60 418 Post-Petroleum landscapes (Spring 2027)

The course will examine the theoretical background of the concept of “Post-Petroleum Landscapes” and analyse a selection of European case studies.

What is the post-petroleum era? Fossil fuels are becoming rarer and more costly, ushering in a new era that is named ‘post-oil’ to indicate the major changes this energy transition will bring to our way of organising the Earth’s space and production, and to our way of living and moving about. The issue is that the new modes of living will again reshape our landscapes - which ones?

The course aims to bring together know-how for this future that is just facing us.

Part 1: Why do we look at different post-petroleum case studies? In times of climate change and a necessary energy transition, we look for alternatives.  

Part 2: Incidences of an energy transition at a local scale of a community and larger global-scale incidences; reading essays on this topic: economists', philosophers ', and designers' roles

Part 3: Analysis of selected projects in rural, mountainous, and metropolitan landscapes in different European countries.

The aim is to present the evolution of these landscapes before the petrol age, during the petrol age, and in the possible post-petrol age, and to evaluate the necessary adaptation and the possible role of landscape architects.

Final: exposition of the case studies analysed by the students.

At the conclusion of the course the student should be able to:

Knowledge

•  At the end of the course, the student will have acquired a vocabulary related to post-petroleum notions and concepts.

• Understand the different methods and tools and the possible role of landscape architects in the post-petroleum era.

•  Have worked on SOD Giga mapping, meaning understanding linked and necessary interventions at large-scale landscape transformation and local scales for adaptive landscape

•    Have an introduction to the circular economy in the frame of productive landscapes.

•   The necessary community engagement tools are not tested during the course but listed.

Skills:

• The elective aims to give in-depth knowledge of the post-petroleum notions and actions.

• Understand the role of landscape architects in planning, designing and proposing the management of landscapes undergoing transformation

•   Draw short-, medium-, and long-term landscapes – Notion of Time in landscape architecture and anticipatory long-term landscape proposals.

Part 1) consists mostly of lectures from the course responsible and invited online guests, as well as an exploration of the literature list linked to the topic.

Part 2) is a reflection and open debate with the students, thanks to a possible SOD course (to be confirmed ), to reveal all the incidents and leverage possibilities.

Part 3) Students' research work: group work by two students on a case study. Redesign before, during and possible after post-petroleum landscapes. The analysis will include an understanding of local governance (stakeholders), whether alternative energy production is present at the site, farming transformations, habitat changes, and the notion of a circular economy. ,Finally, it will examine the role of designers in this adaptation and transformation process.

The elective course will run on Tuesday Mornings, and individual work is expected on Tuesday afternoons.

Physical attendance at lectures, reviews, supervision sessions, discussions, and other educational activities is expected and necessary in order to achieve the learning outcomes

Assessment method: Project with oral examination and assignment submission

Grouping: Individual and group work in combination

Grading scale: Pass/fail

In order to be assessed in this course, the student must have completed the following activities and assignments and posted it on the Moddle platform.

Part 1) All lectures have a Mind-mapping exercise to understand relationships. We discuss mind maps each week before the new lecture.

Part 2) SOD Giga mapping with all students together.

Part 3) a Leporello of min 6 pages and max 20 pages A3.  Students work in groups of two.

Use of AI needs to be clearly cited! For instead:

Citing AI Text, Key Words, or Code (APA Style)

• In-Text Citation: (OpenAI, date you conculted the AI) or narratively OpenAI (date).
• Reference List: OpenAI. ChatGPT (indicate which version of ChatGPT) [Large language model]. https://chatgpt.com...
• Method/Text Mention: Detail the exact prompt used inside your methodology or main narrative (e.g., “When prompted with [key words/query], ChatGPT generated...”).

Citing AI-Generated Images (MLA / APA Style)

• Figure Caption: Label the image clearly and define the prompt in the caption text.
• Format: Fig. 1. “Your exact prompt text” prompt, [Name of AI Tool],