Lw4 University of Belgrade (UB), Serbia

What?

The “Valjevo” Local Workshop dealt with problems related to mostly the city center of the city of Valjevo. The city of Valjevo is an administrative center of the Kolubara District in western Serbia. Fairly close to the capital of the country, it possesses great significance in urban planning, especially in regard to climate change and health.  According to the data from 2022. The administrative area of Valjevo had 82 169 inhabitants, while 56 145 of them were urban dwellers. The main characteristics of the city consist of its nature, rivers, and hills. Valjevo occupies an area of about 905 square kilometers, and in this area, there are three rivers – Kolubara, Gradac, and Ljubostinja. The inhabitants of the city claim that the biggest problem in Valjevo, and their biggest threat is air pollution. The city also had flooding issues in the past, before the construction of the new embankment of the Kolubara river in the city center. The problem with air pollution most likely lies in the fact that the majority of the city’s population lives in individual housing blocks, which are not connected to the city’s central heating system. During the winter months, these individual houses mostly rely on burning coal in their furnaces.  The residents also suffer from traffic congestion, lack of parking spaces (mostly in the city center), and from numerous heat islands, located in several places in the center of Valjevo.

All these problems were addressed and thought about during the workshop classes in Valjevo and in Belgrade. The challenges and possibilities of urban design in Valjevo were discussed and would result in the city’s better health condition, higher satisfaction rate among the people, as well as mitigation of climate change. The workshop consisted of seven phases, regulated by the Erasmus+ CliCCHE project. The activities were: A1. Integrated vision of “Urban health” regeneration, A2. Local inquiry and mapping: Get to know the neighborhood from above and from within, A3. Heath and Climate Profile Model, A4. Framework for model Evaluation, A5. Project Scenarios, A6. Project proposals selection, A7. Results communication and dissemination. Some of these activities were adapted, joint or divided into several smaller activities, to fit the studio course, in which the workshop took place. 11 students participated in the workshop, as previously said, as a mandatory part of their studio lectures in the University of Belgrade, Faculty of Architecture. The students are on their first year of master studies. The students proposed individual solutions and projects that would improve some of the problems of the city of Valjevo.

Where?

The Workshop took place both in the classroom at the University of Belgrade, and in the city of Valjevo. Most of the activities were held within the premises of the faculty. Lectures were held by professors, discussions about students’ ideas and individual projects, evaluation of works, presentations of different methods of examining climate change and health in the city of Valjevo… The second part of the workshop on the “field” included a visit to Valjevo, a conversation with residents in their municipal building, and a survey of residents both in the municipality and random passers-by outside.

When?

This Local Workshop was held during the week of 11-14 April 2023. Differently from other partner universities, Iscte coordination doesn’t have a regular semester of classes to put the Local Workshop in practice. The solution was to find the week during the second semester without classes, after Easter weekend.

Who?

Workshop at the Faculty of Arhitecture

Students: 11 students of Master’s academic studies: Edita Ljalja, Iva Bajić, Teodora Živković, Jelena Ilić, Nikola Marković, Jana Mijailović, Filip Mijailović, Tamara Mladenović, Milica Spajić, Hristina Tomašević, Ivana Tomić

Teachers: Zoran Đukanović, Jelena Živković, Predrag Jovanović, Stefan Slavić

Workshop on the “field”

Students: 11 students of Master’s academic studies: Edita Ljalja, Iva Bajić, Teodora Živković, Jelena Ilić, Nikola Marković, Jana Mijailović, Filip Mijailović, Tamara Mladenović, Milica Spajić, Hristina Tomašević, Ivana Tomić

Teachers: Zoran Đukanović, Jelena Živković, Predrag Jovanović, Stefan Slavić

Local stakeholders:  Representatives of the city administration / Members of non-governmental organizations / Representatives from the sphere of helth, planning, urbanism and architecture / Representatives of local media / Citizens

Results:

The workshop was held within the CLICCHE program. In Belgrade, students and professors followed the program provided by the workshop organizers, and the students were guided through all the necessary topics and tasks related to the urban design of healthy cities resistant to climate change. Students were familiarized with the subjects related to Methodical instructions for teaching healthy urban planning through listening presentations about:

4.1 Integrated vision of “Urban Health” regeneration

The aim was to enable students to acquire basic knowledge on climate mitigation, adaptation and on urban health risks; on the potentials, barriers, threats and opportunities that adaptation actions hold. 

