The Public Space Development Program in the Tatarstan Republic, Russia, in just 5 years has produced more than 350 active parks and public spaces, that even won the Aga Khan Award in 2019. The program was led by Natalia-Fishman Bekmambetova, a 29 years old that chooses a quite divergent approach compared to big projects in Moscow. Her approach is to “teach a man to fish”, a system where she can grow local design talents and include the residents as the ‘client’. The result speaks for itself: the project’s cost was only half the budget for Zaryadye Park in Moscow, which drew $433 million.
They also established an architecture firm called ArchDesant to train young local architects (with an average age of 25), which ultimately boosted the local manufacturing industry from just a handful of companies to nearly 40. The impact has been tangible, ranging from a disability-accessible beach in Laishevo and a pedestrian bridge for schoolchildren in Tyulyachi to a 17% increase in property prices around the renovated Gorkinsko-Ometyevsky Forest.
Read the full article here.
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