Landscape as Ecological Infrastructure for an Alternative Urbanity
l am glad that the jury has selected the Wadi Hanifa Wetlands for the Aga Khan Award because this project embodies a powerful practice： the recovery of landscape as ecological infrastructure, as an alternative way to build our cities.
Civilization, over the course of centuries, has been defined in part as the control of natural processes and patterns： Those who were successful in exploiting natural resources and transforming natural patterns through technological advancements were considered highly civilized, while those who adapted to natural forces were seen as primitive. Cities are by far the largest and most complicated artificial devices that human beings have constructed, and they are considered by many to be the very testament of human civilization. From the origin of the city to its “modernized” form today, natural forces and patterns have become increasingly controlled and dependent on artificial processes. The quality of urbanity becomes measured by how quickly rainwater drains off our streets, how stable temperature and humidity are maintained in our rooms (or even in open spaces), how garden trees and shrubs are grown for ornamental purposes rather than for their productivity.
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