Over the past 20 years the term outdoor learning (OL) has evolved and gained pace, showing positive effects on school children’s development with participation on a weekly basis, writes Joe Bogumsky for Outlearn.
In 2016 Plymouth University delivered The Natural Connections Demonstration project, the UK’s largest OL project, and found new evidence showing benefits of OL for schools relating to health, wellbeing and development for students – with additional positive impacts for teachers and the wider school community.
To support schools and teachers to set up and run effective, sustained OL programs, the authors provide guides for getting started, policy and curriculum planning.
A green transformation for the ‘world’s most beautiful avenue’
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo has green-lit plans for a $305 million ‘extraordinary garden’ by architects PCA-Stream, running along the Champs Elysées and roughly halving the space allotted to cars, with planted ‘living rooms’ and more small-scale shops.
The project, ‘Re-Enchanting the Champs Elysées,’ due for completion by 2030, is arguably overdue says Feargus O’Sullivan, writing for Bloomberg CityLab.
According to designers PCA-Stream, the Champs Elysées has an image problem among Parisians – who think of it as touristy and an assembly point for large international chain stores, akin to an airport.
PCA-Stream says it aims to bring back a promenade experience, with flâneurs strolling along the historic boulevard in greater comfort thanks to a reduction in motor traffic.
They also have plans for green spaces – “planted ‘living rooms’ will offer spaces to take breaks.”
“The gardens and the port of the Champs-Élysées, which are nowadays all but forgotten by Parisians, have extraordinary potential for new green spaces and to offer a place of experience and contemplation,” the architects say.
“In the gardens, now newly accessible and freed from the nuisances brought about by car traffic, an exciting program is rolled out based around fine cuisine, sports, well-being, arts and sciences, with playgrounds to accommodate families and children. A varied range of plants augments the biodiversity using species that are adapted to climate warming and which provide shade and freshness to pedestrians.”
To celebrate the unveiling of the Piatto Chair at our annual product launch party with AILA NSW in Sydney, Jazz at The Mint, clients were invited to enter this quirky contest. The competition called for teams to incorporate Piatto Chairs into an ‘Awkward Family Photo’ portrait, for a chance to win Piatto Chairs of their very own. Congratulations to the creative crew from Yerrabingin, who delivered the strongest awkward family vibes on the night. Highly commended goes to the entrants below, and the full photo gallery from the event is available for viewing. Please contact marketing@streetfurniture.com if you would like to request a high res file to print and frame for your best room.
Clients from Sydney, Adelaide, California and Texas joined Street Furniture Australia and AILA NSW to celebrate the unveiling of new products on March 14, 2024, with margaritas and live music. Jazz at The Mint is an annual product launch held at The Mint, an iconic site in the heart of the Sydney CBD. It is an elegant affair and a unique opportunity to connect with landscape architects and built environment professionals at a global scale. This year’s party featured the new Linea Planter System and upcoming Piatto Chair, a single-seater hybrid between cafe and robust public space furniture – available now for specifications. The gathering was opened by Uncle Allan Murray, representing the Metropolitan Aboriginal Land Council, with speeches from: Ben Stockwin, AILA CEO, acknowledged the 10 year relationship with …
The Street Furniture Australia factory, in Regents Park, Western Sydney, is both a manufacturing hub and R&D studio for our Australian-designed and made street furniture products. We run fun and informative group events for customers throughout the year, to share how products are designed, tested and built, and the latest products and projects. This tour is open to design specifiers such as landscape architects and architects, and place custodians including Councils, government agencies, developers and other place managers. Director of Tract Julie Lee said: “It was a great opportunity for our team to look behind the scenes and understand the innovation, research and climate positive outcomes Street Furniture Australia is focusing on. Thank you for having us!” Place Design Group Associate, Liam Isaksen, said: “The factory tour is a fun …
The rise of functional art: Public art can blend both form and function, blurring boundaries between the street object and the outcome people get from their engagement with it. Making art an everyday experience is integral to some of the best public spaces and cities around the world. The right mix of permanent or temporary installations can reflect identity and create vibrancy in an area. The artsy bus shelter pictured above (left) offers a playful and engaging option for those seeking transportation. And the water droplet shape – pictured above right – first appears to be a sculpture, but on closer inspection reveals itself to be a water fountain for refilling drink bottles. The design of the fountain – called the O fountain – is courtesy of Melbourne based ‘O …
Google allowing employees to hold some meetings outdoors: Google has begun holding in-person meetings outdoors on company campuses as it prepares for employees to return to offices next year, according to CNBC. The company said it is trialing socially-distanced meeting formats called “onsite off-sites” as it tries to find ways to hold more employee collaboration amid the pandemic, and to bring aboard new hires. Google was the first major tech company to ask employees to stay home when the pandemic started, and is now experimenting with ways to gather people on campuses slowly and safely. It gave workers the option to work from home until summer of 2021. In September, after finding that most employees wanted to return in a part-time capacity, Google CEO Sundar Pichai said the company would …
Seoul is Planning ‘Wind Path Forests’ to Direct Fresh Air to the CBD: Seoul has announced plans to bring a concept called ‘wind path forests’ to life, to direct clean air into the city, absorb particles and lessen the urban heat island effect. Trees will be placed close together along rivers and roads to create wind paths so clean and cool air generated at night from Gwanaksan Mountain and Bukhansan Mountain can flow into the centre of Seoul. Three kinds of forests will direct and purify air, according to Cities Today. Wind-generating forests, including species such as pine trees and maple trees, will be cultivated so that they direct the fresh air from the forest to flow towards the city. Connecting forests will feature air-purifying plants, such as wild cherry …
