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Yalei Zhu | Portfolio

Selected Works since 2021

Yalei Zhu from University of Pennsylvania MLA

Landscape Architecture Portfolio 2021-2024

University of Pennsylvania MLA Architectural Association AALU

/About Me

Hi! I am Yalei!

With the background in Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning at UPenn and Landscape Urbanism at the AA, I focus on creating adaptive, resilient spaces that reflect the identity and aspirations of those who inhabit them. I see design as a way to restore connections—between people, animals, places, and the landscapes they call home. My work explores how local engagement and environmental transformation can foster pride, dignity, and belonging in communities.

Whether it’s revitalizing forgotten landscapes or reimagining everyday spaces, I believe thoughtful design can help people see their environment—and themselves—in a new light.

filmed in Fisher Library, Upenn Campus

/Contents

O1/ Shad"ed" Park: Climate-Responsive Riparian Design

O2/ Drop 2 Home: Resilient Water Infrastructure for Remote Communities

O3/ "Not Fancy" Park: Low-Tech, High-Care Urbanism

O4/ SFI Engagement in Green Belt: Policy-Driven Interactive Local Engagement

O5/ Philadelphia Center City Vertical Urban Village: Urban Redevelopment

O6/ Other Works

Why Buckinghamshire & Engagement

Calculation of the Lowest Cost Ecological Corridor

Calculation of the

After analysing the buildings, roads, land cover and topography of the site, the resistance values for ecological flows are set to these parameters. The resistance increases the closer you get to the buildings and roads, and decreases as you move away from them. The resistance also varies with the undulations of the terrain. Forests and wetlands have the lowest resistance, while developed areas have the highest resistance. On this basis, we give the grassland to be transformed Current Habitat Ecological Connectivity

Current Habitat Ecological Connectivity Optimized Habitat Ecological Connectivity

After we have done the research of qualifications for SFI and the current situation on farms in Buckinghamshire and found that many farms are eligible to be involved in SFI. Because of population growth and climate crisis, the transformation of the Green Belt function is crucial. It needs to play a more important role, such as neutralizing carbon emissions, providing complete animal habitats and improving the use of green space.

SFI Engagement

Site: Metropolitan Green Belt, London, UK

Team Work:

AALU (2021. 2022)

Instructor: Eduardo Rico-Carranza

Skills: ArcGIS, Figma, C4D

Adobe Creative Suites (PS, AI, ID, AE, PR)

Design Focus:

Community-Led Transformation

Anti-Gentrification

Interactive Media Tools

Abstract:

In order to protect the edges of London's Metropolitan Green Belt from destruction, and with an understanding of existing UK policy SFI, our team actively explored and engaged different groups of people: farmers, students, visitors within the Greenbelt in an attempt to mitigage acute social tensions in an ecologically transformative way.

About Green Belt:

We calculated the corridor connectivity of the Green Belt and found it to be relatively weak, with a significant presence of debris. Additionally, our analysis of Buckinghamshire(inside GB) revealed that numerous schools and farms are located near the Green Belt.

SFI Engagement Website for Farmer

Step 1: Registration & Upload Step 2: Selection & Negotiation

SFI Engagement registration page and sign in page

Based on SFI engagement criteria, we designed a website for farmers to register, manage farms, select SFI areas, and address key issues.

Step1: Choose the engagement area

Users can select the regions to participate in SFI Engagement from their previously uploaded profiles, choosing different regions depending on the people they want to engage

pages of all the farms and their information

The website displays all farms, indicating registration status, public accessibility, and main business activities. Users can upload their farm's address and introduction after selecting their farm.

Facilities, etc. and details of the user's farm

Next, farm owners can upload internal farm details, including entrances and exits, crop-growing areas, grazing zones, and storage spaces.

Step2: finish the selection

The area of the farm for engagement has been chosen and the next step will be to plan the route for the visitors.

page of threats in the farm

Farmers must upload and discuss safety concerns, such as floodprone areas, to ensure visitor safety. After uploading, they receive an overview of farm facilities and details, guiding their next steps.

Negociation Step1: personal account page and chat page

Users can view visitor records on their account page and contact SFI Engagement staff. They can also chat with teachers from different schools to discuss visit requirements.

Negociation Step2: Part of the planning route questionnaire

Users send a visit questionnaire to teachers, who complete and share the results. This helps refine tour requirements and generate a customized itinerary for the visit.

Process: After analyzing regional policies and ecological connectivity in the Green Belt. We found improving ecological qualities like soil quality.Based on that, we chose Buckinghamshire as our farms close to the fragmented green belt in Buckinghamshire, which could be our engagement to expand open space management and gradually restore fragmented land in the Green Belt.

Step 3: Simulation

Path generation page

After creating excursion routes, farm owners can select materials from the provided library or upload their own farm elements to generate customized materials.

Model generation page

Finally, the website generates a 3D model of the SFI Engagement farm, which is displayed to children and teachers, encouraging them to visit.

Successful generation pages

The user has completed all the work on the site and is waiting for the teacher and children to visit the farm.

In order to make children understand the knowledge about nature, we designed a game. For setting up the game model, we extract the basic forms of elements in the ecological corridor to form a simplified one.

All the elements and features in the game are derived from realistic sites. The player can see the real photos corresponding to all the game scenes in the game, which are uploaded by farmers to the web page.

found the policy SFI (Sustainable Farming Incentive) offers government bonuses for our pilot site cuz the SFI pilot farm located here, meanwhile there are many schools and engagement groups. Our goal is to create a platform to increase farmer participation, using SFI

by Yalei Zhu

Game Based On Real Farms for Children

Children can learn some real and basic knowledgement when playing the game.

In our game, the player is a farm owner who develops and manages his farm and contributes to the community by planting, recording, trading, cooperating and more.

Players make their first harvest on the farm through traditional farming methods such as weeding and watering.

As the number of plantings increases, the player will have to face soil problems caused by over-cultivation. Butterflies will come to the farm and surprise the player when they unlock different mixes of crops to grow.

The flow of crops

More concern for farming practices in relation to the health of the land

Exploring sustainable

Products that have been piling up in storage for are at risk of expiring. Players need to sell their market stalls in good time.

If players find it time-consuming to sell their the marketplace in person, then an agricultural might be a better option.

When the player joins a farming cooperative, the will send out regular orders for organic products, that the player will need to produce products standards. At the same time, the connection between and the community deepens, as the player will trigger storylines with the residents in the community.

- WHAT PLAYERS

Main Scene-01 Farm

- BASIC GAMEPLAY

Main Scene-02

- BASIC GAMEPLAY

Basic Elements - Real Farms in Buckinghamshire

In our game, the player is a farm owner who develops and manages his farm and contributes to the community by planting, recording, trading, cooperating and more. The game takes place in a simplified version of the real farm, where the user makes agriculture decisions and accesses real infrastructure and assets that can be retrieved during the game and which will be later visited. While the game layout is simple and child friendly, context information is constantly being fed to the player to maximize its understanding of the place.

03 - BASIC GAMEPLAY

for a long time produce at the their products in agricultural co-operative the cooperative products, which means that meet the between the farm trigger random

02 - WHAT PLAYERS WILL LEARN ABOUT

The logistics of daily farm products

Thinking about farm-community relations

Exploring new ways of farm management

The farm will contain large areas of uncultivable moorland. The player explores this seemingly unproductive woodland to discover the value of hidden public goods.

Exploring the woodland, players will meet trapped wildlife and work with neighbouring farms to build ecological corridors to help the wildlife pass through.

Moreover, players can identify and record information about vegetation, wildlife, rivers and historical sites in the woodland. Once collected, players can help build a new museum for the community and bring more community activities to the residents.

