The Flexible City

Solutions for
a Circular
Tom Bergevoet &
Maarten van Tuijl

and Climate
Adaptive Europe

nai010 publishers
The Flexible Cityxible City
The Flexible City
Solutions for a Circular and
Climate Adaptive Europe

Tom Bergevoet & Maarten van Tuijl

nai010 publishers
 Content
Foreword 7

Prologue 9

1. The Inflexible City 31 1.1 Europe Facing Challenges

33 1.2 The Need for Circular and Climate Adaptive Solutions
35 1.3 System Crisis
37 1.4 From Building to Recycling
39 1.5 From Supply to Demand
41 1.6 From Blueprint to Unpredictability

2. The Flexible City 45 2.1 Flexible Area Development

47 2.2 Local Flexibility
49 2.3 Use-driven Flexibility
51 2.4 Time-based Flexibility

3. Instruments for a Flexible City 73 3.1 The Key Domains Determining Spatial Development
74 3.2 Organizational Flexibility
75 3.3 Organizational Instruments
86 3.4 Legal Flexibility
87 3.5 Legal Instruments
98 3.6 Financial Flexibility
99 3.7 Financial Instruments
110 3.8 Spatial Flexibility
111 3.9 Spatial Instruments

4. Examples of a Flexible City 127 Les Berges du Rhône, Lyon, France

132 Klimatilpasning Kokkedal, Fredensborg, Denmark
136 Super Blocks Eixample, Barcelona, Spain
142 Sara Cultural Centre, Skellefteå, Sweden
146 Hospital Entrance Area Amsterdam UMC, location AMC,
Amsterdam, the Netherlands
152 Cooperativa Agricoltura Nuova, Rome, Italy
156 IKEA Store, Vienna, Austria
162 Seestadt Aspern, Vienna, Austria
166 The People’s Pavilion, Eindhoven, the Netherlands
172 Cité Maraîchère, Romainville, France
176 Atri, Sikhall Vänersborg, Sweden
182 Gent knapt op, Ghent, Belgium
186 Resource Rows, Copenhagen, Denmark
192 Town Hall Extension, Korbach, Germany
196 Puukuokka Housing Block, Jyväskylä, Finland
202 The Triodos Bank, Driebergen-Rijsenburg, the Netherlands
206 Atelier LUMA, Arles, France
212 Crèche Justice, Paris, France

About the Authors 216

About the Reporters 218
Acknowledgements 220
Credits 222
Foreword
From flooding after rainfall in Amsterdam to heat Together with an international team of reporters, the
stress in Athens. From excessive carbon dioxide authors have put together a set of 36 tools to help
emissions in Luxembourg to a lack of biodiversity in shape that flexible city. From a stronger involvement
Prague. All over Europe, cities are struggling with the of local communities in urban design to the initia-
consequences of climate extremes. Our economic tion of circular food chains. Changes are not isolated;
and growth-driven course brought us a lot, but our they are interconnected. Only by working together
production and consumption have reached the limit with different sectors, we will find circular and cli-
of what our living environment can handle. The ef- mate-adaptive solutions.
fects of climate change are especially felt in our cit-
ies, where the vast majority of people live. Reuse and Social Inclusion Take Centre Stage
It is encouraging to read how many circular and
Liveable Cities climate-adaptive initiatives are actually already in
The call for inclusive, liveable streets, neighbour- place in European cities. The authors offer a very
hoods and cities therefore grows stronger every day. comprehensive overview of these initiatives in their
If we want to keep our cities liveable, we need to last chapter.
make them circular and climate-adaptive. Together, Those initiatives are illustrative of a new way of
we need to use our space differently. Instead of more working and a new mindset, in which reuse, social in-
and bigger, we should aim for different and better. As clusion and the time factor are central. Like an open-
the Board of Government Advisors, we have therefore air car park on the banks of the Rhône in Lyon that
drawn up the Agenda: the 22nd-century starts now. has been transformed into a climate-adaptive park,
We believe in nature-inclusive and climate-adaptive providing room for the river. Or the circular hous-
cities. With our programme ‘A new building culture’, ing project in Copenhagen converting 463 tonnes
we strive to make biobased and nature-inclusive of waste from nearby demolished buildings into new
building become the new normal. A new building living space, proving that circular construction can
culture – from the cultivation of building materials to compete with regular prices, conventional qualities,
their application – needs to arise in which construc- strict guarantees and – on top of that – offer a whole
tion is in balance with nature, so that future genera- new aesthetic.
tions can continue to live well. Fortunately, we have May you enjoy reading this inspiring handbook for
already reached a number of important agreements everyone who contributes to a future-proof European
together, such as on limiting global warming (Paris city: from officials and policymakers to developers,
2015) or protecting biodiversity (Montreal 2022). But builders and users, and, of course, us as architects.
the pace of change is still too slow.
Francesco Veenstra, Chief Government Architect,
The Flexible City The Netherlands
The will is there in cities, but often the know-how is
still missing or ambitions fail because of restricting
regulations or a lack of financing options. That is why
I am delighted that with The Flexible City; Solutions
for a Circular and Climate Adaptive Europe, Tom
Bergevoet and Maarten van Tuijl, in collaboration
with their sponsors and a team of reporters, offer
European cities the necessary tools and instruments
to successfully implement circularity and climate
adaptation. Their flexible city is a circular, climate-
adaptive and future-proof city that can be easily re-
used and allows its inhabitants to shape their own
living environment. It is a city that is emphatically
part of a process of continuous transition. New de-
velopments do not lead to a fixed end position, but
emerge from future-oriented, dynamic starting po-
sitions.

7
 Prologue

In this prologue, a wide range of European cities is explored.

All of them are facing urgent environmental challenges.

Though these challenges are all described and visualized in

relation to a specific city, they are not unique to that particular
city. Numerous other cities across Europe are facing similar
challenges.

8 9
 higher biodiversity: forests and parks Biodiversity Decline
lower biodiversity: agricultural fields
Prague, Czech Republic
urban area
landscape restoration

1800: Prague as a stony exception within a massive forest area, biodiversity is at Background Challenges
a high level. Up until the beginning of the nineteenth century, Next to the loss of natural habitat, climate change
Prague was a stony exception nestled between fields is also a threat to the biodiversity in Prague. Due to
and wooded areas with thriving biodiversity, un- its structure and geographical location, the heat is-
hindered by the effects of industrialization or urban land effect is stronger in Prague than it is on average
sprawl. During the nineteenth and twentieth century, in European cities. On top of already existing strat-
Prague’s borders kept expanding with light industry egy reports such as the Climate Change Adaptation
and housing. Prague’s green infrastructure was bro- Strategy (2017), the city recently published a Drought
ken in its most extreme form during the Communist Plan (2023). Improving the green-blue infrastructure
regime (1948-1989). is crucial to reduce the heat island effect. However,
The regime built a ring of new satellite settlements Prague also has to create a legislative strategy for the
called ‘sídliště’ in the greater metropolitan area of mitigation of climate change to make measures en-
Prague – Jižní, Severní and Jihozápadní město. Open forceable.
nature was replaced by large panel housing blocks
separated by poorly maintained green spaces. While
the interruption of the green belt around Prague was
not completely devastating, it did have a lasting im-
pact on the area’s biodiversity.
1970s: Prague’s green infrastructure was broken in its most extreme form, Outside of the city, collectivization and large-scale
biodiversity is at the lowest level. farming caused a decline in biodiversity due to the
ploughing of field borders, the use of fertilizers, pes-
ticides and further expansion of agricultural land.
This contributed to the loss of habitat of wild fauna
and flora.

Current Situation
Being aware of the poor condition of its biodiversity,
the Czech Republic intensified its efforts by legally
adopting the Convention on Biodiversity in 1999. On
top of that, Prague is currently developing the New
Metropolitan Plan that proposes a greater protec-
tion of open green spaces by stabilizing the border
of the built city, preventing further urban sprawl by
earmarking dilapidated plots within the city for de-
velopment and increasing the ecological stability. By
mapping the territorial system of ecological stabil-
2020: Prague plans to restore the green structure around (and within) the city, ity (územní systém ekologické stability’ – ÚSES), the
boosting biodiversity again. plan connects biocentres and a biocorridor to en-
hance the blue-green infrastructure around the city.

10 11
 burned area Heat Stress
burned area with tree cover loss
Athens, Greece

Attica region: burned areas and tree cover loss due to fires in 2021. Background pose substantial challenges for successfully expand-
Situated in the south of Europe, Greece has always ing green spaces within urban areas.
been on the sunny side of the continent and a safe Anticipating the increased demand for cooling
destination for holidaymakers looking for some sun. energy, the country is exploring the use of passive,
>31 C° Recently however, this region has increasingly been less energy-intensive systems and is seeking ways to
>30 C° facing the negative effects of global warming, such support the energy upgrading of the existing build-
>29 C° as forest fires, urban heat stress and energy-consum- ing stock. Through programmes like the ‘Energy
ing measures to counteract it. Refurbishment of Residences’, funded by the Euro-
pean Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and na-
Current Situation tional Greek funds, the government targets building
The country is experiencing a faster warming rate owners directly and provides financial incentives for
than the European average, resulting in more frequent energy retrofitting measures for their homes. Despite
heatwaves and prolonged droughts, which elevates these efforts, the transition to a low-carbon, energy-
the risk of fires. These result in tree cover loss, which efficient building stock remains a major challenge
intensifies urban heat stress and increases the risk and requires continued investment and engagement
of flooding in the affected areas. In addition to that, from all stakeholders.
the current building stock is not ready to cope with
the rising temperatures. Approximately half of all the
Athens metropolitan area: heat stress levels in 2021. residential buildings in the Attica region lack insula-
tion, making them vulnerable to extreme heat during
the summer. As a result, residents of these buildings
are forced to rely heavily on air-conditioning devices,
80 – 100% without insulation resulting in increased energy consumption during
60 – 80% without insulation the hot months. Furthermore, only a small portion of
40 – 60% without insulation this energy comes from renewable sources, exacer-
20 – 40% without insulation
bating the problem.

Challenges
On its way to future-proof, this region is looking for
more sustainable ways to deal with climate change
and global warming, such as planting more vegeta-
tion in urban areas and looking for sources of renew-
able energy.
In an effort to combat urban heat stress and create
more favourable microclimate conditions within cit-
ies, there are regional plans to protect existing urban
Athens: percentage of buildings without insulation. green spaces, as well as to expand and increase their
coverage. However, the constant growth of Athens
and the lack of a holistic urban planning approach

12 13
 very high risk of flooding Rainwater Floods
high risk of flooding
Amsterdam, the Netherlands
risk of flooding
••••••••••
••••••••••
••••••••••
••••••••••
••••••••••
••••••••••
••••••••••
••••••••••
••••••••••
high groundwater level
100 – 840 mm flooding in the case
of 120 mm rainfall in 2 hours

Amsterdam region: risk map regarding flooding due to heavy rainfall; in the highest Background This also helps in times of drought when the wooden
risk areas, serious damage (property, roads, infrastructure) may be expected. The urban structure of Amsterdam derives from its foundations are threatened and brackish seepage has
ongoing struggle with water. A finely meshed ca- an impact on the local biodiversity. Sea level rise is a
nal structure and elevated dry grounds led to an ur- complex threat in the long run that demands a solid
ban tissue that could deal with its original swampy strategy, a re-evaluation of the elevation strategy and
ground condition. Because most parts within this the development of fitting coping mechanisms.
tissue were both accessible by land and by water, the
city was very suitable for trade. Challenges
Since the Middle Ages, engineering knowledge The city understands it should once more rethink its
and water management grew significantly. From relationship with water. Next to the current meas-
the seventeenth century onwards, Amsterdam could ures regarding climate adaptation, it should be able
therefore expand into its surrounding wetlands. These to deal with even more extreme differences in the
wetlands were transformed into polders, reclaimed near future. Embracing uncertainties is a strategy
land surrounded with dykes in which the groundwa- to deal with the inherent unpredictability of climate
ter level was permanently kept low through drain- change. This might introduce a fundamentally dif-
age and pumping stations. In these polders, wooden ferent way of building and land use where the con-
pile foundations were used for buildings These piles cept of The Flexible City is crucial. The municipality
should always be completely below groundwater lev- and Waternet (responsible for the complete water-
Amsterdam Central East part: risk areas related to groundwater levels. el to protect them from rotting. cycle management in Amsterdam) are encouraging
research, redeveloping a vision on the underground
Current Situation of the city and a fitting elevation strategy. This is
Climate change leads to more extreme weather where the principles of adaptive spatial and policy
conditions, like droughts and heavy rainfalls. Huge pathways can guide future investments in the urban
city expansions in the twentieth century turned development and transformation.
the former wetlands into stony surfaces with a dis-
charge-orientated water infrastructure. The urban
infrastructure is under stress due to the changing
conditions of the extreme weather events. The city
is facing serious challenges, where daily urban life
is stressed by the abundance or absence of (rain)
water. Increasing heat stress has an effect on the
health of the urban population. Public squares and
streets are made ‘rainproof’, reducing the effects of
climate change by introducing local water storage
and implementing more green. Private parties are
encouraged to do the same with their real estate and
Amsterdam Oosterpark neighbourhood: expected flooding in the case of 120 mm gardens. Next to that, the municipality stimulates a
rainfall in two hours. transformation towards a blue-green roof-landscape
as a crucial element of the ‘Sponge City’.

14 15
 landfills Waste Excess
Copenhagen, Denmark

Copenhagen municipality: landfill areas. Background The amount of incinerated waste should be reduced
For centuries, Copenhagen’s focus was only on the too. This requires the (partial) decoupling of heat and
collection and disposal of waste, mostly by burning power generation from waste management. If the
in incinerators or burying it in landfills, like in many system does not succeed in transforming and using
incineration plants other industrial cities in Europe. This form of waste alternative materials such as wooden pallets from
transmission pipeline disposal turned out to have significant environmental sustainable forestry, the goals of a higher recycling
Vestforbrænding district heating area impacts, such as air pollution and soil contamination. rate and further decreasing waste volumes will not
Vestegnens Kraftvarmeselskab
only conflict with the economic viability of the waste
district heating area Current Situation incineration plant, but also with the reliable supply of
Centralkommunernes Transmissions- When concerns about the environmental impacts of the Copenhagen district heating system – the largest
selskabdistrict heating area waste disposal were raised in the 1960s and 1970s, of its kind in the world.
more focus was placed on recycling and compost-
ing. Collection systems were introduced for recy-
clable materials such as paper, glass, and plastic.
Waste sorting facilities and composting plants were
founded, where the collected materials could be
processed. Nevertheless, in 1970 the Amager Bakke
waste incineration plant was built, a facility that still
Copenhagen municipality and surroundings: waste incineration plants with their provides much of the city’s heat and electricity needs
distribution networks for electricity and district heat. by burning waste.
Since the 1990s, efforts were focused on reduc-
ing the amount of generated waste. This led to the
recycling centres development of several educational campaigns and
programmes to raise awareness of the issues among
residents.

Challenges
Copenhagen announced in 2012 that it wants to
be the world’s first carbon-neutral capital city by
2025. This means a significant shift away from tra-
ditional waste disposal methods towards more recy-
cling, composting and waste reduction. One way of
achieving this is through the ‘Circular Copenhagen
– Resource and Waste Plan 2024’, which envisages
an annual reduction in carbon emissions of 59,000
tons by tripling the amount of recycling between
Copenhagen municipality: recycling centres, recycling hubs or swap centres, where 2019 and 2024. Another important goal is to reuse
Copenhageners can bring their unwanted belongings to be repaired or used as a more construction materials, now making up around
resource for new products.
30 per cent of Denmark’s waste production.

16 17
 indication of elevation difference Social Segregation
river Miljacka
Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
risk area for land slides
built-up area

Sarajevo is located in a valley surrounded by hills and mountains, parts of which are Background Buildings on and around all 850 risk areas for land-
instable and vulnerable to landslides after heavy rains. Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, is slides have been assessed and additional safety
located in a valley surrounded by hills and moun- measures were implemented where necessary. The
tains. Over the centuries, the city developed to the combination of measures is different for each loca-
river Miljacka west, over the flat banks of the river Miljacka. The tion. In Buća Potok, for example, the houses have
risk area for land slides mountains have always been of great importance to been connected to the city sewer system and the
building mass the identity of the city in many ways – as protection network of rainwater drainage pipes has been im-
illegally built housing area
against invaders, as a setting for the 1984 Winter proved and expanded. Existing retaining walls on
Olympics, but also as points of attack in the war of the site have been examined by the municipality and
1992-1996 – but there were hardly any houses on the the construction institute of Canton Sarajevo and re-
north and south sides as they were too steep and un- paired wherever necessary. New retaining walls have
stable. also been installed on the site.
Once the situation is safe for all homes, the mu-
Current Situation nicipality wants to upgrade the infrastructure and
In the hills on the north side of the city, in the munici- public space in the legalized districts. Roadworks
pality of Buća Potok, workers’ houses were placed in are in order to make the roads here clearer and safer.
1970-1980s, temporarily, because the location was Public space of sufficient quality is to be created be-
considered unsuitable for permanent residence. tween the buildings. All homes should be easily ac-
Illegally built neighbourhoods in these hills are often built within the risk area’s for When many refugees and other newcomers came to cessible from the public area.
landslides. Sarajevo after the 1992-1996 war, expecting to find In this way, the illegally built districts will eventu-
a better perspective in the capital, they ended up in ally become a fully-fledged part of the urban fabric.
Buća Potok, in the hills around the temporary work-
risk area for land slides ers’ homes. With cheap building materials and sim-
building mass ple construction methods, they built their own hous-
illegally built housing area es, not being aware of the dangers of the unstable
subsoil. As there was no zoning plan and a lack of
supervision, many houses were built illegally shortly
after the war, with the risk of landslides during heavy
rainfall. Because of their disorganized nature, these
illegal neighbourhoods were called Bosnian favelas.

Challenges
The government authorities have always found the
social segregation between the legal, safe areas in
the valley on the one hand and the illegal and unsafe
areas in the hills on the other undesirable. In recent
Illegally built neighbourhoods around Buća Potok were built without a zoning plan years, the municipality has carefully mapped ille-
and a with a lack of supervision. gal buildings, assessed them for safety and legalized
them where possible.

18 19
 smaller-sized food distribution point Food Consumption
bigger-sized food distribution point
Antwerp, Belgium
food distribution point with lower
ecological impact
food distribution point with higher
ecological impact

Antwerp, medieval city: pre-industrial food distribution locations in the city had Background 37 per cent of the Belgian greenhouse gas emissions
a small ecological footprint. In medieval times the citizens of Antwerp had many derive from the national consumption of food.
vegetable gardens and stables with cattle for their
own food production within the city walls. This ur- Challenges
ban agriculture declined in the sixteenth century By developing the Antwerp food strategy, the city of
when Antwerp saw a rapid population growth. Food Antwerp introduces a cross-domain food policy and
was distributed from many specialized outdoor mar- strategic framework enabling the various links in the
kets in the city for meat, vegetables, fish and eggs, food system to become more sustainable. For exam-
where nearby farmers and fishermen would come ple, a public plant-based protein transition should
selling their products and taking urban (human and substantially reduce animal protein consumption by
household) waste back to their farms in return to use 2036. The city wants to reintroduce urban agricul-
as manure. Until the 1900s, Antwerp kept recycling ture, stimulating vegetable gardens as community
most of its urban waste as manure for its nearby assets inside buildings and on rooftops, making the
countryside. production of food more visible again. Furthermore,
In industrial times, faster ways of transportation, it wants to prioritize regional products, reduce food
such as trains, cars and steamboats, made products losses and food packaging.
from further away more accessible for ordinary con-
sumers in Antwerp. From 1900, new ideas about hy-
Antwerp, 1900: industrial locations of food distribution with a growing ecological giene changed the outdoor marketplaces of Antwerp
footprint. into covered indoor spaces, changing over time into
indoor retail shops. The introduction of plastic pack-
aging made household waste worthless as manure.
Farmers turned to fertilizer instead, interrupting the
local circular chain of food and waste. Excrements
and waste were now simply dumped on sites in the
periphery, creating pollution problems for future ur-
ban settlements.

Current Situation
From the 1950s, supermarkets became the places
to supply for fresh products. Modern inventions like
the car and the refrigerator allowed Antwerpers to
do their shopping for a week. The last places for food
production left the city centre, making the food in-
dustry invisible in Antwerp.
Nowadays, growing, harvesting, packing, trans-
Antwerp, today: post-industrial locations of food distribution have a problematic porting, selling, preparing, eating and disposing food
ecological footprint due to high consumption rate. in Antwerp involves a huge international network
with a problematic ecological footprint. Some 21 to

20 21
 extreme pollution Soil Pollution
very heavy pollution
Katowice, Poland
heavy pollution
medium pollution
location (former) coal mine
location heavy industry

Silesian Voivodeship: soil pollution related to historical mines and heavy industries. Background and management need to be thoroughly modern-
The region of Katowice is rich in natural resources. ized, especially because metal pollution is a growing
There were over fifty coal mines, most of them built problem. As heavy metals are hard to remove, chemi-
in nineteenth century and exploited until 1989. After cal solutions or liming are still often used to clean
water pollution the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989, coal mining turned the soil. In some cases, however, natural methods, for
location (former) coal mine out to be unprofitable and also environmentally de- instance using specific plants to purify the soil, can
location heavy industry grading, which led to the closing of mines. Since be a great alternative.
2021, only one coal mine is still in use. Nowadays, the
revitalization of post-mining areas is the main target
and mission in the region.

Current Situation
Katowice, traditionally associated with heavy indus-
try, gradually strives to become a leader in innova-
tion. Employment in the heavy industry is visibly
going down, whereas more jobs in the IT sector are
created. The city created plans to supercharge the
city transformation in the coming years. For exam-
Silesian Voivodeship: water pollution related to historical mines and heavy industries. ple, as part of the revitalization plan of a former coal
mining area, the Culture Zone was established – an
area unique for the entire country. The city has exten-
sive experience in counteracting the effects of long-
bad eco status term environmental degradation. The air quality and
poor eco status living standard of its residents has clearly improved
location (former) coal mine in recent years. However, the official environmental
location heavy industry
reports for Silesia show that the chemical condition
of surface waters and the soil in post-industrial sites
is still unsatisfactory.

