There is no bigger adversity facing humankind today than the combined environmental challenges of global warming, biodiversity loss, and waste. This is why Studio Saar’s approach to architecture is underpinned by the ambition to create sustainable solutions for society and the environment, in which people, and the architecture we create, are part of the solution. It’s also the reason why landscape-led projects are so exciting to us, as landscape is often the prism through which these challenges – and ambitions – can be most fully explored and effectively delivered upon.
Our work in Udaipur, India, in partnership with local non-profit organisation Dharohar, is a prime example, focusing on ‘10 Lakh Vriksh’ (1 million trees), Dharohar’s city-wide initiative to revive community parks and gardens. Studio Saar’s ambition for the project is to foster a community-led initiative that will plant and nurture a million trees across the city, through a network of local, accessible parks and gardens. The first of these parks to complete, Udaan Park, has recently transformed an underused, lakeside park into an accessible, safe and inclusive public space. Featuring a canopy inspired by the local birdlife, a maze, games area, and extensive planting, the park has been designed to celebrate and reconnect locals with Udaipur’s native wildlife, boost biodiversity, and address challenges around net zero.
India’s urban landscape has in the recent past prioritised growth over the sustainable development of green cover. A result of rapid urbanisation, this trajectory has brought improvements in quality of life, including better healthcare, and improved nutrition and education, but also a situation where India’s cities are at severe risk of depleting their stock of green cover and open public spaces. Where the WHO suggests a minimum green cover standard of 9m2 per capita for cities, Udaipur offers just 2m2 – well below the healthy norm and lagging in the bottom quartile of global cities. If we measure the allocation in terms of accessible public parks, the figure drops down to an A3 sized piece of land per person.
The parks and gardens of 10 Lakh Vriksh aim to provide a solution. For the citizen, they will provide a free-to-access green space that welcomes people from all walks of life. These parks will be the foundation of a drive to reinstate a connection between local urban communities and native species of flora and fauna, grow their understanding of the value of green space, and promote a sense of stewardship towards it. For the local authority, they will provide solutions to left over spaces from development, which can be transformed with a relatively small investment and a dash of creativity. For local organisations and businesses, who are encouraged to take financial and civic responsibility of the parks in the long term, they will provide an opportunity to link local economies to sustainable urbanism.
The challenge with getting such a project off the ground was that there is no frame of reference in Udaipur. Local people had never been exposed to the idea of a ‘community park’ before, nor been educated in the impact of trees and green space on their health and wellbeing. As such, they were unable to derive a sense of their own agency in creating a resilient, sustainable neighbourhood. Added to this is that only 4% of India can pay income tax, rendering local authorities unable to meet the costs for the upkeep of local park schemes.
We knew that in order to seed the project, we needed to focus on small-scale interventions, and alongside Udaan Park, we are working on three more parks as part of 10 Lakh Vriksh, including Gulab Park, Swami Vivekananda, and Nyay. It is hoped that these initial parks will act as the catalysts for a city-wide initiative, providing physical spaces that can be utilised as a nursery to grow saplings for other sites, and as an informal educational facility for the local community, as well as a local green space contributing social health and wellbeing, urban cooling and biodiversity.
As the first project to complete, Udaan Park offers a blueprint, prioritising biodiversity and adaptive reuse, which can be taken forward across the city. Working with the structures and materials already on site, the aim was to set a precedent for the inventive reuse and repurposing of materials across the city, and make steps towards its net zero ambitions by paying close attention to embodied carbon. Reclaimed tyres were used as planters, swings, and play tunnels, while recycled saree fabrics were used for swing ropes, and all non- structural metalwork, concrete waste rubble from the site was reused as fill, from gates and fences to parts of the canopy, is made from repurposed steel. The canopy itself – an awning of 34,000 bird shaped cut outs – is made of recyclable and UV stabilised plastic.
The locally sourced planting scheme has been selected for its ability to withstand the harsh climate, while also helping to support and expand the habitat for the bird communities on site, with over 30 bird species recorded since its opening. Meanwhile, drought-resistant grasses and small trees create tranquil, shaded spaces for visitors, alongside flowering plants and medicinal herbs. The native planting scheme has negated the need for a water intensive irrigation system, which along with the (community-led) decision to leave powered lighting out of the design, have combined to significantly reduce the operational demands of the site.
Udaan Park is a landscape that has enabled us to bring material dimensions to sustainability – from carbon, to water, to biomass – together with social dimensions, including education, participation, and local economies. As an Anglo-Indian, landscape-led architecture studio, we see great opportunities to incorporate learnings from our projects into our work in the UK. As a country that shies away from public-private partnerships in the creation of public space, we hope that Udaan Park can provide an example of how to truly put community at their centre. Involving local businesses and communities in the creation and maintenance of local parks increases the long term viability and regeneration potential of small community parks.
When the community – including residents and businesses – is invested in the process, and part of its value creation through the construction, maintenance, and enjoyment of the space, then the longevity of that space, and its role in sustainable urban development, will be far greater. Udaan Park and 10 Lakh Vriksh is just one model, which we’re excited to see flourish in the context of Udaipur, but the core idea of bringing the social and environmental sides of sustainability together holds true in a far more global context. This is what good landscape design is all about.
Location:
Western Bank of Swaroop Sagar, opposite powerhouse, Ambamata Udaipur Rajasthan 313001, India
Design year: 2021
Year Completed: 2023
