Landscape Architecture Foundation ASU Orange Mall Green Infrastructure Landscape Performance
The Challenge
Advance the knowledge of green infrastructure and low-impact development design process and social-ecological outcomes in the hot and arid environment to be sustainable and resilient
The Approach
- Empirical research: apply design experiment and measurement for social, economic, and ecological indicators for sustainable landscapes
- Co-production of knowledge: collaborate with researcher, practitioners, and project clients
- Outreach: Disseminate research findings through effective documentation
Findings and Impact
The ASU Orange Mall project has been published to the Landscape Architecture Foundation’s award-winning Landscape Performance Series. This unique online database now includes over 150 exemplary landscape projects with quantified environmental, social, and economic benefits. The impact of ASU Orange Mall project was assessed and documented through LAF’s innovative Case Study Investigation (CSI) program, a unique research collaboration among faculty researchers, designers, and students. The ASU Orange Mall Project has been awarded the second-highest level as SITES GOLD-certified, the first one in ASU, and the second SITES-certified project in the State of Arizona.
The ASU Orange Mall project is designed with green infrastructure systems of a series of interconnected biodetention basins and low-impact development features. The project provides evidence of landscape design performance to conserve water, mitigate stormwater runoff, improve water quality, reduce urban heat, and provide social interaction and mental restoration benefits. This pilot project has strengthened collaboration between academic and operation units of the university to promote sustainable practices in campus landscape design and using campus as a living laboratory integrating research, education, and community outreach. This project provides evidence-based design for nature-based solutions applied in hot and arid climate for sustainable and resilient urban environments.