Challenges
Recently, both the urban infrastructure and the ar-
chitectural condition of the city have improved sig-
nificantly. Now, the environmental condition is a
matter of the highest importance. Polluted sites are
to be turned into attractive city parts in order to at-
tract new investors. The city has already achieved
Silesian Voivodeship: current ecological status related to historical mines and heavy several goals, including the greening of 50 per cent
industries. of the city’s area. But the cleaning of the soil and wa-
ter in Silesia is still a great challenge. Water supply

22 23
 tCO2 / person / year Carbon Emissions
2
Luxembourg, Luxembourg
1.75
1.5
1.25
no data

Luxembourg: local CO2 emission – food consumption (2020). Background tries, more than three out of four of them driving by
Luxembourg is the most prosperous country of car despite nationwide free public transport. Finally,
Europe, which is attributed to the quick transition Luxembourg’s energy system is characterized by
from a steel and coal-producing industry to a ser- high import dependence (95 per cent in 2018) and a
tCO2 / person / year vice-based one. Too small to create a self-sustaining reliance on fossil fuels (78 per cent in 2018).
4 internal market, Luxembourg has elaborated its po-
3.5 litical, financial and trade interconnections within Challenges
3
Europe. Despite its small size, the country plays an In the last decade, Luxembourg has moved towards
important role in European politics and economy, decoupling its economic and demographic growth
2.5
hosting many EU institutions and a substantial fi- from its energy consumption. Luxembourg has
no data
nancial sector. The service industry accounts for generous support schemes for renewable energy
around 85 per cent of the gross domestic product sources and energy efficiency, two critical pillars of
(GDP). a clean energy transition. The government’s plan to
gradually introduce carbon pricing could stimulate
Current Situation the behavioural changes and investments required
Luxembourg has both the highest GDP per capita for transitioning to a lower-carbon energy system.
and the highest carbon dioxide emissions per cap- Nonetheless, the country’s attractive low taxes on
ita in Europe. Air pollution can be primarily attrib- energy represent a hurdle to a sustainable transition
Luxembourg: local CO2 emission – traffic and transportation (2020). uted to fuel tourism (54 per cent of energy demand to lower carbon consumption.
comes from the transport sector, including drivers
from neighbouring countries visiting Luxembourg to
fill up their tanks) and energy-intensive technologi-
tCO2 / person / year cal networks (data centres). Luxembourg has deter-
30 minedly positioned itself as an infrastructure hub in
25 central Europe, driven by keen tax incentives.
20
Luxembourg has developed into a major freight
route with cheaper fuel prices (attracting a high level
15
of cross-border sales) and an extensive motorway
network, alongside one of the largest cargo airlines
in Europe (CargoLux). Concurrently, the country is
a communications powerhouse hosting the world’s
largest satellite services company, SES. Talks are un-
derway for Google to build an energy-intensive data
centre in Luxembourg, which would consume 12 per
cent of the country’s current energy use. Emissions
can also be traced to the country’s rapid transition to
Luxembourg: average local CO2 emission (2020). a services-based economy relying heavily on cross-
border workers; almost 50 per cent of Luxembourg’s
workforce commute daily from neighbouring coun-

24 25
 built-up area Car-based Infrastructure
car-based infrastructure
Barcelona, Spain

Metropolitan Area of Barcelona: car-dominated infrastructure, connecting satellite Background urban towns have clear centres with a high popula-
towns to the city centre. The metropolitan area of Barcelona arose from an ar- tion density, there is a good base for intensifying the
rangement of several historical small towns and vil- existing infrastructure of public transport. By im-
lages around the central city of Barcelona. After the proving the network for bicycles, cycling can become
built-up area Second World War, the small roads that used to con- a good alternative for short car rides.
car-based infrastructure nect the historic settlements were turned into much After car traffic is contained or reduced, the Master-
green areas bigger motorways, resulting in a poly-nuclear urban plan aims to bring back the human scale to several
arrangement dominated by car infrastructure. Over significant roads and public spaces within the urban
the years the small towns have almost grown to- tissue. Re-interpretation of the historic roads, which
gether to form one urban continuum to the centre of gradually turned into large-scale motorways during
Barcelona, connected by lines of infrastructure. the twentieth century, key spaces within the local
infrastructure can be made suitable for pedestrians
Current Situation and other forms of slow traffic again.
Nowadays many infrastructural lines, such as motor-
ways and railroad tracks, cut through the urban tis-
sue and the surrounding green areas, creating huge
barriers. This reinforces poor social and ecological
interconnectivity and spatial segregation. Socially,
Metropolitan Area of Barcelona: car-dominated infrastructure, cutting through the monocultures emanating from this segregation
green areas, disrupting ecological structures. are a threat to the inclusive society Spain wants to
be. Ecologically, the obstructing infrastructure iso-
lates species, adding to the loss of biodiversity.
building mass Additionally, the heavy dependency on the car caus-
car-based infrastructure es air and noise pollution around the infrastructure,
railroad affecting health and quality of life. Along the roads,
many leftover spaces are neglected and became ar-
eas with a low urban quality.

Challenges
Being aware of the problems infrastructural lines
cause, the Area Metropolitana de Barcelona (AMB)
approved a Metropolitan Urban Masterplan (PDMU)
in March 2023 that redefines the urban mobility
model. One of the main objectives of this Masterplan
is the introduction or stimulation of alternatives for
car traffic. The final goal is to downgrade the existing
Metropolitan area / Montcada i Reixac town: car-dominated infrastructure, cutting car-dominated infrastructure.
through urban tissue, reinforcing poor interconnectivity and causing social The masterplan prioritizes active mobility like
segregation.
walking and cycling and public transport. As the sub-

26 27
1. The Inflexible City

Since the beginning of the twentieth century, the way we

develop our towns and cities is modern and mainly
economically driven. This has eventually led to a complex of
environmental crises. The way our towns and cities are made
is now threatening those very towns and cities.

To turn the tide, our cities have to be changed into circular

environments, removing the causes of these environmental
crises. At the same time, we have to make our cities climate-
adaptive, counteracting the harmful consequences of those
crises. Despite ambitions, progress in our cities is too slow.
Changing our urban environment, planning habits and future
expectations is tough. Conflicting interests, legal obstruc-
tions, uncovered costs and technical challenges complicate
the much-needed changes.

In this chapter, we explain why more flexibility is necessary

to help make our cities circular and climate-adaptive.

29
 1.1 Europe Facing Challenges

Since the beginning of the twentieth century, we have the near future, social inclusion will be harder to ef-
become increasingly prosperous. While the world- fectuate.
wide population has grown from less than 2 billion There is a growing urge to counteract these crises
people in 1900 to 8 billion people in 20231, the in- around the world. At conferences like those aimed
come per capita has been increased by a factor six at limiting global warming (Paris 2015) or protect-
in the same time2. Triggered by this increase of pur- ing biodiversity (Montreal 2022), countries try to
chasing power, companies strained themselves to come to future-proof agreements. Though not all
meet the growing demand for goods. Their industrial- governments are willing to take restrictive meas-
ized production lines got scaled up and globalized in ures, Europe appears to be one of the most ambi-
order to provide us with products, both affordable and tious continents at these conferences. Frequently,
with the highest quality. Since 1900, the worldwide the European Union pleads for rigorous changes by
industrial production grew with a factor twenty3. setting ambitious targets.
But this growth has a downside. With our pro- Being important facilitators of our way of life,
duction modes and consumption patterns, we have cities are key in accomplishing the desired chang-
reached the limits of what our planet can handle. es. The European Union realizes that achieving the
Currently, several environmental crises tumble over agreed targets starts with reconsidering the way we
each other. Greenhouse gas emissions cause glob- develop our cities. However, converting ambition into
al warming. Waste is spoiling our resources. Ex- action is not easy and measurable results are lagging
panding urbanization and intensive agriculture de- behind. Changing the way our cities behave means
crease biodiversity. Pollution is impoverishing our changing large-scaled systems, proven mechanisms
soils. Excessive consumption unsettles the availabil- and conventional habits. Counteracting the negative
ity of finite resources. The negative impacts of our impact of our way of living and tackling the complex
The impact of climate change on Europe (source: European Environment Agency) way of living have become a threat for that same way of environmental crises means that European cities,
of living. towns and villages will face challenges in the coming
Arctic: temperature rises much more than the global Mediterranean region: more heat extremes; less rain
Those threats are numerous. Climate change for decades that differ fundamentally from the challeng-
average; higher risk of biodiversity loss; risks to the and river flows; higher risk of droughts; higher risk of
livelihoods of local people biodiversity loss; higher risk of forest fires; more example, caused by global warming, leads to all kinds es that we have faced in the past. If Europe wants to
competition for water; lower crop yields; more energy of environmental dangers. Coastal areas are threat- make its ambitions come true, far-reaching reforms
Boreal region: more heavy rain, less snow and ice; more needed for cooling; most economic sectors negatively ened by floods, while continental regions are vulner- are needed in the spatial development of our cities,
rain and river flows; more risks of forest pests; winter affected; more people die because of heat waves
able to temporary heat stress or periods of drought. towns and villages.
storms do more damage
Mountain area: temperature rises more than the In mountain areas, rising temperatures accelerate
Atlantic region: more heavy rain; higher river flow; European average; fewer and smaller glaciers; high risk the extinction of species. Mediterranean regions are 1. source: UN World Population Prospects
higher risk of flooding; higher risks of damage due to of species extinction; more risks of forest pests; more 2. source: Our World in Data
endangered by forest fires and failed harvests. All
storms in winter; more bad weather risks of rock falls and landslides; declining ski tourism 3. source: Macrotrends
over Europe, waste and pollution are threatening our
Continental region: more weather extremes; less rain in no data health. Basic human needs such as dry feet, environ-
summer; higher risk of river floods; higher risk of forest mental safety and a continuous food supply are in-
fires; more energy needed for cooling creasingly under pressure. Most likely, not all of us
will be able to afford protective measures, so the gap
between the rich and the poor is expected to widen.
Climate refugees will cause demographic shifts. In

30 31
 1.2 The Need for Circular and Climate Adaptive Solutions

If we want to save our planet with all its resources Actions to adapt to the consequences of environ-
for future generations, we have to counter its decline, mental crises do not remove their causes, but miti-
caused by an accumulation of environmental crises gate their negative effects. An example is the raising
Total waste production in tons Flooding of coastal areas across Europe, scenario 2080s like global warming, the spoiling of natural recours- of dykes, to prevent areas from flooding. Another ex-
(source: ResearchGate) (source: European Environment Agency) es, pollution and the extinction of species. It is not ample is the implementation of green in cities, atten-
People flooded (thousands / year) easy, however, to distinguish each one of these crises uating heat stress. Also the retainment of water, pro-
385,507 – 2,000,000 <6 clearly from the other. They are often closely related tecting areas against periodic drought is an example
2,000,000 – 60,000,000 6 – 10 and reinforce each other. A good example of this is of an action that limits negative environmental ef-
60,000,000 – 150,000,000 10 – 50 the burning of fossil fuels to generate energy, which fects. Though these actions don’t stop the climate
150,000,000 – 400,000 50 – 150 simultaneously results in the exhaustion of finite re- from changing, they keep our environment liveable
sources and the acceleration of global warming due despite climate change. Therefore, these actions are
no data no data
to greenhouse gas emissions. Another example of called climate-adaptive actions.
the entanglement of environmental crises is the ex- From this perspective, the solutions our cities
pansion of paved surfaces within our cities. As a re- need to counteract environmental crises are clas-
sult, it is increasingly difficult for rainwater to seep sified into circular and climate-adaptive solutions.
into the soil, making floods more likely. At the same Implementing circularity and climate adaptation in
time there is less space for vegetation to mitigate our cities asks for a reconsideration of the way we de-
heat stress and enhance biodiversity. So, instead of velop, use and exploit them. It asks for adjustments
taking action to address one single crisis, it is better in our way of planning. More than before, planning
to address to the whole complex of related crises in needs to become contextually sensitive, as circular-
a coherent, holistic way. Instead of focusing on one ity is most credible when relying on local resources
single crisis at the time, we should focus on what ac- and climate adaptation starts with a careful analysis
tions we can take to remove the causes of environ- of local threats and opportunities. More than before,
mental crises and to adapt to the consequences of planning should enable its users to implement circu-
these environmental crises. larity and climate adaptation in their own surround-
An example of the removal of a cause of environ- ings, buildings and networks. And more than before,
mental crises is the reduction of greenhouse gas planning must allow for unpredictability. The avail-
emissions, which will help slow global warming. By ability of circular resources is less predictable and so
generating energy from infinite sources like sun or are weather conditions or the rising of the sea level.
wind instead of by burning fossil fuels, these emis- Though Europe is willing to implement circularity
sions can be reduced. Another example is using and climate adaptation in its cities, this is easier said
Observed trends in annual temperature from 1960 to 2021 Premature deaths caused by air pollution in Europa
more recycled or biobased materials and fewer finite than done. In practice, making Europe’s towns, vil-
(source: European Environment Agency) (source: European Society of Cardiology / European Heart Journal)
°C / decade number of deaths / 100,000 people resources, to minimize waste and pollution. Actions lages and urban areas circular and climate-adaptive
that reduce the causes of environmental crises are asks for a recalibration of our planning conventions.
0.0 – 0.1 0.4 – 0.5 < 100
circular actions, as they turn linear processes into
0.1 – 0.2 > 0,5 100 – 130
circular ones. Based on infinite resources like sun,
0.2 – 0.3 no data 130 – 150
wind, recycled materials or biobased products, circu-
0.3 – 0.4 > 150
lar processes can be repeated time after time with-
no data out aggravating the complex of environmental crises.

32 33
 1.3 System Crisis

If we want to understand how our planning system From the 1970s on, however, there has been a grow-
has to be changed to make our cities, towns and vil- ing awareness that the way we build our cities has
lages circular and climate-adaptive, we first need to severe negative environmental effects. Industrial
understand that system. production based on fossil fuels results in signifi-
Our current planning system is, to a great extent, cant greenhouse gas emissions. Building with steel,
based on the principles of modern urbanism. Inspired concrete and brick relies heavily on finite resources.
by the possibilities of industrial production and en- The one-sided focus on efficiency in construction
couraged by social engagement, modernist urbanism processes ends up in vast amounts of waste and
arose in the beginning of the twentieth century. After pollution. Expanding towns and cities comes at the
attempts in various European countries to somehow expense of their green peripheries, while nature is al-
define its principles, like the German definition of a ready under pressure. Focussing on short-term prof-
minimum subsistence level (Existenzminimum) and its rather than on long-term goals, such as a care-
the Dutch 1901 Housing Act, an international group ful contextual fit, eventually leads to urban tissues
of leading architects and town planners drew up suffering more and more from environmental threats
the Declaration of La Sarraz in 1928, which can be such as heat stress or floods. The way we are used to
seen as a complete resume of modernist urbanism planning our cities clearly does not match with the
principles. The declaration pleas for the industrial principles of circularity and climate adaptation.
standardization of building output, allowing high- Despite this awareness, the way we plan, con-
quality housing to be built cheaply. This housing struct and use our cities has not fundamentally
should be built in new districts outside the historic changed. Apparently, it is hard to change planning
city limits, according to urban patterns following the conventions. The set of instruments within our plan-
generic functional paradigms of light, air and space ning system is just not flexible enough to imple-
Carbon dioxide emissions per capita, 2019 (source: The World Bank) rather than site specific, environmental features. ment circular and climate-adaptive solutions. There
(Carbon dioxide emissions are those stemming from the burning of fossil fuels and the production of cement.
Residential areas were separated from working areas is a crisis in the system. The way we plan European
They include carbon dioxide produced during consumption of solid, liquid and gas fuels and gas flaring.)
and an extensive, car-based infrastructure made sure towns and cities is too inflexible to counteract envi-
tCO2 / person / year that people could travel to work efficiently. ronmental crises.
16 16 In the first half of the twentieth century, the prin- If we want to make our towns and cities circular
ciples of modernist urbanism were adopted by and climate-adaptive, we will have to look for a more
European governments, construction companies, flexible set of instruments that makes it possible to
property developers, designers and the users of implement the necessary transformations, that em-
0
space. This resulted in a hyper-efficient construction powers users to develop new habits and that ensures
no data
economy that was fully equipped to produce stand- a sustainable, future-proof urban environment.
ardized suburban housing on a grand scale, from its
organizational structures to its professional mind-
set, and from the legislation to the business models
and production methods. As a result, nearly every
European city, town and village got considerably ex-
tended in the twentieth century following the eco-
nomic principles of modernist urbanism.

34 35
 1.4 From Building to Recycling

Contextual Indifference frustrates the ability to respond to contextual fea-

The large stock of European property that was built tures like the water-permeability of soil, local water
since the beginning of the twentieth century was loops, ecologic qualities or seasonal sensitive cir-
not designed to be circular or climate-adaptive. If cumstances, such as weather conditions. Modern
we don’t want these buildings to become a source urbanism meant the rolling out of roads and build-
1. An old office building is abandoned. of future problems, we will have to make them circu- ings on top of the underlying landscape, regardless
lar and climate-adaptive. And, even more important, of contextual features. As a result, large parts of our
if we don’t want this problematic building stock to cities are not climate-resilient. Vulnerable to floods,
grow even further, we have to change our planning droughts or heat stress, these existing districts are
habits too. the problems of the future.
As a circular use of resources was not part of mod- Incorporating climate adaptation means a close
ern construction, finite materials such as steel, brick reading of existing features that might cause future
or concrete formed the base of the modern building threats, such as elevation differences in the under-
stock, despite their environmental impact. While be- ground, the potential for water storage or the ratio
ing mined, produced and transported, these mate- between stony surfaces and green. Precious local
rials make a major contribution to global warming qualities, such as public infrastructure, private prop-
and additionally, their resources get exhausted. As erties or local biodiversity, that are vulnerable to en-
a result, large parts of our cities consist of materi- vironmental threats should be carefully analysed and
als that are not circular and have a big environmental protected through appropriate measures. Bringing
impact. Future transformation or demolition of these in climate adaptation means considering the under-
buildings will lead to more greenhouse gas emis- lying landscape as a base that matters and should be
2. The building is insulated, renovated with circular materials and provided with a source for circular energy. sions and waste. taken as the starting point for any further develop-
Turning these city districts into circular environ- ment.
ments means making processes circular that were
originally linear. Local resources should be identified Local Flexibility
so that circular processes can be initiated or contin- Making our cities circular and climate-adaptive asks
ued. Building materials, ready to be reused or upcy- for planning instruments that enable us to adapt
cled, could be such resources. Rainwater that is lo- existing local structures, systems and habits to re-
cally retained or energy from sun and wind can be late them better to their context. In contrast to the
seen as local resources too. Keeping circular chains contextually and environmentally indifferent way we
relatively small contributes to a smaller environmen- used to plan cities, local circumstances become a
tal footprint. Local production of food and biobased key factor in making our cities circular and climate-
ßhuis materials reduces greenhouse gas emissions be- adaptive. As these local circumstances may initially
cause distances are smaller. A conscious use of fi- seem to be inflexible and hard to change, we need
nite resources also means a halt to further sprawl- instruments that enforce more local flexibility to help
ing of our cities, protecting the surrounding nature. us incorporate circularity and climate adaptation
Densifying our cities in a smart way is how we can into our cities.
3. Being energy-sufficient and nicely renovated, the building is in full use again. create more space for living and working.
The focus on efficiency and short-term profits

36 37
 1.5 From Supply to Demand

Consumerism the needed circular and climate-adaptive changes

Aiming for the lowest cost and the highest quality, themselves, local communities of users assure that
the economy of modern urbanism has been a mostly actions are taken suitable for their specific environ-
supply-driven affair. Optimized, linear production ment and needs. Possessing the property, partici-
chains led to a consumption of finite resources and pating in local networks and being part of the local
1. A worn-out apartment building suffers from increasing energy costs: residents move out. a production of waste on a scale never seen before. economy, users and their communities are in a good
Subsequently, citizens were pushed into a role of position to effectuate measures such as the adjust-
mere consumers, accepting the range of products ment of building structures to natural water systems,
emanating from optimized production processes the reinforcement of local ecology and the reduction
and degenerating them to disposables within a lim- of car-based infrastructure. Local communities can
ited period of time. During the last decades of the initiate circular processes themselves, for instance
twentieth century, unparalleled amounts of waste by harvesting of building materials in order to reuse
were produced by consumers all over Europe. On top them, or locally producing food. Smaller scaled, cir-
of that, citizens struggled to develop a sense of own- cular supply chains will easily lead to a smaller envi-
ership for their immediate surroundings, because ronmental footprints. From this perspective, smaller
building developments took place with only little supply chains can easily turn users into producers
consideration for their contexts. of their own goods, eventually strengthening their
Of course, parties on the supply side, such as economies and increasing local profits.
planning authorities and manufacturers of building
materials, can play a major role in reducing the en- Use-driven Flexibility
vironmental footprint of urbanism. But users, rep- In order to implement circularity and climate adap-
2. Instead of demolishing it, the owner renovates the building and provides it with circular energy supply, resenting the demand side of the supply-chain, can tation in our cities, our urban development and pro-
reintroducing it to the market with options for residents to co-invest. have at least as much impact. By liberating them- duction chains should become more use-driven. We
selves from their role as mere consumers and be- should reconsider the supply-driven set of instru-
coming critical about the space and products they ments our cities are currently developed with. A set
use, they can eventually force planners and suppliers of instruments is needed that enables users to lib-
to limit the environmental footprint of cities. Making erate themselves from their roles of mere consum-
the demand side of production chains more determi- ers, becoming critical about the supply and regain
native, considerable steps can be made turning our a sense of ownership of their own environment. As
towns and cities into circular and climate-adaptive users get more responsibility for the layout of their
environments. own living environment and the supply of space, cir-
Moreover, users can have a stronger impact by be- cularity and climate adaptation can be better imple-
ing more than just critical consumers of space. As mented.
the negative effect of various environmental crises
directly threatens their daily living environment, their
safety and their health, the urge for change is most
directly experienced by the people working and living
3. Attracted by its sustainability and options to co-invest, new residents move into the building. in these environments. By regaining responsibility
for their own living environment and implementing

38 39
 1.6 From Blueprint to Unpredictability

Stagnation from the equation. For many years, the idea was that
Based on blueprints, modernist urban planning de- in case the future would not turn out as expected, re-
rives from the perception that society is predictable, lated failure costs could be compensated by growing
plannable and controllable. Subsequently, the avail- profits. But now that various environmental crises
ability of resources is perceived as being endless and are causing major problems, failure costs are sud-
1. An entire village was cleared to make way for the large-scale expansion of a seaport. natural phenomena such as the fluctuation of water denly becoming an issue. This, too, stalls the imple-
levels, seasonal droughts and the climate are con- mentation of circularity and climate adaptation.
sidered predictable. We all know, however, that both Circularity and climate adaptability therefore re-
the availability of resources and our climate are in- quire time-based flexibility. A new set of instruments
creasingly characterized by unpredictability. The re- is needed that enables adjustments to be made
alization that the future can no longer be controlled when the future is capricious or does not turn out as
or predicted to the same extent as before is making expected. In practice, time-based flexibility means
our current way of urban development problematic, working in steps, whereby results are always tempo-
as it is still mainly based on the principles of predict- rary and open to change. Interventions no longer just
ability. Awareness of the uncertain availability of re- depend on large amounts of capital, on-off interven-
sources and possible future environmental threats tions or a large scale for their success. Modest steps
is sapping the confidence of investors, developers, that are well chosen can ultimately have major con-
users and other relevant players. While the urge for sequences.
changes is growing, projects implementing circular-
ity and climate adaptation are seen as increasingly
high-risk from a fear that investments will not be re-
2. As the economy turned circular faster than expected, the port development stagnated; new residents couped in time. As a result, the necessary shift to-
settled in the village. wards circular and climate-adaptive towns and cities
is stalled.
A greater emphasis on time as a factor will lead
to a more stimulating investment environment in our
cities, towns and villages. If we are able to improvise
in the short term, while retaining a focus on long-
term objectives, we can respond much more quickly
to sudden changes, and simultaneously prepair larg-
er structural changes and implement these in phas-
es. That will make towns and cities future-proof and
adaptable again.

Time-based Flexibility
The current system for spatial development is based
on the idea of endless resources and a rigid plan that
3. The village developed into a unique, flourishing community surrounded by an extensive seaport. does not change over time. This strong focus on plan-
ning and long-term, fixed objectives removes time

40 41
2. The Flexible City

A circular and climate-adaptive city can easily be reused,

enables its inhabitants to be responsible for their own
environment and is future-proof. A circular and climate-
adaptive city is a flexible city.

Changes are not standalone events; they are emphatically

part of a process of continual transition. New developments
do not lead to a fixed final position, they rather emerge from
future-oriented, dynamic starting positions. Only then can
truly circular and climate-adaptive solutions be found.

In this chapter, we explain what we mean by flexible area

development and how it works.

43
 2.1 Flexible Area Development
WOOD FOSSIL
REVOLUTION
FUEL
PROTEST
EU IS CLIMATE
NEUTRAL
REDUCED
GLOBAL
FOREST WARMING

FIRES PARIS II NITROGEN

REDUCTION

MORE
DEMOLITION DEMOGRAPHIC
ECONOMIC
RECESSION
BAN DECLINE
CLIMATE
GREAT RISING REFUGEES
RIVER SILICIUM SEA LEVELS
FLOODS WARS
In flexible area development, each individual devel- tion and impact of the steps are determined on a pro-
opment is explicitly part of a continual process of de- ject basis. A building that can temporarily be present,
velopment. because it is built out of circular, demountable ele-
If Europe’s cities, towns and villages are to become ments to satisfy peak demand and then be removed
more circular and climate-adaptive, an innovative without leaving any traces can just as much be a step
approach is required that will enable a transforma- as a functionally neutral building designed for the
tion that is more sensible to existing circumstances, long term that is constantly able to adapt to fluctuat-
is more focused on the inclusion and participation of ing forms of use. The essential element in develop-
users and is better able to cope with unpredictability. ment on the basis of starting positions is that there is
Our experience in our own projects, research and our always a follow-up step available.
analysis of the international case studies presented As a result, spatial development no longer produc-
in Chapter 4 show that an approach in which each es an outcome that is static and permanent. Instead,
development is explicitly part of a continual process it produces something that is in a constant state of
of developments is the one that best satisfies these flux. Development is no longer about fixing a build-
requirements. If a development is seen as a stepwise ing or area according to a blueprint or final posi-
EU IS CLIMATE process rather than a single event, it can gradually tion; it is about taking steps in a continual process of
NEUTRAL take shape on the basis of the existing qualities, gradual change.

