Practice-based Research
Placemaking Clarence Valley
We developed this project to respond to increasing evidence that communities that have greater social and civic connectivity respond better to catastrophic events. A closeness and relationship with ‘place’ are what enable communities to self-organise and solve problems in a crisis. Such relationships affect social equity, which also influences social resilience. A ‘placemaker’ – as distinct from an architect, designer, planner or expert – is inclusive of all who make and sustain the quality of human settlements, including the people and communities who live in a place. ‘Placemaking’ is therefore an important ingredient of resilience-building processes, growing social networks, capabilities and long-term resilience, through both the process and the designed outcomes.
Project Location
Bundjalung, Gumbaynggirr, Yaegl Country (Clarence Valley – NSW)
Lead Community Team (Fire to Flourish Clarence Valley)
Roxanne Smith (Wiradjuri/Ngemba), Cara MacLeod, Pamela Denise and Faye Neil
Lead Research Team (Department of Architecture)
Professor Mel Dodd, Nikhila Madabhushi, Robert Lees
Supporting Community Members (Clarence Valley LGA)
Shakti Mudra, Leonie Pankhurst, Kaya Jongen, Wesley Fernando (Gamilaroi) and Jessica McPherson
Contributing Monash Architecture Students
Lilli James, Chantelle Lappin, Athiqah Ummi Salma, Andrew Gregory, Jessica Hordern, William Cupido, Ashley Ho, Hayden Brown, YeeWen Chuah, Huei Sze Yeap
Contributing Monash Urban Planning Students
Yuk Chun Kwong, Daniel Mersin, Sam Granger, Jason Lee, Ti Ju Yang, Mohanapriya Madurai Jawahar, Kiana Nabighods, John Momis
Working under a research-led service learning model, we partnered with Fire to Flourish Clarence Valley as part of their ongoing recovery processes. Four communities in Woombah, Glenreagh (Orara Valley), Nymboida and the Blicks River communities of Tyringham, Hernani, Dundurrabin (Bundjalung, Gumbaynggirr and Yaegl Country / NSW) worked alongside us and Master of Architecture and Master of Urban Planning and Design students to bring diverse locally-led placemaking ideas to life. This included the design and facilitation of field-based co-creation workshops where local people were invited to share and develop ideas for places and spaces that contribute to broader resilience building initiatives in their locality.
As the research-led studio contributed to a live program, the engaged communities have been provided with Strategic Placemaking Frameworks that reflect and synthesise the communities’ visions for building resilience. These key outcomes have aided community groups and individuals to engage in Fire to Flourish’s participatory grant funding program, through an auspice arrangement with Northern Rivers Community Foundation. These outcomes have also assisted locals to plan for future funding opportunities put out by government and non-government agencies.
We sought to disrupt standard modes of architectural production through working at the intersection of participatory design, community development and disaster resilience.
Workshop outcomes from Woombah
Workshop outcomes from Blicks
Participatory Granting
Clarence Valley Community Facilitator Pamela Denise describes the multi-stepped process of participatory granting that the design studio helped support:
“The participatory granting was a staged, nuanced process in which each community could engage in a facilitated conversation within a MADA-led placemaking workshop, about increasing the district’s resilience and disaster preparedness by improving public places. The community engagement process took over a year and resulted in a community-led decision making process through preferential voting over a 2-week period. The approved projects are anticipated to commence May 2024, and are to be concluded by October 2025.”
The following diagram describes the timeline and activities within the process advanced in Placemaking Clarence Valley. Visit MADA for more info on our project.
MADA Now exhibition
Supported by Fire to Flourish