Content I. Essay II. Group Presentation:
Wojciech Jankowsji & Laura Toth
III. Summaries
I. Accra City Core 2000 Masterplan Abstract
Introduction
The 2017 Marin Drive Project reinvigorates the entire beach front, attracting tourists and private investors (fig.1-2). However, this was not the first proposed project of this kind; the vision of modernizing the coast was initially conceived by Kwame Nkrumah in the 1960’. Accra City Core 2000 Masterplan is one of the closest to the 2017 project, having a futuristic and speculative vision; standing out from the other proposals created in the past decades. This essay will analyse Accra 2000 urban planning and compare it with the 2017 Waterfront Project, considering the context and design time period, and the planners’ different approaches. Similarities lay in concepts, as density, intensive program, multifunctional buildings, high raised structures, and green open space. The distinctions lay on the way this concepts were implied and treated. The discrepancies include the skyline and density proportions, considerations of native people using the new facilities, consideration of circulation, demolishing and retaining monuments.
Accra 2000 City Core Masterplan was conceptualized for the Accra’s seafront (fig.3) in an academic context by Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Kumasi in 1967. Hence, the map proposes a futuristic and speculative view of the capital city in 2000, aspect which makes it outstanding from all the other proposal. Created in the context of Independence, socialist ideas are embodied in the urban planning, with ambitious socio-economic transformation programme for the coast, and with spatial expression of the National Phisical Development Plan’s agenda. To understand the masterplan is important to highlight the context in which this was created, and emphasis the strong conceptual vision this brought, being so withstanding from all other proposal and closest to the new masterplan proposed in the 21st century, which was recently approved by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly. Based on socialist ideas and envisaging the modern society activities, necessities and life style in the context of next 30 years; the maps propose a newly built modern seafront, with relocations of main commercial, city administration and governmental areas within the new development (fig.4). The main elements of the maps are accessibility, new skyline, and verdant spaces. It considers the wider city scale, and proposes new bus stops and car parks; connecting the city with the new business, commerce, governmental, cultural and recreational buildings.
Figure 1. The Marine Drive
EXISTING CITY ADMIN
EXISTING CENTRAL GOV
PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT
Figure 2. The Marine Drive
EXISTING COMMERCE/ BUSINESSES Shopping and Governmental Culture Recreation Businesses Administration Figure 4. City structure- QGIS representation of City Structure from Archival Map
Figure 3. Site map
Sources Archival maps were drown and interpreted using QGIS software. The six maps are dating from 1967 and they represent the project in different stages (fig.5-10). Numerous issues were encountered when drawing up the maps. The differences in drawing nature, low resolution, and especially the five different scale the plans been initially drawn, made difficult to combine and overlap the plans. Descriptive information are lost in the image quality and online date is very limited regarding this project. The absence of information could be due its academic nature, and that the designer being not appointWed by official government officers. QGIS allowed georeferencing the maps using the current Google Map and archival material. Were created three main categories to draw and analyse the maps, points, polygons, and lines respectively. During this project, was remarked the limitations of QGIS, few drawings being done in additional software to sustain the main arguments.
Figure 8. Waterfront Development
Figure 9. Vehicle Level Figure 5. City Structure
Figure 6. Framework of Development
Figure 7. Phasing of Development
Figure 10. Pedestrian Level
Planning In the 19th and 20th century numerous masterplans have been designed on the principles of grid system. Common in colonial and European district and town planning, the linear system was considered to be the most efficient, with regular and repetitive shapes, to achieve equality, fast built and rebuilt of areas, easy navigation and flexibility, plans being very systematic and linear. Similarly, the Accra 2000 Masterplan implements this planning system for the new roads, parking, buildings, and circulation design (fig.11). Strict grid is fallowed throughout the masterplan, the only irregular and organic element being the corniche designed with a row of trees; feature commonly found in the Middle East colonial planning. The Marine Drive Project planning is based as well on a grid system, however the plan is not that rigid, the street are linear and parallel, the buildings fallow a pattern in a flexible way; and the street and building lines fallowing the site boundaries and context.
