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=== Possibilities for urban permaculture kits ===

These notes form a part of [[sanjeev shankar]]'s research, which is summarised in his [[research_report_sanjeev-shankar|research report]]

Note: The proposals and thoughts given below are diverse and vary from long term complex interventions to short term product solutions. The time range is variable too, from few years to few decades. Some of these proposals could directly feed the {sym} trajectory of GroWorld while others would be more suitable to the {bio} trajectory with GroWorld.

1. To create **unbound spaces** and explore a new language for urbanism, architecture and spatial semantics. It would challenge existing perceptions and mental constructs. It would create systems for generating such spaces which draw upon the adaptive, diverse, organic, cyclical and holistic sense of ecological existence. These spaces would 'begin' in virtual realms(films, cyber games, ARG) and would gradually 'emerge' in physical reality to be habitable. They would draw on the fields of biomimetic design, evolving responsive environments, active and composite materials, nanotecture, swarm intelligence, cognition and smart textiles. Exploring knots, bundles and weaves at an urban scale could be an interesting direction. Beyond the visual and experiential aspect, a crucial question would be, 'How can the architecture become an ecological performer?' This is currently being termed as //econic design// and ongoing explorations include adaptive nature, growing structures, living technologies, materials as nutrients, pollinating energy and ultimately simulated eco-systems. Over few decades, self sustaining and self replicating, organic forested growth in cities would replace existing linear and structured planning. This would be a new city, best understood in stratas and layers. At a macro level the layers would work like a forest, with a permeable, playful organic canopy enveloping the cityscape. At the ground level, we would have a unifying and fertile 'soil' layer with no roads, no side walks, no rectangular grids, no partitions. A new biological carpet like urban fabric would emerge. The grid would be redefined. Cars and lifts would not be anything like what is seen today, they would be self adjusting intelligent systems which move vertically and horizontally, just like ants. They would communicate in a manner which could be based on swarm intelligence. Everything would be interconnected and these linkages would be clearly evident to everyone. Over time, with cities becoming increasingly forested and organic, one city could support the other in case of a disaster or sudden shift in resource need. There could be heat transfer to Brussels from Madrid during the winters, or water diversion from a high rainfall area to a drought stricken area. 

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A more short term approach could be to develop a series of plug-ins and upgrades which can be easily integrated in current scenarios. The approaches would be inspired from nature but would adapt and morph to have a hybrid language of their own which goes in sync with existing modernist approaches.

2. To create **green spider kits** which result in **spatial green micro environments** at an architectural level. Initially a playful framework which can be installed on existing vertical faces of buildings and finally creating a green envelope at a local level. The framework could be made of thin, colorful bamboo rings/loops combined with a tensile wire frame which supports appropriate plantations requiring minimum maintainance. The frames could be modularly attached over and over again. Over time the spatial framework will become invisible and the plantation layer ubiquitous. Such green bubbles would gradually become **spatial green rivers**, a regular feature in urban settings and over time evolve to become self sustaining ( they might develop features to catch mist from the air and fulfill their water requirements ! ) An important issue here would be to make this kit playful and modular such that middle class families could assemble and install it at an individual household level or community level. Further the source of the plants: the seed pod, could be residing inside these homes. This would create much needed awareness and sensitivity through a participatory approach resulting in effective, collective action. In certain areas which have buildings close to each other, say around a courtyard or continuous open space, these rivers would be more like green bridges, creating numerous overhead cross linkages through which sun light sprinkles down. The bridges could also be made of a string or a wire generating and evolving in a manner depending on what form the communty wants it to take. One of the interesting possibilities could be using seed balls which are strung together and suspended between buildings. Overtime these would sprout and act as green catalysts. As humans we would provide the structure and the geometry for the plantation. Some of the plants suitable for this could be **epiphytic or air plants**, for example orchids, ferns, mosses to name a few. 

3. **Live threads**: A natural fibre string (possibly a locally available material: jute or coconut husk) which holds seed balls and can be strung between buildings. With time the seeds germinate and we have suspended plantations. Interesting possibilities could result over time with plants growing at an angle or upside down. The kit could actually pick up on the way prayer beads and flower garlands are assembled in India and would be an interesting add on to the existing trend of seed-balling.

