Space Syntax Lab Seminars 2024-25
This academic seminar series features researchers sharing their findings, discussing their ideas and showing work in progress from The Bartlett's internationally renowned Space Syntax Laboratory.
Space Syntax Lab Seminars 2024-25
12 Jun 2025, 16:00 – 17:00
All events in this series will be held on Zoom. Check the schedule for dates and registration links.
The Space Syntax Lab Seminar series brings together researchers and students to share their work at the intersection of architecture, urban space and society with a particular focus on space syntax theory and methods. It is hosted by The Bartlett’s internationally renowned Space Syntax Laboratory. The series features a mixture of invited international speakers, UCL researchers and PhD students providing diverse viewpoints on how we understand, analyse and design both buildings and cities.
The Space Syntax Laboratory invites expressions of interest from researchers who wish to present their work as part of the seminar series. Individuals interested can apply using the following online form. If you have any questions, please get in touch with Kimon Krenz at k.krenz@ucl.ac.uk
From Types to Regions: a GIS Tool for Spatial Analysis.
The practice of urban planning is intrinsically related to the sphere of designing and producing spaces. A ubiquitous topic for urban planners is the duality between the form and history of cities, which has been approached within several frameworks, most notably in urban morphological studies. A consistent interpretation of the city is the recognition that urban space is, in fact, a mosaic of urban patterns. These patterns represent the historical perspective of the city or its long-term occupation. In classic urban morphology, particularly the historico-geographical approach, we revisit the concept of Morphological Regions, based on the typomorphological classification of urban patterns, delimited by their degree of internal morphological similarity. From a methodological point of view, the delimitation of these regions remains labour-intensive, grounded in qualitative visual analysis and the personal expertise of the analyst. However, the conceptual framework and the identification of urban types are transferable to quantitative parameters. Therefore, the aim of this study is to test a GIS classification algorithm based on the combination of urban typomorphologies according to objective parameters. We test these measures empirically in São Paulo, to derive homogeneous regions of urban types.
Biography
Mariana Diniz holds an MSc in Architecture and Urban Planning (Brazil). She is currently a fourth-year PhD candidate at CITTA (Research Centre for Territory, Transports and Environment, UP), in the Spatial Planning Doctoral Programme, supervised by Dr Miguel Serra.
Urban Form and Change: Insights on Urban Form Evolution Through Configurational Morphometrics
The importance of urban form in shaping future development and transformation patterns is well-recognized in urban morphology. However, despite the need for a diachronic approach to rigorously understand the form-change relationship, studies utilising longitudinal datasets remain scarce, and only a small fraction employs quantitative methodologies and morphometric approaches. This research, part of a recently completed doctoral study at The University of Melbourne, aims to quantitatively examine how urban form elements and their spatial arrangements influence patterns of physical change over time. Using a novel longitudinal geospatial database of New York, Melbourne, and Barcelona, spanning from the 1800s to the 2000s, a diachronic and quantitative methodology is presented to assess urban form evolution. The research compares the performance of geometric and configurational measures of plots, buildings, and streets in explaining physical change patterns. Findings demonstrate that while the prevailing hypotheses emphasising the effect of geometric measures, such as size and shape, are often off the mark, configurational and access-based measures of plots and streets can accurately describe the dynamic relationships between form and change. The shift from geometric to configurational analysis aligns with the fundamental principles of configurational and spatial morphology schools, underlining the importance of relational properties in explaining spatial processes. These empirical findings contribute to the expanding fields of Urban Morphometrics, Space Syntax, and Place Syntax and provide data-informed insights to enhance the resilience and adaptive capacity of urban spaces.
Biography
Dr Onur Tümtürk is an Assistant Professor of Urban Design and Morphology at Bilkent University. His research, established during his PhD at The University of Melbourne (2024), focuses on the relationship between urban form and various socio-spatial processes, employing morphological and spatial analytical perspectives. Onur’s work bridges urban design, urban morphology, morphometrics, and socio-ecological thinking in urbanism. His research and studies were recognised with the 2022 Doctoral Academy Fellowship from the Melbourne Centre for Data Science and the 2023 Bharat Dave Prize from the Melbourne School of Design.