FOSSIL while users and other stakeholders gain more influ-

REDUCED
FUEL
ence and it becomes easier to respond to unforeseen
PARIS II PROTEST
GLOBAL and unforeseeable dynamics.
WARMING This stepwise approach to development contrasts
ECONOMIC DEMOGRAPHIC sharply with the conventional approach to develop-
MORE
DEMOLITION
RECESSION DECLINE
BAN
ment, which assumes a single large step to a prede-
CLIMATE
WOOD
fined situation or final position – what is known as
NITROGEN REFUGEES blueprint planning. To emphasize the contrast with
REVOLUTION REDUCTION blueprint or final-position planning, we call the steps
RIVER
FLOODS FOREST in the flexible development model starting positions.
GREAT
SILICIUM FIRES The stepwise approach with starting positions gives

WARS a development strategy that is far more pliable and

flexible than in the case of blueprint planning.
RISING In principle, this development strategy is scale-
SEA LEVELS
independent and can be used for a broad range of
projects, from interiors to buildings, from streets to
urban districts and from new buildings to conver-
sions. Of course, the steps are relative and a step on
the scale of an interior is not the same as a step on
the scale of a city. From a temporal perspective too,
small steps can be separated by months, years or
t1 t2 t3 tn even decades in some cases. The size, nature, dura-

44 45
 2.2 Local Flexibility

In blueprint planning, specific local conditions play The legal limiting conditions are determined by the
a subordinate role in the drive for efficiency. In this rules that apply for the location, for example those
development approach, it is standard practice to re- laid down in structural concept documents, zoning
move or simply ignore as many of the existing ele- plans and local by-laws, as well as generally appli-
ments as possible when preparing the site for build- cable standards as defined in building decrees and
ing in order to keep processes manageable. However, legislation.
this practice is at odds with the drive for circularity The financial limiting conditions are, for instance,
EU IS CLIMATE
NEUTRAL and climate adaptation.
Flexible area development, on the other hand, ena-
the value of existing lands and properties related to
the capitalization of environmental risks as well as

FOSSIL bles specific local conditions to be taken as the start- any rental income and the opportunities for finan-

REDUCED ing point for redevelopment. Taking these conditions ciering or refinancing.

PARIS II
FUEL GLOBAL
as the point of departure rather than eliminating
them brings major benefits such as a better fit to the
Finally, the spatial limiting conditions concern the
physical characteristics of the location, such as the
PROTEST WARMING underlying landscape, more chances for the reuse of soil characteristics, the structure of existing build-
ECONOMIC DEMOGRAPHIC
materials, shorter procedural and construction phas- ings and the local availability of resources. The spa-

MORE
DEMOLITION es and broader support among stakeholders. In this tial analysis should include a survey of the technical
RECESSION DECLINE

WOOD
BAN NITROGEN
CLIMATE
REFUGEES
way, flexible area development leads to tailored solu-
tions, enabling existing parts of the city to become
circular and climate-adaptive.
and historical features of the location.

Development Framework
A qualitative and quantitative analysis beforehand These limiting conditions give an understanding of
REVOLUTION REDUCTION
RIVER of the specific local conditions shows what develop- all the available development or redevelopment op-

FLOODS FOREST ments are possible based on the existing situation. tions at a location. However, not all these options
GREAT
FIRES
Future situations therefore evolve from the charac- are desirable. All the undesirable development op-
SILICIUM teristics of the current situation. tions can be excluded by drawing up a development

WARS
framework with critical qualitative and quantitative
Limiting Conditions upper and lower thresholds. Although such a devel-

RISING The possibilities for incorporating circularity and cli-

mate adaptation are determined by the local process-
opment framework leaves much still open, it helps to
clarify the prospects for a location. It seems logical
SEA LEVELS that the development framework should primarily
related, legal, financial and spatial limiting conditions.
The process-related limiting conditions are set by be determined by the owner in consultation with the
the local stakeholders and the way in which they are governmental authorities, which would be responsi-
organized. These stakeholders include not just the ble for checks. But in principle any party can draw up
parties that are traditionally involved, such as the a development framework.
public authorities, developers, investors, consultants Because it is easier to map out the near future than
t0 and builders, but also other parties that are locally the more distant future, this results in an overview of
engaged, such as maintenance managers, energy prospects that fans out from a few identifiable op-
suppliers and, last but not least, the users. The organi- tions in the short term that could in the longer term
zational form determines who is able to exercise in- lead to many possible follow-up steps, whereby the
fluence over a development, when and how. more distant steps cannot yet be predicted in detail.

46 47
 2.3 Use-driven Flexibility

In blueprint planning, a small team of professionals that stakeholders will have less of an influence in de-
decides on the cubic content of the buildings, the cisions where the impact is on a larger scale and for
land values and the designated use of new devel- a longer period, as the public interest will be greater
opments beforehand. However good the market re- then. On the other hand, self-determination is a more
search is, any development that is fixed in advance in obvious choice for smaller-scale decisions.
this way is bound to be speculative. This means that The role of advisors such as architects, urban plan-
there is a risk of new developments disregarding the ners and construction cost experts is an interesting
EU IS CLIMATE
NEUTRAL actual needs of local communities. This approach
can lead to neglected environments, social segrega-
question. Within the project’s development frame-
work, they list all the possible first steps based on

FOSSIL tion and waste. the wishes of the stakeholders. The parties involved

REDUCED Flexible area development enables users and lo- take good note of this information and then make a

PARIS II
FUEL GLOBAL
cal communities to take responsibility for their own joint decision. Because they make the decision to-
gether, all those involved are committing themselves
PROTEST WARMING
environment; as a result, developments are based on
concrete requirements rather than being specula- to the decision and confirming their own tasks and
tive. Having all parties that are relevant to the suc- responsibilities, such as letting out the space, carry-
DEMOGRAPHIC

MORE
DEMOLITION cess of the new development take decisions jointly, ing out maintenance tasks, providing permits or fi-
DECLINE

WOOD
BAN NITROGEN
CLIMATE
REFUGEES
rather than restricting this to a small team of pro-
fessionals, ensures that only developments for which
there is a demonstrable demand are realized. This
nancing the plan. Once a decision has been taken, it
is irrevocable for a limited period, and the impact on
the future remains limited.
reduces investment risks and makes it more likely
REVOLUTION REDUCTION
RIVER that residents get involved in the project. Starting Positions

FLOODS FOREST This approach to decision-making requires differ- The series of possible next steps as identified by the
GREAT
FIRES
ent forms of collaboration with different decision- advisors are termed starting positions. The starting
SILICIUM making structures and different hierarchies. positions form a comprehensive description of the

WARS
options in the short term. Each of these shows the in-
Decision-making teractions between the process-related, legal, finan-

RISING Flexible area development permits input from local

communities of users, but also from financers and
cial and spatial consequences. The selection of one
specific starting position implies the rejection of all
SEA LEVELS other starting positions and automatically alters the
the parties charged with maintaining and running
the properties, from owners to government bodies development framework.
such as city districts, municipalities and provinces,
and other relevant parties. This does not mean that
all parties automatically have equal influence in the
decision-making process. The extent of their say
t0 t1 depends on the project. It is reasonable to expect
the owner and perhaps the initiator too to have the
most influence on the setup for the decision-making
process. They determine what decisions have to be
made, by whom, when and how. It also seems likely

48 49
 2.4 Time-based Flexibility

In blueprint planning, the development process is Recalibrating

kept manageable by keeping the final position fixed Because of the stepwise approach, plans can be
with no further alterations after it has been calcu- recalibrated within the development framework if
lated, checked, adopted by administrators and com- there are unexpected events or new insights. An as-
municated to others. Time and time again, though, sessment based on the latest insights is made as to
it turns out that actual situation develops in a way what forms of optimization are necessary, desirable
EU IS CLIMATE not envisaged in this final position. As a result, this and possible. A series of new starting positions gives

NEUTRAL approach leads to high costs of failure, which are in-

creasingly difficult to earn back elsewhere.
an understanding of the consequences of these op-
timizations. This enables a new development course

FOSSIL The stepwise approach used in flexible area de- to be set based on sound considerations. Each sub-

FUEL
velopment means that it is still possible to work on a sequent step is treated as a new starting position.
development during the project execution. Changing During the development process, it may transpire
PARIS II PROTEST availability of resources or other new insights can that the development framework (containing all de-
still be taken on board once the project is in pro- sirable future scenarios) itself needs to be modi-
gress. Parties that join later can still have a say rather fied or shifted. What are termed ‘reflective sessions’

MORE
than being faced with definitive plans. It is possible can be used for the recalibration. In these sessions,
to experiment during the development process and stakeholders reflect on the development process and
CLIMATE to incorporate the conclusions in the decision-mak- discuss the consequences of recent events with one

WOOD
REVOLUTION
NITROGEN
REDUCTION
REFUGEES ing. Investments are made in phases rather than all
in one go, which spreads the risks.
another. The decision-making model as described
above, which is designed specifically for a particular

RIVER In this way, all kinds of unforeseen events can be project and in which other stakeholders in addition

FLOODS FOREST taken into account during the development process. to the initiator and the owner are also able to exer-
GREAT
FIRES
cise influence, shows how the recalibration takes
SILICIUM Events place exactly.

WARS Project-related conditions can change, with the

threat of budget overruns and shifts in the number or
Thus, the factor time plays a key part in Flexible
area development.

RISING category of users as a result. External factors can also

change. Examples are an increase in energy costs,
SEA LEVELS
changes in the political climate or a deterioration in
the economic situation. The consequences of both
project-related events and external events can be al-
lowed for in flexible area development.
Such events have an impact on the number and
size of the steps in the flexible development model.
t0 t1 t2 t3 tn If the economy is going through a tough time, the in-
vestments and therefore the steps are small; if the
economy is flourishing, the steps can be bigger. If
there are many unexpected events, many extra steps
are needed; if there are few unexpected events, few-
er extra steps are required.
50 51
Flexible Ecosystem Restoration

Unintentionally, green networks in our cities have

3a
in the last decades been interrupted by roads and
1
3b
buildings, breaking up ecosystems, isolating species 2
3c
and decreasing biodiversity. These connections can
partly be restored by carefully reconnecting the iso-
lated green areas with chains of trees, plants or un-
paved land strips.
As significant quantities of our cities are privately
owned, the strategy to reconnect these green parts
should contain tools of different kinds, both pub-
lic and private, both large-scaled and small-scaled, 3a. Furthermore, only municipality-owned
parts like the verges of public roads are
both temporary and permanent. Close analysis of
transformed into green belts of plants and
each possible casus should lead to the right combi- trees.
nation of tools. Eventually, time will tell how fruitful
the green reconnection can become.

1. An unfortunately positioned business 2. With smart land politics, good timing 3b. More private owners are stimulated
park breaks up an ecosystem, isolating and a bit of luck, some private owners are to have green facades and roofs and plant
green areas on both sides. encouraged to introduce green to their trees in their borders.
properties.

3c. More private owners are encouraged

to densify their building volumes, creating
space for green.

52 53
Flexible Heat Island Attenuation

It is widely known that the introduction of green in 3a

our urban environments reduces the heat island ef- 2 3b

1
3c
fects on sunny days. Not in all city districts, howev-
er, additional plants and trees are easily imaginable.
Especially the monumental parts of our cities – in
a way the most problematic parts because of their
mostly stony pavements and brick or marble facades
– are considered to be unchangeable.
By carefully following and emphasizing the monu-
mental structures of building volumes, facades and
pavements and by avoiding any irreversible losses, it 3a. Individual residents discover added
value of green, filling their private balconies
should be possible to introduce green in our monu-
with plants.
mental streets and facades. Based on the specific
context, the amount of local support and the exact leg-
islation, experiments should lead to new possibilities.

1. A monumental part of the city, character- 2. Experiments introducing green reveal 3b. Private building owners discover the
ized by its stony materials, suffers from which of the interventions are the most added value of green, transforming their
heat on sunny days. promising. roofs into green terraces.

3c. Reducing car traffic leads to possibili-

ties for more green.

54 55
Flexible Water Responsivity

Water stress will become more apparent in the future

3a
due to climate change. This might be stormwater ac-
1
3b
cumulation in depressed areas, inundation from pol- 2
3c
der systems or even flooding when dykes break.
This plan shows that the right flexibility can be
reached by a strong accidentation of the ground level
combined with smart basements for all buildings, in-
troducing the possibility of a second ground floor.

3a. Small fluctuations and surplus water

can be stored in the lower parts of the
accidented terrain. Traffic and daily life are
unaffected.

1. A generic housing plan is assessed 2. An alternative housing plan is realized 3b. Bigger fluctuations are blocked by the
as being too vulnerable to floods and is with a strongly accidented ground level introduction of a massive dyke along the
cancelled. and smart basement storeys, offering the waterside.
future possibility of a raised urban ground
level.

3c. Vast fluctuations can no longer be pre-

vented. The basements are dismantled,
building materials are reused elsewhere and
basement roofs become the urban ground
level.
56 57
Flexible Reuse of Circular Materials

The finiteness of building materials will lead to a se-

rious scarcity of resources in the near future. Deliver-
ies will become increasingly insecure and prices for
materials will rise, so we will have to develop alter-
1 3a
2 3b
native building methods, in which existing building 3c
structures form the base for new developments and
reused building materials are highly sought-after.
Having reuse as a central principle, future archi-
tecture will have an element of improvisation. The
availability of material resources is one of the key fac-
tors determining future perspectives for a location. 3a. As the circular transformation of the
first building was successful, other build-
ings follow.

1. An office area is suffering from vacancy, 2. One of the buildings is transformed into 3b. Transformation of other vacant build-
while the city is particularly in need of a residential building, reusing its casco. ings is not possible anymore; all demount-
residential space. able materials are stolen.

3c. Now that the residents get to know the

place, they appreciate the office building
and connect it to their own property with
a bridge.

58 59
Flexible Suburban Mixing

Many suburban parts of our cities are monocultures. 3a

Quickly built in the rush of twentieth-century urban 2 3b

1
3c
expansion, they are monofunctional, mostly car-
based and barely green. These areas are increasingly
problematic as their monofunctional housing stock
ages and needs a thorough renovation. Counter-
acting a growing social segregation, the existing
suburban housing stock should be diversified, so
that not only families, but also single and elderly peo-
ple can live here. The addition of green and reduction
of car-based traffic make these areas contribute to a 3a. Adding green and reducing the car-
based infrastructure appears to get the
healthier suburban population.
most local support.
Changing existing urban tissue, however, asks for
a careful strategy that allows stakeholders to have
their say and that can adjust to various outcomes.

1. Many suburban parts of our cities are 2. Experiments are done to add vegeta- 3b. Diversifying the housing stock by add-
car-based, monofunctional, barely green, tion, reduce car-dominance and diversify ing new buildings appears to be the best
and therefore not future-proof. housing types. future option.

3c. Diversifying the housing stock by adjust-

ing, splitting or enlarging existing residen-
tial buildings appears to be most popular.

60 61
Flexible Food Production

The ecologic footprint of our current food consump-

tion is too large. We must look for ways to reduce its
consequential negative effects such as greenhouse
gas emissions and waste. Locally producing food
1 3a
2 3b
helps to counteract these negative effects and has 3c
unexpected benefits, such as healthier food and so-
cial inclusion.
Local stakeholders think it is practical to link the
introduction of urban farming to other sustainabili-
ty-related challenges in the neighbourhood, such as
renovating apartment buildings, greening the neigh- 3a. Urban farming turned out to be a
temporary fad. Only the residents of the
bourhood or maintaining public gardens. After the
renovated apartment building grow their
linked introduction, an evaluation should tell if urban own food.
farming would be appreciated, if residents would
participate and in what way it would work the best.

1. A 1960s suburban residential area is fac- 2. Private food production, both within and 3b. Urban farming is appreciated in the
ing big challenges, among which the bad next to the building, is part of the renova- area, but only outside of the buildings.
eating habits of its inhabitants. tion of a huge apartment building.

3c. Due to societal circumstances such

as inflation, inhabitants embrace private
urban farming.

62 63
Flexible Elimination of Pollution

While transforming the city, sites with heavy indus-

3a
try or waste management become available for more
1
3b
vulnerable functions such as housing or public space. 2
3c
Cleaning the polluted underground is expensive and
often done chemically or by means of excavation,
causing lots of unrest in the soil.
It is about time to experiment with new ways of
dealing with polluted sites, embracing the principles
of circularity. When soil remains untouched, existing
infrastructure can be kept. New temporary buildings
are lifted and don’t touch the ground so that phy- 3a. Next to some temporary buildings,
plants clean up the soil in a biological way
toremediation plants can decontaminate the soil in
and with a slow pace.
a natural way.

1. Devices for water purification and gar- 2. Avoiding chemical purification and high 3b. Plants decontaminate the soil while
bage collection are dismantled, leaving cleaning costs, a lifted deck offers pos- the temporary city grows a bit.
a site that is heavily polluted. sibilities for temporary buildings.

3c. The temporary city grows quickly,

while on the ground, plants decontaminate
the soil.

64 65
Flexible Energy Transition

Reducing our greenhouse gas emissions means,

amongst other things, using renewable sources of
energy. As the energy supply is of vital importance to
our buildings, this energy transition cannot be under-
1 3a
2 3b
estimated. It should not only lead to physical changes 3c
in our buildings and infrastructure, but also to organ-
izational and legal alternatives in order to make the
transition of our complete energy system work.
There are several ways to make this transition hap-
pen. For consumers, it can be an opportunity to gain
more independence and strengthen social inclusion. 3a. Residents struggle with implementing
additional measures for renewable energy
Aspects such as scale, ownership and the type of re-
and stop making additional investments.
source can all be reconsidered.

1. A generic housing block should be 2. A collective investment leads to collec- 3b. The energy transition is continued,
connected to renewable energy sources. tive solar panels on the common roofs. but only with private investments.

3c. The collective investment leads to more

collectivity, such as shared cars, bicycles
and a communal garden.

66 67
Flexible Car Reduction

Though in our cities, an increasing group of citi-

zens embraces alternative means of transportation,
such as walking, electric bicycles or public transport,
many public spaces are still mainly equipped for cars.
1 3a
2 3b
Politicians may have difficulties transforming these 3c
spaces, afraid of complaints of the remaining car us-
ers about the car accessibility of their neighbourhood.
With a stepwise transformation, citizens and en-
trepreneurs can slowly get used to a new balance
between car accessibility and other qualities of life in
the city. When the first transformation step turns out 3a. The other part of the parking strip is
better used and remains unchanged.
well, more car-based public space could be trans-
formed. If the remaining car-based areas become
more crowded, only a few car-accessible roads or
parking spaces are lost.

1. A wide strip between an urban quarter 2. In the part closest to the urban quarter, 3b. The other part of the parking strip is
and a city park, destined for large-scaled the car parking is transformed into housing transformed into a park-like strip, linking
car parking, is barely used any more. blocks with gardens. the city quarter and the park.

3c. The other part of the parking strip is

also transformed into housing blocks with
gardens.

68 69
3. Instruments for a Flexible City

Different instruments are needed to create more circularity

in our cities and adapt them to the changing climate. Together
with experts in organizational, legal, financial and spatial
affairs, we have compiled a set of 36 instruments that can
give shape to the flexible city. The instruments in this chapter
offer more flexibility by focusing more on existing structures,
usage and timing.

71
 3.1 The Key Domains Determining Spatial Development

FINANCIAL Spatial development is traditionally subject to four

limiting conditions, namely the process, the regula-
tions, the financing and the spatial design. There are
instruments for each of these limiting conditions.
Spatial development takes shape through the inter-
play of these different instruments. Specialists in
each of the four domains collaborate and coordinate
their own input with that of other specialists.
Now that spatial development needs to become
more circular and climate-adaptive, the conventional
instruments are being called into question. Are they
helping European cities to become more circular and
climate-adaptive or are they in fact hindering that
process? Our analyses and studies show that differ-
ent instruments are required – sometimes to replace
the usual instruments, sometimes in combination
LEGAL ORGANIZATIONAL with them – in order to arrive at a more flexible kind of
spatial development.
Together with experts in organizational, legal, fi-
nancial and spatial affairs, we have drawn up a list of
the instruments that enable flexible spatial develop-
ment. In this chapter, we present nine flexible instru-
ments for each of the four domains.
Not all the instruments presented here are instru-
ments in the literal sense of the word. You could also
call the instruments described here conditions for
success. Some deal with the necessary change in at-
titudes or describe a generally applicable principle.
In line with the structure of the previous chapters,
SPATIAL
the instruments relating to each domain are subdi-
vided into instruments for local flexibility, use-driven
flexibility and time-based flexibility.

72 73
3.2 Organizational Flexibility 3.3 Organizational Instruments

The ‘process’ is the way in which the relevant parties Local Organizational Flexibility DYNAMIC BIODIVERSITY MANAGEMENT
collaborate in the development of the space. Process-
related instruments facilitate this collaboration.
Creating a more circular and climate-adaptive liv-
ing environment requires forms of collaboration that DATA-BASED POLICIES
involve more parties than perhaps was customary in
decision-making in the past. If this decision-making
process becomes continuous rather than a one-off
event, a neighbourhood, village, town or city becomes HOLISTIC APPROACH
more future-proof as a result. Parties should there-
fore be enabled to continue to exercise influence in
the longer term too.

Local Organizational Flexibility

Because new developments tend to be located with- Use-driven Organizational Flexibility REUSED MATERIALS MEDIATOR
in the existing urban fabric, many stakeholders are
already settled there, and many different interests
play a role. It is best to get these local stakeholders
involved early on in the decision-making process in EMPOWERING LOCAL COMMUNITIES
order to ensure sufficient support. To achieve this,
local processes need to be tailored to requirements.

Use-driven Organizational Flexibility DESIGN OUTPUT MONITOR

Getting users and other stakeholders more involved
in decision-making from an earlier stage ensures
that the supply of space is shaped by their actual
needs. This prevents consumerism and does more
justice to users’ requirements. But it does demand a
new, more flexible approach from established play- Time-based Organizational Flexibility INNOVATION BOOSTER
ers such as public authorities, housing corporations
and institutional developers who are used to working
top-down.
INFRASTRUCTURE REARRANGEMENT
Time-based Organizational Flexibility
Now that processes can be subject to big changes in
the conditions during the development period, result-
ing in new process-related dynamics, it has to be pos- CIRCULAR SUPPLY CHAINS
sible to make adjustments to the collaborative form
and the decision-making model during the process.

74 75
DYNAMIC BIODIVERSITY MANAGEMENT DATA-BASED POLICIES
Local Organizational Flexibility Local Organizational Flexibility

Degraded ecologic conditions are considered Policies are based not on assumptions, but on
as a new base from where conditions for plants detailed data that clearly identify our challenges
and animals can be improved in order to boost in space and time.
biodiversity.

