Chapter 12: Urban architecture for well-being: a design canvas for inclusive green cities

Abstract

Landscape and urban planners, designers, as well as architects, can take up inclusive planning and design processes that acknowledge human needs and dignity, and foster participation in shared decision-making. Underpinning these processes are values of empathy, placation, accessibility, and identity essential to imagining and creating inclusive green cities. This chapter provides a deeper understanding of the different dimensions of an inclusive green city and how social equity is an integral part of any design effort. We begin by exploring our vision and the values necessary for green urban design. A framework for three aspects of equity – recognitional equity, procedural equity, and distributional equity – is presented with selected case studies that serve as evolving good practices for equitable green urban design. From this framework and resulting values, we built on a value-inclusive design canvas and present design principles that planners, designers and architects can adopt as their own.