Everyday Heritage in 20th-Century Residential Developments on the sites of Demolished Country Houses
This seminar explores how ‘ordinary’ and ‘everyday’ heritages challenge traditional notions of heritage, focusing on what heritage is, where it resides, and how it is practised. Using space syntax methods 'archaeologically’, the seminar examines the role of spatial morphology in mediating the relationship between past and present in historic urban landscapes. Configurational analysis of street networks in six suburban developments, built on the sites of country houses demolished in the 20th century, reveals how historical spatial patterns are sometimes partially preserved within the larger structures of urban space. The research investigates the extent to which these developments retain the spatial signatures of their historic uses and reflects on how this contributes to their identities as local places.
Biography
Dr Sam Griffiths is an Associate Professor in Spatial Cultures in the Space Syntax Laboratory at the UCL Bartlett School of Architecture. His research addresses the historical relationship between people and their built environments, the spatial culture of industrial cities, the role of architecture in historical writing and space syntax as an interdisciplinary research perspective in the humanities and social sciences. He has published a number of articles and book chapters on these topics, including on the potential for using space syntax in urban heritage and conservation. He is co-editor with Alexander von Lünen of Spatial Cultures: Towards a New Morphology of Cities (Routledge, 2016), and author of Writing the Materialities of the Urban Past: Cities and the Architectural Topography of Historical Imagination
(Routledge, 2021).
Space Depth Analysis via Agent Oriented Programming: A Review and Update of Space Syntax Methodology
This study aims to advance the application of Space Syntax by integrating it with Agent-Based System (ABS) features within the NetLogo environment, building upon the foundational work done using UCL DepthMap X. Initially, the research replicates Alasdair Turner's early 2000s experiments at Tate Britain to validate the results within this new framework, establishing a baseline using the original DepthMap outputs from Turner and Penn. The methodology progresses by constructing a parallel simulation framework in NetLogo, first confirming functional equivalence through integration diagrams before introducing key ABS elements—namely, agent communication and dynamic attractors in the form of spatial pins in a museum setting. These features are hypothesised to enrich the simulation of spatial dynamics by facilitating more nuanced interactions and emergent behaviours, potentially providing deeper insights into human spatial behaviour.
Biography
Dr Ana Cocho-Bermejo is an architect and researcher based in London. She focuses her research on the intersections of Artificial Intelligence and Design for the Built Environment. She holds a PhD in Technology in Architecture and an MPhil in Artificial Intelligence. An alumna of the Architectural Association DRL and The Bartlett’s Adaptive Architecture & Computation programmes, she is currently interested in DAI (Distributed Artificial Intelligence) processes. She is also interested in Machine Learning processes, having focused in the past on ANN (Artificial Neural Networks) implementations. Through her teaching, she aims to enhance students’ skills in the implementation and understanding of complex protocols, while recognising the need for research within the architecture field on AI-based processes for design innovation.
The Spatial Culture of 'Hẻm' in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, numerous studies have depicted alleyways in various Asian countries as relics of the urban past due to their deep-rooted presence in the spatial grid and their vulnerability to vanishing amidst the modernisation process. Despite some typological similarities, however, Vietnamese alleyways, or 'hẻm', tell a different story. Hẻm are a distinct Vietnamese urban phenomenon and are home to more than 80% of the population in two major cities: Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC). Even so, the formation and growth of hẻm in the two cities are fundamentally different. The urban grid of Hanoi is originally rooted in traditional village structures. Unlike Hanoi, HCMC underwent substantial urban transformation during the colonial period, with large-scale demolition of traditional villages. This study investigates how HCMC has been transformed from a Western colonial city to one characterised by an extensive number of hẻm since national reunification in 1975 and the economic reforms of 1986. Far from being an informal urban element suggesting marginal status, do hẻm provide the means for HCMC to establish an indigenous post-colonial identity? This study proposes a socio-spatial approach to the issue, using both configurational analysis and ethnographic fieldwork to examine hẻm as examples of local cultural continuity. This presentation will discuss the preliminary findings on the spatial and morphological roles of hẻm in the post-colonial urban structure of Ho Chi Minh City.
