The First BiSP Lead-Up Event: From the Charter of Public Space to Habitat III

On January 29, the first lead-up event of the Biennial Public Space 2015 was held in Istituto Nazionale di Urbanistica.

Matina Halkia, a Scientific Officer at the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre, presented innovative mapping technique called Global Human Settlement Layer (GHSL) technology, which uses automatic image information retrieval making it possible to represent local, regional, and global human settlements.

The seminar was presented in the context of preparation for the upcoming Habitat III conference in 2016 where clear understanding of equitable public space is critical. Shortcomings in supply, quality and distribution of accessible and useable public spaces make it imperative to use affordable advanced mapping techniques for city-wide public space surveys. Therefore, GHSL open source technology will empower professionals, researchers, and government officials to better identify built, non-built, and green areas in order to make a sound decision for development projects.