson,June,RetrofittingSuburbia:UrbanDesignSolutionsfor RedesigningSuburbs.(Hoboken,N.J.:JohnWiley&Sons,c2009). Sclar,Elliot,YouDon'tAlwaysGetWhatYouPayFor,(Ithaca,N.Y.:CornellUniversityPress, 2000). PartThree:AtlasofClimateRisk TheseminarwillcollectivelydevelopanAtlasofClimateRisk.Eachstudentistocontributeoneentryto theAtlas,documentingandinterpretingthesociopoliticalimplicationsofarchitecturesresponseto climateriskinaparticularproject.Eachentryistofocusonasite,infrastructure,landscape,building, buildingtypology,orbuildingtechnology.Tobuildupontheresearchtechniquesregardingriskanalysis andmitigationexploredinPartTwo,eachstudentisaskedtodeviseoradoptasystemofnotationin theirresearchthatcanbestteaseouttheissuesbehindtheirproject.Wewillexploretheseprojects throughouttheirdevelopmentinworkshopstylepinupsanddesignsessions. (seeweek4and9above) 13:April19:ResearchProjectDraftPresentation(v3) 14:April26:ResearchProjectDraftPresentation(v4) May411TBDDeadlineFinalProject

MethodofEvaluation Expectationsareasfollows: ClassParticipationandReadingResponses:(40%) Attendeachclass Playanactiveroleinreadingdiscussionsandprojectcritiquesduringclass Provideawrittenresponsetoeachreading ClassPresentation:(10%) Makeone1015minutepresentationonacontemporaryproject Atlas(FinalProject):(50%) PostresearchonPinterestBoard(www.pinterest.com) Presentprocessworktothegroupfordiscussionanddevelopment. Create6pagespreadintheAtlasofClimateRisk