SMART URBAN DESIGN STUDIO 2024-2025: URBAN ADAPTATION - SCENARIOS FOR THANH DA – THE GEM OF HO CHI MINH CITY AND THU DUC CITIES

Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), also known as Saigon, is Vietnam’s largest metropolitan area, teeming with energy and growth. Yet, the city grapples with the dual pressures of rapid urbanization and climate change. The upcoming studio for the Bachelor Program of Architectural and Urban Design Inclusive Smart City explores Thanh Da Peninsula as a living laboratory, unveiling six innovative urban design strategies that balance nature and development.

Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), or Saigon, as the locals call it, is the largest metropolitan area in Vietnam in terms of population and economy. The city has faced contemporary challenges posed by drastic urbanization and global warming. The studio continues the assignment from the spring Resilient Landscape Studiolab to rethink the role of urban landscapes as a framework to restructure the city’s morphology. The idea is to expose the urban landscape structures of Thanh Da Peninsula through 6 representations, including: 1. Urban Wetlands, 2. Urban Archipelago, 3. Urban Hybrid Gardens, 4. Urban Waterscapes, 5. Urban Foodscapes, 6. Urban Super Grids.

The studio hypothesizes that reading the two cities (HCM and Thu Duc) as twins reveals that the west city is slowing down development while the east city is accelerating it. The Saigon River and its associated landscapes (Thanh Da Peninsula and Thu Thiem) can be interpreted as an urban void and landscape structure to shape the two cities to withstand increased population and a warmer climate in 2050 and 2100.

The studio is guided by Dr. Arch. Nguyen Minh Quang in collaboration with Mr. Patrick Lenssen, Mr. Frits van de Kerk, Mr. Els van den Vetyver, Mr. Steven Hommersom, and Mr. Will Martens, colleagues from Avans University of Applied Sciences, as well as with the review from external experts Dr. Arch. Huynh Van Khang, Mr. Tran Trung Tin, Mr. Le Quoc Viet, and Mr. Le Quynh Nhu.

Some material and highlights from the studio: