Drawing from the background research and practical experience in using Good Public Space Analysis in different formats and contexts, we have developed a practical, interactive Public Space Analysis workshop featuring the technology of UrbanistAI.
The workshop is a three-fold session exhibiting elements of the original model. The starting point is an analysis of the public area –through a space assessment exercise– from a variety of points of view. The aim is to bring participants to step into other people’s shoes – people with different backgrounds, needs, visions and dislikes about a specific area.
The analysis is followed by a visualisation moment where that empathy in thinking from someone else’s point of view is to be translated into images. Using UrbanistAI’s technology, participants produce visuals that can stir debate about potential futures in the public space in question. The session ends with a focus on activation – a collection of the results of the participation exercises and the sketching of a roadmap for future action and execution.
Jorn Wemmenhove, Co-founder and Creative Director at Humankind: “What makes public space ‘good’? Even though we know a lot about it through research, the answer to that question is subjective, hence why the focus of the workshop is on the different opinions of what adds real quality of life to our shared spaces. This format builds on the original research and provides participants with practical tools to create shared places for people.”
Damiano Cerrone, Co-founder of UrbanistAI: “Cities are such complex systems that it makes sense to approach them from a relativistic perspective, that of human perception. With UrbanistAI, we want to reimagine participatory planning to harness the power of collective intelligence and maximise community values - people are no longer commentators, but co-designers of their collective future.”
This workshop is the result of a revision of Good Public Space Analysis, a model developed at Humankind in 2022 that combines spatial and human behaviour observations to cross-check the original designs of public areas against its actual uses in real life. The objective of the method was to introduce a new way of looking at and thinking of public space, to help practitioners and citizens alike in better understanding the relationships people have with public spaces.
We are excited to launch this imaginative interactive workshop and welcome interested cities to contact Humankind for more information and a tailored version to the specific context of the city or organisation.
More about UrbanistAI: https://www.urbanistai.com/
More about the Good Public Space Analysis: https://www.humankind.city/goedepubliekeruimte
Interested? Reach out to us!
