(1) Water Management – Water is the most discussed and debated topic all over the world and a plethora of treaties and conventions have eulogized its sustainable uses. Urban Lakes or Water Bodies are very important features in the landscape. They can influence the micro-climate as well as enhance the aesthetic beauty of the landscape and offer various recreational opportunities. The need to initiate efforts to restore, conserve, manage and maintain the water bodies as an inseparable part of the ecosystem cannot be undermined. Various problems are associated with urban Water Bodies like high influx of sediments, disposal of sewage, solid waste disposal, improper management of stormwater, land reclamation purposes, etc., can upset the biodiversity of the lake.
With an intent to create public awareness and strengthen the drive for revitalization of the uyyakondan canal CARE School of Architecture has been working on various levels. A team from CARE School of Architecture presented their point of view and interacted with the public to gather their opinions, at public forums. This was introduced as a studio project at the school during 2017. The school is continuously working on various ways and methods, in order to gain attention towards the canal revitalisation. Our college artists have done murals of Uyyakondan, at some busy city junctions.
(2) Heritage Documentation & Mapping – Documentation and mapping of heritage structures are indispensable, for purposes of identification, protection, interpretation, and physical preservation of movable objects, historic buildings, archaeological sites, and cultural landscapes. The 1972 UNESCO Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage included the provision that a World Heritage Committee be established, to which each party state would submit an inventory of its national heritage. Article 2 of the Council of Europe’s Convention for the Protection of the Architectural Heritage of Europe (Granada, 1985) states that: For the purpose of precise identification of the monuments, groups of buildings and sites to be protected, each Party undertakes to maintain inventories and in the event of threats to the properties concerned, to prepare appropriate documentation at the earliest opportunity.
With a vision of mapping and documenting the structures of historic importance in and around the Delta region, we have set up CARE PEP (People Environment and Place), an exclusive research cell for documenting unknown, yet significant historic structures. We intend to create a repository of heritage structures, their history, architectural characteristics, oral histories, etc., over a period. We have recently added measured drawing of historic sites, a part of the Architectural Drawing module for the second semester students. A chola temple from 9th century and a ghat structure at Thanjavur were the latest documentation works undertaken by the architecture students.
(3) Urban Housing
(4) Computational Design
(5) Sustainability and Design
(6) Vernacular Architecture
