Tag Archives: collaboration

The University of Edinburgh and Beijing Institute of Technology Joint Laboratory of Healthy Space Exhibition launch and Seminar

Join us at the exhibition launch of the Joint Laboratory of Healthy Space student research and design work followed by a seminar from Dr Mo Han

From 9-13 February, 2026 an exhibition will be held in the Matthew Gallery in Minto House, Chambers Steet, showcasing three different sets of work associated with the Joint Lab of Healthy Space established between the School of Design and Art at Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT) and OPENspace Research Centre and Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture at ECA. This joint lab was set up in early 2023 and collaboration has included summer schools, doctoral seminars and joint publications.

This exhibition features results from the 2024 summer school in BIT, where designs were intended to improve a blue space in Beijing, outputs from the MArch programme at ESALA which feature the design of edge structures along blue spaces, results of the Landscape and Wellbeing programme course on “Landscape design for health and wellbeing” featuring the Union Canal in Edinburgh and doctoral research in landscape architecture which focuses on various types of green and blue spaces and their health and wellbeing potential.

The curators of the exhibition are Professor Simon Bell, co-director of OPENspace, Iain Scott, Senior Lecturer responsible for the MArch course which is showcased, and Dr Mo Han, Associate Professor of BIT and organiser of the summer schools.

Following the opening, Dr Han will present some of her work at an OPENspace seminar, to take place in Seminar Room 4 at Minto House.

Exhibition launch details

Date and Time: Monday 9^th February 2026, 12pm

Location: Matthew gallery, Minto House, Chamber Street (In-Person only)

OPENspace Seminar

Date and Time: Monday 9^th February 2026, 1pm-2pm

Speaker: Dr Mo Han

Location: Seminar Room 4, Minto House

To Register to view the Seminar online please sign up for an online admission ticket through the exhibition event and a Seminar link will be sent to you.

Title: ‌Integrated Strategies for Rural Landscape Planning and Sustainable Development‌ based on Landscape Character Assessment and Cultural Ecosystem Service.

China is currently facing a comprehensive undertaking of rural revitalization. In order to continue the Chinese agricultural civilization and explore the profound rural civilization of our country, it is necessary to base on the historical heritage of rural civilization and the deep value of rural landscapes, and promote the organic unity of rural culture with agricultural economy, ecological environment, and social value. This study is based on the theory of Landscape Character Assessment, deeply analyzes the essence of rural landscape features in China and their Landscape Capacity in response to transformation, and incorporates artificial intelligence technology to carry out scientific and precise pre-planning for rural development, aiming to organically integrate the protection of rural historical value with the development of rural ecological civilization.

Speaker Bio:

Mo Han is an Associate Director of BIT-UoE Joint Laboratory of Healthy Space and Associate Professor at the School of Design and Arts at the Beijing Institute of Technology.

The Urban Blue Spaces Chinese translation was officially launched at the Beijing Institute of Technology

Professor Simon Bell visited the Beijing Institute of Technology Joint Lab of Healthy Space in early January. One of the main activities was the launch of the Chinese translation of the book Urban Blue Spaces, originally published in 2022.

An audience of professors and students attended and the book was presented by Dr Mo Han, the translation editor who not only explained the book but also illustrated how its messages could be and already are being applied in research at BIT and in China.

The launch was followed by a panel discussion and presentations of research by BIT PhD students who are working on aspects of blue spaces.

ECA, ESALA and OPENspace welcomes the delegation from the Harbin Institute of Technology

A delegation from the Faculty of Architecture and Landscape Architecture at Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT) – Professor Yang Yu, Associate professor Qi Guo and two PhD students Keli Wang and Yuxin Huang – visited ECA, ESALA and OPENspace on the 26 and 27 of November. They toured the architecture and landscape architecture studios with Iain Scott and Simon Bell, met ESALA staff to discuss cooperation and joined a research seminar with landscape architecture PhD students. Simon Bell has been teaching at HIT since 2015 and has built strong connections with the staff and students.

Prof Simon Bell and Iain Scott visit the Beijing Institute of Technology, strengthening ongoing collaboration

In early July 2024, Professor Simon Bell and Iain Scott visited the Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT), where they took part in a number of activities including a summer school with students, academic meetings with Tsinghua and Peking Universities in Beijing, and a seminar on BlueHealth at the BIT campus in Zhuhai, in the south of China.

The summer school focused on students designing a blue space in a local park and Simon and Iain introduced the theories and practical usages of the BlueHealth Behaviour Assessment Tool (BBAT) and the BlueHealth Environmental Assessment Tool (BEAT) to the students. Iain was also appointed as a visiting professor during the visit.

This visit follows the establishment of the Joint Lab on Healthy Spaces by BIT and OPENspace in the Summer of 2023 and a successful visit by faculty and students from BIT in early May (Read News post here). Looking ahead, another visit by the Edinburgh College of Art’s Head of School and Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (ESALA) and OPENspace researchers is planned for December 2024, and there’s potential for a Joint Lab conference in 2026. There are a few other exciting initiatives in the works, including the launch of an ‘International Journal of Healthy Space.’

Landscape Forum 2024: Tartu and South Estonia

The Landscape Forum 2024 will take place in Tartu, Estonia, from 24-28 June 2024.

The forum, which is hosted by the Estonian University of Life Sciences (EMU), will focus on the topic of The Landscape as the Container of the Bioeconomy with working groups on water, forests, fibrescapes, foodscapes, mobility and nature tourism. As well as cross-cutting themes on landscape economy and landscape democracy.

The Landscape Forum aims to stimulate knowledge building, collaboration and action for local sustainable development, while integrating a European dimension. It provides a unique opportunity to interact creatively with colleagues from a range of landscape disciplines through informal workshops and in field visit settings.

Registration is now open, with early bird fees applicable until 30 April 2024.