Gardening in semi-open spaces in tropical high-rise housing: Environmental and social benefits

Abstract

With the rising concerns about sustainable development of high-rise residences, growing attention has been devoted to sky-green strategies. This dissertation aimed to identify the interrelationships between gardening in semi-open spaces, people and climatic performance within tropical high-rise housing and investigate the contributions of gardening in semi-open spaces in view of environmental as well as social sustainability. Through environmental measurements, observations, social survey and brief interviews of case studies in Singapore, the research demonstrated that gardening in semi-open spaces could create a comfortable thermal microenvironment, and enhance the relationship between neighbors through encouraging visual connection and various social contacts within a community. The combination of gardening and semi-open spaces could change the image of high-rise housing and introduce more greenery to the cities, which is essential for ameliorate urban environmental crises, such as heat island and green house effects. It sustains urban environments and communities, and improves the overall quality of living in both physical and psychological perspectives.