The buildings are designed to accommodate multifunctional programmes and they are connected trough a series of corridors, each having 5 to 6 towers. Accra is situated in a seismic ground, and had faced two serious earthquakes, in 1862 and 1939, when numerous building been affected, especially in the James Town neighbourhood. Furthermore, it is situated in a flood prone area, with numerous floods every year. The buildings spatial planning within the plan illustrates the considerations of this natural hazards (fig.12-13). The structures are set back from the seafront, are scattered around the plan and are elevated on pillars above the surrounding flood level. The 2017 masterplan illustrates the buildings set back from the shore, however the main level is not raised from the ground and there are no evidences, from the external view, of earthquake or flood considerations in the building design. This could be interpreted in the contemporary context of modern technology and designing the buildings on springs to stop the earthquakes from affecting the building. Both projects are high in density, however they are dense in a different way. In the context of 1960’, the plan proposes large parking spaces and grand buildings, occupying half of the plot (fig.14). The square meter of the carpark is similar with the buildings, although the ownership and use of private cars being very low. The buildings are enormous compared to existing, hinting towards modern design attempt, however the design itself is not innovative, is more inspired from the soviet architecture of that time. In contrast, the new proposal’s footprint is much greater, with numerous buildings and skyscrapers adding considerable meter squares to the development, accommodating contemporary functions and programmes. Accra 2000 shows intention and consideration for housing and green space expansion towards inland and other building towards the sea (fig.15). The floating structure is a unique element proposed by the 1967 masterplan, demonstrating the futuristic view of the proposal and ambition of the designer to push the concept, although to a certain extent, this element makes unfeasible the proposal in its time context and it illustrates it experimental academic approach. Housing in central areas have always been in high demand, especially with the construction of a new large development. The masterplan illustrates consideration for building large residential blocks with verdant areas towards the city anticipating population growth. This expansions’ show the intention to integrate the masterplan within the wider context and to indicate that the development is for everyone not just business people and tourists. While, Accra 2017 proposes accommodation integrated in the masterplan which is a contemporary concept. In both cases the difference could be because of the time they been proposed, and the land value which is permanently increasing.
Figure 11. Grid system- QGIS representation from archival map
Figure 12. Flood map
Figure 13. Elevation representing the design for floods
Figure 14. Density- QGIS representation from archival maps Figure 15. Expansion Map- QGIS representation from archival maps
Transportation A proposal of the size of Accra 2000 and 2017, would boost the capital’s economy and attract more tourists, investors and encourage city inhabitant to come and enjoy or work at the new development. Consequently, the demand for public transport and improved roads systems are detrimental aspect to be considered. The 2000 City Structure map highlights new bus stop along the Ring Road Highway, connecting different parts of the city, including slums and low income areas (fig.16). Roads are proposed within the waterfront complex and in the immediate context, connecting the main roads to de new carparks, and creating a promenade along the seafront. The main road crossing the centre, is proposed to be elevated and transformed into a viaduct, reducing the congestion (fig.17). This plans are based on speculations and predictions of the increase number of car ownership and the high demand in car parking. The carpark density in the 1960’ vision could suggest the attempt to illustrate modernism and create the same status symbol as in European metropolis, however it is a large amount of wasted space considering the option to build a multistore carpark.
Bus Stops
At the pedestrian level, numerous access routes were designed, connecting the city to the complex and proposed waterfront. At the ground level the pedestrian movement is very free and shaded by the raised main level and plantations; with external building access (fig.10). At the first level, corridors are connecting the buildings and dictating the circulation. The corniche designed on the shore with a row of trees brings people closer to the sea and creates a natural boundary between the complex and beach. The element is specific to the colonial Middle East cities, and is found in the Marine Drive project as well. Circulation paths are represented in the archival map, illustrating the broader vision to connect the waterfront with the new housing projects and further developments (fig17).
Rich Neighbourhoods Burma Camp (Ghana Armed Forces) Neutral Neighbourhoods Poor Nieghbourhoods/Slums
Figure 16. Bus stops connecting the city to the waterfront- QGIS from archival maps
In contrast, the information released by the government and Messrs David Adjaye and Associates, who designed the 2017 Marinedrive, do no to reveal part of their proposal any carparking and direct infrastructural plans, just metions to improuve road and cycling syetm, and stranghten public transportation. This could be interperted in the context of unfinalisez infrastructure plans. Regarding car transportation and parking, can be assumed that the complex will create integrated multistore carpark to use efficiently the space.
