GULPxProject Proposal for

TechniCityA course by The Ohio State University

Offered on Coursera – 2014

Jànos Katona, B.Arch.Ilaria Meggetto, M.Sc.

P.1 BackgroundP.2 The GULP IndexP.4 How it worksP.5 Why GULPxP.7 ImplementationP.8 DisseminationP.12 Perspectives for developmentP.13 About us

GULPx

With 14+ million inhabitants, Guangzhou,

South China, is one of the fastest expandingmegacities of the world. Urban planning here

faces a series of high-level challenges such asrapid demographic growth, high mobilitysystem development and severe pollution that

require to take into consideration environmentalparameters for ensuring decent and sustainableliving conditions in the long term for allpopulation segments.

广州GuangzhouCanton

Our idea for employing technology for the benefitof the city and its citizens is an informative toolmeasuring the Green Urban Landscape ProximityIndex and communicating it in a practical, useful

and extensive way. GULPx is the product of our

living experience in China and the combination ofour education backgrounds: Architecture & UrbanPlanning and Environmental Sciences Education.

1Background

GULPx

The GULP Index

We created the Green Urban LandscapeProximity Index as an indicator of “greenness”of a given place calculated by mergingtogether a set of parameters such as:

Proximity to green areas (including playgrounds, gardens and parks)

Proximity to recreational areas and outdoor sport facilities (including cycling routes and open air gym grounds)

Proximity to water fronts

Our proximity value is measured in minutes on foot

according to an average walking speed of 4km/hourand based on available mapping technology likeGoogleMaps and Baidu. Thanks to its software, GULPxselects and processes the multiple components from a

30km radius map and assigns any given location a

value between 0 and 100%. High Index valuescorrespond to good living conditions, while low valuesindicate that local planning can be improved.

2

GULPx

A good city design requires that buildings andinfrastructures are integrated and connected togreen areas for recreation, physical activitiesand landscape purposes. An ideal planningwould include a local neighborhood park (smallgreen area or playground) within 3 to 5 minwalking, a city park (approximately 2.5 acres)within 15 min on foot and a regional parklocated no more than 40 min by publictransport from any given spot in the city.

Because the GULPx is not only an indicator of goodurban planning, but it is also intended to drawattention to the presence and use of local resources,we added water fronts (rivers and lakes) as anadditional element measuring the greenness of aplace.

3

Closest regional park and lake body

Luhu Lake

25 min

Closest river bank

Pearl River

43 min

Closest city park

72 Martyrs’ Memorial Park

13 min

Closest playground and outdoor gym area

Taojin Square

5 min

How it works

GULPx

The program calculates routes from a selectedlocation to green sites and converts them intowalking distances….

…and returns a GULPx value.

In this case 65%

4

GULPx

Why GULPx

When we first moved to Guangzhou, we foundexciting but also quite challenging to discoverthe city because of its huge extension, thegreat diversity of each area and the apparentlychaotic urban planning. Being close to a greenarea was a priority when we started looking fora place to rent, specially because Guangzhou isa densely inhabited, highly polluted city withconstant traffic congestion. This brought us toexplore in depth a variety of districts and tolearn that green areas can really make adifference in such a big urban conglomeration.

It is possible, for example,to live and enjoy outdoorlife right next to a 4-storeymotorway without beingdisturbed by the trafficnoise thanks to a thickgreen tunnel wherehundreds of people go forrelaxing every day, or towalk under major

elevated highwaysalmost withoutnoticing themthanks to thesmart use of greencoverage.