Why biotopes? What species could be added or should be Why? matically connecting data from various sources such
Human activity induces the transformation of natu- suppressed, in order to improve balance and variety? When policy, leading to legislation, is based on in- as local income, store sales and public transport,
ral land conditions and often harms nature. The main Did native species that were originally not familiar tuitive assumptions, political convictions or rheto- public services can be optimized and legislation can
direct cause of biodiversity loss is land use change with this specific site, discover it? Wherever pos- ric phrases, it is hard to predict if the legislation will be customized. Depending on the topic, legislations
which drives an estimated 30 per cent of biodiversity sible, native species should be encouraged and ex- be effective. Recently however, artificial intelligence and optimalizations can be scaled up.
decline globally, the second is overexploitation which otic species – when threatening local biodiversity – has reached a level at which all kinds of data can By making data publicly available, there is an au-
drives around 20 per cent. should be eliminated. Using the changed land use as easily be collected, analysed and extrapolated on a tomatic supervision by the public and stakeholders.
Growing awareness of this negative impact may, a basis for further development of local biodiversity large scale and with a high level of precision. Climate Transparency in decision-making and action control
in the end, lead to projects that clear away all human is in most cases more realistic and promising than change related phenomena such as greenhouse gas leads to more pressure to achieve existing goals ef-
activities at a certain area and restore its original land trying to return to original conditions. emissions, heat stress, subsoil drought or rainwa- fectively. Additionally, companies and individuals
condition. Though used as an antidote to anthropo- ter floods can be easily localized and determined, with sustainability goals can understand what ex-
genic environmental degradation, these land-resto- Example: Life in Quarries, Belgium so that exceedances can be detected, patterns can actly is needed for the right measures, and can thus
ration projects are often met with criticism and are The Life in Quarries is an initiative by EU, regional be discovered and chances can be formulated. This respond in the most productive way.
cost-intensive. In addition, the restoration of land re- and industry actors focusing on the hosting capac- makes it much easier to define the kind of regulation
quires another disruption of the environment, which ity of biodiversity in active quarries in Wallonia, needed and the scale at which this regulation should Example: Copernicus Land Monitoring Service
can again disturb wildlife, alter the soil structure, Belgium. The work of ‘dynamic management’ con- apply. For example, collected data may indicate that Copernicus is a European programme for monitor-
and change the landscape. Therefore, our approach sists of implementing biodiversity management a specific local ordinance is most effective for one is- ing the Earth and collecting data using Earth obser-
to thoroughly manipulated land conditions is worth measures during and after the operation of the sue, while national-level legislation is necessary for vation satellites. It combines these with observation
reconsidering. Destroyed landscapes might uninten- mines. Creating a network of active quarries that another. data from sensor networks on the Earth’s surface.
tionally contain positive conditions for new species. function as biodiversity protection sites is achieved The processed data is then made publicly accessible
Being aware of these conditions and improving their through a range of measures, such as creating and How Does It Work? and serves to provide reliable and up-to-date infor-
quality could foster biodiversity or let new ecosys- maintaining new habitats, monitoring species, as Data identifying problems related to climate change mation. Copernicus focuses on six thematic areas:
tems arise. well as education and outreach. This can involve can be gathered in many ways. One effective method land, marine, atmosphere, climate change, emergen-
the creation of temporary ponds or the protection of includes placing measuring equipment at strategic cy management and security. The aim is to provide
How Does It Work? scree sites. Monitoring the plant and animal species spots within the urban network, to collect site-spe- information that supports spatial and urban plan-
Changing natural landscapes into agricultural lands, that inhabit the quarries guide management deci- cific real-time data about air quality, traffic move- ning, forest management, water management, ag-
mines, industrial sites or cities usually means a re- sions to ensure that the quarries continue to provide ments or for instance noise levels. Satellites are in- riculture and food security, nature conservation and
duction or even destruction of its original biodiver- suitable habitats. The Life in Quarries project has struments that detect varying values in, for example, restoration, ecosystem accounting, mitigation and
sity. However, it also leads to new conditions that achieved significant successes, proving the validity carbon dioxide emissions or variations in tempera- climate change.
can be attractive to both some of the original spe- of this unique approach. In addition, the project has ture on a bigger scale, leading to a better insight in The programme delivers information openly to
cies and to new ones. The main focus of people then helped to change the perception of quarries, from patterns over time. Urban services for waste man- policymakers, researchers, commercial and private
is the introduced economic activity such as farming, problematic to being an asset for biodiversity conser- agement or electricity suppliers can also collect data users, as well as the global scientific community. It
mining, producing or living. The renewed balance in vation. The Life in Quarries project shows how min- for more efficient policies. By providing them with is known to have world-wide influence in political
biodiversity is often not seen, nor recognized or ap- ing sites can be used for both economic and environ- data-collecting devices, patterns can be detected decisions and most effectively informs the European
preciated. mental purposes, with the right balance between the and solutions can be found leading to more precise Union’s policymaking.
Dynamic biodiversity management accepts the exploitation of natural resources and the protection and effective local legislation.
changed local biodiversity and starts by analysing it. of biodiversity. A particular example is the so-called smart city, an
How varied, stable and balanced is it? How is it re- urban area that is made ‘smart’ through computer-
lated to the original biodiversity and to surrounding ized technology and artificial intelligence. By auto-

76 77
HOLISTIC APPROACH REUSED MATERIALS MEDIATOR
Local Organizational Flexibility Use-driven Organizational Flexibility

Measures are combined so that the outcome is not Mediator between available materials, coming from
a one-issue solution, but an integral solution in demolition or renovation projects, and initiators of
which various measures amplify each other. building activities.

Why? In general, holistic approaches require a vision that Why? ate a marketplace for buying and selling these mate-
Projects promoting a more sustainable, circular or extends beyond a specific scope of a particular pro- Circular building materials are those that are repur- rials. Databases can include information on the qual-
climate-adaptive urban development are often com- ject. When individual actors who are linked to the posed, reused, or recycled. These materials can in- ity and availability of materials, as well as their price
plex, because lots of aspects inside and outside the same project work together, they can make an ef- clude everything from reclaimed wood and bricks to and location. Opening these databases to potential
project are interconnected and influence one another. fective assessment of potential impacts and pool re- recycled steel and concrete. By reusing these materi- project partners increases the chance for a match.
However, many instruments applied in current urban sources. When decisions are made jointly by differ- als, builders need fewer new materials and therefore The closer the old location is situated to the new
development processes focus on solving only one is- ent actors, these decisions can positively influence reduce the environmental impact of construction. building project; the smaller the impact of trans-
sue or one single problem. Interconnections between and reinforce each other. The first implementation of building materials and port on emissions and costs. An effective mediator
aspects within the project or with external social, eco- products, right after they are newly produced, is easy, has access to sufficient storage space, so that the
nomic and ecological factors are often underestimat- Example: Alnatura Campus, Darmstadt, Germany because the products are delivered straight from period between disassembly and reuse can easily
ed and lead to implementations in projects that, de- Before they opened the Alanatura Campus in Darm- the factory to the building site in exactly the right be bridged. Mediators can offer consulting services
spite single-issue solutions, cause the amplification stadt in 2019, they assessed all aspects, effects and quantity and quality and at exactly the right time. to builders and architects to help them identify the
of problems elsewhere in the project or in other areas. impacts to come to an integrally balanced mix, from Reusing these materials, however, is harder. Re- most suitable circular materials for their projects by
A holistic approach, on the other hand, considers production to transport and assembling of building implementation of products and materials in large providing organizational, legal or technical guidance
the complexity of urban challenges and recognizes materials, from maintenance and programming to building projects comes with the problem that the on how to integrate these materials into the building
the far-reaching impacts of individual urban devel- the future value of the building and its surroundings. demanded materials should be available at the right process.
opment projects. This requires a perspective that is All building materials used were examined and moment and with the right quality. Mostly, there is a
explicitly not limited to one sector but is open to a selected according to their durability, also consid- mismatch between the supply and demand of these Example: Zinneke, Brussels, Belgium
balanced mix of solutions for more than one sector, ering the possible need for recycling if the building second-hand materials. As building processes are The socio-cultural organization Zinneke in Brussels
enabling sustainable, integrated and equitable out- were to be demolished in the future. For the stamped strict in both planning and quality, these mismatch- was accommodated in a historic building that used
comes. Because the numerous challenges related clay walls, which were produced on site to mini- es are problematic. A mediator can match supply to be a printing workshop. Instead of using new ma-
to climate adaptation and the circular economy are mize transportation routes, excavated soil from the and demand for circular building, so that construc- terials for the renovation, the architects of Ouest
characterized by a high degree of complexity, holis- Stuttgart main train station construction site was tion can progress according to plan and stay within Architecture chose to reuse as many building mate-
tic, multidimensional problem-solving strategies are used. Natural ventilation, lighting and cooling as well budget. They can use their expertise and network to rials as possible, including doors, windows and floor-
best equipped to lead to real solutions. as the use of energy from renewable sources are cen- identify suppliers who can provide the required ma- ing, which were all cleaned and refurbished for use
tral elements of a resource-saving and environmen- terials and negotiate fair prices. in the new design. Building materials coming from
How Does It Work? tally friendly building operation. In addition to flexi- other buildings and sites were reused too. Rotor, a
Holistic approaches require open collaboration be- ble workspace for 500 employees, the site is home to How Does It Work? specialized Brussels-based organization played a
tween different stakeholders and professionals from a kindergarten with a nature-based education con- Circular building material mediators play a vital role crucial role as a mediator between the architects and
the public and private sectors. It works best when cept, as well as school and adventure gardens de- in promoting the reuse and recycling of building the suppliers of reclaimed materials. Rotor helped
these stakeholders, despite their different special- signed as public learning spaces. A public restaurant materials in projects. By facilitating the adoption of identify potential sources of materials, negotiate
ties, understand each other’s interests and look for offering organic vegetarian food serves as a public circular materials, these mediators can help reduce prices, and coordinate the transportation and deliv-
ways to help each other. Key issues such as land and meeting place and strengthens the social orientation waste, minimize environmental impact and support ery of materials to the construction site. They also
material use, transportation, energy and waste man- of the complex. sustainable building practices. provided technical assistance to the architects, help-
agement cannot be neglected, but must be consid- Mediators can build a network of suppliers, build- ing them identify the most suitable materials for
ered in an integrated manner, together with aspects ers and other stakeholders in the construction indus- their design.
such as economic efficiency and social structure. try who are interested in using circular materials. By
Different interests must also be balanced in the plan- bringing these stakeholders together, mediators can
ning process. help identify potential sources of materials and cre-

78 79
 environmental impact
environmental embodied carbon
impact & construction stored carbon
EMPOWERING LOCAL COMMUNITIES DESIGN OUTPUT MONITOR material use material use
Use-driven Organizational Flexibility Use-driven Organizational Flexibility reuse potential

adaptivity
Local communities are supported in their role in Measurable output criteria set at the beginning of flexibility
disassembly
improving the conditions of their own habitat. a process, stimulating fine-tuning between stake-
holders such as clients, designers, contractors and use of waste waste materials (demolition)
regulators, to achieve optimal circular output. materials waste materials (construction)

material health toxicity

Why? lutions are explored by facilitating brainstorming Why? it becomes possible to explore what a choice for po-
Cities across Europe face a wide range of environ- sessions, community meetings and partnering with Building processes are complex chains of proceed- tential materials would mean for legal matters (war-
mental crises. Addressing such complex issues re- local networks. Ongoing encouragement and guid- ings and decisions, starting with the definition of ranties and liability) and management (maintenance
quires a collaborative effort that involves both bot- ance are necessary to support citizens. Additionally, the assignment, followed by subsequent design and required). This allows them to tailor their specific
tom-up and top-down approaches. However, many it is important to reflect on implemented changes. construction phases, finally ending in the delivery of output to the specifications of the materials that be-
European countries’ currently have a top-down gov- The balance between top-down and bottom-up pow- a project. In these processes, many stakeholders are come available. When this is taken into account early
ernance structure, often not sufficiently equipped ers should be a dynamic one and managed carefully. involved, both sequentially and parallel, all with their on in the process, it can be done relatively efficiently.
to support with bottom-up initiatives effectively. own speciality and responsibility. As selecting and contracting all parties in the be-
This frustrates progress because local people and Example: Innovative Communities Onwards As building processes are usually based on con- ginning of a project is unusual, working with a de-
their communities have great knowledge about both (InCommOn), Thessaloniki, Greece ventions that have been shaped by lessons learned sign output monitor asks for different legal forms of
problems and possible solutions in their own neigh- InCommOn is a Greek civil non-profit organization during the years, it is hard to implement sudden big collaboration.
bourhood. As they inherit local property and raise (NGO), established in 2016, that promotes the cir- changes. Now that we want to turn our linear take-
children, have businesses to run and maintain local cular economy through the activation of citizens. Its make-consume-dispose processes into circular ones Example: The New Normal for Circular
networks, they are highly invested in the wellbeing main objective is to offer solutions to environmental – closing building material loops by reusing, sharing, Construction, the Netherlands
of their neighbourhood. Solutions have more preci- and social problems through interactive and creative leasing, repairing, refurbishing, upcycling or recy- The New Normal is an innovative Dutch ‘standard’
sion when their knowledge is taken into account and cooperation with local communities. It specializes in cling – significant changes are needed though. When with ambitious, but achievable performance output
solutions are more effective when they are under- a multi-disciplinary, participatory approach. all parties involved, from clients to designers and on circular design and construction. Making the cir-
stood, accepted and incorporated in their daily lives. Kyklos, InCommOn’s Lab, is a participatory pro- from contractors to regulators, agree beforehand on cular ambition tangible beforehand, by describing
Measures stimulating circularity and climate adap- ject in the Ano Poli neighbourhood in Thessaloniki, clear and measurable output criteria, each of them what has to be delivered is both helpful for clients,
tation should lead to a stronger sense of ownership testing in practice how a neighbourhood could be- can recalibrate their specific part of the process. designers, contractors and regulators. For this pur-
by local communities. To bridge the gap in the sys- come more circular. Kyklos, meaning ‘circle’ in Based on clear design output criteria, parties can pose, a toolbox has been developed that can be used
tem between top-own and bottom-up approaches, Greek, refers with its motto ‘no-one left out, no-one easily understand what part of the project they are to determine what participating parties may be held
organizations have arisen (sometimes private initia- left behind’, to the circularity of ecosystems, where accountable for and how to change their output so accountable for. Within four main themes, such as
tives, but mostly NGOs: non-governmental organiza- all parts play a role and nothing is wasted. To bring that it meets the criteria. By monitoring the output ‘flexibility’ or ‘environmental impact’, ten topics have
tions) that work towards resolving local challenges the community together and facilitate a dialogue during the process, possible failures can be detected been defined that all can be given a certain ambition
through community engagement and cooperation. about adopting circular practices in their daily lives, quickly and replaced before it is too late. at the beginning of a project. By expressing these
a physical space was created that is equipped for ambitions in clear units, for example kg CO2-eq /
How Does It Work? cultural, educative and creative activities. The space How Does It Work? square metres for embodied carbon or the ratio be-
Engaging and empowering local communities in a has become a reference point for the neighbourhood, At the very beginning of the design process, it is im- tween new and reused materials, a concrete, meas-
participatory process to cocreate sustainable solu- attracting both local residents, including local refu- portant to determine which (often generic) circular urable output can be defined and monitored.
tions for their direct environment requires a well- gee and migrant integration groups, and people from principles and criteria apply to the project. The cho- The New Normal is a product of a Dutch network
structured approach. This process starts by identi- other parts of the city. By organizing workshops and sen circular principles determine the design process called Cirkelstad (‘Circular City’), a cooperation of
fying the interests, ambitions and abilities of local events on sharing and reusing products, the local cir- and the technical design choices. Criteria can be set both private and public members that share the am-
communities through thorough research and anal- cular economy is stimulated and social inclusion is in advance, for example, regarding the maximum bition of accelerating circular building. Being devel-
ysis of the specific area, often including interviews fostered. The installation of a community composter carbon dioxide emission, the lifespan of the building oped carefully and integrally, the New Normal has
and data collection from scratch. in the nearby square has been a great success, bring- or the detachability of it parts. It is often difficult to the potential to become a building standard on a
The next step is to activate the local community ing together different stakeholders, including the add these criteria later in the construction process, European level, meeting future European regulation
and raise awareness. The community members are municipality. because this requires interim changes. Furthermore, regarding emission reduction, green investments
key to defining appropriate solutions. Potential so- parties should be involved at an early stage, so that and circularity.

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INNOVATION BOOSTER INFRASTRUCTURE REARRANGEMENT
Time-based Organizational Flexibility Time-based Organizational Flexibility

Encouragement of experiments leading to a building Reorganization process, defining an optimized

culture that is more circular and climate-adaptive. balance between above- and below-ground
interests such as biodiversity, water retention,
public space and (sustainable) infrastructure.

Why? companies should not only focus on making profits Why? experience, health, slow mobility, social interaction,
In order to deal with the current challenges for cir- on the short term, but also take care of the educa- The ambition to make our cities circular and climate- ecology, climate adaptation, economy and cultural
cularity and climate adaptiveness, the way we work tion and long-term development of their employees. adaptive is claiming more of our underground space history are all integrally considered to come to the
should change. To speed up this change, innova- Innovation is not always a smooth ride, as existing fi- than we are used to. Infrastructure supporting cir- right contextual balance. For various types of areas
tion should be accelerated. The complexity and ur- nancial and legislative frameworks not automatically cular supply chains, such as local networks for heat and neighbourhoods, the Guideline defines princi-
gency of the issues require ‘out-of-the-box’ solutions match with innovative building practices. Therefore, or rainwater, requires additional space on top of the ples and starting points for a participative process.
that go beyond the standard market products and implementing innovative processes preferably hap- conventional infrastructure for electricity and sew- While in Groningen, the Guideline mainly focusses on
processes. To do so, a better link needs to be found pens in close collaboration with policymakers, busi- age. Additionally, the subsoil can significantly con- organizational aspects, the integral design principles
between research and theory on one hand, and the ness developers, and other stakeholders. tribute to biodiversity and climate adaptation in our from the municipality of Amsterdam forms a technical
implementation of it on the other. While many pub- public realm if more of it is used to improve soil eco- and spatial basis for rearranging urban streetscapes
lic and private organizations invest significant re- Example: Habiter2030, Hauts-de-France, France systems and for water retention. and what’s underneath them. Together, the Groningen
sources in research, adapting those findings to the Habiter2030 was established in 2016 by a group of As it is not only scarce, but also key to solving our and Amsterdam principles would be a good basis for
market remains a slow process, particularly in the universities, researchers and construction profes- problems, the way we use, subdivide and organize the the massive assignment of rearranging our under-
construction industry, which is conservative by na- sionals from Hauts-de-France with the aim of de- space available in the soil requires reconsideration. ground urban infrastructure, in order to contribute to
ture because of the high investments and big inter- signing and building the house of the future. The Traditionally, above-ground functions, such as roads integrated, transition-based organization.
ests building is associated with. Keeping up-to-date organization developed a proposal to renovate the and infrastructure serving our buildings, determine
with the latest research and innovations and finding typical 1930s houses that are abundant in the re- the occupation of the underground. Vegetation and Example: Integral Design Method Public Space
ways to make them feasible and implementable, is a gion, representing the last vestiges of the industrial rainwater permeability are only possible there where (I.O.O.R.), Amsterdam, the Netherlands
prerequisite for speeding up the adaptation process. era. The team showcased their solution in the Solar the soil happens to be free of other needs. By taking The municipality of Amsterdam has developed a new
Decathlon Europe 2019, an international competi- into account other interests, related to biodiversity, method for public infrastructure planning. The Inte-
How Does It Work? tion for university teams focused on highlighting in- health, circular supply chains or the public space, gral Design Method Public Space (I.O.O.R.: Integrale
Innovation can be stimulated in many ways, from novations in sustainable housing. other balances can be found, reducing traffic and cre- Ontwerpmethode Openbare Ruimte) is a compre-
small-scale experiments to design competitions, Habiter2030 sought to respond to the social, eco- ating more space for plants, trees and water retention. hensive strategy that involves stakeholders from
from subsidies to legal exemptions. Pilot projects – nomic, energy and environmental issues of the com- different sectors. The method divides public space
realized experiments in which the latest knowledge is ing decades in order to sustainably improve the living How Does It Work? into three parts – underground soil, ground level, and
implemented, whereafter the performances are ana- quality of residents and make the renovation method When these balances are defined together with buildings & roofs.
lysed – can be key in accelerating innovation. Both of those 1930s homes accessible to all. Through stakeholders such as property owners, the compa- Making underground soil as important as buildings,
good and bad performances of the realized experi- their innovative approach, they combined low-tech nies responsible for infrastructure and the keepers makes it possible to reserve space underground for
ment help further innovation. When lessons learned strategies and energy-efficient systems to transform of urban green, the different interests will be rear- measures that contribute to a green, attractive and
are spread widely, pilot projects are most effective. the low-performing brick houses, including a glass ranged. Furthermore, cross-sectoral agreements can high-quality public space. By analysing soil composi-
Education is a crucial element in this process, extension towards the garden for pre-heating the be made about responsibilities and procedures avoid- tion, conducting water-runoff stress tests and mod-
with universities and other educational institutions air in winter and preventing overheating in summer, ing potential conflicts. elling climate scenarios before an area is developed,
playing a key role in sharing best practises and prov- thermal curtains for space modulation, and biobased In 2021, the city council of Groningen adopted better contextual goals for sustainable design can be
en successful approaches. Also making innovative hemp plasters for interior walls. The facade walls their Design Guideline for the Quality of Life in Public defined across sectors. This allows stakeholders to
knowledge accessible to less obvious stakeholders and roof were insulated with recycled cotton to give Space. The core of this guideline was an alternative co-ordinate efforts to optimize underground servic-
in the supply chain – for instance older or less edu- the textile tradition of the region a boost as well. process to come to an optimal balance between all es infrastructure and maintain the quality of public
cated employees – is essential for implementing in- stakeholders involved in designing, realizing and space. It is paramount that solutions at the network
novative solutions on a mass scale. In an innovative maintaining the city’s public space. Instead of focus- level, such as energy infrastructure, water systems or
and fast-changing construction market, commercial ing first on car accessibility, the aspects of safety, cycling infrastructure, are integrated in 3D-modular
design solutions at the street level.
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CIRCULAR SUPPLY CHAINS
Time-based Organizational Flexibility

Production processes in which residuals are not

turned into waste, but are somehow brought back
into the process, reducing or even abolishing toxic
emissions and pollution.

Why? sufficient collection of rainwater, perhaps combined

Our current economy is largely run by systems that with a system that splits grey water from dirty water.
convert raw materials into waste, be it energy, water, A circular system for food might imply the introduc-
consumer goods or construction. In contrast to such tion of local collective gardens and possibilities for
linear processes, the circular economy makes these interchange. Recycling (building) materials requires
systems circular. Resources left over at the end of a a materials mediator and recycling facilities and re-
process are no longer considered to be waste, but are pair shops. Purely circular supply chains might differ
reused and fed back into the system, with the goal of radically from what we are used to. However, a mix of
building circular supply chains. conventional and circular supply chains is quite con-
By reusing and recycling resources in circular sys- ceivable as well.
tems, the demand for resources can be significantly Since the restructuring of production processes
reduced, as it is no longer necessary to constantly is often initially associated with high costs that only
add new resources to the system. Circular supply pay off in the medium to long term, government fi-
chains can thus ease the burden on existing infra- nancial incentives make sense in order to encourage
structure and help reduce harmful emissions by low- private actors to make corresponding investments.
ering the need for fossil fuels. In a circular food sys- However, equally important as the actions of pub-
tem, for example, food waste can be converted into lic and private institutions is the behaviour of con-
renewable energy sources and fertilizer. sumers. They determine whether they use recyclable
Circular supply chains often are realistic and vi- products or repair services, or even take action them-
able when implemented in small-scale geographic selves and implement small-scale circular systems
units such as neighbourhoods or blocks. Such de- in private.
centralized systems often provide better solutions to
local challenges than large-scale systems. Citizens Example: Garden Streets, Antwerp, Belgium
can more easily connect to and benefit from such The garden streets in Antwerp are minor roads in
systems, helping to build (partly) self-sufficient and which circular water cycles have been established.
resilient communities. The streets are traffic-calmed and largely unsealed
with the help of water-permeable paving. Rainwater
How Does It Work? from the roofs of the buildings is channelled into the
The implementation of circular supply chains re- numerous green spaces along the streets or collect-
quires the restructuring of processes providing en- ed in underground infiltration systems.
ergy, water, food, (building) materials and waste- The collected water can be reused by all residents
collection. In order to successfully transform such with the help of pumps and no more rainwater has
systems, it is necessary to understand conventional to be discharged into the sewage system, which re-
flows and the role stakeholders play. duces the load on the corresponding infrastructure.
Only based on this knowledge can existing infra- The greened and calmed climate streets also serve
structures be adapted accordingly. A circular supply as new meeting places for social interaction.
chain for energy might include, for example, solar
cells or an underground heat and cold storage. A cir-
cular supply chain for water will surely include the

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3.4 Legal Flexibility 3.5 Legal Instruments

Regulations determine the legal framework within more aligned. Use-driven flexibility contributes to a Local Legal Flexibility CAR BAN
which spatial development takes place. Legal instru- more sustainable society through its social impact.
ments enable initiatives to be executed within this Use-driven legal flexibility makes it possible to make
legal framework. more space available for initiatives and programmes
The current legal framework in most European that do not fit neatly within generic legal frameworks. ZONE PURPOSE-SPECIFIC FREEZONE
countries is not sufficient enough for facilitating
the process of implementing circularity and climate Time-based Legal Flexibility
adaptation. The reuse of structures or materials is The increasing unpredictability of climate change
sometimes made unnecessarily difficult, new initia- and the availability of resources requires either more SUSTAINABILITY PROTOCOL
tives face unintentional delays and future opportuni- tailored solutions in terms of timing or a wider legal
ties are nipped in the bud. Implementing circularity framework. Temporary provisions or exemptions can
and climate adaptation therefore demands a more be solutions too.
flexible legal framework.
It is difficult to give a detailed description of legal
instruments that could be used in all European coun- Use-driven Legal Flexibility LAW CHANGE MOTIVATION
tries, as each country has its own specific legislation.
The instruments described in the following pages
are therefore chiefly general legal principles that en-
able or foster the enhancement of sustainability in GUERRILLA GARDENING
various ways. Each section explains how the prin-
ciple works and then describes how this translates
into specific legal instruments in the case of various
European countries. The descriptions can therefore CUSTOMIZATION
serve partly as a manual, partly as a source of inspi-
ration for a modified legal framework and partly as a
plea for the further harmonization of European regu-
lations.