Existing roads Proposed roads Pedestrian routes
Figure 18. Circulation paths to connect different buildings- QGIS from archival maps
Figure 17. Proposed road and walkways- QGIS from archival maps
Programme The programme is a direct reflection of the year the masterplans were designed. The buildings are multifunctional and have an intensive programme. The Waterfront Development Archival map separates the functions into building specific, business and shopping, governmental, cultural and recreational areas (fig.19). Corridors are connecting them, the central emphasis being on the governmental administration. It is positioned in the centre and is connected to the other buildings within the complex, as well as to the north extension and to the floating structure. This may point towards retaining the he governmental administration area and further developed it, and it highlights the importance of the institution in the 1960’s. There is no clear evidence why the cultural and recreational buildings are separated from shopping and commerce by a institution which is not part of the same category and used on a daily basis. Skyline was an important element in the new waterfront developments, the design striving to refresh the city image and create a new landmark. In Accra 2000 the buildings separate the skyline into two major level, the towers further dividing into three different scale, and the other buildings kept on the same lower level (fig.20). The different levels separate the programme, the towers being used for business as offices, the corridors for circulations, the lower building accommodating the rest of the functions (fig.21-22). The visual impact is very dramatic, the proportion between the towers and the low buildings being enormous. The structures heights are taken to the extreme to emphasis the idea of new skyline, creating a utopian vision. The Marine Drive skyline is more proportional, the skyscrapers appearing shorter creating a more balanced entity.
Shopping and Businesses
Governmental Administration
Culture
Recreation
Figure 19. Programme- QGIS representation from archival maps
Verdant surfaces were always a key element in all proposed masterplans. The flood nature of the seafront, retaining and regenerating the soil, low flood destruction, the close proximity to irrigation facilities, and nonetheless improving the air quality and offering natural shading, are characteristics which could explain the desire to create a green seafront. The purpose of designing a green urban space which is accessible for a wide audience, would attract large population and benefit in special the disadvantaged groups and their impact on health equality. The green space promotes mental and physical health, the development being situated near numerous slums and depraved areas.
Offices Shopping street
The programme for the resort style urban node, the Marine Drive, is more diverse and intensive, with mixed use developments, and divers programme creating a self-contained complex. The activities contain a mixture of retail, offices, leisure and residence. It proposes well connected multi-purposed buildings and public spaces. However the proposal will bring large number of work opportunities, the facilities appears to fit wealthier audience and tourists, as the project is advertised as ‘a hub for investors and tourists’. The high building density reduces the amount of green area, verdant spaces concentrated around the seafront and the Independence Square.
Open Air Theatre
Figure 20. Skyline- QGIS representation from archival maps
Pedestrian Street
Parking & Loading
Loading
Figure 21. Programme per unit- QGIS representation from archival maps Cathedral
Parliament
Shopping & Business
Shopping & Business
Figure 22. Development programme- QGIS representation from archival maps
Gov’t Administration
Cultural & Recreational
Castle
Conclusion Despite many attempts to develop and repurpose Accra’s waterfront, the space was undeveloped and misused during the past decades. Since Nkrumah’s time numerous designers and rulers been endeavouring to modernise the seafront and boost the city’s economy of the large wasted central area. Accra 2000 and The Marine Drive have a plethora similarities at the conceptual level, as density, multifunctionality, intensive programme, dedicated outdoor space, consideration of transport nodes. However the distinction is on the way this concepts were implemented and embodied in the proposal. The newly approved masterplan appears to be designed in isolation from the rest of the city, and the programme and facilities attracting wealthy people with numerous hotels, high class restaurants, theatre, and casino. The Accra 2000 masterplans is more conceptual and strives to refresh the city image and skyline, by creating this enormous and imposing structures, element present in the developed countries. The planners seems to be inspired by structuralism, fallowing a very rigid grid system, with strong emphasis on the towers, and almost identical building shapes. The integration of modern elements of western countries, as the corniche and promenades, rows of trees, multifunctional buildings and the large car parking, demonstrate the desire to bring Accra to modern standards.
Figure 23. Current Google Map view
Figure 24. Marin Drive Render from you tube source
Figure 25. Accra 2000 Msterplan- QGIS representation from archival maps
Bibliography https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxZKn7pXWMw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0a1vPmbysI https://www.adjaye.com/projects/master-planning/marine-drive-masterplan/ https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/features/Marine-Drive-Project-A-rebirth-of-Nkrumah-sdream-610829 https://www.myjoyonline.com/opinion/2017/December-20th/marine-drive-project-a-rebirth-ofnkrumahs-dream.php https://citiesipcc.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Ernest.M.-Abraham.-pdf.pdf
II. Accra City Core 2000 Masterplan Group Presentation Archival Maps City Structure
Framework of Development
Vehicle Level
Pedestrian Level
Waterfront Development
Phasing of Development The archival maps are dating back to 1967, and they have been used as bases for the QGIS drawings. They describe the project at various scales and stages with some discrepancies.
