In a post-pandemic world, the city centre of Glasgow is at risk of becoming a wasteland of capitalist relics. As we emerge into a world where economic implications have forced the closure of several high-street retailers and promoted online shopping more than ever before, what does the future hold for the city centre of Glasgow?

Currently ‘home’ to mostly nomadic students, there is a severe lack of a sense of ownership or personal affection towards the streets of the city centre. This is caused through the monotonous nature of existing shared spaces and exacerbates issues of disparity between Glaswegian natives and students of Glaswegian institutions through the lack of encouragement to dwell or interact. Looking to the future, Glasgow’s incarnation as a proto-knowledge city has the potential to give a sense of character back to the streets and it is through this transition that my thesis will begin to reignite sociality through the manifestation of spontaneous discovery.

Through the pandemics requirement of abrogating face-to-face encounters, we have all had a chance to take pause and re-evaluate the importance of social discourse. As we emerge from lockdown, physical interactions are cherished more-so than we have seen in generations – we need to use this period of reflection to completely re-think our social spaces. My thesis will show how the proto-knowledge city can foster an enhanced iteration of community spaces within its streets through the creation of a new academic institution. A new timber construction academy will be consciously designed to belong to the streets and become the first step in the shift of a city centre which once prized knowledge for capital gain, to a city centre which champions education as a fundamental aspect of its social society