1:1 Sketch Model © UiD

“Evolution is like a dance. It's not going anywhere, it's simply exploring a space of possibilities.” Brian Goodwin

New forms of collaboration may generate new solutions. But making use of previously untried solutions can often involve significant and costly risk. When making such a decision at a desk the tendency is to play it safe, making the usual choices to avoid risk.

A full scale 1:1 sketch model offers a cost effective way of testing new solutions in real life and at the same time gives quite a concrete impression of the structure in a new area of urban development, prior to its realization. Thus creating a tangible point of departure for a dialog and a qualified basis for decisions.

Instead of constructing a new road in stages, of fully paved and elaborated segments, the entire road can be laid out as a simple dirt road structuring the landscape of the future urban development area. Various solutions in terms of lighting, paving and security can be tested concurrently and the road can be gradually upgraded to the required standard, step by step as new residents move in. Plants and hedges can in the same way be used to delineate future building sites prior to their construction. In this way a model is created that all can step into.

4D+ Model © UiD and metascapes.dk

"The digital revolution, like the agricultural and industrial revolutions before it, opens up new possibilities for urban form and organization and creates powerful pressure for change." William J. Mitchell

Technological development plays a decisive role in the design of our physical environment and in how we use it. Whereas the car democratized access to this environment, the internet will democratize the processes themselves which form the environment.

The 4D+ model is a digital tool, which can be placed on a website for a specific urban development project. In addition to relevant information concerning the project, the site includes a 3D model, which is updated (4D) on a continual basis with new proposals. This gives everyone the opportunity to follow the planning process live. The model also includes a discussion forum (+), which allows for a direct dialog between planners, users and other interested parties.

CDM [Change Design Model] © UiD

“It is about creating change before it creates you.” Michael Eisner

Regardless of the basis upon which decisions are made regarding the design of the physical environment, these decisions still have to be made. But this does not mean that everything has to be decided beforehand. It would be a great advantage if the environment was designed so that it easily could be altered.

The Change Design model is a physical structure where the form and the spatial configuration not only enable, but also trigger changes both in program and use. Where the spatial delimitations and expanse can be changed and where elements can be added, removed or replaced.

A city park is a public space, but the general public is not a homogenous mass with the same needs. A park should thus be able to accommodate many different needs. But it should also be able to adapt itself to changing needs as well as provoke new.

The planning of a park scheme is not alone the responsibility of the planner, it also involves the users and other stakeholders. But the planning process does not stop with its realization. Or, rather, the realization of the plan is itself an ongoing process, which requires continuous planning. Thus the planner not only takes on a new role in the planning process, but also plays an active part in the ongoing process of realization.

Collaborative workshop  © UiD

"When connected into a swarm, small thoughts become smart." Kevin Kelly

Many diverging and often opposing interests seek to influence the planning process. This manifests itself most often in the form of conflicts, which can make it difficult to come to an agreement on anything other than the lowest common denominator. But conflicts can also be essential for the development of new ideas!

The collaborative workshop model may provide professionals, stakeholders and users with a better understanding of one another’s interests. And in this way create the basis for a flexible planning sequence, where one actively makes use of the diversity to create plans with a greater wealth of ideas than can be generated by a single actor alone.

Role-play © UiD

A planning process is usually informed by a complex set of motives and determined by a number of dynamic factors. This can render the process both opaque and inaccessible.

In the role-play the participants assume the roles of the various parties involved in a fictitious planning process. The ‘players’ learn about other viewpoints and are provided with a better understanding of the complexity and dynamics of the planning process.

Scenario game © UiD

Planners develop rules and regulations in order to avoid future problems, but in so doing they may also limit future possibilities.

In the scenario game, stakeholders in a real planning process are confronted by unforeseen challenges and dilemmas. The results of the scenario-game can be used to develop a process manual as a supplement to – or even as a replacement of – the traditional masterplan.