Accra 2000 QGIS Layers Legend
Final QGIS Map
Final QGIS Map
Accra 2000 Masterplan Concept City Structure
Accra 2000 Masterplan was created in 1967 by A. W. Glover- Akpey as a speculative project for the 2000 year. This was created in the era of Independence, part of a ambitious programme of socio-economic transformation, embodied in socialist ideas. Between 1963 -1970 arises the National Physical Development Plan, with a spacial expression of their agenda. The main concept proposed an ambitious development scheme to be achieved by 2000, based on a 30 year speculation and prediction of programme and people’s needs. One of the key elements represented in the plans were transportation and the relocation of commerce, city administration and central government areas within the new seafront. Key elements were accessibility, green spaces, shadow, and a new skyline. These elements are working together to create a better place and to boost the city’s economy in a harmonic way. Traces for further developments can be noticed, as consideration of transportation links and housing.
EXISTING CITY ADMIN
EXISTING CENTRAL GOV
PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT EXISTING COMMERCE/ BUSINESSES Shopping and Governmental Culture Recreation Businesses Administration
Proposed development
Shopping and Businesses
Governmental Administration
Culture
Recreation
Accra 2000 Colonial Planning
The layout of the newly proposed structures in the Accra 2000 masterplan follows the grid system and linearity, a feature typical of colonial urban planning, which makes it very systematic and clear. Similarly to the colonial middle eastern cities, the masterplan proposes a corniche along the seafront with a row of trees along the seafront, which was also a feature included in the 2017 Marine Drive Project.
Accra 2000 vs. Marine Drive Tourism Project 2017 Both masterplans are visionary proposals for the development of the Accra waterfront. Some elements of the 2017 Marine Drive Project are very similar to proposed changes in the Accra 2000 Masterplan. Key similarities between Accra 2000 Masterplan and the new Marine Drive Tourism Project: - Large green open spaces, - Walkways on the waterfront, - Mixture between large and small scale buildings, - Rezoning, based on different function areas, - Programme is dictated by the function of the buildings, and the created promenades and boardwalks, - Main cultural buildings - the Osu Castle and Holy Trinity Cathedral are preserved, - The entire waterfront to be completely demolished to accommodate the new masterplan. Key distinctions between Accra 2000 Masterplan and the new Marine Drive Tourism Project: - The Accra 2000 masterplan highlights parking areas and public transport routes - The Accra 2000 masterplan attempts to tackle residential zones, and propose possibilities for future expansion towards the north
Waterfront Spatial Arrangement Marine Drive Tourism Project: The 2017 Masterplan seems to be oriented more towards tourists and business people, with the programme including restaurants, casinos, nightclubs, hotels, shopping malls and offices. The Accra 2000 Masterplan is more open, it proposes possibilities for expansions, connecting the waterfront complex with the rest of the city, whereas the Marine Drive Project seems more isolated - it seems like a part of the city reserved for the wealthy.
Waterfront Boardwalk
Waterfront Cultural Anchors
Waterfront Public Open Square Shopping and Businesses
Governmental Administration
Culture
Recreation
Accra 2000 Masterplan - Transportation The intention was to connect the waterfront complex, which would become the new heart of Accra with other districts within the city. The designers proposed new bus stops along the existing Metropolitan Highway, to make the complex easily accessible via public transport. The bus stop network connects the complex with the wealthiest neighbourhoods of Accra, such as the Cantonments or the Airport City, however the bus route runs within all kinds of neighbourhoods, including the slums. The newly proposed dense road system (in black) on the site connects with the extensive car parks. This could indicate that the planners wanted the complex to be aimed at the rich, because at that time less people would drive cars. The masterplan’s name, however, suggests that it is a vision for the year 2000. We can speculate that the authors of the masterplan expected the population of the city to become richer, as they included so many car parking spaces. The use of so much space dedicated for the car parks, seems like a wasted space, however the planners might have wanted this to be a status symbol, indicating their desire to become a modern city. The middle section of the main road, which runs along the coast, would be lifted up and become a viaduct, which would free up the ground space, making it safer for the visitors using the green areas and walkways and to improve circulation with any future developments and extensions.
