Reimagining our urban environments and exploring the potential for more sustainable futures through qualitative inquiry

Abstract

The need to strive for resilience and mitigate or adapt to climate change is increasingly at the forefront when planning for and managing urban concentrations. Open space is one of the dimensions of urban form which is integral to improving the sustainability and resilience of built environments. If urban open spaces function as urban green infrastructure they have the potential to contribute towards sustainable development and increase the resilience of towns and cities. The poor quality of urban open spaces in Malta suggests that a ‘gap’ exists in relation to their planning and design. Various trends such as: Malta´s particular scale; development pressures; policy orientation; governance; climatic conditions; and unsustainable mobility patterns, support the need to develop research in relation to Malta’s urban open spaces. Using qualitative inquiry, the research investigates this and develops proposals, for addressing this gap. Addressing Malta’s urban challenges could ensure more sustainable futures with urban environments where people want to live, work and play. An adapted version of the ´Mixed Method Exploratory Sequential Approach’ using Malta’s urban conurbation as a case study is adopted. The methodology is developed in two phases. The first utilizes mixed data collection techniques to gather a substantial amount of data and create an evidence base. The second phase develops proposals in response to the results of phase one and explores potential barriers to implementation using focus groups. The focus groups explore the use of online methods integrating visual interactive surveys and addressing three main themes: spatial implications; planning aspects; and governance requirements. As a basis for the focus groups discussing spatial implications, a potential spatial plan for a network of green open spaces is developed. Conceptual designs are used to illustrate how Malta’s urban open spaces could act as green infrastructure. These address typological spaces and identify the key design principles, as part of a green infrastructure approach. This paper presents how the second phase of this methodology was used to understand the potential to reimagine our urban environments and move towards more sustainable futures.