Biography
Linh Phamvu has been a PhD candidate at The Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL, since 2022. Her interest in collective memory and spatial arrangement began during her undergraduate studies in Interior Design and evolved over more than seven years of professional experience. Specialising in hospitality projects across diverse cultural contexts—from developed to underdeveloped countries, spanning Europe to Southeast Asia—her work as an interior designer has deepened her exploration of 'interiority' as an urban quality. This professional background has been instrumental in shaping her research interests, challenging conventional boundaries and conceptions of interiors through a spatial-socio approach.
Modelling Habitat Functionality in Urban Environments
Calculating habitat functionality for different types of species and organism groups has recently proven to be highly useful when modelling the effects of alternative urban plans or transformations of transport infrastructure on biodiversity. In this presentation, Dr Oskar Kindvall will describe a new methodology and provide examples that demonstrate why habitat functionality is a particularly valuable concept in urban planning for maintaining or improving the ecological value of blue and green areas within cities.
Biography
Dr Oskar Kindvall is an associate professor in ecology, specialising in population dynamics, animal dispersal, and landscape modelling. He currently works as a senior environmental consultant in the fields of species conservation, risk assessments, sustainable development, and the planning of new transport infrastructure. Oskar also works part-time as a guest researcher at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg. At Chalmers, Oskar is part of the research team called SMoG (Spatial Morphology Group), which conducts research in urban morphology, space syntax, and design theory. He seeks to integrate ecological effect analyses of urbanisation transformations with the space syntax modelling framework.
Rebuilding Urban Complexity: A Configurational Approach to Postindustrial Cities
In this seminar, Dr Francesca Froy will launch her new book, published by Routledge, Rebuilding Urban Complexity: A Configurational Approach to Post-Industrial Cities. The book, which partially features research conducted during her PhD at the Space Syntax Lab under the supervision of Sam Griffiths and Laura Vaughan, focuses on urban complexity – how it evolves and how it is destroyed. It situates space syntax analysis within a broader exploration of urban complexity, highlighting the interdependent structures that underpin cities, where diverse “parts” (such as people, streets, and industry sectors) interact to form an evolving “whole.” Dr Froy examines the evolution and destruction of complexity in Greater Manchester as well as other post-industrial cities, including Sheffield, Newcastle, and New Haven.
Biography
Dr Francesca Froy is a Lecturer on the Master’s in Sustainable Urban Development at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of Kellogg College. She completed her PhD in the Space Syntax Lab in 2021 and is now an Associate at the consultancy Space Syntax. She is also an Honorary Lecturer at The Bartlett School of Planning and a Senior Research Fellow at The Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL. Francesca’s research and teaching have two main strands. Firstly, she focuses on urban morphology and the spatial organisation of cities. Secondly, she explores evolutionary economic geography and the factors influencing economic diversification and complexity in cities. Her work has appeared in a wide variety of journals, and she has recently published a book with Routledge titled Rebuilding Urban Complexity: A Configurational Approach to Post-Industrial Cities.