Bus Stops Rich Neighbourhoods Burma Camp (Ghana Armed Forces) Neutral Neighbourhoods Poor Nieghbourhoods/Slums
The new development is also accessible via the newly proposed pedestrian walkway system, which may suggest that the planners thought about the environmental aspect of the design. This could also encourage bicycle use instead of cars. The ground floor provides a lot of space for the pedestrians to circulate, with the buildings being raised on pillars, and the corridors on the first floor help with circulation between the structures.
Ground level circulation
First level circulation
Existing roads Proposed roads Pedestrian routes
Accra 2000 Masterplan - Green Space Green spaces were always a key element in all proposed masterplans from the 1944 to the latest 2017. The common interest to create a green waterfront could be due to its close proximity to the sea for irrigation, to create a space with low flood destructions, to repurpose an unused space without demvolitions, and nonetheless to improve air quality and make the beach accessible for the public. The Waterfront was presented in a similar manner with large green area, however this is a more in depth proposal, with spatial arrangements and programmes, and with potential for further expansions. The new buildings and car parks are surrounded by green space, and the beach has walking paths with plantations. Designing a large open space ground level allows to landscape the land around the pillars and car parks, which especially benefiting the disadvantages groups and their impact on health equity. Furthermore urban green spaces promote mental and physical health, the development being in close proximity to slums and poorer area.
Car park Bushes
Low vegetation
Building
Shading trees
2000 Masteplan
Beach
1944 Masterplan
1958 Masterplan
1965 Masterplan
Accra 2000 Masterplan - Environmental Approach Even if Environmental Approach was not common in the 1960’, the Accra 2000 masterplan tackles aspects as flood, green space, natural ventilation and fresh air, light and shadow. There are no clear evidences that the masterplan was designed considering environmental aspects, however the planning reveal strategic ecological elements. - Flood: the seafront is in a flood-prone area, buildings being positioned scattered around the site and set back from the waterfront and proposed to be elevated above surrounding areas and constructed on pillars; - Natural ventilation: is obtained by creating large open spaces and corridors, allowing wind to circulate from the sea towards inland. The building cuts off creates the chimney effect cooling the buildings;
Floor level
Flood map
Flood Building Strategy
Ground level ventilation
Chimney effect ventilation
Sun path
Natural light and Shadow
-Light: buildings are oriented facing south to allow natural light to penetrate in the buildings, and the different scales allow indirect light on ground level. The cuts off of the buildings enhance natural lighting; -Shadows: orientation and raised levels allows on the ground level large shaded areas. The difference between the building heights are shading other buildings. Proposing tall trees would bring more natural shading; -Planting: the large open space green space filters and refreshes the air and the trees retain the soil in the flood and stops strong winds. The large amount of greenery could be designed as well for cooling the air, as concrete and other materials store and radiate back the absorbed heat.
Accra 2000 Masterplan - Speculative Extensions The Accra 2000 Masterplan reveals potential expansions for residential architecture and greenery. This is another sign that the designers considered the environmental aspect, balancing it with the need of the city’s infrastructure to grow. The tendency to expand inland, shows the intention of integrating the waterfront complex with the neighbouring areas, which can be a way of showing that the planners wanted the area to be used by everybody. The housing closest to the complex would generate high prices, boosting the city’s economy, with the more distant houses being cheaper, but with the residents feeling as part of a larger community. The expansion towards the sea would create an artifical island, showing how forward-looking the masterplan was. The extension could be a floating structure, which could be advantageous during an earthquake.
Potential inland housing expansion
Potential expansion towards the sea
Accra 2000 Masterplan - Levels and Skyline The new buildings are designed to accommodate different programmes as business, government and culture. They are connected through a system of corridors , and each building has 5 to 6 towers. These structures differ in heights, offering a mixture of shadow levels. Sitting a step back from the sea, they are raised on pillars, with a structure designed specially to tackle flood and earthquakes. The raised main level offers a visual connection from the city towards the sea, inviting people to discover the newly designed seafront. The tall towers define the new city skyline and it becomes a new landmark and a tourist attraction, from where the city as well as the sea can be seen. The pedestrian circulation is fully separated, the walkways being converted into shopping streets; and loading, car accesses and car parks on the ground level. The new design strives to refresh the city image and scale, by creating large, contemporary architecture. The elevations show some slight discrepancies, which may be due to them coming from different stages of the design process or the drawings being conceptual rather than finalized designs.
