Many governments across the world are offering green stimulus plans to re-boost their economy as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change. Clean and renewable energy to phase out fossil fuel is the overarching goal. But what does this mean spatially? Where and how should the energy infrastructure be situated across landscapes? How can landscape planning help to resolve conflicts between renewable energy structures and existing land use? How can landscape design increase multiple co-benefits and land-use efficiency?
This project envisions our post-pandemic future through sustainable energy landscapes using Oregon as a case study. With a transect planning approach, our proposal demonstrates that Oregon can make sustainable and just energy transition through 1) designing hyperfunctional urban cores, 2) retrofitting suburban landscapes to harvest green energy, 3) supporting sustainable rural communities, and 4) building resilient coastal communities.
