Alexandra Steed URBAN

Alexandra Steed URBAN London-based urban design and landscape architecture practice.

Check out my new article "The Current Landscape: From Challenge to Opportunity" on linkedIn. Stay tuned for the next art...
01/07/2024

Check out my new article "The Current Landscape: From Challenge to Opportunity" on linkedIn. Stay tuned for the next article in the coming week!

I've published a new article on LinkedIn. Follow the link below to read more about "The Call to Embrace Nature: From Exc...
01/07/2024

I've published a new article on LinkedIn. Follow the link below to read more about "The Call to Embrace Nature: From Exclusion to Inclusion".

Check out my latest article on LinkedIn: "Embracing Landscape: From Separation to Integration". Don't miss out!
01/07/2024

Check out my latest article on LinkedIn: "Embracing Landscape: From Separation to Integration". Don't miss out!

Check out my latest article: "Portrait to Landscape: Reframing Our Future" on LinkedIn. Follow the link below.
01/07/2024

Check out my latest article: "Portrait to Landscape: Reframing Our Future" on LinkedIn. Follow the link below.

I ended up in landscape architecture by chance, and it might sound cliché, but I loved it from the first day. I’ve never...
29/02/2024

I ended up in landscape architecture by chance, and it might sound cliché, but I loved it from the first day. I’ve never questioned myself about why I’m in this industry or if I would rather do something different. It has always made me feel at peace with myself, like I know I’m doing the right thing.

What I like the most about our job is that we are not only transforming and shaping our surroundings for the better, we are also creating individual and collective journeys.
- Vera Patricio | Senior Landscape Architect at URBAN

Exciting news! The Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) requirement in new developments officially became law on Feb. 12th, marki...
20/02/2024

Exciting news! The Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) requirement in new developments officially became law on Feb. 12th, marking a significant milestone for environmental conservation in the UK. In their latest podcast episode, I had the privilege of sitting down with Rachael Forsyth from Horticulture Week to delve into the potential and limitations of this ground-breaking legislation.

While the BNG initiative is undeniably a positive stride towards enhancing our natural environment and reversing ecological decline, there are critical concerns that deserve our attention. We explore these concerns, such as a piecemeal approach, potential loss of green space, ecological intensification, and the risk of over-prioritising and homogenising habitats that are easier to implement.

Importantly, we discuss the challenges posed by inadequate funding, resourcing, and skills within local governments, emphasising the need for long-term stewardship. Our conversation also delves into the advantages and disadvantages of this approach to integrated nature restoration.

Join us in this crucial dialogue! Your insights are invaluable as we navigate the complexities of this new legislation. Additionally, we touch upon my recently released book, "Portrait to Landscape," which advocates for a more comprehensive strategic landscape approach to genuinely prioritise the natural environment in our development plans.

Let's collectively work towards a sustainable and biodiverse future. Share your thoughts and be a part of this important conversation!

https://lnkd.in/eXF9MWuG

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) HortWeek

In celebration of the new UK Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) legislation that came into effect this week, we are sharing mor...
16/02/2024

In celebration of the new UK Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) legislation that came into effect this week, we are sharing more of the work recently completed at the SKY Innovation Centre, where BNG enhancement was a major driver of the scheme. The design concept was to place the Innovation Centre building within an embracing and cheerful woodland glade.

To achieve an overall net gain in biodiversity, hard surfaces were minimised, and wildlife-supporting habitats were enhanced and created. This included protecting existing trees, and introducing meadows, shrubs, hedgerows and native trees, along with well-placed bird and bat boxes, and log piles to support the struggling invertebrate populations.




Recently, I had the privilege to speak with Sarah Wilson on her uplifting . Among many other things, we spoke about why...
13/02/2024

Recently, I had the privilege to speak with Sarah Wilson on her uplifting . Among many other things, we spoke about why good landscape planning and management is essential to regenerative design, what a paradigm shift involves, and importantly, we spoke about the awesomeness, preciousness and fragility of the biosphere.

“The world is covered in a tapestry of spectacular landscapes, each possessing unique beauty. The grandest landscape of all – the biosphere – elegantly weaves all landscapes into one colourful garment that gracefully adorns the earth. Though majestic, it is also fragile, and each thread, each landscape, within this garment is essential to the integrity of the full garment. Like the human body, the biosphere is one living system that relies on all parts to maintain a vital whole.” - Portrait to Landscape

If you’d like to tune in to “Roots and All”, you can join us on Spotify and Apple podcasts.



Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) for major developments goes live today, 12 February 2024! BNG is a strategy to help ensure t...
12/02/2024

Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) for major developments goes live today, 12 February 2024!

BNG is a strategy to help ensure that habitats are left in a better state than before development.

This is the first time importance of habitats is being prioritised in the UK planning system. It is a big step forwards.



09/02/2024

In the latest episode of , I sit down with Catherine Barratt to discuss the themes of my new book and to consider how all of us as individuals can act to bring about the regeneration of our Earth by healing our relationship with nature in the world’s landscapes. We talk about a new way of seeing, a new way of thinking, and a new way of inhabiting the Earth with integrity, supported by practical strategies to guide us.

Are you ready to join us in this important conversation? Join us in “The Green Room” on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.



“This year, World Wetlands Day reminds us that our health is dependent on the health of wetlands, because wetlands are t...
02/02/2024

“This year, World Wetlands Day reminds us that our health is dependent on the health of wetlands, because wetlands are these great wonders of nature, perfectly balanced systems that perform absolutely vital functions for us and for nature. They store water during times of drought, absorb water during floods, filter pollutants and they help to provide clean drinking water and water for crops.” - Inger Andersen, Executive Director, United Nations Environment Programme
Wetlands – locations where water meets land, including marshes, floodplains, peatlands, swamps, estuaries, mangroves, lagoons and coral reefs - are dynamic habitats that are facing significant threats from the expansion of human activities, including farming and other industries. The decline of wetland areas is occurring at an alarming rate, disappearing three times faster than forests, according to the IPBES assessment. In the twentieth century, wetland conversion and loss were almost four times faster than before, with losses of up to 70 percent of wetlands in 1900. Thousands of hectares were drained to provide agriculture, industry, and housing land.
Globally, humankind has treated wetlands as wastelands, dumping tons of sewage, industrial waste, fertilisers, pesticides, and other nasty things into these precious habitats. With over 40 percent of the world’s species reliant in some way on wetlands—including amphibians, crustaceans, and a variety of birds—the loss of these places is forcing many species to the brink of extinction.
Take for example the far-reaching impact of London’s ecological footprint on its estuary environment. Its effects are starkly visible, especially in Essex, where once wild and stunning marshlands have been filled with London’s waste, industry, and agriculture over the last four hundred years, reducing 30,000 hectares (74,000 acres) of thriving intertidal salt marsh to a struggling 2,500 hectares (6,200 acres). A colossal loss on many counts.
Unfortunately, the beauty and value of these messy coastal habitats have been and still are, misunderstood. Not only are they a haven for wildlife—teeming with a myriad of species within their thick herbaceous vegetation, mud, and waters—but a source of livelihood and food for local communities. Importantly, they are incredibly effective carbon sinks—soaking up our excessive emissions—and robust and adaptable flood barriers. They protect the land like an absorptive cushion from the wave action of increasing storm surges and flooding.
Landscape initiatives, such as the Sponge City project in China, offer exciting possibilities to restore wetlands on a grand scale. Our strategic landscape work in South Essex espouses a similar restorative approach to rehabilitating these essential habitats at a regional scale in the Thames Estuary (as shown in the image).

Delighted to see the landscape in the BiBB Plaza establishing quickly, since the planting was implemented in early 2023 ...
30/01/2024

Delighted to see the landscape in the BiBB Plaza establishing quickly, since the planting was implemented in early 2023 (see the photo of the cherry trees in blossom). The thinking behind the entire SKY campus was to situate the buildings within a soft and lush garden that refreshes and inspires while promoting chance encounters and intuitive wayfinding.

The former irregular and fragmented spaces of the plaza have been transformed into a unified ‘university quad’, including a central lawn and café spill-out area with a deep planting bed, which provides opportunities for outdoor dining and working, broadcasting & small events.

Despite being heavily constrained by underground utilities, our landscape scheme worked around it and placed the path system, lighting and trees carefully. Together with the planting beds, these have provided seasonal interest (especially the many blossoming cherry trees!) and introduced a human scale to the space.




Address

6-14 Underwood Street
London
N17JQ

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 6pm
Tuesday 9am - 6pm
Wednesday 9am - 6pm
Thursday 9am - 6pm
Friday 9am - 6pm

Telephone

+442038215844

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Alexandra Steed URBAN posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Alexandra Steed URBAN:

Shortcuts

Share

Category