sdonnelly_campusofthefuture

Shane P. Donnelly

March 13, 2017

Design Ecologies

Campus of the Future

This year the University of Michigan celebrates its bicentennial as one of the world’s leading university’s in all spheres of education, research, and ideas. The question is what will the next two hundred years have in store for this global institution, what will the campus of that future look like, how can it be designed and planned for the coming generations. As we continue along a path of global connectivity and a one world system brought about via the interchanging of ideas, technologies, and communication; the University of Michigan campus needs to reflect these forces that are altering the world around us. Buildings on campus must learn to integrate into this interconnected global web and be in conversation with one another. This can be achieved in several ways which include the built environment, connected technologies, and design that inhibits social and ideological interactions.  Within the built environment, buildings can reflect interconnectedness through the ways in which typologies are mixed. By placing mixed use structures, classrooms within dormitories next to a bar on top of a theatre, you create conditions where a building is never left empty or unused at any given time throughout the day. This allows for continuous activity and thus increases the interactions and connectivity of people, encouraging conversation and exchanges of ideas. This type of construction also enhances safety as it promotes twenty-four hour usages of the space and the policing of it via the presence of people. The twenty-first century has been dominated by hand held devices, the freedom of information via the internet, leaps in technological innovation, and thus the most interconnected and globally communitive generation yet. Buildings need to embrace a similar globalized and interconnected network. One way buildings can share information to better the campus is through knowing the environmental conditions in each space. By knowing when one building needs more energy as compared to another, that first building, if it is not being as heavily used, can shut down systems to divert the extra energy needed for that second building. This allows for a cohesive and responsive systems network where the campus can manage energy in a sustainable and connected way. This also can expand into social interactions, where internet connectivity can be increased or decreased dependent on the number of people in a certain location. This will boost that large group of people’s ability to become more connected to the world. Not only should the built environment increase the way people connect online, but also in person. Buildings need to allow positive gatherings of people. Seating areas, comfortable spaces, lots of natural light, and the encouragement of nature from the outdoors in. Another way social interactions can be heightened is through better connections across campus. Whether it is through shortened wait time at intersections, new sidewalks, bike lanes, healthier paths between buildings, and an overall reworking of how people experience buildings and the campus through movement.