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EDITOR
A Palace for the People
“THERE IS A PALPABLE SENSE OF RELIEF AT NOT BEING ALONE IN THIS FIGHT.”
TALENT VS. MASTERMIND
Hong Kong
Storytellers • From Adam and Eve’s Biblical expulsion from the Garden of Eden to Sir Isaac Newton’s inspiration to formulate the laws of gravity, the apple tree has certainly been a central character in stories that matter. Unlike Newton, Diane Cook and Len Jenshel cannot pinpoint a eureka moment that set their photography project, Wise Trees, into motion. How several observations led to one of their most remarkable art pieces, and how it shows that each tree tells its own story and why we should listen to it.
Urban Tree as Prodigy • The urban landscape is a concentration of activities and architecture in constant change. Processes in the past resulted in the urban structures of today and today’s actions will create the urban landscapes of tomorrow. The urban tree population plays an important role in all these aspects. Many of the older trees found in today’s cities can be regarded as heirlooms from previous urban landscapes. They help to create an identity of place in the otherwise changing and bustling city. At the same time, both the older and the more recent tree populations provide a resource supplying many of the ecosystem services upon which cities and their residents depend.
From Melbs’ Elm with Love • The City of Melbourne’s Urban Forest Strategy comprises a management and adaptation plan aimed at increasing the public realm canopy cover to 40 percent by 2040. Based on a multi-disciplinary approach and involving stakeholders across different scales, the strategy goes beyond planting trees by addressing future social and climate change. All the while citizens and trees actually write each other.
The Tree Constructor • Ferdinand Ludwig is a German architect and Professor for Green Technologies in Landscape Architecture at the Technical University of Munich. His research interest, which he initially developed while studying at the University of Stuttgart, concerns using trees’ natural constructive abilities for architectural purposes. This field, which he expanded and renewed, is called Baubotanik, translated in English as living plant constructions. Based on their research, Ludwig and his team at the TU Munich, as well as his partner architect Daniel Schönle, have been developing new ideas for preparing cities for a sustainable future and making them resilient to the challenges of climate change.
Next Stop Metro Forest • The Metro Forest Project features a habitat for various species of flora and fauna and an exhibition centre on a reclaimed site along Bangkok’s eastern urban fringe. More than 60,000 trees were planted here, reminiscent of historic forest landscapes. The award-winning outdoor land art experience also enhances the urban quality of life of local communities.
Living with a Giant • Pando is a single tree, albeit a tree that is a forest of growing international reputation. Five or six species of aspen (upland Populus) reach around the entire northern hemisphere between about 30°-65° north latitude. They harbor vast amounts of biodiversity. As goes aspen, so goes dependent plants and animals; a cascading effect that may be exacerbated by a warming climate. Can the lessons learned – and answers derived – at Pando shine a light on global-scale aspen conservation?
URBAN TREES
Guardians of the Land • Trees are the most noticeable elements in the savanna country of northern Ghana. But the growing population and...