Local Legal Flexibility Time-based Legal Flexibility PASS MATERIAL PASSPORT

New developments mainly take place in an existing,
complex urban context. Each site in the existing city
has its own unique set of conditions. In some cases,
generic regulations can inadvertently hinder desir- EMISSION LIMITATION
able new developments. Local flexibility can offer re-
lief in such cases.

Use-driven Legal Flexibility DEMOLITION BAN

As users gain influence over the layout of their own
living environment, supply and demand will become

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 ZONE

CAR BAN PURPOSE-SPECIFIC FREEZONE

Local Legal Flexibility Local Legal Flexibility

Legal intervention that reduces or even blocks car General regulations are set aside to experiment
traffic in favour of other urban functions such as with alternative regulations in order to find out what
pedestrian traffic, bicycle traffic, greenery or public legal arrangement enforces circularity or climate
space. adaptation best.

Why? whose habits often remain shaped by the long-last- Why? environment for various sustainable goals, such as
Cars enable citizens to get to a wide variety of plac- ing paradigm of a car-friendly city. The societal changes regarding circularity and cli- attracting sustainable investment, fostering green
es in cities at flexible times. As a popular means of Sometimes, however, car bans can also be stim- mate adaptivity are urgent, while changing the legal innovation, encouraging sustainable production-
transport, it is hard to imagine most European cit- ulated through civil society engagement. The short framework that is needed to enforce these changes practices, developing local knowledge or promoting
ies without them, even though they have numerous distances in cities compared to rural regions and takes time. This is because in Europe, changing the international cooperation. Ideally, PSFs are set up
negative consequences for the cities’ residents and a well-developed public transport system can fa- law is a democratic and sometimes time-consuming through a collaboration between national govern-
the environment. In response to such effects, how- cilitate a switch to other modes of transport. In this process. Moreover, it is also not always immediate- ments, local municipalities, industry and civilians.
ever, a trend towards banning cars from parts of cit- case, it is the responsibility of policymakers to have ly clear what arrangement of new rules is the best PSFs can be used as an experiment to help regula-
ies to make them more liveable and environmentally the courage to use more resources to implement this route to the desired changes. tory bodies and policymakers make the adjustments
friendly can be seen in more and more cities. and to ensure that the transformation of the select- A certain flexibility in law-making can facilitate needed for localized changes. If it is possible to em-
In particular, banning cars with internal combus- ed areas is carried out in such a way that broad seg- rapid sustainable change by allowing actors to adapt bed the PSF in an existing legal framework, a PSF
tion engines means a significant reduction in air pol- ments of the population benefit from the intervention. and respond quickly to changing circumstances, can be established relatively quickly and thus accel-
lutant emissions. This is not only essential to achieve new technologies and emerging challenges. Overall, erate the defining and implementing of the right set
climate protection goals, but also has a positive im- Example: Siegtreppe, Siegen, Germany the possibility to establish legal freezones can be a of new regulations.
pact on the health of the people living in the city, who The Siegtreppe in the city of Siegen are an example powerful tool for finding out how rapid and sustain-
benefit from better air quality and less noise pollu- of the consistent banishment of cars from a section able change can legally be promoted. By providing a Example: Fossil Free Energy District (FED),
tion. Additionally, land use by roads and car parks of the city centre that had been heavily dominated by supportive legal framework that encourages innova- Gothenburg, Sweden
can be significantly reduced by banning cars from car traffic since the 1960s. In response to the poor tion, experimentation and continuous improvement, The goal of the Fossil Free Energy District (FED) in
cities. Space can thus be freed up for more sustaina- structural condition of the so-called Siegplatte – a new laws and regulations can help realize a more Gothenburg is to reduce energy consumption by es-
ble modes of transportation such as bicycle paths or concrete overhang of the urban river that provided sustainable future. tablishing a local market place for electricity, heating
be used to solve pressing challenges such as hous- space for 230 car parking spaces – as well as in- Purpose Specific Freezones (PSF) help define an and cooling. The area is exempted from the law of
ing shortages and the protection of biodiversity. creasing decline in the adjacent downtown area, the effective set of adjusted rules. By introducing some concession for electricity distribution, so that a local
city government decided to remove the Siegplatte specific regulations in a limited area, an alternative energy market can be tested and validated. This pur-
How Does It Work? and replace it with a pedestrian area and a large- legal framework can be used for purpose-specific pose-specific legal exception prevents monopolies of
Banning cars from cities can be implemented as a scale progression of steps along the riverbank. The experiments. Careful analysis of the experiment production or network-management. It also makes it
temporary or permanent measure. In some cases, it demolition was followed by the renaturalization of should tell how effective the change of the regula- possible to work with multiple energy-sources and
may make sense to close off selected areas from car the river below, which was restored as an inner-city tions is. If the results of the experiment are positive, producers, and allows parties to simultaneously be
traffic only at certain times of the day, on selected natural habitat. The newly created public area can changes in regulation can be implemented on a larg- consumer, distributor and producer.
days, or at certain times of the year, while in other be flexibly used and is completely car-free. The over- er scale or in general statutes. Including exceptions One of the key features of the FED system is its
places, long-term banishment is the right choice. all quality of the area had a positive impact on lo- in a generally valid legal framework should be done use of geothermal energy. The energy plant uses
Individual car traffic can also be reduced through cal business, contrary to initial reservations among with the highest care to avoid unclarity, exclude the water from the nearby Göta River, which is heat-
measures such as car sharing. In this way, people are retailers. risk of clientelism and to make sure authority is not ed by the earth’s natural heat, to generate energy.
still free to use cars, but the vehicles are used more undermined. Additionally, the roofs of many buildings in the dis-
effectively. trict are equipped with solar panels, which generate
A car ban should be accompanied by a preced- How Does It Work? electricity that is used to power the energy plant and
ing or parallel expansion of alternative mobility solu- A Purpose Specific Freezone (PSF) is a designated other buildings in the district. This solar energy is
tions. Banning private car traffic can otherwise lead area that is established to promote system experi- also used to power electric vehicles in the area, fur-
to significant reduction of mobility for the citizens, mentation. These zones can generate rapid and sus- ther reducing the district’s carbon footprint.
tainable changes by creating a legally supportive

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SUSTAINABILITY PROTOCOL LAW CHANGE MOTIVATION
Local Legal Flexibility Use-driven Legal Flexibility

An internal policy framework that can guide both In order to foster commitment, governments explain
public and private organizations towards more why strict laws regarding sustainability are in
circular and climate-adaptive output or processes. people’s benefit.

Why? Many companies in the private sector have poli- Why? forms can provide resources to support individuals
In Europe, sustainability is increasingly translated cies for tenders, obtaining for example a minimum The introduction of strict laws can pave the way for a and businesses in complying with new laws. This
into regulations and laws. Making new laws and reg- of three price offers or a minimal annual revenue of more circular and climate-adaptive society by incen- can include information about the laws, guidance
ulations, however, is a slow process and as a result the sub-contractor. More and more of these compa- tivizing sustainable practices, holding polluters ac- on how to implement sustainable practices and ac-
legislation is always a few steps behind on current nies also include ethic or sustainable requirements countable and fostering public awareness. cess to funding and other resources. Finally, plat-
insights. Therefore, more and more governments, in their request for quotes by contractors. When gov- By mandating the use of renewable energy, pro- forms also advocate for the adoption of new laws and
NGOs and large commercial organizations want to ernments and NGOs operate as a contracting au- moting the recycling of waste and imposing fines policies that promote sustainability. By working with
pursue additional ambitions on top of current legisla- thority, they can add specific requirements regarding on polluters, laws can encourage individuals and policymakers and other stakeholders, platforms can
tion. This urge to do more can be driven by new gov- sustainability in their tender documents too. businesses to adopt sustainable practices that re- help shape the regulatory environment in a way that
ernmental policies that are not yet formalized in laws duce their carbon footprint and promote circularity. supports sustainable practices.
and regulations. Moreover, governments and NGOs Example: Action Plan for Socially Responsible Moreover, by raising public awareness about the im-
are role models, given their social position. Due to the Procurement, Municipality of Leiden, portance of sustainability and the need for a circular Example: Centre for Ecological Learning
increased public interest in sustainability, sustain- the Netherlands and climate-adaptive society, laws can help educate Luxembourg (CELL), Luxembourg
able values have also become more important and With the ambition to be fully circular by 2050, the us about the impacts of our actions on the planet. CELL is a non-profit organization that focuses on
widely embraced in the private sector. Having an am- municipality of Leiden made its first action plan for Ultimately, the creation of strict laws can help reduce raising awareness and promoting sustainable living
bitious company policy in relation to sustainability is socially responsible procurement in 2016. However, our environmental impact and create a more sus- in Luxembourg, which was founded in 2009.
a great way to stand out from competitors. it turned out to be quite difficult to turn good ambi- tainable future. They provide an experimental platform for think-
To be able to be more ambitious than official leg- tions into good practice. The fear of requiring things However, individuals and businesses tend to re- ing, researching, disseminating and practicing al-
islation or to shift the emphasis, both the public and that are too expensive or even impossible often pre- sist laws for a variety of reasons, including economic ternative lifestyles. The platform offers a range of
the private sector can single-handedly decide to in- vailed over the courage to challenge the market and concerns, political opposition, lack of understanding, activities, including workshops and seminars, to en-
troduce a sustainability protocol: a set of rules and ask for something innovative. fear of change and regulatory fatigue. It is important courage individuals and businesses to adopt more
agreements that has to be followed in a predefined In 2022, a thorough evaluation led to the action for lawmakers to address these concerns and com- sustainable practices. As a driver of the ecological
area or context. plan for socially responsible procurement 2.0, which municate the benefits of the new laws in order to transition in Luxembourg, CELL works closely with
turned the municipality of Leiden into one of the gain support and ensure successful implementation. other associations and government agencies.
How Does It Work? most sustainable procurers in the Netherlands. The The centre organizes events to give voice to new
Due to the impact and size of most governmental or- sustainable ambitions in the complex process of pro- How Does It Work? initiatives or bring citizens together so that they
ganizations using a protocol to change internal be- curement were limited to three: circularity, carbon Different platforms can play a crucial role in gather- can join or implement projects. CELL uses specific
haviour is an important sustainability goal in itself. dioxide emissions and social return. The evaluation ing, coordinating and supporting initiatives by indi- pedagogical tools to anchor learning by experience,
Being permit issuers, governments can also place made it clear that procuring processes should always viduals and businesses in the face of strict new laws. including permaculture design, agroecology, action
additional demands on urban redevelopments. For start with these ambitions, instead of adding them in Platforms can facilitate communication and net- research, radical and participatory pedagogy, deep
governments, internal protocols can function as a later stage. Procurement based on demanded per- working between individuals and businesses inter- ecology and various moderation techniques. Its work
a precursor of new legislation. The Sustainability formances led to better results than procurement ested in promoting sustainable practices. This can ranges from guidance on small interventions such as
Protocol from the Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona, based on prescribed solutions. Civil servants strug- help build a community of like-minded individuals communal gardening to territorial strategies as for
for example, contains 18 environmental criteria that gling with the implementation of the sustainable who can share ideas, collaborate and support each example regional planning policy.
projects in the area have to meet, regarding water ambitions were offered personal and customized as- other by providing a space for individuals and busi-
usage, circular materials, sustainable energy, com- sistance in their particular procurement processes. nesses to share best practices and success stories.
fort and health. The protocol is considered as an ex- By helping others learn from those who have suc-
perimental tool with which policies are tested, pos- cessfully implemented sustainable practices, this
sibly leading to new legislation in the long run. can inspire people to take action. In addition, plat-

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GUERRILLA GARDENING CUSTOMIZATION
Use-driven Legal Flexibility Use-driven Legal Flexibility

Neighbours turn underused or forgotten places Tailor-made legal intervention based on existing
within the public realm into pocket-parks – without legislation in order to achieve more sustainability.
legal permission.

Why? demand direct action in the change of land rights Why? corruption, these institutions would do well to com-
Guerrilla gardening is a bottom-up practice com- and land reform, and even question the concept of Legislation always follows societal changes in a slow municate clearly what they are allowing and why,
monly used by community gardeners who take over land ownership itself. In practical terms, guerrilla pace. However, sometimes needs for more sustain- and monitor the results of their legal experiment.
a piece of public land for the sole purpose of adding gardening projects can be at odds with cities’ reg- ability are urgent and ask for a quick intervention.
plants. The scale of the intervention can vary between ulations that demand that public space has certain Innovative circular or climate-adaptive initiatives Example: Refurbishment of Private Homes in
an addition of a few decorative plants around a tree all characteristics – aesthetics, safety, historical value, might therefore be hindered by existing law, which Pirineus Street, Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain
the way to an urban community garden ‘squatting’ et cetera. An intervention as small as placing a raised is not yet equipped for coping with these new chal- Because the density in the municipality of Santa
part of a park. bed on a public pavement can break the regulations lenges. Luckily, laws and regulations often only es- Coloma de Gramenet, part of the Barcelona Metro-
Guerrilla gardening can contribute to the mitiga- of safety by making the pavement narrower than tablish the outline of policy, offering civil servants politan Region, increased dramatically between
tion of environmental challenges in the city. Newly deemed ‘safe’ by the city code. room for interpretation. Legal facilitation, stimula- 1955 and 1975 (from 20.000 to 140.000 inhabitants)
planted greenery can help slow water runoff. Larger tion or approval of circular and climate-adaptive the area is now facing several problems concerning
plants significantly reduce the heat island effect Example: The Street Gardening Society, Prague, initiatives can thus be done quickly by customizing liveability. There is a lack of public space and public
through water evaporation. If productive plants are Czech Republic existing legislation, while updated new legislation is infrastructure, and many buildings are in a bad state.
planted, the neighbourhood can benefit even more. The Street Gardening Society is a community organ- being prepared in a slower pace. The ownership is fragmented, since all the houses
Sometimes guerrilla gardening projects also have a isation that operates in the Prague 3 neighbourhood, On the other hand, to get approval for their spatial are privately owned. Previous attempts by the major-
composting component, which eases the strain on a residential part of Prague. The members are pro- initiatives, initiators are usually asked to prove that ity of owners for collective renovations were blocked
public waste management. fessional gardeners and teachers, who educate and their initiative meets the legal requirements. In case by only a small group of individual owners or their
The benefits and disadvantages of guerrilla gar- support local street gardeners and give workshops. innovative solutions do not comply with convention- representatives, not willing to pay their share. These
dening vastly vary from case to case. As it is a bottom- Their gardening efforts focus on beautifying spaces al laws, initiators can ask civil servants for a reason- owners mostly appear to be slumlords who rent out
up strategy, it is inherently a community-building and around trees with plants that will not harm the tree able approach or to customize their burden of proof apartments to new immigrants or banks who own
-strengthening practice. Adding plants to places that and are climate-appropriate. by for example adapting their way of calculation or expropriated houses.
are neglected or disused makes the city more beau- Although the group operates illegally, the local demonstrating equivalence. Breaking this deadlock situation, the municipality
tiful and therefore more likely for people to care for government has turned a blind eye for a long time. of Santa Coloma de Gramenet, part of the Barcelona
it. Though guerrilla gardening generally is seen as a But recently, it has launched several projects itself, How Does It Work? Metropolitan Region, set up a customized legal
harmless civil disobedience, there are some possible some of which together with the Street Gardening The success of customization stands or falls with the framework for the project by combining two laws,
disadvantages. If the wrong plants are chosen, exotic Society. Community composting was introduced in willingness of civil servant to look for solutions and being the ‘3R act’ (a planning act for new develop-
species can be introduced that are a threat to native 2020 to support an effective waste management of not to automatically switch into the ‘no that is not ments) and ‘the right to housing act’. Within this le-
species, for instance, or if maintenance is neglected, food scraps in the neighbourhood and use the com- possible’ mode. Besides motivation, this willingness gal framework, the municipality is able to define an
the new plants may attract vermin. post as new soil for the area. The Street Gardening of civil servants to investigate and stretch legal pos- area in which a feasible refurbishment can be en-
Society’s practice of adopting trees as a way of beau- sibilities is also determined by the trust in and back- forced, sharing the burdens and benefits proportion-
How Does It Work? tifying public spaces was also recently formalized by ing by policymakers. When there is both willingness ally to the percentage of ownership.
Guerrilla gardeners plant on property that does not the Prague 3 municipality, as it offered 7,000 flower and political backing, governments can already start Depending on their type of tenure, owners have
belong to them, which is illegal. Some groups oper- plants to residents to plant in their neighbourhood. putting their innovative sustainable ambitions into different possibilities to pay for the refurbishment:
ate at night to avoid punishment, other groups look practice, while appropriate legislation is on its way. landlords and banks have to pay everything in ad-
for cooperation with municipalities, depending on Sometimes, legislation contains opportunities for vance; owners who live in their property themselves
the political ecology of a given place. pilot projects or experiments within a certain band- can also pay their debt on a monthly basis or anno-
Sometimes guerrilla gardening can be disruptive width. Municipalities or governmental institutions tate their debt in the Housing Property Register.
both politically and practically. Historically, groups might use these possibilities to permit innovative
have used this as a tool for peaceful protest and to initiatives. To avoid complaints about favouritism or

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 PASS

MATERIAL PASSPORT EMISSION LIMITATION

Time-based Legal Flexibility Time-based Legal Flexibility

Identifying certificate for building materials that Legal limitation of the emission of pollutants such
helps understand their origin and possible future. as carbon dioxide, nitrogen or waste.

Why? physical absence, is traceable to its current owner Why? European legislation, the government is obliged to re-
The building industry is currently based on a constant or location. Due to this system, books don’t have to Although the Paris goals clearly state the need to duce the emission of nitrogen close to Natura2000-
supply of new materials. As a result, the construction remain stationary but can be lent out to different us- limit our greenhouse gas emissions, every European protected nature reserves. As a result, construction
sector is accountable for the largest consumption of ers and locations. Like books, materials would re- country tackles the path to that goal differently. and farming in these regions are limited.
primary materials. Due to a lack of natural resources, main accessible for generations. After the use of a Buildings – both in their realization and exploitation Controlling emissions of nitrogen, carbon dioxide
however, it is increasingly important to reuse existing resource in one construction, it could be repurposed, phase – generate 36 per cent of the EU’s greenhouse and even waste with legal enactments, help in realiz-
material goods. in another building or product. Again, the material gas emissions. While the necessary measures are ing higher ambitions and allows for a more effective
Persistent, recurring problems regarding the reuse would be registered, documented and saved digitally widely known, it is difficult to guarantee the success way of tracking progress across different initiators
of building materials are their availability and ques- to trace its location and current owner. of the sustainable approaches that individual parties and other stakeholders.
tions about their origin and quality. When the inten- Currently, the Material Passport is primarily used use in their building projects.
tion is to reuse materials in a building project, how in individual projects, but it is promoted by the EU By implementing legal restrictions for greenhouse Example: Future Homes and Buildings Standard,
can it be ensured they arrive in time? What is their Horizon Europe Framework Programme. If a Passport gas emissions, initiators of building projects are United Kingdom
actual quality and how can the contracting company is obliged for every single building element in future obliged to develop their buildings with the necessary In 2021, the United Kingdom has implemented a na-
guarantee its condition and lifespan? Finding appro- building legislation, circular building could easily be- design and technology that meet the Paris goals from tional law that enforces new building projects to re-
priate answers to these questions requires organiza- come the starting point for all our building projects. 2014. This way, the emissions are regulated and mon- duce carbon dioxide emissions during their exploi-
tional systems that support and enable the reuse and itored through governmental legislation, ensuring tation phase. New homes and buildings in England
recycling of materials. Example: Nest, Duebendorf, Switzerland the building’s limited impact in terms of emissions no will have to produce significantly less carbon dioxide
By utilizing a centrally registered Material Pass- The Nest building, the flexible structure of which matter what users of the buildings do. Without these under new rules. The government announced this
port (MP), available materials intended for reuse can was designed by Gramazio Kohler Architects, is a regulations, the efficiency of the building proposals initiative to help the country move towards net zero.
be effectively traced and identified. When the pass- building laboratory that demonstrates how to incor- is unreliable and difficult to track and control. As a This example is one of the first proactive government
port includes comprehensive data on location, avail- porate both recycled materials and flexibility into a result, governmental ambitions can be stated but, in actions in Europe.
ability and age, contractors can easily plan their cir- new construction. The core of the building is made their execution, remain unsupervised. Under the new regulations, carbon dioxide emis-
cular building projects and are able to make promises from a simple concrete backbone with three horizon- sions from new build homes must be around 30 per
about the quality of the materials. tal platforms, on which single modules are inserted How Does It Work? cent lower than current standards. The English govern-
that are demountable if the function of the building Controlling emissions through governmental regula- ment focuses on this as heating and powering build-
How Does It Work? changes. The individual units have been designed for tions has already been an established tool in many ings currently comprise 40 per cent of the UK’s total
Ideally, the Passport is registered in an accessible maximum sustainability; they are built from materi- areas such as public transport, energy production energy use. It highlights the importance of improving
database before the material is used in a building als that are fully recyclable, reusable or compostable. and many other aspects of the industry. In the build- the country’s built environment and sets exemplary
structure. The building then acts as a ‘material bank’ All materials used are stored in a material data- ing industry, the government has to identify the high- standards for other European countries to follow.
and once it is demounted, or altered, there is a de- base and can be returned to the material cycle if the est acceptable pollutant production in both the con- The UK government executed this legislation with
tailed inventory of all the materials, components and building unit chooses to change its function. This al- struction and use of a building, and then legally hold very transparent and open communication. The de-
resources in the building as well as their location. lows the structure to evolve with time without creat- the developers of the building accountable. partment received a wide-ranging response from
Thus, materials are not only to be part of a building, ing material waste. In order to legally enforce limitations successfully different individuals across organizations, represent-
but also have an independent value outside of the regarding greenhouse gas emissions, the govern- atives and trade bodies, industry professionals, aca-
current construction. ment has to define penalties for exceeding the limits. demics and individual members of the public to their
In theory, this system acts similarly to a library. By Setting a fine or legal consequence makes it inad- initial proposal. By reviewing these comments and
categorizing, documenting and identifying books, visable for building proposals to neglect the emis- concerns and carefully responding to such issues,
these can be lent out to different users. Every book sions regulations. An example of the effect of these the government’s official limitations are responsible
is listed digitally in an organized system and, in its implementations is seen in the Netherlands. Due to and reasonable.

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DEMOLITION BAN
Time-based Legal Flexibility

Legislation that prevents existing building

structures to be demolished, reducing the
environmental impact of the building industry.

