Waffle Structure by Erisa and Keti

Crises of Tirana River

The River of Tirana is located in the North part of Tirana, in Paskuqan. The River is formed from the confluence of the rivers Gjole and Zezë, a few kilometers northwest of Fushë-Krujë. It flows into the Adriatic Sea near the town of Ishëm. The length of the watercourse is recorded in different sources as between 74 and 79 kilometers. Paskuqan is a city and a former municipality in the Tirana County, central Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision of the municipality Kamëz. The population at the 2011 census was 37,349.
That part of Tirana is facing a lot of urban and social crisis, like territorial, environmental and very importantly the concentrated poverty. In the photos bellow you can see the today’s situation of the zone.

Territorial Crisis

The river of Tirana is also facing the problem of the water pollution, the air pollution, garbage, infrastructural problems, architectural issues, informal buildings, etc.

The pollution is a very harmful problem that effects the nature and the people in the same time. It becomes cause of many problems in the nature like the acidic rain and in the human health the decrease in quality of air leads to several respiratory problems including asthma or lung cancer. The garbage is also a big problem for that zone because they were spread all over the territory including the river. The toxic substances in air contaminated by waste include carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and methane. In everyday life we identify the polluted air especially through bad odors, which are usually caused by decomposing and liquid waste items. And the informality was a very important issue and it is a thing that has to do directly with the human being. Informal Settlements and urban informality is a serious and common problem in Third World countries. These settlements are not marginal actors in the real estate market. They play an important role affecting greatly the housing supply and demand market. The infrastructure is the problem that in my opinion causes all the problems that I talked about before. In that part of the city the infrastructure is very ‘poor’. There is only one road and only one bridge that you can cross the road. It is very difficult to visit the riverside because it is not easy to find the right path for the riverside and most of the parts of the riverside are isolated from the informal buildings.

CASE STUDIES: Delhi Pollution Control Committee Head Office, by M:OFA Studios

Now in the approval phase, this proposal for a headquarters for a pollution control committee in New Delhi envisions a six-story building that will function as a self-sufficient “urban sponge,” absorbing air and water pollutants, says M:OFA Studios principal Manish Gulati.

The local firm’s design incorporates active and passive building systems, including photovoltaics, sun-shading screens, rainwater collection, and an evaporative cooling system. Located near a main drain for city sewage, the building employs an on-site sewage-treatment plant to produce methane for a cogeneration gas turbine and to treat graywater, which is further cleaned by a reed-bed filtration system before being used to cool the building.

Smog reduction is no less critical, Gulati says. The building shell will use foam concrete–block cavity walls lined with bentonite clay to filter out air pollutants in the microclimate. Vertical green walls and terrace gardens will also improve air quality while providing shading, and mechanical filters on the roof will further clean the air.

 Environmental Crisis

Our generation has been given the urgent task of reversing the damages of industrial civilization and overcoming perhaps the greatest challenge humanity has ever faced uniting as one conscious, sustainable force to secure the stability of our future environmentally and socially so we cannot continue living off the wealth of future generations without condemning ourselves and the basis of our civilization in the process. The environmental movement, with over one million environmental, social justice, and indigenous organizations present, is the fastest growing movement on Earth. 

On that part of Paskuqan there were issues till today with the society. In that part of the city live the Gypsy of Tirana and the poorest society. It is impossible to find activities and there are no schools, hospitals, shops, pharmacies, coffee shops etc. People there make their living out of the garbage.In that zone is missing something that could help the people there to work and to make the place more attractive. 

CASE STUDY: The next step in social evolution.

Resource Based Economy-Non-Profit Organization) proposes an alternative socio-economic system unlike anything that has gone before. This is an attainable vision of a world where science and technology are intelligently applied with human and environmental concern. This system maximizes quality of life for everyone, rather than profits. We call it a Global Resource Based Economy.

SOLUTIONS FOR THE FUTURE The current state of technology allows us to turn Earth into a paradise. This has been the case for decades. The ideas presented on this website outline a possible vision for humanity where the full potential of science and technology is unleashed towards social betterment. This is a description of a world where science and technology will no longer be used in ways that harm people or the environment - a world that surpasses war, violence, environmental damage, and the threat of malicious use of advanced forms of technology.

It is time for humanity to unite under a common direction that will bring true security and prosperity to all.

UPDATING SOCIETY:Our social arrangements shape our behavior and values. Presently, operating within the monetary system requires the pursuit of profit and not necessarily what’s best for people and the ecology.Science and technology are racing forward. Our methods of social operation, however, are hundreds of years old and have not kept up with our present potential to produce universal abundance. The Global Resource Based Economy system proposed here will allow humanity to finally utilize this potential. The primary function of this social design is to nurture each individual, make available all the goods and services, and supply the best possible education. This will enable all people to pursue whatever constructive lifestyle they choose.

