Landscape architecture in rural India - lessons for developing countries from Dhamori village

ABSTRACT

Contemporary discussions in landscape architecture focus primarily on urban settlements. Yet, a majority of human populations in developing countries still reside in rural settlements. This article explores the role of landscape architects in a typical agrarian settlement in central India, Dhamori, to demonstrate that such contexts in developing countries are unexplored territories for designers. In such areas, there is a huge unmet need for developing landscape infrastructural strategies and site-specific designs. Additionally, it is imperative to inspire villagers to become agents of change within their communities and educate them on best practices for engaging with the built environment, if needed. Through the process and proposed improvements in the built environment that would improve Dhamori villagers’ quality of life, this article argues that landscape architecture has much to learn about disciplinary contributions in such contexts and as much to contribute in rural contexts in developing countries as in urban contexts, if not more so.

KEYWORDS:

• Rural design
• developing countries
• India
• multifunctional landscape infrastructure
• public interest design
• design issues in villages

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the support and assistance of the institutions and individuals who made this exploratory work possible. The Landscape Architecture Foundation provided not only the necessary funding but also the mentoring needed to accomplish this project. We would like to thank Saurabh Lohiya and Skandha Upadhyay as fellow participants conducting research and contributing to design and construction in Dhamori. We would also like to thank Member of Parliament Dr. Vikas Mahatme, as well as the entire Dhamori community and associated officials for the opportunity to work with them and for their support.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was funded by the Landscape Architecture Foundation’s Fellowship for Innovation and Leadership.

Notes on contributors

Alpa Nawre

Alpa Nawre is Assistant Professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture at University of Florida, and Partner at Alpa Nawre Design and Director of Critical Places. She is a recipient of the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture Award for Excellence in Design Studio Teaching, the Dumbarton Oaks Mellon Fellowship in Urban Landscape Studies, and the Board of Directors of Landscape Architecture Foundation Fellowship for Innovation and Leadership. She holds a Masters degree in Urban Design from Harvard Graduate School of Design, a Masters in Landscape Architecture from LSU, and a Bachelor in Architecture from NIT, Raipur, India. She has worked internationally in design offices in India, USA, UAE and Switzerland and serves on the editorial board of JAE, the Journal of Architectural Education, Harvard GSD Alumni Council, and the Board of Directors of Landscape Architecture Foundation.

Tsz Wai (Astrid) Wong

Tsz Wai (Astrid) Wong works at Sasaki as a landscape designer. She obtained her Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees in Landscape Architecture from Kansas State University in 2018 and the University of Hong Kong in 2013 respectively. She practiced for two years in Hong Kong before pursuing a master’s degree. Astrid is committed to the social and environmental responsibility of landscape architects to advocate for public ecological literacy, community participation, and stewardship through the creation of quality public space with the application of sustainable design principles. From several field trips in the villages in India and China, she is particularly aware of the role as a landscape architect in impoverished, marginal rural communities.

Leslie Boyle-Milroy

Leslie Boyle-Milroy graduated with a Master’s of Landscape Architecture from University of Minnesota in 2018 and currently works as an independent consultant in Washington State. Her longstanding interest in historical research has informed her work examining people’s sociocultural ties to their environment and the relationship between past and present design practices, especially related to sustainable resource management. In 2017, she received the National ASLA Rising Star in Advocacy Award and, in 2018, the UMN College of Design’s Outstanding Graduate Student Award and the Women in Landscape Architecture Student Leadership Award.