A Hybrid Workflow Predicting Pedestrian Movement by Connecting a Network and an Agent-Based Model
Pedestrian movement has always been one of the main concerns for urban planning and design, but it has become more important within the sustainable development agenda, as walking is crucial to reducing urban emissions and fostering liveable cities. Therefore, urban planners need to take pedestrian movement into consideration as part of the workflow for planning and designing cities. This study outlines a comprehensive workflow tailored for urban planners. It proposes a hybrid model that integrates an agent-based model, which simulates the micro-scale movement of pedestrians in outdoor urban environments, with a network model, which predicts the aggregated pedestrian flows on a macro-scale. The hybrid model is applied to a pedestrian precinct in the city centre of Gothenburg, Sweden, and is compared with real-world measurements. The reasonable agreement between the simulation results and the real-world data supports the reliability of the proposed workflow, underscoring the model’s ability to statistically predict pedestrian movement on a large scale and individually on a local scale. Furthermore, the model enables the analysis of flow distributions and movement restrictions and facilitates the analysis of different design scenarios and specific pedestrian behaviour. This functionality is valuable for urban design and planning practice, contributing to the optimisation of pedestrian flow dynamics.
Biographies
Anita Ullrich is a research engineer at the Fraunhofer-Chalmers Research Centre for Industrial Mathematics in Gothenburg, Sweden, in the Department of Computational Engineering and Design. She has an MSc in Physics with a specialisation in Complex Adaptive Systems from the University of Gothenburg. She conducts applied research with a focus on particle simulations for various applications, including digital twins of cities and railway infrastructure with a coupling to structural mechanics. Recently, she has been working on the agent-based simulation of pedestrian movement with the Discrete Element Method.
Dr Ioanna Stavroulaki is an Associate professor in Architecture and a member of the SMoG_Spatial Morphology Group (smog.chalmers.se). She conducts basic and applied research in spatial morphology at urban and building scale. Her research focus is on developing descriptive analytical methods and digital tools for the analysis and modelling of building and urban layouts (e.g., Place Syntax Tool), to understand the relation of spatial form, human behaviour, and social activity (e.g., movement flows, patterns of co-presence, patterns of use, spatial cultures). She is co-founder of the Urban Calculator AB, a non-profit company that specialises in developing design-oriented analytic tools for architects, urban designers, and planners (e.g., Urban Calculator). She teaches in undergraduate and postgraduate courses with a focus on spatial morphology, system thinking and evidence-based design in building and urban scale at the Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering.
The Multimodal Spatial Impacts of Public Transport Networks on Urban Systems: London and Taipei
This research examines urban form, focusing on the integration of rail and urban networks in cities. Viewing cities as integrated urban systems, it explores the spatial layout of street and rail networks using network analysis grounded in Space Syntax theory. A Multimodal Network Model (MNM) is developed as a geodatabase framework, integrating GIS-based road and rail networks to analyse geospatial transport systems. By combining travel time costs with Space Syntax Angular Segment Analysis, the research evaluates multimodal network accessibility. Additionally, an Integrated Urban Model (IUM) is developed, incorporating the MNM alongside land use, traffic, and census datasets to analyse urban functionality and socio-economic performance. This framework is applied to London and Taipei to investigate the relationships between railway networks and their urban contexts. The research demonstrates the importance of travel time constraints and angular distance measures in quantifying accessibility within multimodal networks. Findings highlight the critical role of optimised metro and rail systems in promoting urban mobility and socio-economic activity.
Biography
Po Nien Chen holds a PhD in Space Syntax, specialising in Urban and Transport Research with a focus on spatial analysis and network modelling. His research examines the effects of railway and multimodal transport networks on urban form and socio-economic growth. Currently, Po is a Senior Consultant at Space Syntax Limited, where he works as a spatial data analyst. He specialises in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), geodatabases, and Integrated Urban Modelling (IUM), applying advanced spatial methodologies to support evidence-based urban planning and design. With a strong background in spatial analysis and transport systems, Po combines academic expertise with practical experience to address complex urban challenges, contributing to sustainable and integrated urban development.