SOLVING THE UNEMPLOY­MENT PROBLEM:Today, rapidly advancing technology is on a path to take away the jobs of large portions of the population.

In a Global Resource Based Economy, technology will automate boring and dangerous human labor, giving people more free time and greater access to goods and services, to enable them to address the greater challenges we all face.

Personal Crisis

“Poverty, brothers, is a mouthful that's hard to swallow,

A bite that sticks in your throat and leaves you in sorrow,

When you watch the pale faces and rheumy eyes

Observing you like ghosts and holding out thin hands;

Behind you they lie, stretched out

Their whole lives through, until the moment of death…”

This poem was writtenin the 1930s by Migjeni, a very well-known Albanian writer. Today, nearlya century later, they still reflect reality in rural Albanian villages, like Librazhd.

Another crisis that I think is a very important is the Concentrated poverty. For that part of the city was obvious. Albania, located on the Mediterranean Sea across from southern Italy, is one of the poorest countries in Europe. Why is Albania poor, though? It is important to discuss not only the causes of poverty in Albania, but also the standards for poverty in Albania.

After World War II, Albania became a communist state under Stalin’s regime, but was not part of the Soviet Union. In 1989, communist rule in Europe collapsed and in 1990, independent political parties in Albania formed. By 1992, the Democratic Party won elections, officially ending communist rule in Albania after 47 years.

The majority of rural families live in the mountains and the uplands. The main determinants of rural poverty are farm size, livestock holding and off-farm income. About 25 percent of the rural population lives on a farm that is too small to provide a sufficient level of subsistence.

Albania is widely known as one of the poorest countries in Europe. The effects of the transition from a centralized economy in a rigid communist state and then to a free market economy in a democratic republic have weighed heavily on the people of Albania—particularly on its poor people. Despite the economy's robust growth in recent years, about 7.5 per centof the population lives in extreme poverty (UNDP MPI Index Report 2011/ CIA 2010) and struggle to put food on the table each day.  Rural and mountainous areas are the poorest places in the country.

CASE STUDIES:Gelin-Lafon Architects’ Affordable Mixed-Use Housing Project Is a Little Social 
Utopia.

The stigma attached to public housing can seem inescapable. French architecture firm Gelin-Lafon, however, believes that they have introduced a solution that makes social housing an attractive yet affordable place to live. In the project 'Rear Window,' the Parisian designers deviate from the typically bland social housing archetype to introduce a modern, staggered form that fosters a "modern little social utopia."

 Parisian architects Gelin-Lafon unveiled the 58,000 square-foot development earlier this year. Outfitted in sleek enameled ceramic and broad woodwork, the modern mixed-use development is divided into two four-story buildings divided by a long tree-filled courtyard. To promote openness and social interactivity amongst residents, Gelin-Lafon inverted the buildings to face the inner courtyard. The complex features 70 apartments along with three ground-level retail stores that connect the complex with the existing urban fabric.

The 70 social housing apartments vary in style, ranging in size and type to maximize flexibility of use and choice. Within each apartment, floor to ceiling windows take advantage of natural light and offer views over the shared common green. By stacking differently sized apartments, the architects achieved a staggered facade that imbues interest and a sense of individualism into the project.

CASE STUDY:Crone Partners Rethink the Community Center in Rhodes

Australian practice Crone Partners has recently won a competition to design a new community precinct in Rhodes, New South Wales. Starting with the intention to rethink the traditional community building and civic space typology, Crone Partner's winning design features clusters of spaces with programs subdividing by size and demands. In moving away from traditional public buildings, which are "characterised by [their] scale, elaborate and sometimes extravagant aesthetic", their proposal was no longer "constrained by a singular form".

n a separated spatial design "the programs can be semi-autonomous modules, given dynamic freedom to adapt to the context." According to the architects, "by separating the programs we begin to differentiate the public space creating a hierarchy of spaces within the larger public realm. This differentiation of space allows for multiple modes of pace and activity to occur within the public realm, creating a more active space in a burgeoning population."

"The community precinct is separated into four buildings. The e-resource centre and multipurpose function space forms the main axis with the café/restaurant adjacent to the water in order to maximize views. Multipurpose meeting rooms help form an entrance zone off the main road. The precinct stretches to occupy the site and to form an intimate alcove within the heart of the proposal. The proposal creates a series of distinct and intimate landscape themes rather than one large public space."

REFERENCES:

https://inhabitat.com/water-purification-skyscraper-purifies-jakarta-rivers/jakarta-water-purification-skyscraper-10/

https://inhabitat.com/gelin-lafon-architects-affordable-mixed-use-housing-project-is-a-little-social-utopia/

https://www.archdaily.com/470878/crone-partners-rethink-the-community-centre-in-rhodes

https://www.resourcebasedeconomy.org/