Why? demolition and retrofitting new constructions to en-

The construction and demolition industries are ma- hance their longevity and functionality.
jor contributors to global waste production and By limiting the possibility of demolition, legislation
greenhouse gas emissions. In particular, the produc- would encourage the adoption of sustainable prac-
tion of concrete skeletons, a commonly used building tices, ultimately leading to a more circular economy.
technique, generates significant emissions because
of the chemical process involved. Furthermore, the Example: Tour Bois-le-Prêtre, Paris, France
demolition of such structures, especially those made The Tour Bois-le-Prêtre is a 16-storey tower block lo-
as monolithic, poured concrete structures without cated on the outskirts of Paris, originally designed by
demountable joints, results in a high energy con- the French architect Raymond Lopez and construct-
sumption, high greenhouse gas emissions and an in- ed in the early 1960s. After decades of neglect and
crease of landfill waste. ageing, the building required significant efforts to
Moreover, the depletion of finite raw resources like bring its apartments up to modern standards. While
chalkstone, pebbles and sand, crucial components the French government initially considered demol-
in creating concrete, is another consequence of the ishing the tower, it ultimately organized a competi-
construction and demolition process. tion to solicit proposals for renovating the structure.
A possible solution to reduce waste production The French Architects, Lacaton Vassal, won the
and conserve existing structures is implementing a competition with a proposal that had a cost lower
demolition ban. Such legal limitations would help than that of demolition and new construction and
minimize the construction and demolition industries’ increased the living area of each apartment by ap-
environmental impacts while preserving structures proximately 40 per cent without raising rents. Their
that have already contributed significantly to emis- proposal was a radical transformation that involved
sions during construction. adding new floors to the periphery of the existing
building, creating additional living space, and enclos-
How Does It Work? ing balconies and terraces. The project also included
Currently, no European country has a demolition ban replacing the small windows with large, transparent
yet, but the European Union is proposing to devel- openings that offered stunning views of Paris.
op legislation that would prohibit the demolition of Today the Tour Bois-le-Prêtre serves as a model
buildings with concrete structures. As opposed to for addressing the challenge of rehabilitating mass-
being demolished, these structures would have to be produced housing developments across Europe from
thoroughly renovated. A future demolition ban could the 1960s and 1970s and as a testament to the value
possibly follow the legal framework of monument- of clever thinking and ingenuity in revitalizing ne-
protecting legislation, that is already widely accept- glected urban areas. Jean-Philippe Vassal and Anne
ed in most European countries. Lacaton’s design demonstrates how renovations and
The effect would not only reduce waste produc- modernizing existing structures can be a resource-
tion but also provide a greater incentive to design ful, sustainable and durable way to avoid demolitions
new concrete structures with a more serious focus and improve our built environment.
on adaptability and flexibility. The proposed ap-
proach entails prioritizing building renovation over

96
3.6 Financial Flexibility 3.7 Financial Instruments

In spatial development, the domain of financing con- Time-based Financial Flexibility Local Financial Flexibility COMMUNITY SHARES
cerns property values, investments, revenues and Investments for climate adaptation might mean sub-
risk-assessment. Financial instruments make it pos- stantial investments, with an increasingly high risk
sible to find the right balance between investments profile. The risks can be reduced by clever phasing,
and revenue so that an initiative becomes financially reducing the gap between the timing of the invest- CAPITALIZED RISKS
viable. ments and the timing of the revenue flows. If finan-
Current planning models are mainly focused on cial instruments are more flexible, it becomes easier
urban expansion, but different financial models are to initiate larger investments in circularity or climate
needed if we want to implement circularity and cli- adaptation. PRIVATELY FINANCED PUBLIC ASSETS
mate adaptation in our existing villages, towns and
cities. These new models need to be better at deal-
ing with the existing tangible and intangible values,
they should not depend solely on big players with
plenty of capital, but should allow room for owner-
ship by smaller parties too, and they have to be bet- Use-driven Financial Flexibility FREE PUBLIC TRANSPORT
ter at coping with unpredictability. To achieve this,
financial instruments need to be more flexible.

Local Financial Flexibility SOCIAL CURRENCY

Implementing circularity and climate adaptation into
existing parts of a city might lead to benefits on a
much larger scale. Flexible instruments are in order
to equalize costs and benefits between investors on SUBSIDY
the one side and all stakeholders on the other. These
instruments are not based purely on generalizations,
but take into account a location’s specific values and
possibilities.

Use-driven Financial Flexibility Time-based Financial Flexibility UPCYCLING

The far-reaching institutionalization of spatial devel-
opment has resulted in a huge gap between inves-
tors and users. Tenants, for example, might suffer
financially when their landlords do not take circular RECURRENT HOUSING FUND
or climate-adaptive measures, such as insulation or
renewable energy resources. Use-driven financial
flexibility enables a fair redistribution of investments
and revenues in case cost-effective or risk-reducing LIFE CYCLE FINANCE
investments have to be made.

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COMMUNITY SHARES CAPITALIZED RISKS
Local Financial Flexibility Local Financial Flexibility

Community shares are a way for community groups Estimated value loss through climate change,
to raise money for a common investment. multiplied by its probability, expressed in an amount
of money. Capitalized risks help owners to define
the investments for making their property climate-
adaptive.

Why? whereby each person usually has one vote regardless Why? to communicate what their intended investments
Sustainable resources for people’s need for energy, of the number of shares they own. In the European context, there have recently been in- are and what the estimated value loss as a result of a
water or food may well be initiated, maintained, and If enough money is collected by issuing the com- creased occurrences of droughts, heatwaves, floods, disaster would be if these investments are not made,
financed by local communities. Advantages of these munity shares, the corresponding project can be im- wildfires, snowstorms and other natural disasters it is easier to convince people that the investment is
local initiatives include independence from large plemented. The projects may include the installation heavily affecting the value of land, infrastructure and necessary.
systems, big companies and their market power, and of renewable energy systems, the development of property. As these disasters are likely to occur even An alternative to investing in climate-adaptive
the absence of middlemen skimming off profits. In green infrastructure or sustainable transportation. more frequently in the near future, current property measures is an insurance covering the possible dam-
addition, it is possible to implement autonomous, In the case of a cooperative, the voting members values and the stability of economies are seriously age by climate disasters. Fees are based on an esti-
off-grid systems in which active citizens can deter- can run the project democratically after realization. threatened by possible future climate disasters. mated financial coverage of damage. Recent cases
mine a community-based social or environmental Finally, it is important to establish mechanisms that These disasters may also negatively influence profit- show, however, that only the costs to rebuild the lost
focus. distribute the financial return of the project in a fair able exploitation, lower the value of the property, or property are covered, without additional measures to
Such projects are therefore characterized by a way among the shareholders. even cause so much damage that premature demoli- protect the property from recurring disasters. Based
high level of acceptance and support from civil so- tion is warranted. on these recent cases, we may conclude that insur-
ciety and are usually tailored to local challenges and Example: Ballesteros de Calatrava, Ciudad Real, In the financial world, risks are calculated by mul- ances don’t seem to be an ideal means to come to
needs, which means they can provide more effective Spain tiplying the value by the chance that this value is de- future-proof solutions.
and meaningful solutions than large-scale systems. In the central Spanish village of Ballesteros de stroyed. When risks are capitalized accurately in this
Investing local communities, however, have to Calatrava, many of the 400 inhabitants have made way, people responsible for the value of a property Example: Munich Re, Germany
have a financial framework in which investments, a communal investment to install an intelligent elec- can consider an upgrade or invest in order to retain Munich Re is a globally operating insurance company
profits, ownership, and the right to vote are well or- trical microgrid with the help of the municipality and a property’s value. The sometimes large-seeming specialized in analysing and covering climate risks.
ganized. Community shares offers such a structure. private companies. In the long term, this will gener- investments for climate-adaptive measures are put Munich Re’s NatCatSERVICE is one of the most com-
By investing in a project in the form of community ate, and distribute the electricity for the community’s into perspective by the capitalization of the risks and prehensive global natural loss databases with over
shares, individuals and organizations can become residents through use of photovoltaic panels. After the possible loss of value, in case these measures are 30,000 entries. Scientists have been collecting and
co-owners of a project and benefit from the financial investing in the construction of the system, the vil- not being invested in. analysing data since the 1980s in order to evaluate
returns it generates. This means that the benefits of lage is almost self-sufficient in electricity production. loss events worldwide. Based on this database, the
the project are not in the hands of a few private in- Already now, the residents who have joined the How Does It Work? insurance company offers tailor-made solutions for
vestors but are shared throughout the community – project save about 30 per cent of the electricity costs, Investments in climate resilience of our cities are customers across the world, mostly businesses sus-
as are the financial and other risks associated with which remain stable and are no longer exposed to expensive, as they mostly concern large-scaled, ceptible to climate change, such as in the sectors of
the project. price fluctuations of supra-regional electricity pro- structural changes like the enlargement of water ba- agriculture or energy.
viders. Once the past investments have been refi- sins or the reinforcement of dykes. For many of us, Worldwide, Munich Re is one of the few institutes
How Does It Work? nanced, residents are expected to save 80 per cent of it is hard to imagine the necessity of these invest- that dares to estimate the costs of possible climate
For the successful implementation of community electricity costs and become the sole owners of the ments. Therefore, the willingness to invest is small. disasters. Though the insurance company is a com-
shares, first a community must be formed. Then, a grid. The public sector also benefits from the system Capitalized risks, however, make an actual compari- mercial organization and their primary goal is to sell
legal structure must be established that enables and passes the reduced electricity costs on to new son possible between the needed investment and insurances, their ability to capitalize risks based on
the issuance of community shares. In many coun- residents in the form of property tax reductions. the possible losses. This can help convince people of an extensive database contributes to a better aware-
tries, this can be done by establishing cooperatives Low electricity prices and tax reductions are in- the necessity of the investments. ness and understanding of these risks by owners and
that raise equity through the issuance of community tended to attract businesses and residents and ulti- Big climate-related investments that should be those financially responsible. By capitalizing their
shares. These are shares that can be purchased by mately help combat the rural exodus in the area. made by public authorities such as municipalities or risks, the insurance company unintentionally stimu-
individuals. With the share, a buyer not only receives provinces can meet public resistance because public lates parties to invest in climate-adaptive measures
a share in the cooperative, but also voting rights, money is to be spent. When governments are able before it is too late.

100 101
PRIVATELY FINANCED PUBLIC ASSETS FREE PUBLIC TRANSPORT
Local Financial Flexibility Use-driven Financial Flexibility

Private parties invest in the quality of the By making public transport free, transport can
surrounding public realm with a percentage of their become more efficient, less space-consuming,
private investment, providing their private plot with less polluting and socially more inclusive.
a sustainable context.

Why? vate property should include a mandatory contribu- Why? When the capacity of the existing network is un-
Implementing a circular economy and a climate- tion to the public realm. In this way, initiators and Car traffic and the infrastructure required for it take derused, zero-fare public transport leads to a bet-
resilient environment asks for big investments now, investors understand their additional responsibilities up a lot of space and generate harmful and disruptive ter used system. When the capacity reaches its lim-
but will only lead to profits in the future. Ultimately, before they create their business case. The condi- emissions. The use of public transport on the other its however, an expansion of the networks becomes
property owners benefit from this sustainable envi- tions must be contractually signed off by both the hand helps to reduce car traffic, which leads to a re- crucial to meet the increasing demand. To estimate
ronment and see the value of their property stabi- local government and the private parties involved to duction in greenhouse gas emissions and other pol- the effect of free access to the system it is also pos-
lized or even grow. At the same time, in most cas- ensure implementation in practice. lutants. Reducing car traffic also frees up inner-city sible to gradually switch to free public transport in
es, the public sector has tight limits to finance the space for other uses and can improve spatial qual- order to prevent sudden network overloads. To this
much-needed transformations in such a short period Example: VPOR Ensjø, Oslo, Norway ity. Despite these known positive aspects of public end, the service can initially be made free of charge
of time. Therefore, it is reasonable to ask private par- The Municipality of Oslo uses indicative plans for transport compared to private car use, many people only for certain user groups, such as schoolchildren
ties to co-invest in the public space. public spaces (VPORs) as strategic planning tools still hesitate to use public transport, mainly for rea- or pensioners, or at certain times of the day, for ex-
This addressing of private funds not only ena- to provide guidelines for the development of public sons of lower comfort, less flexibility and the price ample outside the morning and evening rush hours.
bles a fairer distribution of costs between the public spaces. While they are not legally binding, they serve of services.
sector and private parties, but also fosters a shared as a link between different planning documents and Zero-fare public transport is an effective way to Example: Free Public Transport, Malta
sense of responsibility in solving societal challenges. as a basis for further zoning and contractual agree- make it more attractive. In addition to the above- The government of the state of Malta has decided
In addition, measures taken in the public realm can ments between the municipality and private de- mentioned positive effects on the environment, free to make the Day Routes, Night Routes and Special
be easily supported by comparable measures on the velopers, especially in areas where several private public transport promotes social inclusiveness and Services of the nationwide public transport sys-
private plots. These measures are then carefully in- parties are active. VPORs thus provide both cer- equity. It enables low-income citizens to become tem, consisting of several bus lines, free of charge.
tegrated and cover a larger scale, which means the tainty and flexibility for developers, who are obliged more mobile and get to school, work or leisure ac- Prerequisite for the free use of public transport is the
impact is bigger as well. to create specific plans for their properties includ- tivities more easily. The financial relief contributes use of a personalized Tallinja Card, which can be or-
The collaborative approach fosters synergy ef- ing public space development based on the VPOR. to social emancipation as it stimulates education, dered by both Maltese and non-Maltese residents for
fects, whereby experience and technical know-how Consequently, they carry out the relevant projects increases purchasing power and encourages partici- a one-time fee of 15 euros. Previously, Malta had a fare
of private actors can be transferred to the public sec- that include the public space at a reasonable price or pating in society in general. system in which fares varied according to the length
tor and vice versa. provide (partial) financing. of the journey. The transition to free public transport
The Ensjø neighbourhood in Oslo used to be dom- How Does It Work? was made possible by a change in the budget, which
How Does It Work? inated by car dealers before the municipality decided A loss of revenue from ticket sales makes it nec- provided for an increase in government subsidies for
Local governments can impose site-specific require- in 2004 to convert the area into a residential neigh- essary for transport operators to find other finan- the operation of public transportation. The decision
ments on private market actors in the planning pro- bourhood. For development in Ensjø, a VPOR for- cial sources to finance operation and maintenance. to introduce zero-fare public transport was taken
cess to contribute to climate-resilient public spaces mulates design principles for public spaces such as Private transport operators are therefore dependent as part of the government’s efforts to implement a
and to establish a circular economy. These require- greenways, parks and a riverway. By 2021, some 52 on government subsidies. Publicly owned transport greener transport policy, which aims to improve air
ments can both concern a (financial) contribution to hectares of public green space had been realized by services can be made free of charge through finan- quality and reduce traffic congestion.
the redevelopment of the public realm or the imple- private parties in the area based on this plan, in addi- cial redistribution of governmental costs and ben-
mentation of measures on private plots, such as rain- tion to some 6,000 housing units. Much of the public efits. Funding can come, for example, from higher
water retention or incentives for more biodiversity. space is situated on formerly private land. By 2018 traffic taxes on the use of cars. As in the long term,
In case of new construction, these requirements alone, 1 billion Norwegian kroner (about 850,000 eu- empowering low-income residents plausibly leads to
should best be formulated at the very beginning of ros) of private capital had been mobilized to create lower public costs for household depts, school drop-
the planning process, allowing private parties to sustainable public space. outs or unemployment, it is reasonable to partly pay
align their plans accordingly. In case of transforma- for free public transport from budgets of other social
tion or renovation, the permission to change the pri- services.

102 103
SOCIAL CURRENCY SUBSIDY
Use-driven Financial Flexibility Use-driven Financial Flexibility

Investments and profits are not expressed in Project-based government contribution that
currency, but in goods, benefits, services or social facilitates developments towards more circularity or
returns. climate adaptation, but are not sufficiently profitable.

Why? such initiatives by organizing markets that promote Why? the municipal, provincial, national or European level.
The necessary shift towards a more circular and the exchange of construction materials that de- Investments for the transformation of cities towards Subsidy programmes specify which actors and pro-
climate-adaptive society asks for great financial in- rive from demolition or renovation work in a certain circularity and climate adaptation are urgently need- jects are eligible, the conditions that must be met to
vestments. Ideally, these investments are only done neighbourhood. ed and in the public interest, in the wake of the chal- receive a subsidy, the funding amount and how to
by our governments, enhancing the social inclusion In order to come to fair trades with social currency, lenges posed by climate change, but are sometimes apply for the subsidy.
in our society with equal benefits for everyone. But payment preferably takes place in accordance with not profitable enough, too large, or simply too risky To ensure an equal opportunity for all applicants,
in reality, the investments will be partly private, not predefined agreements. In his book The Future of to be fully funded by the market. Subsidies are a tool there are usually standard procedures and forms,
necessarily giving everyone a fair share. Commercial Money, the Belgian currency expert Bernard Lietaer that can be used to enable or stimulate the imple- which are often evaluated by independent expert
companies investing in sustainable infrastructure, advocates the introduction of complementary cur- mentation of such projects. committees appointed by the governments. Sub-
for example, might only be in favour of their regularly rencies alongside traditional money. Valuable things While subsidies are government funds that can sidies are usually awarded on a one-time basis rather
paying customers. Private individuals might just not that are not so easy to express in monetary value, support the desired projects of private actors, gov- than financing ongoing measures.
be wealthy enough to invest in solar panels or extra such as social capital or the care for the environ- ernments can also use subsidies to encourage pri- The implementation of subsidized projects is sub-
insulation for their private homes. So in the end, this ment, can then become a fully-fledged part of the vate actors to channel their financial resources into ject to strict monitoring to make sure that govern-
shift might well lead to greater social segregation. economy. environmentally friendly measures by demanding ment funds are used appropriately and effectively.
When the necessary sustainable measures are fi- a private investment basis for the projects that are This also ensures that subsidy conditions are met.
nancially unattainable, alternative ways of funding Example: Curing the Limbo, Athens, Greece subsidized. Implementing measures and projects These include not only conditions during project im-
can be defined. When people pay through knowl- ‘Curing the Limbo’ was launched in 2017, during the that address climate resilience often requires trying plementation, but also afterwards, such as the public
edge, time or materials instead of through financial post-refugee crisis in Greece. The project aimed to out new techniques or methods, which conflicts with sharing of knowledge gained from subsidized pro-
currency, this is called social currency. Paying with assist refugees in breaking free from a state of inac- the desire for risk control among private companies. jects.
social currency can empower individuals and com- tivity by utilizing local forces, such as active citizen Subsidies provided to those experimental projects
munities by giving them the means to purchase the groups, that had helped Athens overcome its own in- are an instrument to reduce financial risks and there- Example: Poplar Works, London, United Kingdom
resources and services that they need to deal with ertia caused by the decade-long economic crisis. A fore specifically promote innovation. Under the Poplar Works project, disused garages
the societal changes regarding sustainability. By range of services was supported by the programme, Additionally, subsidies do not necessarily have to in East London were transformed to create space
trading goods and services directly with others, they including psychosocial support, supervised by the be financial, but can also be granted in the form of for studios, workshops and event spaces. The pro-
can bypass traditional economic intermediaries such National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, job education, tools or tax benefits. These forms of sub- ject was based on the idea that the fashion industry,
as banks and create their own networks of exchange counselling, language training and assistance in sidy are well equipped to provide subsidies to con- which once made a significant financial and cultural
and support. In addition to that, by exchanging dif- finding affordable housing. sumers on a large scale. Free trainings, for example, contribution to the economy of East London, would
ferent skills and expertise individuals can learn from In turn, refugees contributed to improving Athens’ can teach city dwellers how to adapt their lifestyles once again become an important part of the social
each other. Such models contribute to social cohe- neighbourhoods by participating in various citizen- to the challenges of climate change, leading to a and economic fabric of the city.
sion by helping to integrate sensitive social groups, led actions, such as revitalizing public spaces and or- large-scaled implementation of circular structures The project was realized with financial support
building strong and lasting relationships between in- ganizing business activities related to renewable en- and climate resilience. Tax benefits favouring for from the Mayor of London and the London Economic
dividuals and organizations. ergy and public facility construction. This exchange example the private acquisition of solar panels or Action Partnership through the London Regeneration
of services helped refugees build relationships with electrical bikes, can also accelerate lifestyle adjust- Fund and the Good Growth Fund, which promotes
How Does It Work? the locals who participated in the actions, practice ments, such as the disconnection of fossil energy re- growth and community development in the British
Social currency takes on various forms. Collaborative the language, and develop both their social and sources or changes in mobility behaviour. capital. In association with similar developments in
housing initiatives are one example, in which resi- professional skills. Together, refugees and the city the surrounding area, the project received subsidies
dents work together to design and build their own emerged from the stage of inactivity, worked togeth- How Does It Work? totalling approximately 2 million pounds.
homes, while fostering a culture of solidarity and er and learned from each other. Subsidies are usually implemented through target-
mutual assistance. Local governments can stimulate ed funding programmes by government bodies at

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UPCYCLING RECURRENT HOUSING FUND
Time-based Financial Instrument Time-based Financial Instrument

By discovering uses that add value to poorly valued Fund with a seed capital, making it possible to
waste materials, circularity and reuse become buy vacant property, refurbish it and make it more
a beneficial alternative for the conventional, linear sustainable. Renting or selling the sustainably
way of producing materials. renovated houses enables the fund to invest in
new projects.

Why? cular production as an alternative that is more ex- Why? rental price index. This would allow property owners
The current economic production system is becom- pensive. Access to housing is a fundamental right, yet it re- to receive market rent while still providing affordable
ing increasingly problematic. Firstly, it relies heavily mains a major challenge for many people in Europe. housing options to renters. Public-private partner-
on the extraction of finite natural resources, which Example: APPLAUSE, Ljubljana, Slovenia Not only the limited availability of affordable housing ships could also be established, where developers
are being depleted at an unsustainable rate. This Invasive alien plant species pose one of the greatest is problematic, but also the fact that the affordable partner with the local government to build affordable
leads to a range of negative environmental impacts, challenges to European ecosystems. They threaten housing that is available often appears to be in a poor housing units in exchange for tax incentives or other
including deforestation, water pollution, greenhouse native vegetation, destroy agricultural land and cost state, lacking energy-saving features and having benefits. These subsidies or partnerships allow par-
gas emissions and climate change. Secondly, the the European economy billions of euros every year. poor, or even no access to sustainable energy sourc- ties to engage in projects relating to sustainability,
current economic production system is based on a Many of them are removed on a daily basis, mainly by es. Tenants living in lower-quality homes might not such as the use of renewable energy sources or a low
linear model of production and consumption, where burning. In Slovenia, there are no special landfills for pay high rents, but face serious maintenance costs carbon footprint.
resources are extracted, processed into goods, and invasive alien plant species (IAPS), so all collected and high energy bills.
then discarded as waste. This model generates enor- biomass is sent to incinerators. The high cost of housing in urban centres makes it Example: Yes we rent!, Mataró, Spain
mous amounts of waste and pollution, which harms The APPLAUSE project in Ljubljana brings a com- difficult for people to participate in society and build The project ‘Yes We Rent!’ aims to increase the of-
the environment and human health more and more. pletely new approach to the challenge of waste bio- up a career, which contributes to social exclusion and fer of affordable rental housing in the city of Mataró,
Upcycling is a model of production and consump- mass. IAPS are seen as a resource and the starting inequality. The lack of affordable housing is mostly Spain. Cooperatives of tenants offer favourable con-
tion that aims to minimize waste and resource de- point for a new business model: through large-scale bigger when a local housing market is dominated by ditions to homeowners by generating an affordable
pletion. Basically, the idea is that waste can be education and awareness campaigns, citizens are the private sector, while commercial landlords are and stable rental supply in the long term. In return,
transformed into a valuable resource, creating a encouraged to participate in the harvesting and more interested in making good profits than in pro- these cooperatives demand that the housing made
closed-loop system that reduces environmental im- use of IAPS. Educational campaigns encourage and viding affordable housing. In case commercially of- available is in a good condition, so the energy bills
pacts and creates new economic opportunities while teach them how to harvest and collect alien plants, fered housing is affordable, sometimes the quality of won’t be too high.
fostering economic development and social equity. which can then be processed at home or at a pro- it is relatively poor. Also privately owned homes can As an instrument of inclusion, ‘Yes We Rent!’ tack-
cessing centre. Collected IAPS are used in three be in poor condition as the owners may not be able les a double challenge: ‘people without flats, and
How Does It Work? main ways: at home (e.g., food, dyes), in guided to afford to make their property more sustainable, flats without people’ in a context where the housing
One way to upcycle materials and products is to re- workshops (e.g., to make wood or paper products) which might eventually make it impossible for them market is highly deregulated, owner-dominated (75
pair them when they are at the end of their ‘first’ lifes- and in artisanal laboratories (e.g., to make innovative to sell it. The issues around housing access are com- per cent of the homes are owner-occupied) and high-
pan. Good examples of this way of upcycling are the products with market potential in social enterprises, plex, and require a coordinated and comprehensive ly volatile. There is a dramatic shortage of affordable
dismantling and reuse of components of buildings, employing vulnerable groups). response from governments, policymakers and civil housing in the city, and rents have risen by 27 per
vehicles or electronics. Another way of upcycling is As a Zero Waste City, Ljubljana has recognized society. cent over the last three years, leaving the city’s social
by discovering uses that add value to poorly valued the potential to establish a systematic participa- housing sector totally incommensurate to demand.
or waste materials. Instead of disposing of these ma- tory model that uses collected biomass to develop How Does It Work? However, there are some 3,500 ‘flats without people’
terials, they can be repurposed or transformed into new sustainable products. Thanks to this platform, Municipalities can incentivize private property own- – properties sitting empty because their owners do
new products. Good examples of this are the use Ljubljana successfully employed circular production ers to offer affordable housing. Tax incentives, such not have the resources to renovate them or are afraid
of rags as building insolation and the processing of to control IAPS, instead of incinerating them. The as reduced property tax rates, can be used to per- tenants won’t pay their rents.
scrap wood into furniture. The circular economy is project has trained at least 2,350 citizens and col- suade landlords to rent out their properties at re-
critical for achieving sustainable development goals lected over 45,000 kilogrammes of alien plants to be duced rates. It is important that regulations are set
and ensuring a more resilient and equitable future used in wood and paper production. for the quality and the level of sustainability, so that,
for both the planet and its inhabitants. However, it for example, tenants are not confronted with unaf-
must be said that many production systems are not fordable energy-bills. Another option is to offer rent
suited yet for circularity and therefore consider cir- subsidies to tenants who live in properties above the

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LIFE CYCLE FINANCE
Time-based Financial Flexibility

Linking the development accounts to the

operational accounts.

