For the longest time, nature and cities have been considered as opposing concepts. However, the time has come to reconcile and combine the two in harmonious coexistence. The tension between human needs, economic drivers and natural systems needs to be reduced, and the rift between man and nature must be healed within the city itself.
The intention of this Design Thesis is to explore how architecture could be redefined to transform the cityscape of Colombo into a more resilient and more humane place to live, by rejuvenating its green-blue network, which will, in turn, become an effective shield against challenges of climate change and urban heat island effects. At the same time, it aims to explore the typology of architecture that could become a welcoming addition to the city’s new vernacular.
The Center for Urban Ecology, or CUrE, shall be the institute governing the process of reversing the ecology of the Beira Lake intervention area, from the reconstruction of habitats to maintaining.
