#groupwork

Process of making the K.Himmafushi road section plus a few perspectives sketches of road conditions - Exercise 1 Part 2 (Social Mapping)

Date: March 22-23, 2026

From my point of view, visual metaphor is basically a pictorial representation of our ideas brainstormed into one. In my case, my groupmates and I picked a big, old apple tree to portray our thoughts. My initial idea was just a simple mind map but after thinking it through, I like the concept of a tree being our centre point and us ideating all around it together. To me, an old tree represents wisdom and connection, just like working in a team needs. On the other hand, If I were to do my own alternative visual metaphor, it would be a pool table.

Throughout all the Critical Thinking Skills lessons, I had learnt a lot of knowledge and understanding of how and when to problem-solve and think twice before making any possible solutions during any situation. If I were to pick my favourite activity, I would choose Growth Mindset. The reason I chose it was because it felt like I was a kid in kindergarten learning how to write and draw again when we were doing our re-design sketches of our chosen logo with my non-dominant hand.

 At first, it felt weird holding a pencil with my non preferred hand but as I got into my zone, I felt more confident to just do it as there is nothing to worry too much about and if I made a mistake, I could have just erased it and done it again. It was quite memorable for me because once we were all done with our sketches, we had to pick our top 2 picks among our groups. My groupmates' design sketches were so unique and rare. At that moment, I could tell they were creative with their ideas shown in their respective drafts. 

Overall, it was a short and fun classroom activity to do with my classmates especially under a time limit so there was a bit of a challenge involved.

(320 words)

Reference:

Public & Green Open Space Distribution

Pedestrian-Only Streets & Human-Scaled Urban Fabric

Urban Morphology & Public Realm

This map explores how open green spaces are distributed across Malé, revealing critical imbalances between population density and accessible open space.

Each red circle represents a 400m walkable radius (approx. 5-minute walk), highlighting how limited the reach of public green areas actually is. Despite Male's dense urban fabric, most residents fall outside the effective catchment of meaningful green or recreational space.

Even in the best-performing zone, the open-space ratio remains far below global standards (e.g., WHO recommends 9 m² per person). The red shaded zones visualize the gap urban areas where residents lack daily access to open, breathable, or shaded environments.

This map highlights the network of narrow, pedestrian-priority streets (goalhi) within Malé spaces that embody the city’s most intimate social and spatial experiences.

Unlike vehicle-dominated roads, these small corridors prioritize walkability, social interaction, and human comfort. Through their scale, greenery, and rhythm of daily activity, they reflect a softer, community-centered side of the city.

Street Typology Study — Malé City

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Each section below represents a distinct street condition from the broad commercial corridors to narrow inner lanes revealing the shift from public flow to intimate movement, and how vehicle dominance reshapes street life.