Ground Floor Shadow Map
Offices Shopping street
Open Air Theatre
Pedestrian Street
Parking & Loading
Cathedral
Parliament
Shopping & Business
Shopping & Business
Gov’t Administration
Cultural & Recreational
Loading Castle
Accra 2000 Conclusion
During the last decades, there have been numerous masterplans proposed for the waterfront in Accra, however the Accra 2000 masterplan seems to have been the most influential one for the latest masterplan, the 2017 Marine Drive Project, which has been recently approved by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly. Although there are many similarities between the two projects, we can see that the Accra 2000 masterplan considers the participation of a larger community, it is more open towards the residents, whereas the 2017 Masterplan seems to be isolating the people of the city, with rich visitors, tourists and foreign investors using the new spaces, which include casinos, restaurants, hotels and offices. The waterfront in Accra has been underdeveloped for many years, despite many efforts to change this, which may have been partially due to political instabilities in the country and for the lack of moeny required to create the enormous proposed structures, which are earthquake and flood resistent.
Accra waterfront (2019)
III. SUMMARIES Cartography and Empire Building in Nineteenth-Century West Africa by Thomas J. Bassett Source
In the nineteenth century, European powers introduced maps into political discourse of colonialism, using colour coding, lines, blank spaces to indicate locations, positions, and routes; information produced to delimitate, control and to develop territories. For better strategies, maps been produced by surveyors, military officers, cartographers, and been frequently updated and replaced to be more accurate and testify the current commerce and strategic value. Military and explorer reports serve as proof for using maps as instruments for geographical conquest of Africa. For European Colonies, the maps served as tools to inform about Africa’s natural resources and local economy locations, used to emphasize the potential for commerce and trade. Cartographers had an authoritarian power established by the common acceptance that the maps, sketches, written publications to be accurate representation of reality. From a strategic viewpoint, blank spaces on maps were very important for imperialism, being left blank to keep important information secret, and they represented potential territorial expansion. Furthermore, it contributed to a smoother European acceptance of imperialism overseas, creating a falls impression that those areas are non-inhabited and with great potential for colonising, along with concord territories to civilize and improve commerce. The blank areas insidiously made possible the process of colonial expansion, territories being claimed using colours and lines to delimitate existing and potential neighbour territories to be part of the empire. Africa was occupied and the empires were built upon using selective content and excluding indigenous information on the maps, validating the process of colonization.
Uncovering the roles of African surveyors and draftsman in mapping the Gold Coast, 1874-1957 by Jamie McGowan
The text demonstrates the African surveyors and draftsman’s contribution by mapping to the emergence and development of the British colony. Furthermore, it analyses the engagement, training opportunities and perspectives of Ghanaian surveyors on colonial Survey Department practice, highlighting the continuity and minimal changes occurring during the decolonization era. Ferguson opened the intermediary era with the British Empire. His knowledge of native character and language, placed him in close relationship with the colony’s administration. He contributed to the expansion of the British Colonialism and development of administrative hierarchy within the Golden Coast. The high demand of surveys and maps in the bureaucratization period generated the formation of the Survey Department and the higher involvement and acknowledgement of Africans. To fulfil the expansive colonial agenda, additional training was provided now for natives as well. They played an important role in the preparation of the town and topography surveys, however their official contribution was omitted and anonymized from the official reports and maps. Despite the political hiatus between 1930s and 1957, cartography was practiced without interruption, in which surveyors and drafters neutrality and objectivity of their practice were highlighted and valued. With the independency, Africanization occurred across the administration and civil services, opening up more opportunities and positions for the qualified Africans. The text demonstrates the major role and systematic involvement of the Golden Coasters’ experts and surveyors in the colonial cartography. This involvement and collaboration initiates the continuity of mapping spaces and creating hierarchy of geographical information between the colonial and postcolonial course.
The Agency of Mapping: Speculation, Critique and Invention by James Corner
Sensing: Preliminary Notes on the Emergence of StatisticalMechanical Vision by John May
The text illustrates Corners’s arguments for innovative ways to consider mapping, and the map relation to reality. He investigates the potential for new methods of using mapping beyond its traditional practice, and political, social and cultural aspects to be considered more the by designers and planners. He argues that mapping is not neutral nor passive, as it exposes and stages the conditions for realities previously unseen or unimagined, reviling and realizing hidden potentials.