The goal of this activity was to study the principles of restoring and maintaining urban health in an integrated manner and with a variety of tools, inspired from existing regeneration projects from around the world.

4.2 Local survey and mapping: Get to know the neighborhood from above and inside

Local inquiry and mapping of the neighborhoods  are subject to experimentation according to an approach from above and from within. This is a “layering” activity that allows the selection and combination of information that comes from expert knowledge and from the experience of those who live there. 

The goal of this activity was to know the neighbourhood from above and from within’ is to enable the discovery of neighbourhoods in the desk study and based on the interaction with the neighbourhood, the places, and the people that live there, to integrate technical knowledge with knowledge from experiences in the places; 

4.3 Heat and climate profile model

Climate and Health Profile, aims  to identify the health risks in the urban environment today and in the future and meteorological scenarios. Students will learn how climate change impacts on spatial factors (resources, land use, urban form and design, transport and movement networks, green, blue and public open space) is related to health (physical and mental) and health equity. Lastly, students will learn how focusing on health can unlock new opportunities for urban and territorial planning. 

The goal of this activity was to introduce students to phenomena exacerbated by climate change which may influence the physical and mental well-being of city inhabitants, through simulating future climate scenarios, and understanding the possible health risks that may arise. 

4.4 Model evaluation framework

Evaluation framework is used  to investigate of the main criticalities and potentialities that will constitute the reference for the development of subsequent urban strategies in the different local contexts. 

The goal of this activity was to allow students to identify characteristics of the neighbourhood and particular places that generate satisfaction and recognition, or concern because they are related to climate-change impacts that affect the health and well-being of the local population. From the evaluation of the observed phenomena, certain decisions may arise to achieve the fundamental objectives of health-centred urban regeneration and prefigure the first design choices. 

4.5 Project scenarios

Urban Project Scenario, should help students to develop future visions (BAU Scenario and “Shared and sustainable scenario”) that intend to favor structured reflections on the possible evolutions of the environmental, urban, and social context of the neighborhood under study. The Urban Project Scenarios are an excellent teaching vehicle for investigating complex and ambiguous issues that require interdisciplinary investigation. Development of the Scenarios will be supported by the use of immersive reality/interactive tools, the simulation of urban games, and public art to illustrate spatial planning alternatives to the public and to encourage dialogue and discussion with the various actors of the local workshops. 

The goal of this activity was to make students propose and develop visions for the future that intend to favour structured reflections on the possible evolutions of the environmental, urban, social, etc. context, to withstand climate change, assessing actions for adaptation capable of protecting the health of people and the quality of life in the neighbourhood. 

4.6 Selection of project proposals

Projects proposal selection, refers to urban design projects (configured at masterplan and detailed level)that  will be selected in relation to benefits to different health/climate change domains and for different stakeholders and social groups. The selection will be conducted through participatory process and based on specific criteria and assessment techniques. 

The goal of this activity was to teach students about purpose, content and methods of evaluation of design alternatives. In addition, students will develop basic skills in evaluating and choosing the project proposal that best fits health and climate-adaptation goals and corresponds with the interests of different stakeholders.

4.7 Communication and dissemination of results

Result communication and dissemination aims to help students understand the importance of the “visibility” of the project and the importance of conveying the meaning and benefits of the project’s results to both the broad public and stakeholders involved in the regeneration project, etc.). 

The goal of this activity was to help students understand the importance of the ‘visibility’, meaning, and benefits of the projects’ results to both broad public and stakeholders involved in the regeneration project.

Presentations on these topics were delivered by the organizers of the workshop, and listened to during group exercises at the Faculty, as well as individually at home. They provided the students necessary tools for analyzing the city of Valjevo, as well as for solving the upcoming course assignments. During the cycle of exercises, students engaged in stakeholder analysis, their interests, fears, and ways in which they can contribute to the project. Later, the students personally invited their assigned or selected stakeholders to a workshop held in the Valjevo municipality building. Each exercise at the faculty was dedicated to different topics explained at the presentations, with which students did accompanying tasks in groups or individually.

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