WHAT IS URBAN ACUPUNCTURE?
URBAN ACUPUNCTURE IS A WAY OF PLANNING THAT PINPOINTS VULNERABLE SECTORS OF A CITY AND RE-ENERGIZES THEM THROuGH DESIGN INTERVENTION.
Professor Paul Draus speaks with Detroit resident Katrina Lombard to hear her ideas for the Alley Activation project
By: Sarah Tuxbury “How a detroit neighborhood is creating change one alley at a time” umdearborn.edu July 19, 2021
Why Activate Alleys in Detroit?
Detroit residents have increasingly taken matters into their own hands to drive revitalization with the help of hyperlocal nonprofit organizations.
“Urban acupuncture is the idea that, within a city neighborhood, you’re trying to achieve a systemic change to enhance the functioning of the overall system,” he says. “You don’t have to necessarily target everything in the system. You can have very directed sort of points of intervention that help stimulate the underlying system, all of which lead to a transformation.” SAys Paul Draus in Seen Magazine
By Brian gottlieb “urban acupuncture revitalizes detroit Alleyways” www.seenthemagazine.com August 3, 2022
This pilot project is serving as a small scale proof-of-concept, advancing the real-world application of sustainable technology within the setting of a partner neighborhood, utilizing several alleyways to serve as an open-air laboratory and demonstration site. This with partner organizations and local residents to re-engineer the alleyway as a flexible platform for integrating upcycling, green energy and rainwater harvesting with community-driven placemaking goals. Part of the outcomes include gathering primary data on the effectiveness of this installation in terms of stormwater management and off-grid energy production, as well as mapping and modeling its potential extension through Detroit’s extensive alleyway network, projecting the environmental, social and economic benefits to both local communities and the city government.
“Detroit Alley Activation” experience.arcgis.com
Urban Acupuncture’s aim is to revitalize and legitimize the parts of a city often neglected, abandoned, in some cases even demolished – and revitalize the city as a whole. Filtered through the efficiency-tuned, data-informed eyes of the Architect, city “problems” become the sites of community-oriented solutions – and using productive landscapes as the “needles” has tremendous potential.
By: Vanessa Quirk “Urban acupuncture part iii: towards an Urban “agri-puncture”” WWW.archdaily.com june 1,2012
DETROIT IS REINVESTING IN ITS ALLEYWAYS CREATING NEW OPPORTUNTIES FOR GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE INSTALLATIONS, COMMUNITY BUILDING AND BIODIVERSITY.
By: Sienna Malik “Corridors of Community: WHC and partners secure funding for alley activations in Detroit” www.wildlifehc.org November 8, 2021
INCREASING OUR IMPACT
A JOINT COLLABORATION BETWEEN UM-DEARBORN, UM-FLINT, DAVIS, & RESCUE MI NATURE NOW HAS LEAD THESE GROUPS TO BEING AWARDED UP TO $160,000.
BY SARAH TUXBY ” A WIN-WIN: WORKING TOGETHER TO INCREASE THE IMPACT” UMDEARBORN.EDU JULY 18, 2022
WE ARE THE CHANGE
A collective of passionate environmentalist striving to maintain Earth’s natural resources.
