Humans have always shaped and been shaped by the landscapes they inhabit. "Chronomapping" is an innovative methodology developed by Dr. Gitai that investigates landscape transformations through time by integrating data and insights from disciplines such as architecture, landscape architecture, hydrology, urban planning, climatology, ecology, sociology, anthropology, political geography, history, and even the psychology of aesthetics. The methodology is a means to produce visual representations and new conceptual frameworks of territories and habitats across time. It can also cast power dynamics and territorial transformations in new lights by examining the interplay between terrain, territory, and cartography across historical periods.

This model is designed to serve as a counterbalance to the short-sightedness that has characterized much development in the Western world. The methodology is explicitly designed to account for the palimpsestic nature of development. It has both scholarly and practical applications with potential utility in fields of governance, urban and spatial planning, and industrial development. Dr. Gitai's lecture will reference two of his forthcoming publications: Mapping Power: History of Landscape in the Jordan Valley and Landscapes Atlas of Paris.

About the speaker

Dr. Ben Gitai integrates geography, architecture, and related disciplines in his research and practice. He has taught at various institutions in Switzerland (ETHZ, EPFL) and France. His cross-disciplinary approach combines tools and perspectives from landscape architecture, urban planning, political geography, and history, exploring the evolution of geo-spatial configurations over historical periods and how these transformations reflect broader socio-political and economic processes. His work recontextualizes mapping practices as instruments for understanding the complex relationships between human and natural systems, offering innovative perspectives on the forces that shape our environments. Today, he is the head coordinator of the Habitat Research Center and the Paris Atlas of Landscapes at EPFL. 

Please register to attend. This is an in-person-only event.