4. To create a green tipping point, the researcher proposes the design of a green, intelligent, modular, structural, climate specific 'brick' which would have specific native plants and/or seeds integrated with it.  The 'plant tile' would act like a **living brick**, integrated with the building structure and in the process trigger ubiquitous greens and diverse layers of green clusters within a city. This would gradually transform the city's infrastructure into a productive, healthy, edible and playful green fabric; a vision which goes beyond manicured lawns, horticultural imports, bonsai's and golf parks. The proposal strives to bring back native plants at the core of our daily life by integrating them with the built form and other symbols of 'growth' within a city. 

People will buy this off the shelf and use it directly in construction, just the way conventional bricks and concrete blocks are used today. This would not be an add on. It will be indispensable for constructing any habitat. It could be integrated with curtain walls/acoustic panels/aluminium sections/glass blocks/concrete slabs and become part of the building structure. It could be used inside or outside.  Over time, cities would have innumerable green tiles and become associated with the diverse plants they give life to. Barren concrete walls, commonly seen in cities like Dubai, Brussels, New York would give way to exuberant and fertile green communities.

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The choice of plants could be adapted to address pressing challenges within a city: 
  * The bricks could become a source of nutrition, vitamins and herbal medicine. They could together create home herbal gardens(Leucus aspera cures bronchitis and asthma, Lia Indica cures ulcers, amaranthus is used by dentists). Each home could become an independent seed bank, a space for abundant biological exploration and a living, evolving bio-archive.
  * The integral plants could pre-date on pests and act as repellents for termites thereby substituting currently used chemical solutions(Lantana is a pest repellent)
  * They could together create a green cushion which absorbs noise and acts as an acoustic buffer
  * They could generate fragrance to counter foul smell of rotting garbage and urine which is common in numerous Indian cities (e.g. integrating epiphyllum oxypetalum, commonly known as 'queen of the night' with the tile)
  * They could act as green filters creating protective micro climates in polluted urban realms, much like the delightful and defiant growth which emerges through the building cracks in dilapidated and derelict urban settings.

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The message here is, //we will not step back//, we will not cut back on the scale and pace of growth in urban realms but we //can// feed life and fertility into that growth and make it a green growth. For more details on the proposal please click ono the following link: {{:green_brick_acadia.pdf|}}

5. The next stage of the green tile could be to create an **enhanced, biorenewable moss tile**. This could be self replicating and possibly generate electricity by acting as sun catchers. By behaving as water retainers they could also contribute to regulating the ambient temperature. Existing building skins would gradually be replaced by these tiles.

6. To provide safe drinking water through modular **water purification kits** which use water purifying plants/algae or bacteria. This could again bring a strong connection between plants and humans with pure water being a serious concern in the developing world. An interesting project is the Ó Oxygen generator by Mathieu Lehanneur which contains oxygen-producing organisms called Spirulina platensis. Another project by the same designer, BEL AIR utilizes plants to act as an air filtering system.
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7. To create biofuel through a modular **biofuel generating kit** which uses community/state level plantation of specific crops (sugarcane/coconut/babassu !) or possibly converts left over kitchen oil into biofuel using certain algae. 

8. Creating **green umbrellas** which absorb light to create shadow spots and spew darkness. These would work as shadow generators in places like the desert or extremely hot weather. 

9. Alternatively creating **green fireflies** which when surrounded by darkness start glowing to emit light. The latter could find real use in countries like India where energy and light is in big demand. Field of research: biolumniscence 
An interesting counter example worth mentioning is the project, 'Green Light' by by Natalie Jeremijenko of the Experimental Design Lab. The product includes an integrated solar panel to power a super-efficient LED bulb to stimulate plants of high air filtrating varieties. However, the question, if this product is really 'green' still remains!
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10. Creating **green charkhas** to make your own yarn and further your own clothes, inspired by Mahatma Gandhi's movement in India to make people self sufficient and independent. With people growing their own plants and converting the produce to yarn this could lend to a systematic reintroduction of a traditional craft which brings the produce from plants and the process of making yarn back into our daily routine. Unlike the traditional spinning wheel, the green charkha could be made more efficient with the integration of technology and an additional integration of the features from a sewing machine.
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11. Creating a **green clock**, which uses the natural rhythms of plants and flowers as a new way of denoting and communicating time. This would be an interesting way to look at the linear progression of time in a different way. Flowers, following their circadian rhythms can prove to be interesting timekeepers. What if we could coordinate the blooming such that flowers open and close at set times of the day or connect it with the movement of leaves? Swedish botanist Carolus Linneaus first made the connection between flowers and time. The formal study of biological temporal rhythms such as daily, weekly, seasonal, and annual rhythms, is called chronobiology and the study of this could inform this design. Some of the flowering plants and their opening times are given below: 
* Common morning glory: 6 am
* Water Lily: 7 am
* Field marigold: 9 am
* Star-of-Bethlehem: 11 am
* Passion flower and carnation: noon
* Moon flower: 5 pm
* Evening primrose: 6 pm
* Fig marigold: 7 to 8 pm
* Night blooming cereus: 8 to 9 pm

