United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Armenia and “KB Strelka,” within the framework of the “Placemaking: urban co-design as a catalyst for change” project, funded by the Russian Federation and UNDP, signed an agreement to prepare a set of professional development recommendations for Armenian urban environment specialists in areas, such as spatial and anthropological analysis of territories.

With a long-term goal of investing in the quality of urban life and changing citizens’ behavior while increasing feelings of ownership towards public spaces, UNDP “Placemaking: urban co-design as a catalyst for change” project aims to provoke new approaches in public space design, using online and analogue tools to help the Yerevan municipality engage citizens in the co-design of processes.

As part of the agreement, the Strelka KB specialists shared their expert opinion on research team members’ professional skills, the potential work with the local community, development and use of mental maps and ratings for public spaces. In addition, experts from Strelka KB will conduct a series of educational online seminars and visit Armenia, where a workshop will be organised based on the documents on resident engagement in public space design processes. In particular, Armenian urban environment specialists can be engaged in the process of updating the Circular Garden in Yerevan, as well as in subsequent redevelopment works of public spaces around the country.

Yerevan was designed as a garden city: walkable and green. The Circular Garden is a complex territory (30 hectares) and the largest park in Yerevan, where 80 percent of the grounds are currently private property. The park, created as the “lungs” of the city, has a surrounding population of around 200,000 people. The architecture of selected areas in the Circular Garden will be chosen by alternative data on human traffic patterns and public space usage. It is noteworthy that the maintenance of public lands was always the responsibility of the state, and privatization led to apathy and lack of ownership over public spaces. The key goal of UNDP is to engage local residents in the process of designing the park, changing their attitude towards this promising public space.

About Strelka KB

Strelka KB was founded in 2013. Strelka KB provides strategic consulting services in the field of integrated urban solutions and spatial planning. The structure of the company includes expert centers for Urban Anthropology, Urban Economics, GIS Analysis, Urbantech, Public Engagement, Artificial Intelligence, Communications and Design. The company works with experts in the fields of urban planning, design, transport, ecology, culture and art, and digital technologies. Strelka KB network of experts spans 45 countries.

About UNDP in Armenia

UNDP partners with people at all levels of society to help build nations that can withstand crisis, and drive and sustain the kind of growth that improves the quality of life for everyone. On the ground in nearly 170 countries and territories, we offer global perspective and local insight to help empower lives and build resilient nations UNDP in Armenia was established in March 1993 and supports the government in meeting its development priorities and the Sustainable Development Goals.