Why? sports clubs could be developing their own property.

Since the majority of construction projects are built Since a developer’s trigger will mostly be financial,
by large development firms whose main interest lies sustainability in a building should be financially prof-
in selling a building with the highest profit, the sus- itable. Developers with ‘green’ ambitions or with sus-
tainability of a project is often neglected. The initial tainable goals are aware of this economic trigger and
costs of investing in sustainable buildings are usu- will focus on profitable, sustainable investments.
ally higher than conventional building costs. When Even when they sell their development directly after
developers sell their building projects directly after completion, they want to be sure that their sustain-
completion, the incentive to invest in sustainable able promises to the user will come true.
measures is lost as there is no direct financial output. Regular developers can also be encouraged – or
However, the durability and longevity of the build- even forced – to invest in sustainable buildings by
ing eventually counterbalance these costs and often banks, lenders and insurers that set restrictions for
even result in lower costs overall. their loans or risk coverages. With a smart set of re-
The impacts of investing in sustainable and fu- quirements, conditional loans or restricted insurance
ture-proof building methods only appear over time. guarantees can very well lead to a sustainable ex-
Financial arrangements that combine the initial in- ploitation period. Finally, governmental incentives or
vestment with the long-term exploitation of the prop- restrictions can stimulate a better life cycle finance.
erty are life cycle financial arrangements. Life cycle With subsidies or regulations regarding the basic
finance is achieved by bringing the responsibilities quality of a development, profits made during the life
of the development and the management phase in span of the project can be spread out better between
one hand. If the developers also profit from the long the initial and the successive phases of it.
life cycle of a building, it would guarantee a stronger
incentive to build sustainably. That higher initial in- Example: Hermann Miller Factory, Bath, United
vestments in more building quality lead to a longer Kingdom
lifespan is proven by our monuments, which are still Factory buildings are often subject to change due to
highly appreciated, sometimes even centuries after their company’s needs. While this regularly leads to
their completion. vacancy and relocation of the company, the Herman
Miller factory in Bath was built to anticipate this
How Does It Work? change. Throughout the years the building accom-
Life cycle finance works best when development modated a production rate that was six times higher
and maintenance are done by the same company. than the initial plan. The modular building was so
Investments in all kinds of quality, from durable ma- flexible that in 2020, after the closing of the indus-
terials to sustainable installations, from casco flex- trial activities, it could be easily transformed and re-
ibility to extra insulation, lead to a higher apprecia- purposed to become part of the Bath Spa University
tion of the property by the initiator itself. On a larger of Art and Design.
scale, companies that rent out property, such as
housing corporations or real estate investors, are
suited for life cycle finance. But also social institu-
tions such as hospitals, libraries, townhouses and

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3.8 Spatial Flexibility 3.9 Spatial Instruments

The spatial aspect concerns the physical elements of Time-based Spatial Flexibility Local Spatial Flexibility BIOBASED BUILDING
a development. Spatial instruments are used to give Spatial development without a blueprint requires
shape to the spatial structures and manifestations of flexible structures that are adaptable so that they
a development. can change over time. There are two extremes: ei-
In the quest for cost efficiency, the construction ther the structure has a very short life span and is SOIL-SENSITIVITY
industry has been working on the standardization of designed for a very specific function, fulfilling a tem-
building products and methods for decades. How- porary requirement, or the structure remains in place
ever, standardization is at odds with solutions tai- for a long time and has functional neutrality, so it can
lored to local requirements, user-friendliness and be used for many different purposes. CONVERTING TRADITION
adaptability.
If the building industry is to be successful in tack-
ling the challenge of circularity and climate adapta-
tion, the set of instruments available to architects,
product suppliers and builders will need to become
more flexible to enable more customization, allow Use-driven Spatial Flexibility MICROCLIMATE MODIFICATION
more input from users and building structures that
can be adapted more easily.

Local Spatial Flexibility DENSIFICATION

Unlike in new build projects, the pre-existing condi-
tions implementing circularity and climate adapta-
tion into existing structures are multi-facetted, com-
plex and a key determining factor. This demands a ROOFTOP BENEFITS
more flexible set of spatial instruments that enable
location-specific customization.

Use-driven Spatial Flexibility

First and foremost, buildings and structures should
serve the interests of their users and enable them Time-based Spatial Flexibility MODULAR BUILDING
to take responsibility. This is not always limited to
the interests of individuals; a communal interest can
also be a determining factor. However, standardiza-
tion tends to prioritize the interests of abstract enti- RE-INTERPRETATION
ties such as public authorities, banks and developers
at the expense of the actual users. Use-driven flex-
ibility means that a careful balance is found between
the interests of users and institutional interests on a SEASONAL FLEXIBILITY
project basis.

110 111
BIOBASED BUILDING SOIL-SENSITIVITY
Local Spatial Flexibility Local Spatial Flexibility

Building with materials that are organic, renewable Local soil conditions determine the risks caused
and mostly plant-based such as wood, grass or hemp by climate change. By carefully taking these soil
and therefore have a minimal carbon footprint. conditions into account in the design, risks can be
reduced.

Why? Building a demountable timber structure facilitates Why? Example: Floating University, Berlin, Germany
Modern building materials are mostly stony (con- the future recycling of materials. Cross-laminated Cities must anticipate climate change and respond The ‘Floating University’ in Berlin is an ephemeral
crete, brick) or metallic (steel, aluminium). These timber (CLT) has the technical possibilities for using with interventions to help them withstand future structure in the centre of Berlin, built onto a disused
raw materials have a large carbon footprint due to wood as a structural material in complex or high-rise changing conditions. Understanding the role soils rainwater retention basin at Flughafen Tempelhof.
the energy-intensive production process involved in structures. Regarding the building’s envelope, the can play in supporting these interventions is key to The wooden construction is not actually floating
extracting them from non-renewable sources such most common biobased method is using prefabri- determining effective measures. but is planted into the concrete floor of the artificial
as chalk, pebbles, bauxite or iron ore. In contrast, cated timber-framed elements or solid timber com- Soil quality either stimulates or frustrates the lake. Throughout the years of disuse, the basin has
biobased materials are derived directly from organic ponents, combined with biobased insulation such way we can cope with challenges such as flooding, developed its own ecosystem with a large variety of
resources and are renewable. Wood for example, un- as cellulose, straw or cork. Such a method requires drought, heat stress, forest fires or decreasing bio- plants, species and different layers of soil. This is a
der sustainable forest management, can be an end- increased wall or roof thicknesses (compared to con- diversity. For example, soil that is naturally water- vital component of the architect’s design and style
less resource. Such materials are intended to fully ventional insulation products) in order to achieve a impermeable needs adapted building methods to of building. By elevating the structure with stilts, the
reintegrate back into the environment, creating zero highly insulated envelope. prevent ground floors from being flooded after heavy ecosystem can keep evolving beneath the platforms.
waste. On top of that, biobased materials may have a Biobased cladding and interior finishing include rains. Subsoil that hardly retains moisture is an easy Simultaneously, the structure is safe from the risks
positive carbon footprint because they can store car- wood, bamboo, straw, clay finishes and compressed- basis for forest fires. Human interventions, such as of high-water flooding and protects the building’s
bon. Biobased buildings could therefore contribute grass panels. If exposed to water, a protective coat- building, excavation, paving or planting vegetation, materials from the water. The architects and build-
to the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions instead ing may be required. seriously affects the capacities of the soil. Awareness ers from the collective use the months with low pre-
of being only consumers of resources. of both its natural capabilities and the effects of hu- cipitation for the construction of new elements of
Besides their low environmental impact, biobased Example: House of Nature, Silkeborg, Denmark man actions is dearly needed in order to develop cli- the sustainable structure. During these months, the
building materials can contribute to healthier indoor Located next to a forested area, the building serves mate-adaptive, future-proof cities. basin is drained and it is possible to continue the
spaces. Certified materials made from natural re- an educational purpose, for teaching about nature construction of new paths and platforms. Once the
sources do not emit harmful emissions and can fur- and outdoor life. Aiming to fully integrate the design How Does It Work? construction is completed, the floating university re-
thermore regulate humidity and absorb pollutants, with the natural environment around it and reflect its Risk identification and mapping of the soil is the first turns to hosting its interdisciplinary programme of
ultimately improving indoor air quality. educational programme, the building was construct- step to adapting the built environment to environ- activities. By adapting to the existing landscape and
ed using only biobased materials. mental changes such as flood conditions and heat recognizing its benefits and risk factors, this con-
How Does It Work? The foundation of the building is made of screw stress. Depending on the state of the ground, the struction successfully uses a landscape that would
Although biobased building materials are getting more piles and a wooden deck, minimizing its impact on next step is to identify implementable strategies that otherwise be uninhabitable.
popular, their integration into the construction indus- the ground. The wooden structure is visible both in- support resilience. A well thought-out, clever design The project describes itself as a ‘unique ecosys-
try is not yet widespread. Designing and building with side and outside, seamlessly blending in with the sur- of soil-related uses such as squares, parks, roads and tem’, a self-led collective, which invites the public to
these materials often requires a creative and innova- rounding forest. The facade is inspired by traditional private gardens can effectively suppress the impact take part in educational and academic workshops,
tive approach that goes beyond traditional construc- architecture, combining oak columns with cladding of extreme weather conditions. In case buildings lectures and events. Founded in 2018, the architects
tion methods. As contractors, investors and building made of shingles from acacia wood. The structure is cover the ground, the role of the soil could be tak- of Raumlabor invited a collective of students, de-
owners are not yet familiar with biobased materials, well-insulated with wood fibre boards used for ther- en over by re-arranging rooftops as green spaces or signers and neighbours to join the construction. The
they often have doubts about their performances mal insulation and cardboard-based material used gardens. Green roofs reduce heat stress and capture ever-evolving wooden structure is altered and up-
and qualities. Some also consider it a risk if biobased as a vapour barrier. By using demountable fixations large amounts of rainwater. Otherwise, buildings can graded every year. The site is a place to inform, chal-
materials will meet legal building requirements. only, a future disassembling of the building structure also secure stability in changing soilscapes by de- lenge and create a discourse, all in the context of the
Out of all the layers that make up a building, the is easily imaginable. taching the base of the building from the ground be- risks, strains and chances of global warming.
structure has the most significant impact on carbon The end result is a warm and inviting building that neath it, such as stilt houses or floating cities.
dioxide emissions. By creating a timber structure, has a natural look and immersed in the surrounding
we can greatly enhance its carbon storage potential. landscape; an inspiration to its visitors.

112 113
CONVERTING TRADITION MICROCLIMATE MODIFICATION
Local Spatial Flexibility Use-driven Spatial Flexibility

Traditional building methods contain local Small-scale interventions in the public realm that
knowledge about the optimal combination of diminish the negative effects of climate change
available building materials, dealing with local such as heat stress, flooding or air pollution.
climate risks and costs. Generic, industry-driven
building systems lack this knowledge.

Why? in buildings that are both sustainable and culturally Why? planting a tree, removing tiles from gardens, green-
Twenty-first-century sustainable architecture aims and socially relevant. Reducing the negative impacts of climate change ing roofs and installing nest boxes or so-called insect
to re-establish a harmonious relationship between in urban areas usually requires large-scale climate- hotels. In some cases, it may be worthwhile to imple-
humans and nature. This relationship is already evi- Example: House of the Winds, Santorini, Greece adaptive measures, for example strengthening urban ment innovative or high-tech measures. Recently, for
dent in traditional building practice and architec- The Cyclades are a group of islands in Greece that green belts, redirecting traffic flows or mitigating example, some cities have successfully tested moss
ture. For thousands of years, anonymous builders have a Mediterranean climate with mild, windy win- river flooding. Small-scaled, easily integrable and walls that filter harmful particles from the air or wa-
searched through trial and error for ways to create ters and hot to warm summers with varying levels of cheap interventions, however, can also help increase ter vapor sprays that cool the surroundings and help
climate-adaptive buildings that provided indoor humidity. With low rainfall and the nearby sea pro- a city’s resilience to the impacts of climate change. combat heat islands.
thermal comfort, by taking into account geographi- viding cooling breezes at night, the local vernacu- Because such measures usually involve significantly It is recommended to somehow monitor the re-
cal and climate factors. Limited by the opportuni- lar architecture evolved in response to the climate, less administrative effort and the decision-making sults of the modification. If the small-scaled meas-
ties offered by their local environment, they came up resulting in a unique, highly contextual style. The processes are limited to the local level, such micro- ures prove successful, they may be scaled up.
with resourceful solutions using available materials settlements feature an organic form with high den- climatic modifications can usually be implemented Relatively easy, microclimatic measures could be
and tools. sity and repetitive building volumes in simple cubic quickly and inexpensively. subsidized by municipalities. In this respect, a city’s
Despite significant differences between modern shapes. Well-positioned microclimatic modifications can resilience to the effects of climate change can be col-
and past lifestyles and demands, the accumulated The ‘House of the Winds’ (2013) by Couvelas ar- improve the quality of life in cities, for example by lectively addressed by many residents.
knowledge of the past can serve as a valuable re- chitects resonates traditional knowledge of position- helping to reduce noise, heat or pollution for resi-
source for designing contemporary buildings that ing and designing buildings that successfully deal dents or by improving air quality. The visibility of Example: Climate Shelters, Barcelona, Spain
are both adaptable to local climates and incorporate with local circumstances. For this house, which has such measures in public spaces can also lead to in- The municipality of Barcelona, in collaboration with
sustainable practices. a modern appearance, the north wind became the creased awareness among city residents of the need public and private entities, has established a network
guiding design tool, determining the building’s vol- for climate adaptation measures and of their effec- of climate shelters in the city. These help to coun-
How Does It Work? umes and the location of its openings. Thick walls tiveness. Ideally, citizens are even encouraged to be- ter the threat of heat waves that lead to increased
Traditional architecture can be converted into con- were constructed to provide protection against the come active themselves and implement appropriate health risks and mortality, especially among vulner-
temporary sustainable designs by taking the local wind and to ensure a stable indoor temperature dur- measures in their private sphere. Even if the effec- able groups such as elderly or chronically ill people.
climatic and geographical knowledge and adapting ing the hot summer months. Funnels formed within tiveness of single measures remains limited, syner- Such climate shelters are small, publicly accessible
to it using modern building techniques and materi- the mass of the thick exterior walls deflect the wind, getic effects can be achieved through the combina- spaces, either in existing buildings or in new build-
als. This can include using passive design strategies thus creating a protective wind curtain in front of tion of many small measures or city-wide networks ing structures, either with an indoor or an outdoor
to provide natural heating, cooling and lighting, as the corresponding openings. Part of the house is can be established, which contribute to increased quality. The places offer good thermal comfort, free
well as utilizing environmentally friendly materials constructed underground, a common practice in resilience of a city to the impacts of climate change. drinking water and comfortable furniture to rest. The
and incorporating circular design principles to re- Santorini’s cliffs, contributing to passive cooling. shelters are located in school buildings, sports facili-
duce waste. A thorough analysis of the local climate The materials, such as the coarse peach-coloured How Does It Work? ties, museums, public squares or parks. Outdoor are-
and geography is crucial in determining the optimal sand used for the coating of the exterior surfaces and For a successful implementation of microclimatic as operate during the preventive stage for heatwaves
placement, orientation and shape of the building, en- the pumice stone used for roof insulation, have a di- modifications, local climatic challenges must first between 15 June and 15 September, while indoor ar-
suring it’s both comfortable and functional. Factors rect link to the local environment, blending in with be identified to understand if and how they can be eas are open all year round and can therefore also be
such as prevailing winds, sun exposure and day- the surrounding earth and creating a harmonious, improved through small interventions. Local climate used to protect from the cold. There is now a network
light are key elements in the design process and can timeless and yet contemporary aesthetic. issues suitable for microclimate modification are for of over two hundred climate shelters in the city, with
greatly impact the comfort and performance of the example heat stress, rainwater floods or bad air qual- 95 per cent of residents having to walk less than 10
building. Furthermore, combining locally sourced ity. Examples of measures that can improve micro- minutes to the nearest one.
materials and traditional building techniques with climates are numerous. The most interesting ones
contemporary technologies and materials can result are cheap, low-tech and easy to implement, such as

114 115
DENSIFICATION ROOFTOP BENEFITS
Use-driven Spatial Flexibility Use-driven Spatial Flexibility

Adding more usable space to existing urban tissue. Unused, empty rooftops in towns and cities can
easily contribute to urban needs such as circular
energy, biodiversity, food-production or rainwater
retention.

Why? ditional storeys or building attachments. However, Why? existing roofs as a base for new developments, build-
Urban sprawl is a phenomenon that has character- densification does not necessarily have to be accom- Rooftops represent huge surfaces in our cities, which ing programme can be added while avoiding new
ized many cities around the world since the twentieth panied by the creation of new building structures. If are often overlooked and undervalued. When suit- land developments.
century. Due to population growth, the availability of buildings (parts) are vacant or underutilized, retrofits ably covered, rooftops can significantly contribute to
cars, cheap gasoline and the popularity of suburban and new use concepts can also lead to densification. various environmental challenges. Biodiversity suf- How Does It Work?
lifestyles, urbanization processes have increasingly In any case, it is crucial that the surrounding infra- fers from our growing cities – animals and plants are Adding qualities to existing rooftops – either veg-
focused on peri-urban and rural areas, while urban structure, such as public transportation or schools, is replaced by buildings and urban infrastructure. By etation, water storage, solar panels or building pro-
cores have been neglected. Since urban sprawl en- co-developed with the densification process to avoid covering empty rooftops with indigenous vegetation, gramme – starts with an analysis of the structure
tails various negative consequences, densification of overload of these infrastructures. Additionally, a bal- urban biodiversity is enhanced and wildlife habitats of the underlying building. What additional bearing
existing urban areas is strongly recommended. ance must be achieved between densification and are created. This supports the well-being of people load can the foundation carry? Once the structural
Higher urban densities result in a better use of so- open space preservation, otherwise a loss of inner- as well, as they get access to local nature again and possibilities are understood, the quality most benefi-
cial and technical infrastructure, leading to lower in- city open space can negatively impact urban ecosys- air quality is improved. cial to the existing building or its surroundings can
frastructure costs and lower resource consumption tems and the health of city residents. Attention must Generally, our buildings are waterproof and sur- be determined. Financial implications might be deci-
per capita. By concentrating new development in the also be paid to sensible zoning, so that different uses rounded by water-resistant surfaces such as streets sive. Adding programme can help finance more sus-
existing urban fabric, nutrient-rich soils and natural in a dense urban structure do not interfere with each and squares. This makes our cities vulnerable to tainability for the existing building as a whole. Solar
landscapes outside of cities can be preserved, while other. floodings, as rainwater cannot easily be absorbed panels make the building independent from fossil
further fragmentation and disturbance of habitats by the underground anymore. By capturing rainwa- energy. Many governments subsidize both solar pan-
and ecosystems with high ecological value can be Example: K.118, Winterthur, Switzerland ter, rooftops can help mitigate the risk of flooding in els and roof covering. Possible complicating factors
stopped. Project K.118 is an extension project of an existing urban areas when heavy downpours occur. Urban should be taken into account before starting, like
Additionally, densification reduces emissions due three-storey warehouse in a Winterthur business environments face higher surface and air tempera- ownership issues or restrictions concerning safety
to less traffic movements. Proximity also results in park. Without enlarging the footprint of the build- tures than their rural counterparts, a phenomenon (wind, fire, earthquakes) and privacy.
more opportunities to close material cycles. Produc- ing, twelve studios and workspaces were created on known as the urban heat island. A significant num-
ers can more easily find buyers for goods and a criti- three additional levels. The project is pioneering in ber of buildings are not designed to cope with the Example: RESILIO, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
cal mass is reached at which it becomes worthwhile the creation of much-needed production and studio increased temperatures during longer and more fre- As part of the ‘Resilience nEtwork of Smart Inno-
to share materials and services. In addition, higher spaces within the city. These spaces are increasingly quent periods. Blue-green (BG) roofs can increase vative cLImate-adapative rOoftops’ (RESILIO), a
density can have a positive impact on the social life being pushed to the outskirts of the city in the com- the insulation capacity of buildings, stimulate evapo- blue-green roof cover was tested at several places
of residents, who benefit from shorter distances to petition for inner-city space. ration with the available water and in that way con- in Amsterdam. RESILIO used an interdisciplinary
services and larger social networks. Key in this densification exercise is the structure tribute to urban resilience to heat stress. Consisting approach with public and private stakeholders to
of the warehouse, which was built for heavy mer- of an additional water-management layer under- repurpose over 10,000 square metres of roofs in
How Does It Work? chandize. As the original warehouse building was neath a green, planted layer, BG roofs enlarge the different neighbourhoods. A network of smart BG
The possibilities for densification essentially depend also transformed into studios, the structural surplus albedo effect (the ability of surfaces to reflect sun- roofs was created on top of social housing complexes
on the characteristics of the existing urban fabric could be used for the rooftop extension. The addi- light). In the event of long droughts, maximum water and properties in the city. The roofs were fitted with
and can vary greatly across different cities. In prin- tional three storeys have a lightweight steel struc- availability is created through the blue layer and sup- smart valves that can micro-manage the collected
ciple, densification can be aimed at the creation of ture as a base, finished with lightweight facade ele- ports the survival of the upper plant layer. rainwater based on real-time weather forecasts and
new residential space, as well as commercial, cultur- ments and inner walls. The densification project is In search of circular, renewable energy sources, relevant local water management data.
al, social and other spaces. also characterized by its circular construction, with our roofs also offer chances. Rooftops are sunlit RESILIO aims to optimize the city’s water man-
Vacant lots, vast parking areas or brownfield sites about 80 per cent of the building materials being re- and literally on top of energy-consuming functions. agement and reduce climate risks such as flooding,
can be used for densification. Densification can also used from nearby donor buildings. Finally, rooftops allow for more efficient use of exist- biodiversity loss and heat stress.
be achieved by expanding existing buildings with ad- ing space in overcrowded urban areas. Considering

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MODULAR BUILDING RE-INTERPRETATION
Time-based Spatial Flexibility Time-based Spatial Flexibility

Building with repetitive, easily transportable and A different interpretation of an existing building
combinable modules. structure.

