When is a tree not just a tree? and a drain not just a drain? When it’s a rain garden! Thanks to everyone who joined our Climate Action Week workshop on visualising urban ecologies. Climate Action comes in many different forms- the way we visualise nature in cities shapes how we see our role in […]

Thank you for having us in conversation Oliver Vodeb: Seed Balls as a Relational Design Method In this episode, Alexandra Crosby, Ilaria Vanni, and Oliver Vodeb explore ideas around expanded permaculture design and relational design ecology objects. Their conversation is grounded in DIY design tactics that seek to connect us to the plant world — […]

Postcards from the future: the river-cleaning Birrabot. REALMstudios/NGV Australia Alexandra Crosby, University of Technology Sydney The Ian Potter Centre at Melbourne’s Federation Square is located on the banks of the lower stretches of Birrarung, the Yarra River. For Reimagining Birrarung Design Concepts for 2070, on until 2 February 2025, the river flows into the gallery […]

Ecological art can bring us closer to understanding nature. How does this look in the era of climate change? Topographies at Sydney College of the Arts Gallery. Jessica Maurer Alexandra Crosby, University of Technology Sydney Ecology has always fascinated Australian artists. Think of landscape painters like Arthur Boyd (1920–99), who was inspired by nature and committed […]

Since our 2018 project documenting environmental stewardship practices in the gardeners of Haberfield, we have volunteered as judges of the Haberfield Association’s Garden Competition. This year we were looking at the category ‘Whole Gardens’. Presentation night was 22nd Monday, 2024 at the local library. Judges showcased the stunning entries to share the resilience, generosity and […]

PhD scholarships available with Mapping Edges as part of the ARC Discovery Project ‘Surfacing urban wetlands in two urban renewal sites in Sydney’ Fully funded for 3.5 years full time Email CV and cover letter to Alexandra.crosby@uts.edu.au  by 8 April 2024. Successful applicants will join the research team sharing knowledge between partners, with milestones for […]

We are absolutely thrilled to be starting on a new project in 2024. This Discovery Project is funded by the Australian Research Council. Wetlands are an endangered ecosystem globally. We aim to foreground, explore and reconnect with wetlands in Sydney. The project builds on research undertaken in Water Stories, using a similar methodology (including walkshops, […]

Mapping Edges has collaborated with Pedal Set Go on a free Guided Ride of Water Stories. The tour is based on the living archive of Green Square. Professional guides show riders the bicycle friendly ways to explore Water Stories that maps the history and practices of water around Green Square. ‘Not only will you never […]

In June, we travelled to New York to present at the Livable Cities Conference, covering architecture, design, city planning, health, technology, urban economics and social policy. We presented our paper ‘Civic Ecologies in Green Square: Beyond urban renewal, towards caring for Country’ on a panel about Sustainability and Society.

Sheas Creek runs into Alexandra Canal. Photo: Ilaria Vanni, Author provided Ilaria Vanni, University of Technology Sydney; Alexandra Crosby, University of Technology Sydney, and Shannon Foster, University of Technology Sydney Did you know the Sydney suburb Rosebery was home to the now-endangered green and golden bell frogs? That enormous cauliflowers were nourished by fresh water […]