← Sustainability & Urban Design
Placemaking
SUSTAINABILITY & URBAN DESIGNintermediate
Definition
A collaborative approach to urban design that centres on creating public spaces people want to use — not just infrastructure, but places with identity, activity, and comfort. Placemaking is informed by how people actually inhabit and perceive spaces, often involving community participation.
Example
Times Square in New York was transformed from a traffic-dominated junction to a pedestrian plaza (2009) through a simple placemaking intervention — closing Broadway to cars and adding seating — without rebuilding a single structure.