Angela —
What is the future of open data? What are some of the shifts that need to occur to create a real culture of openness in design practice around new technologies?

Seul —
To be perfectly honest, I find it hard to envision a world of open data in design practice. Offices and people working in design practice put so much time and money and effort into creating databases that it is simply not feasible for them to just open it up to the world. These data resources have a lot of value for the companies that make them. 

There is, however, another perspective to consider. We also need to think about the attitude towards data within cultures of design. We need to be open as designers to different ways of thinking. Some design offices are not culturally open to the ways that data are typically presented. To be fair, when you are working on a smaller project, like a building, it is possible to make decisions based more on good intuition, and less on large data sources. But I think there can be a mental barrier. Some designers don't really see data or science as having a place in their work. 

Although, I would say at Snøhetta this is not the case. There is a culture of openness where, at first, the designers might not understand or be familiar with data, but they will say: “I don’t know it, but it's interesting. Let’s think about it”. I haven't faced any objections here to the use of data, but I do think this resistance can be an obstacle in some design offices. 

Angela —
What is happening around data and design at Snøhetta?

Seul —
I have been working on an analysis of tributaries that uses SRTM data to determine water flows across regions, but that also shows hydrological details at a very fine scale. These kinds of tasks used to be very labor intensive and involved drawing and mapping different landscape features by hand. Normally, we would need to wait until much later in the design process to work with an engineer who would give us this information, but now I do the analysis as a first step in the design process. We get crucial information much earlier. It is not as detailed or sophisticated as what the engineer will do, but it helps us get onto the right track. Of course, we eventually need the engineers to confirm and fine tune the work, but this way we can avoid having to completely redo the design if we got it wrong. 

Climate Adaptation for the City of Pforzheim, Germany, Snøhetta, 2021. Digital modeling reveals terrain depressions, watershed flows, and natural flood-safe zones. Copyright: Snøhetta

Angela —
Are you using open data in this process? 

Seul —
The raw data we get from NASA (STRM), Google, or OpenStreetMap is open. Through GIS analysis, we can see very detailed location of water flows, hydrology, and tributaries throughout an entire region. This was basically impossible for us before. We had to focus on a very small area and calculate it ourselves. In this case, the raw data and the tools are available, but you need to analyze it yourself to make it useful for your purpose. 

To me, making use of open data is like cooking. You can get all these separate ingredients, but you have to cook it yourself. In my current project, I was able to cook this NASA data (SRTM data) using GIS. To do this, though, I needed at least a basic understanding of water management and hydrology. This kind of knowledge barrier is a primary obstacle to using open data in design. You may have data, but if you don't have the knowledge that's required to process it, it doesn't mean anything.

Angela —
What are some of the things we should do to promote a culture of openness around data in design work?

Seul —
We need more people who can understand different disciplines, more people who have skills from different fields. In design projects, we need to work together, but we each approach the problem with a unique perspective and knowledge. When you don't know how other experts think, it can be a barrier to collaboration. It becomes impossible to do something really useful, even in your own discipline as a designer. 

We need people who can be a medium between disciplines and understand different disciplinary languages. Designers do not need to be engineers or scientists, but we need to have a basic knowledge of the things that they do. So, for example, the word program has been an issue for us because it means something completely different to architects than it does to engineers. And that is just one word. You can imagine the challenges that arise when we are considering more complex and sophisticated concepts. 

Angela —
What barriers should be removed to facilitate this process and to bring more open data into design? 

Seul —
I think a major obstacle for designers is the difficulty of processing raw data. Data can sometimes be open and available, but processing it can take a lot of expertise, time, and skill. Designers may have some understanding of data, but we often don't have the time to turn it into something useful for every individual project. For example, I am comfortable using data and with some common analysis tools and methods, but I have limits. When working on a project in Budapest, I received some precipitation data. It was raw, tabular data, and it was difficult for me to actually make use of it for our project. So, I would say data processing is a real barrier for making open data applicable to design practice.

Angela —
What kinds of data might be useful for design? 

Seul —
I use lots of different types of data in my work. One thing I often need to know about is the commercial activity in an area. It can be difficult to find that exact information, but I can use other sources and make an educated guess. I can count the retail stores in the area or find out the number of phone calls made in the area. Of course, I also need to know about landscape ecology—things like watersheds, tributaries, soil conditions, groundwater. These are all very important, especially in my work as a landscape architect.

Climate Adaptation for the City of Pforzheim, Germany, Snøhetta, 2021. Digital modeling reveals terrain depressions, watershed flows, and natural flood-safe zones. Copyright: Snøhetta

Angela —
Collecting and processing data, as you say, can be time consuming and difficult. What are some reasons you see for making it a priority in design? 

Seul —
When we don’t have the proper data, we can end up designing something that is not really needed. Bad designs can degrade the quality of a space. Imagine you design a great playground, but there is nobody around to use it. It becomes abandoned. It is a waste of money, effort, and resources. If you don't have the correct data at the right phase of the project, you can end up redoing it, which can waste money. In municipal projects, this waste could be taxpayers' money.

When data is used well, it can be beneficial for designers. Especially if it is early in the process, it can set up the project for success, and it can enhance the quality of the design. If we are missing data, we have to make decisions based on intuition. Many designers have a very good sense of intuition, and it can be a good tool for design, but there are some things we just can't speculate on. There are cases where we just need the data, and sometimes it can be difficult to find, and difficult to process. In that case, there is a risk that we propose something that just won't work, and we will have to do the whole project again. 

Banpo Ecological Playscape, located in Banpo Hangang Park, Seoul, design proposal, 2024, includes playful paths and ecological strategies for flood resilience. Copyright: Snøhetta

Angela —
How would using data earlier in the design process play out in practice?

Seul —
Currently, I do the main data analysis of the regional and urban context in the first week. We have a short timeframe to set the design direction. We then jump into design development and design concept phases. There is a moment between these two phases that can also involve a handing off of information and even a translation of data from GIS systems to Rhino, and then Revit. This translation requires a certain expertise and ability to translate information from these two systems. It’s not a matter of clicking a button and then it is all transferred. 

Currently, I am doing this early urban analysis on my own, but I would love to have more people doing this in my office with me. With more than one voice on the project, we can do more. Although of course the office needs a balance of skills, it would be great to have a team. Perhaps in the future this will be more possible.