ĊINE’AMBJENT #3 — People-Centred Urban Design

The Friends of the Earth Malta Environmental Film Club is centred around thematic documentary and film screenings linked to current environmental justice issues. For the ĊINE’AMBJENT #3 session we will be looking at People Centred Urban Design.

Urbanised (2011) – Gary Hustwit

Urbanized is a feature-length documentary about the design of cities, which looks at the issues and strategies behind urban design and features some of the world’s foremost architects, planners, policymakers, builders, and thinkers.

Over half the world’s population now lives in an urban area, and 75% will call a city home by 2050. But while some cities are experiencing explosive growth, others are shrinking. The challenges of balancing housing, mobility, public space, civic engagement, economic development, and environmental policy are fast becoming universal concerns. Yet much of the dialogue on these issues is disconnected from the public domain. By exploring a diverse range of urban design projects around the world, Urbanized frames a global discussion on the future of cities.

Panel Discussion

The film screening will be followed with a panel discussion. Joining us on the day will be:

Caldon Mercieca – Manager, Valletta Design Cluster

Caldon has a Masters Degree in Philosophy from the University of Malta, where he ran a course on Critical Perspectives on Theatre and Performance within the Theatre Studies Department between 2008 and 2013. Since 2010, Caldon has been a member of the Creative Economy Working Group, a joint project between the Ministry for Culture and the Ministry for the Economy. This has now led to a creative economy strategy for Malta, with a focus on education, financing mechanisms, internationalisation, and governance for the cultural and creative sector.

Dr. Mario Balzan – Senior Lecturer II, MCAST Institute of Applied Sciences

Mario coordinates the research activities on biodiversity, ecosystem services and nature-based solutions, and his ongoing research address sustainability issues that would benefit from multidisciplinary approaches. Past research has investigated biodiversity-ecosystem function relations, the assessment and mapping of ecosystem services, and the provision of nature-based solutions for maintaining ecosystem services in cultural landscapes. This research has been supported through projects that have received funding from national and international funding agencies. Mario is the coordinator of the Horizon 2020 project ReNature.

Wendy Jo Mifsud — PhD Researcher, UoM

Wendy Jo Mifsud is interested in the socio-economic goals of spatial planning – the theme of her PhD studies.  Wendy’s academic career started with an undergraduate degree in Architecture and Civil Engineering and continued with qualifications in Sustainable Heritage and GIS. She has worked on numerous participatory planning projects in the UK and coordinated the Strategy for Valletta upon her return to Malta. She now works at the Planning Authority, dealing with strategic policy-making in the Maltese context.

Michelle Borg — Unit Manager, Planning Authority

Michelle has over twenty five years experience in policy development for spatial planning and environmental management. Her responsibilities included the development of national policy framework on ICZM, introduction of regulatory procedures for spatial planning at sea, the transposition of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive and the implementation of the Water Framework Directive and the Climate Change dossiers in Malta. She now heads the Green and Blue Development Unit within the Planning Authority.

The screening is free but places are limited. Submit in the form below to reserve your seat. 

The film club is taking place every Friday from 18:00 to 20:30, run into May 2019.

Shedding light on the local context, speakers actively working on the local dimension of specific environmental matters will be presenting each of the thematic screenings. Next sessions will focus on the following topics:

• Environmental Activism
• Food Systems
• Water Scarcity
• Waste
• Air Pollution
• Climate Change and Island States
• An alternative vision for the future
• 2 open sessions – An opportunity for participants to curate either with their choice of film or topic of interest.

The film club is co-curated between Friends of the Earth Malta, Kinemastik, and the presenters of each session.

If you are interested in presenting one of the sessions, assisting in the curation or the organisation of the film club, get in touch with Anastasia on anastasia@foemalta.org.

This session is organised in collaboration with Kinemastik and supported by Arts Council Malta – Creative Communities