4
networks and patterns; collectively, these make up the wholeness of the system (DeKay, 2011,
p. 303; Koestler, 1967). The wholeness of spatial configurations is present in many natural occurring events, phenomena, our human interconnectedness with nature, and also in the aspects of complex systems behaviour (Alexander, 2003). In the context of the earth’s environment and climate,
this wholeness is evident in the Gaia theory
3
(Lovelock, 2009). We are part of this whole.
It is this connection to the ecological system that is evident in the teachings of Ian McHarg, where
the solution for a sustainable future lies within the processes of design with nature. In his book titled
Design with Nature (1992 [1969]), he provided a roadmap for applying ecological information to the
way we interpret, plan and shape our surroundings (McHarg & Steiner, 2006). John T. Lyle and Sim
Van der Ryn have put similar arguments forward that climate and the ecological system are influenced
by design (Lyle, 1994; McHarg, 1992 [1969]). Every building project large or small, city making or
settlement development contributes to climate moderation or extremity in some way or the other as
part of a watershed, ecological system, floodplain or coastal environment.
Further in the context of the whole as defined by Alexander (Alexander, 1979; Alexander,
2001–2005), it is not only the physical sciences and factors we must consider, but also human
dynamics—people’s needs and concerns of a particular place, and how people of that specific place
can produce reliable scientific knowledge. In A Pattern Language (Alexander et al., 1977) and in
the book The Timeless way of Building (Alexander, 1979), Alexander argues that it is the local residents of a town that have the knowledge of how such a place evolved over generations. This knowledge can be used to establish the patterns of the urban fabric. Alan Irwin (1995), a British sociologist,
defines this use of local knowledge as ‘Citizen Science’, where citizens themselves could produce
reliable scientific knowledge (Irwin, 1995). In the case study used in this book, it is indeed the case,
as local knowledge of the Great Ocean Road coast region in Australia is collected from local residents as well as from the Aboriginal peoples of the area, and synthesised to help to shape and form
a pattern language. The knowledge of how these settlements changed over time is fundamental to
the adaption planning for future changes. The local knowledge also informed the patterns and processes used to develop a regenerative-adaptive pattern language, further described in Chap. 11. It
is also clear that the accumulation of knowledge of a specific place over time and the regenerativeadaptive patterns of a place embody the deep interconnections between people and their natural
environments.
I argue thus that for human settlements to be resilient against changes of climate impacts, it is
necessary to understand the patterns of natural systems and the human systems, how we connect
within these patterns, and how we can use these patterns for adaptability. Further, using regenerativeadaptive pattern language principles that seek to develop approaches to support co-evolution of
human and natural systems (which goes beyond the basic requirement of sustainable development), I
propose in this book to apply these principles to the adaptation practice for climate change. A regenerative-adaptive methodology offers a holistic solution informed by nature, which is an integral player
in all settlement planning and design processes, to better craft and strengthen our future communities
(Roös & Jones, 2017). It is my argument that ‘designing with nature’, based on a regenerative- adaptive
approach, is an innovative (and possibly the only) way to achieve true resilience for both human and
natural environments in the future.
3 Lovelock describes in The Vanishing Face of Gaia (2009) that the Earth, with all these levels of organising, is a selfregulating complex system involving the biosphere, the atmosphere, the hydrosphere and the pedosphere, tightly connected as an evolving system. His Gaia theory argues that the Earth system is a whole, an interconnected system that
consists of a physical, biophysical and chemical environment optimal for contemporary life (Lovelock, 2009).
1 The State of the Planet: From Anthropocene Dominant to Regenerative-Adaptive Futures
networks and patterns; collectively, these make up the wholeness of the system (DeKay, 2011,
p. 303; Koestler, 1967). The wholeness of spatial configurations is present in many natural occurring events, phenomena, our human interconnectedness with nature, and also in the aspects of complex systems behaviour (Alexander, 2003). In the context of the earth’s environment and climate,
this wholeness is evident in the Gaia theory
3
(Lovelock, 2009). We are part of this whole.
It is this connection to the ecological system that is evident in the teachings of Ian McHarg, where
the solution for a sustainable future lies within the processes of design with nature. In his book titled
Design with Nature (1992 [1969]), he provided a roadmap for applying ecological information to the
way we interpret, plan and shape our surroundings (McHarg & Steiner, 2006). John T. Lyle and Sim
Van der Ryn have put similar arguments forward that climate and the ecological system are influenced
by design (Lyle, 1994; McHarg, 1992 [1969]). Every building project large or small, city making or
settlement development contributes to climate moderation or extremity in some way or the other as
part of a watershed, ecological system, floodplain or coastal environment.
Further in the context of the whole as defined by Alexander (Alexander, 1979; Alexander,
2001–2005), it is not only the physical sciences and factors we must consider, but also human
dynamics—people’s needs and concerns of a particular place, and how people of that specific place
can produce reliable scientific knowledge. In A Pattern Language (Alexander et al., 1977) and in
the book The Timeless way of Building (Alexander, 1979), Alexander argues that it is the local residents of a town that have the knowledge of how such a place evolved over generations. This knowledge can be used to establish the patterns of the urban fabric. Alan Irwin (1995), a British sociologist,
defines this use of local knowledge as ‘Citizen Science’, where citizens themselves could produce
reliable scientific knowledge (Irwin, 1995). In the case study used in this book, it is indeed the case,
as local knowledge of the Great Ocean Road coast region in Australia is collected from local residents as well as from the Aboriginal peoples of the area, and synthesised to help to shape and form
a pattern language. The knowledge of how these settlements changed over time is fundamental to
the adaption planning for future changes. The local knowledge also informed the patterns and processes used to develop a regenerative-adaptive pattern language, further described in Chap. 11. It
is also clear that the accumulation of knowledge of a specific place over time and the regenerativeadaptive patterns of a place embody the deep interconnections between people and their natural
environments.
I argue thus that for human settlements to be resilient against changes of climate impacts, it is
necessary to understand the patterns of natural systems and the human systems, how we connect
within these patterns, and how we can use these patterns for adaptability. Further, using regenerativeadaptive pattern language principles that seek to develop approaches to support co-evolution of
human and natural systems (which goes beyond the basic requirement of sustainable development), I
propose in this book to apply these principles to the adaptation practice for climate change. A regenerative-adaptive methodology offers a holistic solution informed by nature, which is an integral player
in all settlement planning and design processes, to better craft and strengthen our future communities
(Roös & Jones, 2017). It is my argument that ‘designing with nature’, based on a regenerative- adaptive
approach, is an innovative (and possibly the only) way to achieve true resilience for both human and
natural environments in the future.
3 Lovelock describes in The Vanishing Face of Gaia (2009) that the Earth, with all these levels of organising, is a selfregulating complex system involving the biosphere, the atmosphere, the hydrosphere and the pedosphere, tightly connected as an evolving system. His Gaia theory argues that the Earth system is a whole, an interconnected system that
consists of a physical, biophysical and chemical environment optimal for contemporary life (Lovelock, 2009).
1 The State of the Planet: From Anthropocene Dominant to Regenerative-Adaptive Futures