Broadly described a Situational Analysis is a process for analyzing the state of the environment for a system, organization or person (1).
Situational Analysis as described in Ecosa Institute's Total Immersion in Ecological Design Course at Arcosanti in 2000 is a holistic assets based process of gathering information about the potential site for a project. This includes both human, geographical and ecological data that considers as comprehensively as possible the key and decisive components to a successful and compelling building or project that meets the long term goals of not only the inhabitants.
Ian McHarg (2) was one of the pioneers of this way of thinking about planning and design.
References:
What is a Situational Analysis: http://planningskills.com/askdan/20.php
Wikipedia profile on Ian McHarg: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_McHarg
Architecture and academia as a whole separates class work from actually field and office experiences. There is also an issue of separation from the design and planning (which is usually done in nice air conditioned offices by professional looking people wearing fancy clothes) from the actual construction.
When I took the maiden voyage of the Ecosa Institute “total immersion process on ecological design,” in September of 2000 at Arcosanti one of the many words I developed in my vocabulary was situated design. A successful design in the form of functional and aesthetically remarkable building is not something that merely comes from the mind of the architectural genius; it is process of interaction that involves many people on many different levels. The larger the project the greater the matrix involves in this process of interaction.
Being connected with the surrounding environment is very important if it is that we are concerned with making wise decisions in our lives. Our disconnectedness with nature and the needs of all of humanity, is why many of us seeking a better way of living on this earth. As we construct something, we learn that it is easier to speak of change than to actually achieve it. It is so easy to speak of new technologies and understandings, but the implementation of such things necessitates a learning curve. Those who aspire to be ecological designers seek to master a learning curve that is holistic to its core. To become part of a new and growing movement that is currently in the early construction phase of the post-industrial society.
By actually building things with our own hands we stimulate a process of personal action. In construction we see a problem or challenge in constructing something and then we seek to find the best, most practical solution. Our foresight and wisdom in developing the most innovative and sound solution is not enough we also need to have efficacy in implementing that solution. The execution of any activity involves that intermingling with different parts of the brain: the thinking idealist and the practical realist. Both are necessary, however the prevailing social dynamic encourages their separation, telling us that we have to either be idealistic or practical. I feel that in order to create a better world, we have to be both idealistic and realistic. Without both the advanced skills and a enlightened process (what I refer to as the Zen of doing things) in relation to how we do things, as well as an and higher and more developed understanding in terms of how we think about life and the phenomena that exist within it, we only spin our wheels in life.
My interpretation of Arcology theory involves developing an effective process of personal empowerment that encourages the involvement of the people in the building process of their homes as well as their community, not only designing but building the systems upon which we live out our lives. Experiential learning experiences are based on the concept of living and learning by doing. Our schools are designed to separate work from leisure and learning. We are told to learn because we need to prove ourselves to others to make something of ourselves. Yet this is a superficial approach. We should be learning because it is part of the life long experience of life. Learning through experiential experiences helps us to expand and evolve our perception of life.
It is by our actions here in our lives, that we can make an impact in how our lives evolve and how our lives affect the lives of other humans. We can exert leadership here by the enlightened actions in our lives that affect the people that live here. Thus an important principle is encouraging constructive criticism and alternative perspectives so that we have all the necessary information so as to optimize the decision-making process.