News

22 September 2019 - Alpa Nawre presents 'Constructing Publics and Places in Rural India' at the Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning Lecture Series at CED.

17 March 2019 - The Critical Places Team presented the Ahilyadevi Holkar Community Hall project’s public participation strategy and progress to Honorable Chief Minister of Maharashtra Shri Devendra Fadnavis ji, in the presence of Honorable Member of Parliament Dr. Vikas Mahatme ji, both of whom appreciated our efforts and accomplishments.

27 February 2019 - Daniel Martin with Permaloc Corporation moderates a conversation with Alpa Nawre to discuss her work as a Professor, Landscape Architect, and Executive Director of both Critical Places and Alpa Nawre Design.

13 December 2018 - In a blog post titled "First, We Must Listen," architecture firm Odimo tells of Lillian's work with Critical Places in India. The blog reflects on the importance of public participation and community engagement, and how this might translate from India to the United States.

Lillian believes buildings are rarely the first appropriate step to solve a problem . That as designers, "we must first listen and learn. We must first invest in the people and the places who already exist in the communities we wish to impact. Step two may be implementing educational opportunities. Or reforming policy. Or researching systemic shortcomings… step five may be a building. "

2018 - Executive Director Alpa Nawre’s Sector 34 Masterplan for Naya Raipur in the State of Chhattisgarh, introduces an alternative development strategy that integrates both rural and urban populations – complete with integrated agriculture and water management to develop a more sustainable, synergic lifestyle. This design has won a Honorable Mention Award in the International AAPME Design Competition (IFLA) for Analysis and Masterplanning as well as an ISOLA Award in the Unbuilt Design category. The Jury members commented that "Pressing issues of water conservation and food production have come to the fore-front in formulating a sustainable landscape strategy".

17 May 2018 - Alpa Nawre presents 'Design Interventions to Address Water and Other Issues in Rural India' as a conclusion to her yearlong journey as a fellow with the Landscape Architecture Foundation.

June 2018 - Navabharat Times Newspaper has published a press release celebrating Alpa Nawre’s Sector 34 Masterplan winning an International Federation of Landscape Architects Award for Analysis and Masterplanning.

(Translation) International Award for Naya Raipur Sector 34 Masterplan, design by Alpa Nawre

Raipur: Alpa Nawre, a young architect from Chhattisgarh, designed a masterplan that is being recognized not only nationally but internationally as well. An NIT Raipur B. Arch graduate, Alpa received a master’s degree in Urban Design from Harvard University. She has designed a master plan for Sector 34 in Naya Raipur – keeping in mind issues of water, open space and greenery. With this plan, in the future, the agricultural land and lives of rural inhabitants will not be disturbed, and there will no longer be a drinking water shortage. This plan has won an award in the Design Winning Entry for Analysis and Masterplanning category by the International Federation of Landscape Architects, Africa Asia Pacific Middle East. Alpa, a professor at the University of Florida, prepared this plan along with Saurabh Lohiya, Astrid Wong and Gaurav Lohiya under the firm name Alpa Nawre Design.

19 February 2018 - Dr. Vikas Mahatme, Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha), Padmashri Awarded Eye Specialist says Alpa Nawre and the Critical Places team completed a "Himalayeen task of bringing together people from all age groups of diverse socio economic backgrounds" while developing a village development plan in Dhamori, Maharashtra.

He says to the team: "You all have brought the people together and become part of the village community. Your work on the project with devotion in my adopted village Dhamori has touched my heart."

All of us at Critical Places are eternally grateful to Dr. Vikas Mahatme for his continued work and dedication to positively impacting the villages of Central India through design initiatives.

SUMMARY:

06 January 2018 - If there is determination in the heart, nothing is impossible. With this thought, a team from Chhattisgarh has changed the landscape of Dhamori Village in Maharashtra. This village was suffering from a water crisis, and the farmers were stressed from lack of irrigation. There was garbage spread everywhere. There used to be no facilities for children and teenagers to play, but with the village development plan prepared by the team from Critical Places, the irrigation problems of the Dhamori Village are now solved. The streets are cleaner and the art and paintings on the walls of the village give a whole new look to the community. This brings smiles to the residents of Dhamori, especially the children.

The Upper House (Rajyasabha) of Indian Parliament’s member (MP) Dr. Vikas Mahatme made a vital contribution to changing the state of Dhamori Village, which is adjacent to the city of Amravati in Maharashtra. Dr. Mahatme had adopted this village previously; however, the future development of Dhamori Village was not promising before Critical Places arrived. Thanks to Dr. Mahatme’s initiative and advice, a team from Critical Places came to the village and changed its landscape.

“This is the first time I had the opportunity to work in Dhamori, and I am happy that the people of the village are now aware of rainwater harvesting and waste management strategies. Our greatest achievement with the project in Dhamori is a change in mindset. The villagers no longer complain about various teams coming into their home that only think about themselves and do not care about the village and its villagers. I am very happy that this complaint came to rest with the development plan executed by the team members of Critical Places.” --Saurabh Lohiya

08 September 2017 - Alpa Nawre addresses healthy water infrastructure as a development tool in rural India, followed by a conversation with Bradford McKee, editor of Landscape Architecture Magazine.

10 June 2016 - This declaration was commissioned by the Landscape Architecture Foundation as part of its The New Landscape Declaration: A Summit on Landscape Architecture and the Future held in Philadelphia on June 10-11, 2016. Each of the 25 invited speakers was asked to write a 1,000-word “Declaration” of leadership and ideas for how landscape architecture can make its vital contribution in response to the challenges of our time and the next 50 years. In her talk, Alpa Nawre speaks about Developing Landscapes of Research Management. More at: https://lafoundation.org/summit”