Introducing Space Syntax in Urban Ecology Research
This seminar highlights the collaborative efforts between the Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Zagreb, Croatia, focusing on urban ecology in public spaces. It presents a recent master's thesis from the Department of Biology at the Faculty of Science, which investigated soil biodiversity in urban parks in the Croatian capital, Zagreb, specifically along the main park promenades. The study compares the historical public garden of Maksimir, with its baroque allée, to the contemporary recreation area around Lake Jarun and its circular walkway. Soil biodiversity was assessed at four sampling locations (two in Maksimir and two in Jarun), with measurements taken at three points perpendicular to the main walkways at distances of 10 m, 20 m, and 30 m (12 soil sampling points in total). Biodiversity metrics were statistically compared with soil physico-chemical characteristics (pH, humidity, soil composition, temperature, and organic matter) and urban measures (integration, connectivity, choice, and entropy). The biological parameters were measured three times over a 50-day period, while the urban parameters were analysed using space syntax methods, specifically axial and segment analysis, applied to a Zagreb city model with Maksimir and Jarun parks. The results, currently in the data processing phase, are expected to provide a novel methodological contribution by applying space syntax tools in biological research contexts and using space syntax measures as proxies for assessing anthropogenic influence on soil biodiversity in urban parks.
Biographies
Dr Tamara Zaninović is an Assistant Professor at the University of Zagreb, Faculty of Architecture, Department of Urban Planning, Spatial Planning, and Landscape Architecture, where she teaches urban planning and landscape architecture to students in both graduate and undergraduate programmes. She completed her bachelor's and master's degrees in Architecture and Urban Planning at the Faculty of Architecture, University of Zagreb, and holds a PhD in Architecture from TU Vienna (PhD thesis: Streets as Heritage). She learned space syntax methodology in 2016 as a guest researcher at the UCL Space Syntax Laboratory. She collaborates interdisciplinarily with the Faculty of Science on urban ecology topics and with the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing on soundscape projects. Her research interests include urbanism and urban landscapes, public spaces, urban transformations and development, cultural and natural heritage, streetscapes, memorials, and space syntax.
Dr Mirela Sertić Perić is an Associate Professor at the University of Zagreb, Faculty of Science, Department of Biology. She holds an MSc in Biology and Chemistry and a PhD in Ecology, Environmental, and Conservation Biology. Dr Sertić Perić's research primarily focuses on freshwater ecology, with a particular interest in the impacts of hydromorphological changes and urbanisation on the structure and function of freshwater ecosystems. Her expertise includes studying stream macroinvertebrates, the ecology of karst and tufa-precipitating waters, alpine and glacier-fed streams, and urban freshwater environments. Her work also involves the Water-Energy-Food+ (WEF+) nexus. She contributes to the development and delivery of various courses, including Urban Ecology, and is passionate about biology education and mentoring students. Recently, she has been teaching future educators how to teach biology effectively, emphasising the integration of sustainability principles into educational practices.
Computer Vision and Urban Imagery Big Data for Public Space and Public Life
In this talk, Waishan will cover his ongoing research projects regarding the innovative application of urban imagery big data, Generative AI, and computer vision to 1) automate Gehl's Public Space and Public Life (PSPL) survey at a large scale, 2) generate nocturnal street scenes from daytime images, and 3) predict complicated environmental and behavioural consequences of urban forms from solely satellite images.
The three use cases reflect his long-term agenda to advance "AI for the Public Good" right at the intersection of design, analytics, and humanity. Urban analytics is still an emerging field with methods borrowed from other disciplines. Many use cases are "data-hungry" and "modelling-heavy" – both significantly restricting broader application in urban decision-making processes. Nevertheless, the advancement of publicly available urban imagery and efficient AI models (especially computer vision and Generative AI) could unfold a new paradigm that is more accessible, explainable, and high-throughput.
Will digitalisation empower urban planners, even without advanced analytical skills, to assess the behavioural, social, and environmental implications of diverse urban forms "at large scale" with "finer granularity"? Hopefully, the use cases Waishan introduces can raise a discussion on how to critically blend urban theory, methodological, and pedagogical advancements to manifest such a vision.
