Escuela de Politécnica Superior

The promotion or access to certain energy technologies has changed the humanized landscape throughout history; cities have been born around, and because of an energy source, or have been displaced in order for energy-related infrastructures to take their spot. However, and for any city from its very beginning, energy paradigm shifts have deeply altered their morphology. Not only extraction, but especially transformation and transport of resources materializes in artefacts, often controversial and soon-to-be obsolete. This is especially patent in the ever-changing city boundaries; the fringe of ‘proximity’, where the collision between the countryside and the urban mesh embodies the relations and contradictions between urban growth, energy demand and landscape protection. In a context of growing cities (both in terms of expansion of its artificial land and in terms of energy demand), we are facing two paths which not always converge: an inevitable low carbon transition and a growing sensitivity towards ordinary landscapes. This article, within the framework of the project ‘Proximity landscapes of the city of Madrid. From the 19thC to the present’, studies the development of the city of Madrid in relation to its energy access and management, in a series of key stages: mid-19thC (before the bourgeois enlargement plan approved in 1860), early 20thC (when the introduction of electricity powered a deep urban transformation and outlaying urban cores were annexed), mid-late 20thC (when a rural exodus took place and the peripheries of Madrid grew rapidly) and today.

The image that a city offers when approaching it, depending on its topographical situation, the drawing of its borders or its urban form, generates a perceptive construction, for both locals and tourists, with the potential to become an iconic image and therefore play a part in the collective imagery. The character and value of those landscapes is largely determined by their green spaces, preserved in most European cities for their ecological or historical significance. Being able to recognize the worthiness of these proximity visions, in the context of today’s growing cities, is of fundamental relevance in order to enhance the sense of place, amongst other community values. In this communication we study the above-mentioned aspects in the image of the city of Madrid, within the framework of the project ‘Proximity landscapes of the city of Madrid. From the 19thC to the present’ currently in process. Through a landscape analysis of a selection of iconographic representations of the surroundings of the city, we draw special attention to the presence of historical green spaces throughout time, and its relation with architectural landmarks in the progressive construction of an iconic image of the city. From here, we can deduce the relevance that these elements have in the generation of a recognizable character and the decisive role of protection mechanisms in order to preserve it.

A growing city adapts and transforms the pre-existing topography, and with its urban fabric defines an ever-changing contour throughout history; this contour is not a clear line, but rather a fringe, where city and countryside meet and create occupancy systems that are crucial to comprehend the evolution of the urban form. We can consider this fringe as ‘proximity’ landscapes: landscapes that are perceived when the city is either a destination or a point of departure. The vision from afar, or when progressively approaching the city, provides both locals and tourists with certain landscape and architectural aspects that should be studied, preserved and valued for their ability to generate meaningful spaces. In this communication we study the surrounding landscapes of Madrid by means of a Landscape Character Assessment, within the framework of the project ‘Proximity landscapes of the city of Madrid. From the 19thC to the present’ currently in process. Combining graphic analysis of historical cartography at a metropolitan scale with perceptive analysis techniques, special attention is drawn to certain axes and significant lookouts of the city, mapping them and evaluating their visual basins. This characterization leads to distinguishing three main landscape types surrounding Madrid, according to physical, natural and anthropogenic structures: one predominantly natural, one mainly industrial and service-related, and a third one with special historical relevance.

Para que la visión del paisaje de una ciudad esté completa, es necesario estudiar su imagen desde el territorio que la rodea. Aproximarse a una ciudad desde diversos puntos ofrece visiones muy diferentes, las cuales, para el caso de estudio que se plantea, Madrid, presentan marcados y diferentes caracteres. Dentro de estos tipos de paisaje, se plantea identificar ciertos ámbitos que actúan como “umbral urbano” y sirven de nexo de unión entre lo que no es ciudad y lo que sí. Son espacios que recogen el legado histórico de elementos patrimoniales a la par que se conjugan con nuevos hitos y recientes intervenciones, pero todos ellos nos hacen reconocer que entramos en la ciudad de Madrid. Por su situación topográfica, accesos y características morfológicas, hace que su visión lejana tenga un gran interés cultural, turístico y paisajístico. Además, por el reciente espectacular crecimiento de su periferia y la alta densidad de población en la misma, supone un caso paradigmático de paisaje periurbano a nivel europeo, que necesita de estudio y reflexión. Se pretende analizar, a través de algunos ejemplos, el espacio periurbano de Madrid integrando valores naturales y culturales, para determinar el papel que los ejes principales de acceso, los hitos arquitectónicos y las infraestructuras verdes juegan en la definición de los umbrales de la ciudad, en esos espacios de contacto entre lo periurbano y lo urbano.

