Documenting & Visualizing Sunlight in Toronto’s Core
This study documents and visualizes the relationships between sunlight, built form, and public life in Toronto’s core. Photographs and stop-motion videos document the movement of sunlight and differences in human behaviour in varying sunlight conditions. Maps and diagrams made with Rhino3D/Ladybug visualize the annual sunlight conditions throughout the study area. This research builds upon prior studies and observes a strong relationship between sunlight and public life that changes with the seasons. This paper presents a series of recommendations including the protection, expansion, and intensification of public space in winter’s sunlight – especially on pedestrian-oriented shopping streets – and encourages the use of large deciduous trees to regulate sunlight across the seasons. There is a need to act fast since the built form of downtown Toronto is changing rapidly. While this research and its recommendations pertain to Toronto, they can be applied
This paper was the result of my Master of Landscape Architecture Thesis project at the University of Guelph.
Treaty City: Revealing Toronto’s Storied Past in the Contemporary Urban Landscape
This paper explored the history and relevance of treaties in Toronto’s contemporary urban landscape and proposed a design project that captures the spirit of Indigenous place-making, while also encouraging non-Indigenous city dwellers to engage with their own reality as treaty people.
This paper was the result of a class with Professor Larry Harder at the University of Guelph.
Dynamic Transit
Dynamic Transit (DT) was the topic of my undergraduate honours thesis in 2014. DT is a platform that lets transit riders 'order' a ride on their smartphone or tablet. In turn, a shuttle would come pick up the passenger from their front door and bring them to the local transit hub. Metrolinx co-sponsored my research, and implemented a DT pilot project in Milton, ON.
Undergraduate thesis advisor: Jean Andrey, Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Environment at the University of Waterloo.