Waishan Qiu is an Assistant Professor at the University of Hong Kong (HKU). Trained as an urban designer, his research utilises Computer Vision, Generative AI, and urban imagery data to investigate urban issues related to mobility equity, liveability, and sustainability. He has been involved with various data-driven research and smart city projects worldwide in places such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the U.S., and China. Before joining HKU, he was an Associate at McKinsey & Company. He obtained a PhD from Cornell, an MCP from MIT, an MArch with distinction from UCL, and a BE from Tongji. His previous lab experiences include the MIT Center for Advanced Urbanism, Senseable City Lab, and Harvard Evidence for Policy Design. He has co-authored 30+ SCI papers and served as a reviewer for top journals such as Nature Cities, Landscape and Urban Planning, and Cities. He also actively participates in lectures, workshops, and exhibitions about smart cities.
Forecasting Crime Patterns: Comparing Space Syntax and ABMs in Exploring Pedestrian Movement and Visibility
Space Syntax encompasses techniques that highlight both the physical and intangible characteristics of urban environments. However, its limited integration of temporal dynamics and environmental factors constrains its effectiveness in analysing micro-scale urban crime patterns. By contrast, Agent-Based Models (ABMs) simulate interactions among autonomous agents who perceive their environment, influence one another, and make decisions based on temporal and environmental contexts. Yet, ABMs present challenges, including substantial data requirements, limited model transparency, and complexities in validation. Although grounded in differing methodological paradigms—reflecting a top-down versus bottom-up modelling distinction—both Space Syntax and ABMs offer valuable tools for assessing pedestrian flow, visibility, and co-presence: key components underpinning crime opportunity theories.
This paper bridges these approaches by examining crime occurrences in two urban settings within Pisa’s historical city centre (Italy), with a focus on pedestrian movement and visibility. The study aims, firstly, to compare the outputs of each approach in relation to pedestrian flows and visibility; secondly, to evaluate their effectiveness in identifying high-risk locations; and finally, to propose an integrated framework that incorporates Space Syntax metrics into ABMs as parameters guiding agent movement. Ultimately, this research develops a robust simulation approach that captures interactions among individuals, urban spatial configurations, environmental conditions, and crime dynamics—representing an initial step towards a decision-support system for evidence-based urban safety planning.
Dr Federico Mara is a Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Pisa, specialising in urban planning tools and methods for investigating urban complexity. His research focuses on urban safety, crime prevention strategies, and environmental sustainability, with particular attention to how urban configuration, environmental design, and perceptual factors shape social behaviour. Throughout his doctoral studies, Federico explored the environmental approach to security from both theoretical and modelling perspectives, analysing the role of visibility in decision-making and the influence of spatial characteristics in discouraging crime and shaping perceptions of safety. Federico is currently involved in the DUT Horizon 2023 project Evolutive Meshed Compact City (emc²), where he is responsible for spatial analysis on behalf of the University of Pisa. He also leads the University of Pisa’s participation in the BIP Urban Transformation and Public Safety project.
Individual-Centric Urban Modelling Using Synthetic Populations and Activity-Based Models
Contemporary urban planning often relies on static network and proximity analyses, which offer aggregated views of neighbourhood accessibility but fail to capture the nuanced, distributional effects on individual residents. Acknowledging the growing emphasis on sustainable development and social equity, this study outlines a comprehensive approach tailored for urban planners. The approach integrates synthetic populations with activity-based models (AcBMs) to simulate daily activities and to capture the nuanced distributional impacts on individual residents.
Dr Sanjay Somanath is a postdoctoral researcher at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, working in the field of computational sustainable design within the Sustainable Built Environments research area (sb.chalmers.se). With a background in architecture followed by renewable energy modelling, his research focuses on developing computational tools to support architects and urban planners in making informed decisions about the distributional effects of planning choices. During his PhD, his research focused on bridging theoretical models and practical applications by developing activity-based urban accessibility models that capture the interplay between the built environment and residents’ daily activity patterns. He also collaborates closely with the Digital Twin Cities Centre (DTCC) at Chalmers on the development and application of urban digital twins.