The Puget Sound Institute will host a seminar on Monday, April 16th at 11:00 AM focusing on geodesign-based planning support of green infrastructure. The seminar will be held at the Center for Urban Waters in Tacoma and is presented by Mary Roderick, PhD of the University of Washington Department of Urban Design and Planning.

Green infrastructure is increasingly utilized to improve and restore ecosystem function and ecosystem services in urban areas; however, it is often implemented in a piecemeal, opportunistic, single-purpose fashion. This research uses the Steinitz geodesign framework to systematically analyze synergies and trade-offs between different types of green infrastructure across multiple scales and functions. This is a novel application of the framework, facilitating strategic green infrastructure planning. Although my research focused on the Seattle metropolitan area, I will also explore considerations for a regional (Puget Sound) scope, based on experience using the Steinitz framework to evaluate growth management in the Green-Duwamish watershed (WRIA 9).

Dr. Mary Roderick is an affiliate professor with the University of Washington Department of Urban Design and Planning and teaches and advises in the online UW Master of Infrastructure Planning and Management program. She is also a regional planner with the Land of Sky Regional Council in western North Carolina, where she relocated after completing her PhD coursework at UW. Her professional and research focus is mainly in the area of water, wastewater and stormwater systems, as well as the interrelationship between manufactured and natural water systems.