Abstract
As Landscape Architects we are “place makers” and we intend to make places that satisfy the needs of the people who use them. I argue that a most important need of being human is “self-identity”, but suggest that “opportunity for humans to develop self-identity” is seldom if ever an expressed requirement. Further, for democratic spaces in the public realm, how could self-identity be an achievable requirement? I argue that “place attachment” - the emotional response to a place - is a vital component of self-identity and that the opportunity to achieve it can and should be designed into places. I conclude by re-iterating some design guidance, but accept that there are financial and social reasons why designs may continue to fail to create place attachment for individuals.
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http://www.docstoc.com/docs/22152473/Role-of-Self-Identity-in-Place-Attachment
