Working Landscapes: can subtropical design go beyond the pleasure seeking playground?

Sub-tropical design has the opportunity to engage with new concepts of working landscapes within the city, namely landscapes that employ innovative water and waste management integrated with the production of food, and driven by pioneering models of renewable energy production. Urban agriculture is gaining strength as new ESD techniques provide ingenious infrastructure to support vegetable and fruit production in a range of urban places.

Manhattan residents now demand that their fresh vegetables and fruit are produced locally in order to reduce their ecological footprint. Food production in South East Queensland, however, has a troubling record. As one of the few places in Australia with volcanic soils and reasonable rainfall, fruit and vegetable production was until quite recently part of the tapestry of the extended city landscape. In 2007, all of this has disappeared under a sea of concrete.

Is this the way to live in sub-tropical cities? Can we reclaim the heritage of local food production and our precious lost fertile soils as part of new models for working landscapes in the city?

Are there some pioneering examples of how other subtropical cities are addressing these issues? We would love to hear from you.

See you at Subtropical Cities 2008 Conference from 3 - 6 Sept

Subtropical Cities 2006 Conference reflections

27 - 29 September, 2006 QUT Gardens Point Campus, Brisbane, Australia

Subtropical Cities 2006 Conference (organised by the Centre for Subtropical Design - a partnership between QUT and the Brisbane City Council) successfully unfolded at the end of September 2006.

It was a wonderful event which included, at a glance:

• 7 Keynote Presentations
• 36 Concurrent Session Presentations, with 46 speakers
• 14 Subtropical Salon Continuous Ideas Sessions, with 16 presenters
• A photographic exhibition of Olivia Martin-Macguire’s work in the QUT Art Gallery
• The exhibition of the top 8 entries in the inaugural mecu Travel Bursary
• The exhibition of recent urban development projects in Chonquing City in China
• ‘Blitz Creek Bush Truck’ – a living truck sculpture by renowned sculptor Chris Trotter
• Wayfinding Installations in front of The Old Government House and in the Foyer of Block B by QUT design student Salvador Farajota
• Welcome Reception at the City Hall
• Guided Evening Tour of the Brisbane River on the City Cat Ferry
• Conference Dinner (sponsored by South Bank Corporation) under the stars at the
• Nepalese Pagoda, South Bank, with our dinner speaker Dr Sohail Inayatullah
• 5 Guided Walking Tours, and
• Readings by Mary-Rose MacColl in the Gardens Theatre Foyer

This conference was aimed at raising the level of public debate around achieving ecologically sustainable urbanism in subtropical settlements through attention to climate responsive design.