Recorrer el paisaje supone un diálogo con el territorio fundamental a la hora de conocer y analizar sus valores y características, ligando la acción humana con el espacio y con el tiempo. Así, el camino, o la carretera, se convierte en un elemento que canaliza las vistas y narra la siempre dinámica y cambiante lectura de un territorio. La percepción del paisaje visto desde la carretera se hace especialmente relevante ante el fenómeno de dispersión urbana. Las tendencias de urbanización creciente de las últimas décadas han conducido a una movilidad cotidiana cada vez más amplia y veloz, favoreciendo la proliferación de espacios ‘servidores’ a la ciudad en una franja cada vez más extensa y difusa en torno al centro. Esta ‘urbanización del territorio’ en la zona de proximidad a Madrid se viene conformando en torno a siete ejes radiales: ‘corredores metropolitanos’ que asumen la función de soporte territorial de estos viajes. Se plantea el análisis de la franja periurbana de Madrid a través de dichos corredores. Para ello, se diseñan y aplican técnicas metodológicas específicas y extrapolables a otros casos o a periferias de otras poblaciones: observación directa, inventario fotográfico secuencial, análisis de contenido y generación de cartografía. Los resultados pretenden ahondar en la caracterización del área periurbana de Madrid, así como enriquecer el catálogo de herramientas de estudio disponibles para los agentes que intervienen en el planeamiento y diseño de estas áreas periurbanas, destinadas a crecer en las décadas venideras.

El estudio del paisaje en general, y de las infraestructuras verdes en particular, es especialmente complejo, principalmente para atender a los aspectos perceptivos que exige toda caracterización. El uso de un análisis cualitativo para el estudio de la percepción en los casos de estudio permite profundizar en los detalles y matices que surgen al analizar lo que la literatura ha denominado la visión «no experta» del paisaje. Para este análisis de la percepción de la infraestructura verde urbana se utiliza una metodología cualitativa, apoyada en el software NVIVO. El software se usa para codificar las respuestas de una serie de entrevistas semiestructuradas que se realizan en los casos de estudio; parques metropolitanos del contorno de la ciudad de Madrid, que permita estudiar su percepción. Para la codificación, se hace un proceso de “decantación”: se empieza por una codificación abierta, se pasa a una codificación axial, para terminar con una codificación selectiva, creando así una jerarquía entre los principales conceptos (denominados “nodos”) que surgen a lo largo de las entrevistas. El análisis metodológico propuesto tiene como objetivo entender la percepción de los elementos que forman parte de la red de infraestructura verde del contorno de Madrid. Los resultados obtenidos demuestran que estas técnicas de entrevista aportan resultados significativos con una muestra relativamente pequeña de entrevistas. Tras el desarrollo de esta investigación, se ha optado por el uso de esta nomenclatura: «técnica» y «cotidiana» para referirnos a las miradas al paisaje. Así, se ahonda en el sentido del lugar, la conectividad, multifuncionalidad y accesibilidad de la infraestructura verde urbana o en la imagen de la ciudad.

Providing conditions for health and well-being, especially for those most exposed to social and environmental inequalities, is a precondition for sustainable development. Green infrastructures in peri-urban areas have the potential to improve the quality of life of locals by fostering healthy practices, providing views, or bringing nature closer to the city. This work explores the local perception of well-being within urban green infrastructures (UGI) in the peri-urban fringe of Madrid (Spain) through a combination of qualitative methods: “go-alongs” and “semi-structured static interviews”. The grounded-theory based codification of the data using NVivo software and their subsequent analysis results in the identification of social, natural, and perceptual elements that prove to play a relevant role in locals’ perception of well-being. Among these, connectivity with other green spaces, panoramic views and place-based memories are aspects that seem to make UGI serve the community at its full potential, including perceived physical and psychological well-being. We identify in each case study both positive characteristics of UGI and dysfunctional aspects and areas of opportunity. Lastly, a methodological, geographical, and theoretical discussion is made on the relevance of the case studies and pertinence of the two interview methods as valuable tools for analysis and intervention in the peri-urban landscape.

The needs and group practices of adolescents have great impact on public spaces. Further understanding how and why they value certain environments is instrumental to better integrate their perspective in the design and management of our landscapes, as well as in raising environmental awareness and fostering sustainable attitudes and practices. We present the findings of a workshop on landscape preference carried out with a secondary school in the suburbs of Madrid. With participants between the ages of 11 and 16, photo-based Q methodology in combination with qualitative data allowed for the identification of groups sharing similar viewpoints, general trends, as well as exploring the structure and meaning behind consensus and disagreement photographs. Findings show overall positive valorisation towards green spaces, especially those where urban greenery is combined with recognizable architectural elements. Familiarity with the landscape type seems to encourage positive rankings, and preference towards well-known cultural sites manifests at older ages. Among the wide array of photo-elicitation techniques devoted to the assessment of landscape preference, photo-based Q methodology has seldom been used. However, this intuitive, effective, and inexpensive technique can be carried out in short and enjoyable sessions, showing great potential to be applied in geographical and environmental education.