03 - WHAT PLAYERS WILL LEARN ABOUT

Knowledge of ecological corridors; the importance of eco-corridors for wildlife

Public goods in the moorland. Exploring the relationship between agricultural activities and nature

Get a better overview of the work on the farm

Main Scene-03 Forest

Main Scene-03 Moorland

by Team

Visits in Real Farms for Children

In the form of a brochure showing the experience children will have when they arrive at the farm

Activity 01: Livestock Feeding

When the children arrive at the farm, they will find that the facilities here are very complete, not only the toleit and the deposit place, but also the emergency clinics for children in case of accidents. From there, children can login to their electronic equipment account. Afterwards when the children walk to the inner farmhouse, they will see many kinds of livestock, they can touch and feed them. While on the screen, children can also see the types and features of these livestock.

Activity 02: Soil Research

The first area they will arrive is the once cultivated area. Children can study the soil conditions in different restoration and plant characteristics to help the Interplanting improve the soil.

Next stop is forest where children can enter. Here, children will learn about the fragmentation of animal habitats and the crisis of forest loss. They can track small animals by uploading photos taken and observing wildlife in a tree that they chose.

After leaving the forest, children will arrive at a farmland where they can learn about the types and planting methods of crops. Children can also help farmers to grow and improve the quality of the soil through multi-crop.

by Xinyu Zhang and Yalei Zhu

Activity 04: Habitat Learning

Activity 05: Crop Learning

Activity 07: Planting Finally, the children return to the central grassland area of the farm. Children can rest and have a picnic or help the farmers to grow flowers and trees to improve habitat connectivity.

Activity 06: Vegetable Reaping They will also pass the vegetable field. Here children can help farmers harvest and tidy up vegetables to understand the industrial chain of food production and sales.

Activity 03: Riverside

Open Space Registration for Farmer

Introduction before Registration

information & Notice for open space

After uploading information about the location of the entrances to these areas on the previously registered website, the farmer selects the type of landscape that corresponds to this area and the website provides a template of the corresponding tips for the farmer to choose and modify. The farmer compiles the information he wants visitors to view and note and the website automatically generates a QR code and a manual for operating the open

The farmer simply places the QR code at the entrance to the open space and visitors can scan it to find out all the relevant information.

by Yuanchang Liu & Yalei Zhu

Unique open space QR code

Open Spaces Designed for Visitors

by Yalei Zhu

Perspectives In Real Farm: Children

After a series of research and visits, we have settled on the SFI policy of engagement, which and improves a range of ecological issues on top of this. Simple tours and engagement are not it more enjoyable for children. We hope that the SFI Engagement model will become popular nature at a time with high urbanization, get to know the farm in its truest and most beautiful

by Yalei Zhu

which not only brings attention to the farm but also opens up new possibilities for farmers not enough to attract attention, but the addition of games can add interest and make popular and attract a lot of people to join. Children and visitors can also spend time with beautiful form and find the most pristine beauty in the steel-clad city.

Exsiting Condions

02/ Shad"ed" Park

Site: Penn Treaty Park, Philadelphia

Individual Work:

UPenn Studio 5020 (Spring 2024)

Instructor: Karen M'Closkey

Skills: AutoCAD, ArcGIS, Rhino, Grasshopper, Adobe Creative Suites (PS, AI, ID)

Design Focus: Resilient Planting

Habitat-Driven Design Riverfront Activation

Abstract:

The site lies along the Delaware River, an area characterized by a severe urban heat island effect, restricted access to the water, and a heavily industrialized riverside. The river also serves as a vital migration route for the American Shad. This design addresses both environmental and social challenges by introducing shaded spaces for humans and fish, improving habitat quality through topographic modifications, and diversifying planting strategies. Vegetation is carefully selected and arranged to provide cooling, enhance ecological functions, and contribute to long-term landscape resilience.

Analysis: Migrating Fish: American Shad

Shading Strategies for Human & Fish

For Fish: Not all islands are open to visitors—those that remain closed provide a safe and undisturbed habitat for American Shad, ensuring their survival in a protected environment.

For Human: By adding vegetation, reshaping the terrain, and incorporating structures, sheltered areas are created to provide coolness and comfort for visitors.

