Ice Breaker: Designated for Human
I was born during the late 20th Century, a peak period of modernism in a developing country. I have witnessed the revolution of urbanism in a main city. People migrate from the village to the city looking for job opportunities mostly in factory work. The industry of the country shifted from agriculture to manufacturing (Abdur Rahman and Schmillen,2022). The former Prime Minister who imposed the policy widely across the country had the vision to see his country as a manufacturing country which he defined as a developed country.
The policy successfully attracts foreign investors with a huge amount of money which benefits the country. A lot of projects building skyscrapers and megaprojects to achieve modern standards that were parallel with that period. Everything was on the right track up until we entered the 21st Century. The urban fabric of the main city has worsened. Social problem was a major problem in urban areas due to housing problems, inflation economy and the education system.
Besides, the city was moving towards a car-centric city. The developer designed the infrastructure to benefit single-user transportation. The infrastructure includes house design, road framework and parking lots. Everyone was ‘forced’ to learn how to drive. or at least ride a motorcycle to their destination. It is considered a peak of failure in urbanism. This is because of the excessive thinking towards modernism and bad urban management. The rapid development without oversees all human aspects consumed back to them.
Figure 1. DASH Expressway (The Vibes, 2022)
Development and change are good but everything needs to be well planned. As a part of the profession in the built environment, the knowledge of urban planning is necessary to be parallel with the development. The balanced implication of all the vision provides an advantage to all parties without sacrificing anyone and providing space for all classes of people.
As the main body sees the local urban fabric, local authorities have to play important roles in projecting the population on the cities in order to meet the demand for infrastructure, housing, education and the healthcare system. However, they are not professionals in everything, they need to have other professionals to help them create a better urban environment. The built environment is not a single-party job. It requires all the professionals and the final user to contribute in respective aspects. Therefore, we have to spread awareness of the urban problem widely and develop a sense of responsibility for their own space and properties.
I am here to learn and promote what I believe. The world belongs to us and not to machines that give more disadvantages to us physically, psychologically, environmentally and financially. I believe that I am on the right path to studying human rights in urbanism and contributing towards a better urban lifestyle in the future, especially in my hometown.
