COVER FEATURE
INGENIEUR
Going Sustainable with Urban Environment Design
By Dr Maggie Ooi Chel Gee Ir . Yam Teong Sian
The unprecedented COVID-19 global pandemic occurred during our time , and we have yet to see an end to it . Looking at the bright side , such a crisis helps companies learn and improve to survive through the pandemic . It boosts the adaptation of digital capabilities by engineering companies because working remotely has become the new norm . The construction field has also quickly moved forward to incorporate engineering design tools and embrace the sustainability concept [ 1 ].
“ In the darkest times , it ’ s easiest to imagine another world ,” says the British economist Kate Raworth [ 2 ]. It is perhaps time to rethink the future of urban design , to break away from the common perception that urban areas are congested , hot , polluted , unsafe and stressful . A traditional human settlement is often well sheltered by
mountains in a basin-like structure , for military defence , safety , proximity to water , natural resources and accessibility . When the settlement gradually developed into an economic hub , it takes the current urban form that accommodates a large population density in its centre , with severe sprawling on the periphery . Both the natural geographical preference and its later evolvement render the urban environment prone to environmental threats , the most noticeable being the accumulation of heat and air pollutants .
Urban Environment Design
Urban environment design is a progressing field that incorporates environment-friendly guidelines and practices . According to the Department of
6 VOL 91 JULY-SEPTEMBER 2022