These times are accurate to Uppsala, Sweden where Linnaeus grew these plants. 

12. **Seed Spot Project**

Background: //Rural vs Urban//: During the course of this journey, the researcher has begun to question the proposed duality between rural and urban. Instead of partitioning and segmenting one field or one reality from the other, our true strength lies in synthesising both realities. We need to create a new reality. //We need to involve and evolve the city with the country people//. We need to create linkages. We need to have cities which have 'villages' or rural spaces growing and thriving within them and we need to have villages which have 'cities' or 'city like spaces' thriving within them. Can we imagine urban inhabitants looking out their of windows onto rice paddies and vegetable gardens, and beyond to forested and natural resource lands?
During his travels to remote rural parts, the researcher sometimes wonders if the experience is real? How could both experiences be real and how could he feel a part of two seemingly different spatial, mental constructs? Certain parts of Delhi( e.g. Chandni Chowk) and Bombay(pigeon feeding spots) create a sense of absolute 'rural' time and space for him. Are these pure mental constructs or is their a defining physical, tangible element? Could these edges, dual character spaces be catalysts for growth, especially as they are constantly being redrawn? Can a city be fragmented into time zones relative to its sense of speed or spatial quality, wherein, zones which are in a greater state of flux or have a more //structured// feel become closer to an 'urban' definition and are therefore treated differently?

This constant and complimentary force defines Indian cities. A city's bedrock are its variables, its idiocyncracies, the changes in its character, the constant state of flux. This makes it heterogenous, dynamic, resilient and self sustaining. It must not be simple. It should thrive in complexity. This would be ecologically sound and economically profitable. So the question should be, can we introduce complexity? And if we can, then how should we do it? One of the principles of creating a complex, self sustaining system is to relinquish power. People should be given tools to create their own change. 

We could start with an attempt to declare spaces within a city as '**community seed spots**'. The idea is inspired by the communal get togethers of village heads called the '//panchayat//' in Indian villages where everyone sits under a tree and discusses village issues. Located in urban public areas, these spots would be periodically sowed with green ideas (real and virtual) which would become catalysts for change and exchange. The ideas would be by the people and for the people. The community would nourish and maintain the idea. There would be a sense of pride, competition and festivity. Sometimes these ideas could be about a group of housewives and school children planting seasonal plants to create a kitchen garden or a refreshing gettogether where people dance and sing in public sharing knowledge about pressing issues through street plays. On other occassions the community could get together to create an educational installation out of 'thrown things', demonstrating the reuse of waste generated by the community. Often these seed spots could become free **performance libraries**, brainstorming areas or public museums but in a very permeable, all encompassing, seamless, informal kind of way. The idea is to create a series of sustainable platforms for the community to create thinkers and leaders. It is to create a grass root, bottom up solution where the power is given to the people to discuss their issues and find solutions to them. It is a kind of reintepretation of creating a public, self sustaining, infinitely multiplying global, urban version of FoAM ! No two seed spots will be the same. They will have their own character, may be their own flags. They might grow over time. They would become reflectors of the community and of the city in general. they could have their own knowledge base which is shared informally and may be formally too. 

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Some questions: What would be the defining feature of such a space? Why does it work in a place like India and not in the West? Can the Indian model be analysed, distilled and reintepreted? Is it the power of the 'myth' in India? Can we create a new myth?