The paper discusses the history of technological developments and it contribution to solve modernity problems through geographical domain. Environmental issues been addressed by geographer, as well as architects, urban planner and by many divers researchers and scientists. This urged to a collective collaboration and introduction of a set of modern geographic technologies, including the satellite and geographic information systems.
He distinguishes the passive act of tracing, simply replicates known date, and the process of mapping, which engages the designer in creating new intelligence and uncover the invisible. The essay focuses on ’three ways in which the social, imaginative, and critical dimension of mapping may be re-established in modern cartography’. He describes mapping as potential means for creative inventions, which used in contemporary design, can act as an agent for ‘producing certain effects on perceptions and practices of space’.
This collaborative work and thinking about natural and social worlds as aggregations of statistical regulations, so called ‘statistical-mechanical geographic vision ’by John. It circumscribes simultaneously the scientists, philosophers, theoreticians statistical approach towards natural and social worlds, with the utilization of distinct techniques and technical devices, {photophoretic research, automatization (graphical and numerical plotting), photogrammetric methods, aerial photography,} enable to analyse and perceive ‘the character of those processes on a geographic scale’.
Corner compares more traditional ways of mapping to four contemporary techniques, labelled as drift, layering, game-board and rhizome, who he believes changes our perception and practice of space. Space and time are very complex components of mapping our surrounding, our concept of space being formed by our perception of our surrounding.
The paper further questions the improvements and new contributions that the technological development could bring towards solving modernity issues, which humans had created; entering into a loop of solutions becoming problems in the urge of solutions.
The author argues that mapping should be a critical activity, an experimental approach to uncover and discover information which have not been considered before. It reveals notions on all levels, historical, cultural, social and topographical. Mapping being multi-functional and multi-dimensional, operation to push concepts further, promoting relations and connections, which may not be initially apparent.
The limits of GIS: Towards a GIS of place by A. Giordano and T. Cole
The Master Plans of Baghdad: Notes on GIS-Based Spatial History by Łukasz Stanek
The texts illustrates the potential of the GIS and GIScience to create a GIS of space and place- a network of social relations occurring in a relative place at a relative and variable time. The concept is exemplified in the Italian and Budapest Holocaust scenario to reveal the spatiality and connections during this events. The integration of mixed-method analysis of quantitative perspective of spatial analysis with qualitative methods and data, using visualisation as the means of inquiry, temporal elements, geo-narrative, testimonial representation; represent a practical and conceptual challenge in creating a GIS of place. Some of the detrimental elements are the collaborations across different fields, using multi-methodology approach and integration of multi-disciplinary perspective with elements of digital and geospatial humanities research model. The article highlights the lacking aspects of GIS in spatial perspective, the element of relativity and temporality of space and place, the rich representation of subjective experience. Their collaboration on the Holocaust work unrevealed the potential of GIS and GIScience for digital and geospatial humanities. For the GIS place to be fully realised, would be necessary, in their opinion, to integrate the traditional quantitative spatial analytical tools with quantitative data; aiming to contribute to the creation of mixed-methods of ‘integrated and relation analysis’.
The paper describes masterplan proposals between 1956-2016 of Bagdad, using GIS to input data and analyse which were the guidelines and what was their impact on the capital growth. Undertaking a seminar in collaboration with Manchester School of Architecture, was conducted a GIS research based on ambiguous and heterogenous date, resulted from the geopolitical shifts in Iraq. The seminar revealed planning approaches which informed the masterplans; to determinate the degree to which they guided the green spaces, transportation, heritage preservation and housing development. To fill in the technical knowledge demand, architects, constructor firms and planners where appointed from the socialist Eastern Europe, contributing significantly to the way Baghdad was developed during the 1960s and 1970s. The seminar concentrated on analysing and creating quantitative analysis for eight different maps, using two main layers: land use and traffic network. The achieved information illustrates the city representation in historical context, and produced important development data of Baghdad. Inputting existing date in GIS enable to illustrate and determinate access to green space within neighbourhoods, compare road systems between different maps, note links between road systems, housing strategies and green areas. The created files serve as a databases for under-researched past for architects, scholars, etc,; and nurture to contribute to the future of re-planning the city, incorporating modernist heritage to the historical layers.