Hẻm is a southern Vietnamese term meaning alleyway with now 85% of Ho Chi Minh City's 10 million residents living in one. This presentation is intended to demonstrate the viability of the hẻm in what was once called Saigon and is now Ho Chi Minh City. (HCMC) Since their establishment 170 years ago under a French colonial government the hem not only have retained their traditional village structures, and have also organically evolved to form a dense network of around 4,000 alleys. The hẻm communities continue today, despite pressures of rapid urbanization, to make a significant contribution to the city’s cultural identity, character, and urban fabric. The presentation will explore the hem's spatial typology, one influenced by culture, tradition, land ownership and social dynamics. It will also demonstrate how those structures have contributed to the creation of enduring urban forms that express community resilience and sustainable living practices. The presentation will also show how this organic urbanism can provide design principles that can inform contemporary urban planning policy decisions in western countries including the United States.

CES: Estimated 1 LU/HSW for AIA Members

Speaker

Edward R Haysom, LFRAIA, AIA, Hon FNZIA, General Director, Haysom Architects

Moderators:

Simon Wells, Intl Assoc. AIA, Secretary, AIA Oceania; Principal, Simon Wells and Associates

Khiem Nguyen, MPP, BArch, Intl. Assoc. AIA, Vice President, AIA Southeast Asia