Proximity to Tall Buildings

On the Tree Mounds On the Tree Loop

Undulating Grassy Ribbons

Piers, Docks and Pilings

Gradual Shores & Overhanginf Trees and Bushes

Mounds

Ribbons

Islands or Sand Bars &Drop-offs & Cliffs and Steep Shore Banks

Lily Pads

Sunken Objects & Rock and Boulder Pockets

On the Tree Islands

Lawn Shelter

Buffer

Parking

Meadowland-

Water

Summer Shading Trip: Various forms of sheltered areas create cool spaces with different levels of privacy for visitors in the summer.

Autumn Island Trip: Further rewilding of the island can be accomplished by tourists dropping seed bombs during their visit.

Early Succession: "Plant Thick, Thin Quick"

Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum)

American Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis)

0-Year Summer

American Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis)

Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum)

American Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis)

Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum)

5-Year Summer

15-Year Summer

Fast-growing trees were gradually replaced by the low growing trees and cut down to make seats,

Drop 2 Home

Site: Ontario,Canada

Individual Work: Jan. 2023

Skills: Rhino, Grasshopper, AutoCAD, ArcGis, Adobe

Creative Suites(PS, AI, ID)

Design Focus:

Hydrological Infrastructure as Social Equity

Environmental Justice

Abstract:

Although Canada Ontario has the one of the highest freshwater in the world, indigenous people living in remote areas like Kenora suffer from a chronic lack of access to store water. I have tried to use Kenora as a base to store water while mitigating seasonal flooding through three different strategies.

Raising the terrain and laying pipes

In addition to the cistern, rain and snow are collected by pipes

Back Yard VS Front Yard

"Not Fancy" Park

Site: Staten Island North Shore, NY

Individual Work: UPenn Studio 6010 (Fall. 2024)

Instructor: Catherine Seavitt

Skills: AutoCAD, ArcGIS, Rhino, Adobe Creative Suites(PS, AI, ID)

Design Focus: Environmental Justice

Ecological Resilience

Community-Led Transformation

Anti-Gentrification Urbanism: Low-cost/Low-maintenance

Slow Transformation

Abstract:

The North Shore of Staten Island—often seen as its “backyard”—faces serious environmental and social challenges, from pollution and flooding to systemic neglect. This project embraces the idea of the “backyard” not as a space to beautify, but as one to care for—with practical, inclusive interventions rooted in daily life.

Guided by the “Not Fancy” approach, the design resists surface-level beautification that invites gentrification. Instead, it values small, community-led changes that reflect the area’s history, emotions, and needs. A “Not So Fancy” park becomes a way to reconnect people with the land, allowing healing and transformation to emerge slowly, from within.

Back Yard VS Front Yard

Richard Weller’s Not in My Backyard (NIMBY) highlights the backyard as a private shield— protecting residents from trauma and disturbance.

Backyard Isolation

The "backyard" symbolizes neglect and the marginalization of both space and its residents' well-being.

The Threshold, by 2024 Pritzker winner Yamamoto Riken, redefines public space by merging private and communal areas. It fosters social cohesion, encouraging active use of public spaces shaped by local culture, strengthening community identity while resisting external influence—where 1+1 > 2 becomes possible.

Redirecting floodwaters into urban parks reduces flooding and creates resilient, shared “backyards” for communities.

03 Backyard Redefinition

Non-maritime &

The maritime industrial areas within the SMIA contain wasted land, like excessive parking lots and non-maritime industries, forming the "backyard" of the maritime sector.

While residents have private backyards, the block also has a communal one. If front yards are fancy green spaces and parks, backyards often degrade into bare parking lots or industrial zones

A public backyard is a shared green space that feels as inviting and convenient as a private one.

Why "Not Fancy":

If Staten Island is New York City's "backyard", then the North Shore is Staten Island’s own backyard—a space full of potential, waiting to be rediscovered and reimagined. Building a "Not so Fancy" park could be a way to approach this, we don’t need more optimistic design: the sadness and history of the land can't be easily forgotten. The improvement of the area should be led by the local community rather than creating a design that appears fancy but deepens the separation between people and the land. Enhancing local engagement is key; it's not about achieving a fancy result, but about the ongoing process of daily change and the transformations that emerge from it. ‘Not Fancy’ may be a powerful way to help locals cope with Gentrification

Sec

Sec B1

Plan: Flooding