Solutions to Water Insecurity of the Southwest Through Biomimicry Examples Found in the Sonoran Desert

Description

The Sonoran Desert in the Southwest region of the United States and the Northwest corner of Mexico is defined by low precipitation rates that are episodal, oscillating between years of higher yields than average and then below average levels. Water

The Sonoran Desert in the Southwest region of the United States and the Northwest corner of Mexico is defined by low precipitation rates that are episodal, oscillating between years of higher yields than average and then below average levels. Water is essential for life and in the region, the lack of water proves an obstacle for people that must be faced to live and thrive there. Yet, millions of people live in this desert region and more people are moving currently. As current water resources are straining not only under increasing population but also with higher frequency and lengths of droughts in the region, water is becoming an important topic for future plans in the Sonoran Desert. However, a vast array of plants and animals have lived under these conditions by adapting to the low precipitation rates. By looking at the common flora and fauna of the region, humans may learn how to better live in the Sonoran Desert through biomimicry, the imitation of life. The natural design and processes of life in the Sonoran Desert can be studied to find ways to conserve, store and collect water for human consumption ensuring longevity within the region and beyond as water insecurity increases globally.

Date Created
2023-05
Agent

Life Reconnected: Urban Biophilic Microdwelling Communities

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Description
While there is a growing desire for sustainable urban living, Downtown Phoenix remains a fragmented landscape with vacant land, underutilized areas, and a detrimental imbalance between commercial and residential uses. This project aims to fulfill this desire by connecting these

While there is a growing desire for sustainable urban living, Downtown Phoenix remains a fragmented landscape with vacant land, underutilized areas, and a detrimental imbalance between commercial and residential uses. This project aims to fulfill this desire by connecting these landscapes to form a cohesive and ecologically viable urban fabric which will increase the well-being of people and natural systems through increased biodiversity, ecological awareness, and a greater occupation of the public sphere. Biophilic microdwelling communities, strategically inserted into Downtown Phoenix, can recover underutilized areas, create more urban housing, and introduce native species which will begin to transform vacant sites to create a cohesive urban frabric. As water, food, and refuge draw more organisms, a biologically diverse urban ecosystem will emerge and spread throughout the urban area, redefining the future of the city. The increased emphasis on social living in this new biophilic setting will strengthen personal and ecological well-being. After considering many varied interests and looking at what is most concerning in the world today, this thesis is devoted to the sustainable transformation of Phoenix, Arizona. A relatively new city, Phoenix is at a turning point in its development and is poised on the brink of defining itself for the future. The current paradigms of autocentric sprawl and habitat destruction have been challenged and new ideas developed. Phoenix is in a unique position to be able to begin a new sustainable type of progress. The process has already begun with high-density buildings and housing infiltrating Downtown, along with cultural amenities for the new occupants. However, the city currently remains much as it was after the abandonment of the mid 20th century when most residents left for the surrounding suburbs. Vacant lots and underutilized areas fragment the urban landscape, creating an undesirable environment for both humans and native desert organisms. The lack of residential development exacerbates the sense of abandonment as the city shuts down after business hours. The housing that does exist is typically high rise luxury apartments or condos wherein the resident is far removed from city life. The growing desire and need for housing which is affordable for young professionals or students and aimed to engage the city and streetscape has not been developed. The resulting emptiness has created a wound in the urban fabric that is only now beginning to heal, and it is how this wound will heal that will define the future of the city. Will the future development force the traditional unsustainable paradigm into being only to inevitably fail, or will a new sustainable paradigm, guided not by typical planning or thought processes but by unique conditions of the region and input from contemporary users, redefine Phoenix and set a precedent for the redevelopment of other cities? This project seeks to fulfill these desires by providing biophilic micro housing capable of acting as a catalyst for urban transformation. Some of the most underutilized and disruptive features of Downtown Phoenix are the parking garages. They often occupy an entire block and disrupt the streetscape with the detriment of single functionality. The location of these garages, however, is ideal for an urban housing and ecology catalyst based on surrounding resources and they would serve as insertion points for additive development. A greater diversity of habitat for both people and native species through a network of strategically placed, biologically loaded microdwelling communities which leverage these underutilized structures can meet this need and improve the well-being of residents of all species and the natural systems of the urban ecology.
Date Created
2016-05
Agent