4^TH SPACE showcases tomorrow’s cities, reimagined and reinvented

From October 24 to November 29, Concordia’s 4^TH SPACE is hosting NextGenCities, which brings together some of the best future-oriented ideas and research on urban communities.

Free workshops, public talks, panels, performances and classes highlight the work of Concordia faculty, researchers, students and community partners. The program examines a broad range of multidisciplinary projects focused on the development of resilient cities — all under one roof.

Sustainable energy and resilient communities

October 24, NextGenCities kicks off with a workshop and discussion on sustainable energy infrastructure in Quebec. The workshop is led by Ursula Eicker, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Smart, Sustainable and Resilient Communities, in collaboration with the following Concordia subject matter experts:

• Jing Iris Hu, philosophy: city dwellers’ beliefs and attitudes
• Alice Jarry,  design: engagement with the built environment
• Chunyan Lai, electrical engineering: energy demand from e-mobility
• Mohamed Ouf, civil engineering: occupants and actual buildings’ energy use
• Carly Ziter, biology: role of urban green space and biodiversity
• Carmella Cucuzzella, computational arts and design: design for sustainability
• Erkan Yönder, sustainable finance, environmental economics
• Maude Lecourt, cities and partnerships

External partners include:

• Natalie Voland, Quo Vadis Real Estate: sustainable real estate
• Jean-Francois Tremblay, JalonMTL: sustainable mobility
• Veronique Delisle, CanmetENERGY: smart grids
   

Official CERC announcement

4^TH SPACE hosts the official announcement of the Canada Excellence Research Chair (CERC) in Smart, Sustainable and Resilient Communities and Cities on November 12.

The newly appointed chair and her colleagues will share their plans to integrate urban design with sustainable clean energy technologies and monitor the performance of urban districts and regions.

Port cities and reimagined parks

Attend a public reading on October 24 by Shazia Hafiz Ramji and David Chariandy on port cities that addresses the geopolitical climate surrounding migration and economic divisions. The talk is part of the Post/Colonial Ports: Place and Nonplace in the Ecotone conference.

Get ready to roll up your sleeves on October 25 when Silvano De La Llata, assistant professor in the Department of Geography, Planning and Environment, leads the workshop Open urbanism: public spaces as living organisms. The free event is part of the Le Monde Festival.

In partnership with Urban Laboratory, participants will have the opportunity to rethink Gorilla Park in the Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie neighbourhood. They’ll be using moveable objects that represent trees, urban furniture and other structures, and testing proposed solutions for the park from three perspectives: mobility, movement and interaction.

Reflections on Indigenous resilience

On October 28, visitors to 4^TH SPACE will be able to attend a panel discussion, The Path Forward: Reflections on Indigenous Resilience, featuring four Indigenous scholars and spokespersons. They will speak of their spirituality in light of the resurgence of Indigenous art, culture, thought and political expression.

Express your inner graffiti

Two days later, on Monday, October 30, visitors will be invited to draw their own temporary graffiti, expressing their personal ideas about the many layers of connection between theology and the public square.

Both events are  presented as part of the Theology in the City Conference.

Indigenous perspectives on cities

Don’t miss the launch of Concordia’s Decolonial Perspectives and Practices (DPP) Hub on November 1, with Sociology PhD students Jamilah Dei-Sharpe, Hone Mandefro, Tallie Segel and Kymani Montgomery. Also making its debut at 4^TH SPACE is the Land as our Teacher project. Led by Elizabeth Fast, assistant professor in the Department of Applied Human Sciences, this project will be featured in the display zones for the duration of the program.

Visitors can also take part in a class on First Peoples & Health with Salinda Hess, or drop in to a kiyokêwin storytelling session and workshop on beading and medicine bag making, all on November 20. On November 21, the public is invited to a fancy shawl workshop and on the 22nd experience a drum songs workshop.

The Youth Network Chair: Indigenous Stream (YNC) is a platform that brings together researchers, organizations and youth working together to improve the holistic well-being of Indigenous youth in Quebec. Partners and researchers of the YNC should mark their calendars for a meeting on November 8 at 4^TH SPACE.

Public Scholars Showcase

Concordia’s public scholars, Sherif Goubran, Zeina Ismail-Allouche and Matthew-Robin Nye will be visiting 4^TH SPACE on November 1 as part of a panel to discuss their cities research spanning sustainable building designs to queer studies and the built environment.

Don’t miss the display zones

Display zones provide the opportunity to engage with the latest research from:

• Carmella Cucuzzella, associate professor, Department of Design and Computation Arts
• Silvano De La Llata, assistant professor, Department of Geography, Planning and Environment
• Ursula Eicker, professor, Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Elizabeth Fast, assistant professor, Department of Applied Human Sciences
• Jing Iris Hu, assistant professor, Department of Philosophy
• Shauna Janssen, assistant professor, Department of Theatre
• Jochen Jaeger, associate professor, Department of Geography, Planning and Environment
• Alice Jarry, assistant professor, Department of Design and Computation Arts
• Chunyan Lai, assistant professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Mohamed Ouf, assistant professor, Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Zachary Patterson, associate professor, Department of Geography, Planning and Environment
• Rebecca Tittler, part-time faculty, Department of Biology
• Carly Ziter, assistant professor, Department of Biology
• Cynthia Hammond, professor, Department of Art History

Student ingenuity

The award-winning concrete toboggan, designed and built by Concordia students, will also be on display at 4^TH SPACE throughout the NextGenCities event.

Visit the 4^TH SPACE website to learn more and view the complete list of NextGenCities programming at Concordia.