VIRTUAL: Livable Cities – New York

Abstract

This paper aims to illustrate some significance process and initial results from the research project “Urban Public Policy and Post – Covid Living Design for Well-Being Through Open Data Platform Development and Place Making: Case study of Klongsan District, Bangkok” (funded by Thailand Science Research and Innovation from late 2022 to 2025). It was conducted since October 2022 with the collaboration of School of Architecture and Design (SoA+D), King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi (KMUTT) and Urban Studies Lab (USL). The paper will highlight the research-based design process that has been integrated into the fourth-year architecture design studio with the focus in Klongsan District – one of the fifty districts in Bangkok, Thailand. In doing so, the design studio applies the concept of ‘Urban Living Lab’ and ‘Urban Classroom’ as main tools, as well as applying the Livable city framework for the architectural and urban design investigation. The studio also seeks to appropriate architectural and urban programming based on the student engagement with the neighborhood residents and various stakeholders during the starting phase of the design studio project. The final architectural design proposals and results not only provide architectural and urban solutions and possibilities, but also contribute as part of building up the ‘Open Data Platform’ that would benefits the future public use. Hence, this platform could be shared, adjusted, and even could be one of the supporting tools for the betterment of Klongsan District and Bangkok as a whole, and hopefully make the city more livable for everyone.