5

GULPx

GULPx is a tool for the citizens to:

Verify the greenness of their location (their home, their workplace or an occasional spot)Explore their city and compare their familiar locations with othersFind ideal areas when looking for properties to rent or to purchaseImprove the use and enjoyment of the city by discovering new green areas and being encouraged to the local environmentEmpower outdoor activities for different occasions: daily sport, weekend leisureFamiliarize with local urban planning and get involved in demanding greener living conditionsLearn about local urban plans – an important feature in a rapidly changing urban scenarioReconsider and appreciate new areas made available thanks to the use of “smart city green”Gain deeper awareness over local natural resourcesSpread, support and share a more sustainable and healthier urban life style

1

234

56

7

8

910

6

GULPx

The basic functioning of GULPx consists indisplaying a map overlapping existing mappingdata (GoogleMaps or Baidu) where the users areable to select a location – either by inserting theexact position or by activating location services –and calculating a GULPx value for the givenlocation. The system is also able to collect the

calculated values in a database and to show

them as an interactive network on the map so

that viewers can have an immediate visualdistribution of the greener areas of the city.

Implementation

In order to strengthen the application and effectivenessof the GULPx, we included a number of additionalinteractive features (to be developed through

crowdsourcing and filtered by a team of moderators): Collection of green areas locations by the users –

particularly useful to identify smaller green spots thatare not covered by larger mapping databases

Brief descriptions (location, size, facilities) of eachgreen area through reviews and ratings of the users

Notification by the users of areas in

need of green improvement

Participation in localadministration planningopinion polls for selectinglocations to improve andrevisions to apply

7

GULPx

Dissemination8

GULPx will be available through 2 main channels:

1. A mobile application2. Education boards placed in strategic spots

in the city for those who don’t have mobile devices equipped with Internet services and for promoting the tool to everybody

The application will select thelocation through the mobile GPS service ormanual selection (by clicking “Set location”),and automatically calculate the GULPx Index.

GULPx

9 In addition to calculating the GULP Index ofdifferent locations, mobile users will also be

able to browse the planned or proposedgreen developments of the city byselecting the “Look around” option and tointeract with them by sending a message withthe “Contribute” function.

If no plans are available for a given area, usersare still able to send their own suggestions fordevelopments: they will be collected andcategorized by the GULPx staff for proposingnew projects to the city authorities of starting

discussion threads for exploring the needs ofthe citizens.

GULPx

10Unlike traditional boards, the GULPx

education boards will provide not only

order to draw attention to their role. While in most cases theboards will display static information integrated with otheruseful data on the spot (connections, landmarks..) andreferences to the GULPx idea, wherever possible they willinclude options for interaction and variations.

specific information about thelocations where they are placed butalso an evaluation expressed in theterms of the GULP Index and a briefexplanation of its purposes.

The boards can beintegrated in the largercity communicationcampaign forenvironmentalprotection and they willbe located in highlyfrequented places andin the proximity of lessknown green areas in

GULPx

11

Perspectives for development

The success and diffusion of a tool such as theGULP Index depends not only on itseffectiveness but also on its ability to

improve, incorporate the suggestions andcontributions of the users, and graduallydevelop to enrich its offer. For this reason wedesigned a basic version of GULPx and alsostarted to list new options for furtherdevelopments. Some of these are:

Inclusion of other usefulindicators to integratethe evaluation of“greenness” of an areas(air quality index, waterquality index..)

Addition of disaster preparednessevaluation (an option calculating the vulnerabilityto extreme weather events given the location,altitude, surrounding elements and time of theyear) and alert system (notifications activated incase of emergency indicating the category ofrisk, the closest shelter and relief center andsuggested precautions)

Possibility of setting community goals fordemanding, maintaining and using green areas

Extension of GULPx to other Chinese and non-Chinese cities

GULPx

About us12

Jànos Katona Ilaria Meggetto

Project realized for TechniCity

The Ohio State UniversitySketches by Jànos Katona

Photos by Jànos Katona and Ilaria Meggetto

Guangzhou 2013-2014

All rights reserved.

Jànos is from Hungary.He studied Architectureand Urban Planning inMoscow. He is interestedin new technologies andsmart design. For his thesishe designed an Air- andSpaceport Terminal thatwas recognized as the bestthesis work of 2013.

Ilaria is from Italy.She is specialized inEnvironmental Educationand is the author of arecent research paper onClimate Communication inChina. Since 2011 sheworks as project tutor inthe field of water resourcemanagement.

ReferencesJohn Lund Kriken, City building, Princeton Architectural Press, NY, 2010.