Faculty Profiles: Timothy Beatley

University of Virginia:

“Timothy Beatley is the Teresa Heinz Professor of Sustainable Communities, in the Department of Urban and Environmental Planning, School of Architecture at the University of Virginia, where he has taught for the last twenty-five years. Much of Beatley’s work focuses on the subject of sustainable communities, and creative strategies by which cities and towns can fundamentally reduce their ecological footprints, while at the same time becoming more livable and equitable places. Beatley believes that sustainable and resilient cities represent our best hope for addressing today’s environmental challenges. Beatley is the author or co-author of more than fifteen books on these subjects, including Green Urbanism: Learning from European Cities (recently translated into Chinese), Habitat Conservation Planning, Native to Nowhere: Sustaining Home and Community in a Global Age, and Planning for Coastal Resilience. He has co-authored two books with Australian planner Peter Newman: Resilient Cities and Green Urbanism Down Under: Learning From Sustainable Australian Communities. Beatley’s book Ethical Land Use was declared, by the American Planning Association, to be one of the “100 EssentialBooks in Planning” His most recent book is Biophilic Cities: Integrating Nature into Urban Design and Planning, which argues that cities can and must be designed to permit daily contact with the natural world. It identifies a variety of means for doing this, from green walls and green rooftops to urban forests and sidewalk gardens. Beatley recently collaborated on a documentary film about green cities and urban nature, entitled The Nature of Cities, which has been shown on PBS (Public Broadcasting System) stations all over the U.S. He also writes a regular column for Planning Magazine, called Ever Green, about environmental and sustainability matters. His research has been funded by a variety of agencies and organizations including the National Science Foundation, Virginia Sea Grant, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, among others. Beatley holds a PhD in City and Regional Planning from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, an MA in Political Science from UNC, a Masters of Urban Planning from the University of Oregon, and a Bachelors of City Planning from UVA.”

~University of Virginia

Click here to learn more about Tim Beatley

2014 AIA DC Unbuilt Awards

University of Virginia:

“The UVA School of Architecture was well-represented in the 2014 AIA DC Unbuilt Awards this year, with Assistant Professor Jeana Ripple winning two awards, including one Award of Excellence in Materials and Innovation as well as a Design Award, and graduate student Kurt West winning a Design Award. Congratulations Jeana and Kurt! See the all of the winning projects at: http://architecturedcblog.com/aiadc-unbuilt-awards-2014-winners/

Jeana Ripple, Breathe Wall, Award of Excellence in Materialsand Innovation [link]

Designed and prototyped as part of the Design-Driven Manufacturing program, Breathe Wall is an infrastructure-scale solution relying on microstructure-scale properties. BREATHE WALL uses charred Moso bamboo—a species that can be grown locally providing superior performance as a carbonized filter due to dense microstructure and high porous surface area—to create an air-purifying retrofit affixed to interstate sound barriers. Living within 300 feet of a major highway increases asthma rates by 8%. In the Washington DC / Baltimore area, a half-million people live within 300 feet of a major interstate and also within an EPA clean-air non-attainment zone.

Jeana Ripple, Evaporative Skin, Design Award [link]

Designed and prototyped as part of the Design-Driven Manufacturing program founded by Ripple (architecture) and Suzanne Moomaw (urban and environmental planning), Evaporative Skin passively conditions intake air in hot, dry climates. A durable, mold-resistant diamond grid disperses mechanically-delivered water droplets while gaining solar heat to increase airflow and evaporation, effectively acting as a large-scale version of a cellulose cooling pad.

Kurt West, POLYHUT, Design Award [link]

POLYHUT is a site-specific proposal exploring a narrative between offsite construction and architectural tectonics. The construction consists of 300+ CNC-milled multi-wall polycarbonate panels sandwiched together by a system of dowel rod connections that weave and intersect strategically throughout the assembly.   The combination of laminated translucent panels, dowel joints and light patterns create a visual and tactile experience.”

~ Matthew Pinyan, University of Virginia

The Rule of 5: How to Succeed in Local Government

How to Stick Out in Your Organization:

“When you’re just starting out in your career, it’s natural to want to figure out how best to progress and get ahead. For this article, I reached out to several colleagues, who are city managers, deputy or assistant city managers, working in communities across the country, who shared their strategies for impressing the boss.”

~ Writes Julie Underwood on Emerging Local Government Leaders

Click here to read her article

Register for the Healthy Environments, Healing Spaces Conference

University of Virginia:

“What do we know about how the environments in which we live affect our health? What are examples of projects, plans, policies and programs promoting health through design? What questions do we still have? On March 17th and 18th, landscape architects, architects, planners, and medical professionals will come together to talk about how designing healthcare facilities, community food systems, environments that promote aging in place, active urban form, and nature in cities can promote human health. Each speaker will present the latest in the field and forecast the future directions of the discipline. Respondents will follow up the presentation with critical questions and further insights.”

Registration is free.  Please register here. AICP credits available.

~University of Virginia, A-School

U.Va. Architecture Design Initiative Takes Multi-Disciplined Approach to Arctic Development

University of Virginia:

“Of the places on earth least likely to be developed, the Arctic would have to be at or near the top of the list. But that’s not the case, according to a design initiative under way at the University of Virginia School of Architecture, which includes an exhibition on display through Feb. 15. U.Va.’s Arctic Design Initiative says development of this northernmost frontier has already begun and expansion is the next step.

Matthew Jull, an associate professor of architecture, and Leena Cho, a lecturer of landscape architecture, began their Arctic research six years ago while in Rotterdam and brought the infant project to U.Va in the fall of 2012. They have since invited students to design for the unexamined impacts of the Arctic, creating a network of designers interested in exploring a new frontier. Through design studios, independent studies and seminars led by Jull and Cho, the initiative includes students at different levels in their academic careers.

The initiative’s focus is unique in that it is not just design-based, but also considers the impact of environmental, political, economic and cultural trajectories that remain disconnected by most designers. For Jull, who began his career as a research scientist before shifting to design, the connectivity between these various fields is inevitable.”

~Writes Ashley Patterson of UVA Today

Click here to learn more

A Strategy to Protect Virginians from Toxic Chemicals

University of Richmond:

“The University of Richmond School of Law announces the release of the first comprehensive report on releases and exposures to toxic chemicals in Virginia, 'A Strategy to Protect Virginians From Toxic Chemicals.'  Prepared by Professor Noah Sachs and law student Ryan Murphy, the report concludes that the Commonwealth should place controlling toxics at the forefront of its regulatory agenda to prevent accidents such as the coal ash spill near Danville this week and the chemical spill along the Elk River in Charleston, West Virginia last month.   The report addresses issues that have not received much attention in Virginia, including:

• Chemical storage along waterways
• The lack of a comprehensive state program for remediating contaminated sites
• Coal ash disposal and regulation
• Increasing DEQ's enforcement authority
• Toxics in consumer products”

 ~Writes Noah M. Sachs: Professor, University of Richmond School of Law

Click here to learn more

Slideshow: Route 29 UVa School of Architecture Vortex

University of Virginia

“During the first week of classes, students from the University of Virginia's School of Architecture participated in the third annual Vortex. The final projects presented a variety of designs for a future Route 29, including alternative modes of traffic, dense urbanization, and drone transportation of goods.”

~Writes Effie Nicholaou of Charlottesville Tomorrow

Click here to view the slideshow