Why? tion requires more permanent building facilities, Why? Setting circularity as a standard for future redevelop-
Conventional building tends to be a bit impractica- such as factories and warehouses, than traditional Challenges related to climate change often require ment asks for innovative concepts for new building
ble. Raw building products are transported to a build- construction, which is mostly done on temporary innovative solutions that seem to run counter to structures, anticipating their re-interpretation once
ing site where they have to be stored, waiting for the sites. Therefore, modular construction is more cost- conventional structures and practices. When imple- they become outdated in the future due to changing
right moment to get assembled in unpredictable effective when the flow of production is regular and menting such innovations, the potentials of existing circumstances. Examples of structures that should
weather circumstances. This traditional process pro- unceasing. structures are often neglected. In urban develop- already include possibilities for future re-interpreta-
duces lots of greenhouse gases, has a negative im- Prefabricated modules are transported as finished ment in particular, it is even a widespread practice tion are underground parking facilities in urban are-
pact on the immediate surroundings of the building products to the construction site where they are as- to eliminate already existing structures to enable the as that are introducing traffic-reducing measures, or
site and its quality depends on local circumstances. sembled. This shortened and cleaner construction creation of new solutions. office spaces in locations that are witnessing chang-
Modular buildings, on the other hand, offer sev- process impacts the environment less than conven- Re-interpretation, on the other hand, aims at inte- ing work patterns and require new functions.
eral advantages over conventional building types. tional construction. If renovations become necessary grating existing structures as an elementary part of
The production of modular building elements takes after some time or if the spatial requirements change, problem-solving rather than as an obstacle in finding Example: Energy Bunker, Hamburg, Germany
place in factories, where it is easier to collect and the buildings can be dismantled into their individual solutions. Successful forms of re-interpretation are After the former flak bunker in Hamburg’s Wilhelms-
store building products. Since circumstances in the elements and taken away. In the factories, the indi- often inspiring examples of circularity, showing how burg district stood empty for over 60 years follow-
factories can be better controlled, the precision and vidual elements can be disassembled or renewed existing structures can be used for a purpose other ing the end of the Second World War, a conversion
quality of the building element is usually higher than and adjusted before being reassembled elsewhere. than their original one. and reuse concept was developed and implemented
building elements that are manufactured on site. Successful re-interpretations can contribute to on behalf of the Hanseatic City of Hamburg as part
Furthermore, this type of manufacturing offers bet- Example: Modular School Buildings, Berlin, the creation of climate-resilient cities by signifi- of the International Building Exhibition, which took
ter control over waste and emissions. Working con- Germany cantly reducing the need for new construction and place in Hamburg from 2006 to 2013. The central
ditions for builders are better too. To address the shortage of classroom capacity, thus resource consumption compared to demolition challenge was to put a massive and inflexible build-
The use of prefabricated building elements can Berlin’s education and housing authorities collaborat- and new construction, thereby minimizing environ- ing, built to be indestructible, to a new use after los-
also increase cost-effectiveness. Especially when ed with private architects to design a modular build- mental impacts. Re-interpretations often lead to ing its original function of protecting residents from
manufactured in large quantities, savings in materi- ing type that can be used to extend existing school the revitalization of neglected structures, in which air raids.
als, energy, and labour costs can be made. In addi- buildings. On ready-to-build spaces of school sites, diverse social functions can be housed without tak- In 2013, the remodelled building was opened as an
tion, shorter development and construction times of- these buildings can be constructed within six to ten ing up more space. The creation of newly interpreted energy bunker, producing clean energy from renew-
fer the advantage of being able to respond quickly to months and have a service life of at least 50 years. spaces can also result in the emergence of innova- able energy sources for around 2,000 households
changing space requirements. It is easy to imagine The assembly of the off-site prefabricated build- tive places that have an identity-giving character for in the neighbourhood. At the heart of the project is
the modules being moved to another location after ing elements is accomplished according to individ- residents and can have a lasting positive impact on a a two-million-litre water storage tank that serves as
some time for reuse, representing a form of circular ual demand in four standard sizes with 12, 16, 22 or neighbourhood. a large heat buffer in the energy bunker and as the
use of building materials. 24 classrooms, associated group workrooms and an heart of a local heating network. Complementing the
optional cafeteria. Since 2013, the Berlin adminis- How Does It Work? technical functions, a café including a viewing plat-
How Does It Work? tration has completed approximately 80 of these Re-interpretations require a high degree of creativ- form was built at a height of 30 metres to attract visi-
The development and construction process of modu- modular school buildings, and 60 more are in the ity and usually relate to building structures that no tors. The re-interpretation has succeeded in trans-
lar buildings begins with the planning phase. In this planning stages, with newer models consisting of longer meet the contemporary requirements of a forming a historic building that seemed obsolete into
step, the customer’s demands are determined, and wooden building elements. In case student numbers changed environment. In order to develop successful a centre that presents innovative and forward-look-
a design is made. Once the decision for a final de- decline in the future, the buildings can be disman- concepts, therefore, precisely such spaces or objects ing solutions for energy supply.
sign has been made, the building elements are pre- tled at short notice and the individual modules used must first be identified, and their building structure
fabricated in factories, either in series or customized. for other purposes. The students can then be accom- examined in detail in terms of its strengths for pos-
However, it should be noted that modular construc- modated in the existing main school buildings. sible alternative uses.

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SEASONAL FLEXIBILITY
Time-based Spatial Flexibility

Climate-adaptive device that has the flexibility

to respond to changing circumstances, such as
extreme weather or changing water levels, possibly
leading to different programmatic uses over time.

Why? In this way the public space can both help to prevent
Climate change will result in more extreme weather flood and still be used as recreational space.
conditions, characterized by increasing peaks and
troughs. Some cities have to deal with changing Example: Reconstruction of the Scheldt Quays,
water levels over time, due to excessive rain or be- Antwerp, Belgium
cause they are in open connection to the sea. Other The Scheldt is the central river of Antwerp, which is
cities are completely covered in snow in winter or in open connection with the sea. During heavy storm
are threatened by drought and heat stress in sum- tides, the Scheldt quays are always flooded. After
mer. Becoming climate-resilient means incorporat- the 1976 storm surge, a flood defence was built: a
ing measures that can counteract the negative con- concrete wall with a length of 5.5 kilometres and a
sequences of these peaks and troughs. But as these height of 1.35 metres. This fixed wall protected the
negative consequences fluctuate, spatial demands city from the river, but also made the river inacces-
for climate-resilient measures are preferably tempo- sible for the city. The space between the river and the
rary. As the pressure on space in most cities is high, concrete walls was solely used to park cars when the
it makes sense that climate-resilient measures can water was not high.
change or even disappear when they are not acutely Now the flood defences must be raised by 90 cen-
necessary, giving space to other urban programmes timetres to protect the city against higher floods,
such as recreation. there is a possibility to improve the arrangement of
the quays over a length of almost 7 kilometres. Both
How Does It Work? the design of the public space and the position of the
Solutions can be high-tech such as automated flex- defence were reconsidered, connecting the quays
ible water barriers, for example using a wall that un- and their direct environment in a much better way.
der normal circumstances is hidden in the quay but Though the fixed water defence is still about 80 cen-
floats up at high tide. But also very down to earth and timetres above the quay level this height transition is
traditional solutions using rain gardens, green roof now softened using gentle slopes. At specific loca-
tops and green building walls that change over time tions the connection between the city and the quay
to address heat waves and floods can be sufficient. even is on the same continuous level now making
In summer, when there is much heat stress, vegeta- use of mobile flood defences that most of the time
tion provides shade, while in winter, when it is cold, open up the view to the river and can be closed when
dark and rainy, the leafless plants let daylight and a storm surge occurs.
heat through. The rain gardens can be filled again.
In cities such as Copenhagen and Rotterdam, in-
spiring examples can be found of rainwater storage
in stepped recessed squares that have a different
function depending on the time of the year. In spring
and summer, they can be used as recreational space,
in fall as water buffers and in winter as ice skat-
ing rink. During a heavy rain storm, excess water is
channelled into the square, turning it into a reservoir.

120
4. Examples of a Flexible City

In this chapter we show how circularity and climate adapta-

tion is taking shape in Europe, using a number of completed
projects as examples: they are illustrative of a new way of
working and a new mentality, with a central emphasis on
reuse, social inclusion and the time factor. A description is
given of how each project was realized using the flexible
instruments presented in earlier chapters.

123
Example Projects

Local Flexibility Les Berges du Rhône

Lyon, France
Klimatilpasning Kokkedal
Fredensborg, Denmark
Super Blocks Eixample
Barcelona, Spain
Sara Cultural Centre
Skellefteå, Sweden
Hospital Entrance Area Amsterdam UMC, location AMC
Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Cooperativa Agricoltura Nuova
Rome, Italy

Use-driven Flexibility IKEA Store

Vienna, Austria
Seestadt Aspern
Vienna, Austria
The People’s Pavilion
Eindhoven, the Netherlands
Cité Maraîchère
Romainville, France
Atri
Sikhall Vänersborg, Sweden
Gent knapt op
Ghent, Belgium

Time-based Flexibility Resource Rows

Copenhagen, Denmark
Town Hall Extension
Korbach, Germany
Puukuokka Housing Block
Jyväskylä, Finland
The Triodos Bank
Driebergen-Rijsenburg, the Netherlands
Atelier LUMA
Arles, France
Crèche Justice
Paris, France

125
Les Berges du Rhône, Lyon, France Local Flexibility
Instruments: infrastructure rearrangement, car ban,
From open-air car park to climate-adaptive park
capitalized risks, seasonal flexibility

Initiators: IN SITU, Françoise Jourda Architecte,

Le Grand Lyon, Agence d’Urbanisme de Lyon, CNR
Completion: 2008
Programme: car-free, green promenade for
pedestrians and slow mobility
Website: https://www.in-situ.fr/#/fr/projets/berg-
es-rives/berges-du-rhone

The changing of our climate confuses was lost, as in the twentieth century, the quays were
increasingly dedicated to traffic and parking.
our natural water systems on a large
In 2000, a national law came into effect, (SRU: Loi
scale. Despite differences between Solidarité et Renouvellement Urbain) aiming at more
European cities and regions, they solidarity and sustainability, encouraging the rede-
1. The banks of the Rhône river are only used for car parking and are regularly flooded. velopment of cities, targeting urban renovation and
all are facing the same challenge: housing in particular. This fostered many important
the negative impact of alternating urban undertakings, such as the redevelopment of
the Confluence district in Lyon. This redevelopment
drought and flooding. The transfor-
focuses on bringing nature back into the district and
mation of a huge industrial harbour reactivating the lost connection with the water. In the
area within the city of Lyon into area, several projects emerged, like the development
of a nautical plaza, the transformation of old boats
a climate-adaptive park prevents into dwellings, the introduction of a water taxi sys-
flooding of the local rivers and offers tem, the construction of the Musée des Confluences
in 2014 and various housing projects. The redevelop-
residents shelter from the heat on
P ment also recreates wild ecosystems in the humid
a hot day. Seasonal variations lead and quiet zones of the river (‘bertillod’).
to a public space with a variety of In line with this bigger redevelopment, the banks
of the Saône and Rhône rivers are transformed and
programmatic possibilities. reactivated into large urban parks. The redevelop-
2. Restructuring the banks leads to better climate adaptation and highly appreciated public spaces. ment of the Berges du Rhône (‘berges’ means ‘riv-
Lyon, the gastronomic capital of France, is crossed erbanks’) is part of the larger ambition to reconnect
by two major rivers: the Saône and the Rhône. These Lyon with its waters and make the city more attrac-
rivers have characterized the city ever since the tive and accessible for its inhabitants.
Roman settlement of Lugdunum was established
along the banks of the Saône. The two rivers merge Organizational
in the southern part of the city, a rare confluence of Having accommodated a wide open-air car park lot
such large water streams. In the Middle Ages, hous- for decades, the Berges du Rhône project started
ing was constructed directly along the river, like in with the objective of removing cars from sight. Two
Venice, where the facades would touch the water. car parks were therefore created underground, al-
At moments, the water level of the two rivers could lowing 1,600 car parking spots to be removed from
P change rapidly, often flooding the city and eroding the riverbanks. Thanks to that, the quays could be
the banks. After 1793, the riverbanks of the Saône given back to the citizens. Large parts of the previ-
were cleared up for better hygiene and to protect the ously widely paved areas (meant for parking), were
city from flooding. The houses built right along the unpaved and gave space to a green and water-per-
river were demolished, and large quays were built in- meable park. After two years, in 2007, the banks of
3. In case the river water rises, the banks of the river protect the city from floods. stead. the Rhône became a 10-hectares-wide public park
With time, Lyon’s close relationship with the water dedicated to slow mobility, leisure and vegetation.

126 127
Legal critics focused on the financial costs of the redevel-
From 1991 onwards, the political and urban scene opment, which gradually kept increasing. In fact, the
of Lyon talked about revitalizing the Rhône river- construction works turned out more complex than
banks: the ‘Plan Bleu’ was approved, with the recon- imagined (difficulties with the removal of elements,
nection to the Rhône in mind. The project initiators damaged pavement that needed to be replaced), es-
had the main ambition of removing car parking from pecially because the project site was so large.
the riverbanks to free-up this space for people, lei- However, the political decision to reactivate the
sure and slow mobility, making the riverside more at- river banks and the high environmental and social
tractive. The municipality’s decision to approve the ambitions justified the higher costs. It could be stat-
‘Plan Bleu’, was non-negotiable, and was criticized ed that the Berges du Rhône project capitalized on
because of that. Especially residents living nearby the potential of the river proximity. In spite of the
rebelled against that decision, even though under- costs and the fact that there are fewer floods, but
ground parking was planned to meet their needs for they do still occur, the 44+ million euro project of
parking. the Berges du Rhône enabled a profound transfor-
In 2002, the city of Lyon established a programme mation, making the city more resilient to its environ-
of requirements, which was used for a public tender ment, while keeping its regional economic value and
to revitalize the riverbanks. This programme was shaping a new, more attractive image of the city.
first criticized because people thought a different
parking situation would impact the commercial ac- Spatial
tivities, but also because the project was judged not The Berges du Rhône project enhances the aesthet-
ambitious enough. To answer these critiques, sev- ic, environmental and social qualities of the area. The
eral workshops were held in 2003, discussing slow new city park and promenade connect the city with
mobility solutions and the landscape design. The re- the river, as the design of the paths follows the natu-
moval of car parking and car-lanes on the riverbanks ral rising rhythm of the Rhône. The paths change in
was balanced out with two large underground park- width: from larger ones to narrower ones, with an ur-
ing garages, slow mobility paths and the introduc- ban character in the central part, and a more natural
tion of shared bicycles. After the workshop sessions, one in the northern and southern extremities of the
a consensus was found. Communication about the promenade. Housing boats, cruise boats, catering,
project turned out to be an important factor in the leisure and other seasonal and water-related activi-
acceptance of the project by Lyon’s inhabitants. All ties emerged after the completion of the project. The
along the design process, meetings were held with Berges du Rhône became an attractive public space,
stakeholders and inhabitants, and several placemak- hosting various programmes. For instance, the
ing programmes were carried out, such as the ‘Quai area became part of the bicycle tourism route from
des Guinguettes’, a summer entertainment pro- Genève du Léman to the Mediterranean Sea, attract-
gramme highlighting the potential of the aimed use ing hikers and cyclists. A part of the 2008 marathon
of the riverbanks. of Lyon was run on the riverbanks of the Rhône.
The large city park is very attractive during the
Financial summer period, but also functions well during winter
The Berges du Rhône project’s objectives were to times.
make the city more resilient to the natural effects Since their opening in 2007, the Berges du Rhône
of water movement and tides. The challenge was are sometimes inaccessible to the public, because
unique, since Lyon is subject to sudden and highly of floods, as in 2018 and 2021. These events haven’t
fluctuating water levels from two different rivers. The caused too much damage to the park so far, since the
project aimed at easing the water discharge in case plant and tree species were chosen carefully to han-
of floods, handling the rapidly rising water levels. At dle the floods.
the same time, the Rhône river is of high importance The Berges du Rhône therefore function in ac-
to France since it produces one-quarter of its elec- cordance with the river, reconnecting the city to the
trical energy, and 109,500,000 cubic metres of the water, and giving space to slow mobility and to the
rivers’ water cater to the needs of the city’s inhabit- residents.
ants each year. Interventions should improve the sit-
uation for the city without weakening the economy
on a larger scale.
When the brief of the project was revisited in 2004,

128 129
Klimatilpasning Kokkedal, Fredensborg, Denmark Local Flexibility
Instruments: holistic approach, sustainability
From a public space at risk of flooding to a climate-adaptive and inclusive
protocol, capitalized risks, soil-sensitivity
public space
Initiators: municipality of Fredensborg, Fredensborg
Utility Company, Boligforeningen 3B and
Andelsboligforeningen Hørsholm
Completion: 2017
Design: BIG, Schønherr, Rambøll
Programme: drainage system, recreation, education
Website: https://www.realdania.org/whatwedo/
grants-and-projects/climate-change-and-urban-
development

The transformation of a densely the municipality, the Utility company, homeowners

and the local housing associations together with
populated area with affordable hous-
external parties such as Realdania and The Danish
ing that is incidentally flooded into a Foundation for Culture and Sports Facilities in one
climate-adaptive area not only pre- joint project. The Climate Adaptation Kokkedal pro-
1. The suburban area of Fredensborg is facing both social and climate-related challenges. ject was conceived in 2012 when all ongoing secto-
vents the area from flooding, but also ral projects and plans were merged into one shared
forms a catalyst for social inclusion. vision to shape a climate-resilient urban landscape,
while improving the quality of the built environment
Stormwater management has been
and supporting social and cultural activities and co-
coupled with other functions such as hesion.
play, art and nature. The project con- Climate Adaptation Kokkedal consists of 35 sub-
projects spread over the entire neighbourhood, each
sists of 35 contextual sub-projects, of which enables the area’s residents to meet, sport
and is the result of a unique collabo- or play in the public realm. The water’s flow through
the urban landscape has been the overarching aes-
ration between local stakeholders
thetic inspiration and recreational theme. For ex-
including the municipality, the water ample, garden rooms have been created that can
company, homeowners and the local function as green retainment basins and the local
sports field has been walled in by a grass clad earth
housing associations. mound, so that it can hold back a lot of water during
2. An intervention restructuring public spaces leads to better climate adaption and highly appreciated public cloudbursts. The project includes gardens, activity
spaces. Kokkedal is a typical 1970s mono-functionally planned grounds, exercise paths, nature playgrounds and are-
suburban area, part of the municipality of Fredens- as that can be used for the schools’ science teaching.
borg and 30 km north of Copenhagen. In 2007, cen- The formerly segregated urban Centre of Kokkedal
tral Kokkedal was facing both social and climate- is revitalized by reinforcing connections between
related challenges. A massive cloudburst made the major public functions, for instance the school and
Usserød stream, which runs through the middle of the shopping area, through a bright, open and invit-
the city, break its banks causing severe flooding in a ing urban design. Shrubs, thickets and fences have
residential area affecting thousands of people. Three been cleared, car parks have been transformed into
years later it happened again, both times leading to places for play, learning and activities, a boardwalk
significant repair costs. creates a new-found access to nature, and paved ar-
At the same time social cohesion was challenged eas have made way for blue and green infrastructure.
by an urban landscape divided along socio-econom- Affordable housing and communal areas have
ical lines. The urban spaces that were supposed to been renovated and upgraded integrating a com-
serve the community as meeting spots and for recre- prehensive plan to manage excess local rainwater.
ational use were worn-down, dominated by parking Rainwater from roofs, car parks and green areas is
3. After heavy rainfalls, the public space retains the rainwater leading to alternative ways for using the public and in some cases perceived as unsafe. retained in basins in the area to prevent flooding.
space. The urgency of both coinciding challenges brought Approximately half of all runoff rainwater from paved

132 133
surfaces in the project area is retained in these ba- the willingness to invest in this project and it created
sins before flowing towards the sewage system momentum to bring about change. In order to reduce
and, ultimately, towards Usserød Å, a local, natural flooding and social costs in the long run, a coalition
waterway that runs through the area. Downwards, was created that was willing to do something about
Usserød Å merges into another waterway and even- this situation and invest. Each of the joining parties
tually leads the surplus of rainwater to the sea. enjoying the benefits in their own way, which is why
it was so broadly supported.
Organizational
Climate Adaptation Kokkedal is a pioneering project Spatial
in the way that it has brought six different organi- The driver for the new design was the local condi-
zations to the table, each with their own purpose, tion of the terrain. The river valley of the Usserød
interests and legal obligations: the utility compa- stream is the recipient of all surface water exceeding
ny, municipality, housing associations and philan- the existing sewer system capacity in the area and
thropic associations. The inherent complexities and as such can only manage a water peak to a certain
challenges were overcome by an extensive integral degree. The climate adaptation of Kokkedal is there-
process and dialogue among project partners com- fore based on a sustainable drainage system where
bined with a strong, shared narrative and vision for the urban landscape is reshaped to optimize reten-
the project area playing a decisive part. Today, there tion and water storage capacity. The main principle
is a shared acknowledgement among the parties that has been to manage and retain rainwater locally, up-
more has been achieved through a holistic approach stream, and on the surface as much as possible to
and by working together than would have been pos- avoid bottlenecks and relieve both waterways and
sible if all parties had worked separately. the sewage system on days with heavy rain or cloud-
This holistic approach to climate change adap- burst.
tation in the end enabled the designers to make On top of this it was the ambition to explore the
stormwater management visible and to integrate possibilities of letting runoff rainwater lend aesthetic,
recreational sites, including natural playgrounds, ex- recreational and even educational qualities to urban
ercise tracks and green gardens, for both locals and spaces. Where water was previously stored in pipes
visitors. Retention basins and rainwater reservoirs underground, water management is now visible in
have become attractive urban spaces. For example, a way that also provides new recreational opportu-
Bølgepladsen (wave square) collects rainwater but nities in the city. The retention of rainwater takes
can also be used for basketball, skateboarding, park- place within basins and volumes that have capacity
our and other activities, and it is being used much for so-called 5-year rainstorm events. In addition, it
better than before. is ensured that even when major rain events occur
and the water basins overflow, it does not cause any
Legal serious damage. The rainwater is handled in a coher-
By organizing a design competition, the municipality ent system on terrain that makes it possible to follow
and the other initiators turned their own ambitions it from landing until it runs to the smaller basins, on
into a framework for the designers. The large two- to trenches or ditches that lead into the large basins
phase competition was won with an entry called ‘The and finally to Usserød. All water is also led through
way of water is the way of the citizens’. The overall purifying elements such as rain beds and basins.
idea of this winning project was to use climate adap-
tation to connect the otherwise separate parts of the
city to create new attractive meeting places and to
bring nature closer to the citizens. This was exactly
what was aimed for.

Financial
With a project area of 69 hectares, many subpro-
jects and a total budget of 145 million DKK (19.5
million euros) the Climate Adaptation of Kokkedal
is one of the largest and most complex projects of
its kind in Denmark. The floods of 2007 and 2010
and its consequent costs were the main drivers for

134 135
Superblocks Eixample, Barcelona, Spain Local Flexibility
ZONE
Instruments: empowering local communities,
From a car-oriented city to a cyclist- and pedestrian-orientated city
purpose-specific freezone, subsidy, re-interpretation

Initiators: Barcelona City Council

Completion: from 2016 onward
Programme: transformation of public space
Website: https://www.barcelona.cat/pla-superilla-
barcelona/en

By reducing the speed and accessibil- Mar in the historical neighbourhood of El Born. In
2005, two more Superblocks in Gràcia were realized.
ity for cars, more space and safety is
In 2014, it appeared that these pilot projects led to an
created for other modes of transpor- increase of pedestrian trips by 10 per cent and of cy-
tation such as cycling and walking. clist trips by 30 per cent. Based on these early pilot
1. The Eixample district is suffering from an omnipresent car-based traffic. projects, in 2016 the so-called Superblocks-policy
Furthermore, air pollution and noise was introduced and Barcelona implemented another
are reduced and there is more room six fully functional Superblocks. In 2020, Barcelona
has launched an ambitious 10-year plan that should
for recreation, encounters, relaxation
finally lead to a total of 503 (!) Superblocks. This plan,
and play in the city. By creating so estimated to cost 37.8 million euros, aims to reclaim
called ‘Superblocks’ in its Eixample the city’s streets in the Eixample district from cars
and cut down pollution with the creation of green
district, Barcelona shows that pri- spaces and public squares, resulting in 60 per cent
oritizing people over cars leads to a of the streets that were previously used by cars now
being available for other uses.
variety of benefits that match well to
An inspiring example of a Superblock is the one in
various sustainable goals. Sant Antoni. The intervention reconfigures the mo-
bility and social uses in the streets, generating new
As omnipresent car traffic takes up much space and places in the chamfer corners. This is done with a
has other negative impacts on our cities, such as air toolkit of urban furniture elements and a distinctive
2. An experiment blocking off some of the street from car traffic leads to less pollution and improved social pollution, cities have to reconsider their relationship graphic style using yellow. As an affordable interven-
cohesion. with car traffic. On the other hand, many people see tion, yellow patterns simply painted on the pavement
an unconditional access to their motorized vehicles redistribute the space and give it a new logic. Mobile
as an unnegotiable asset. The Superblock model wooden planters and lightweight benches func-
finds a new and intelligent balance between public tion as adaptive urban furniture and can be moved
space for bicycles and pedestrians on the one hand around. The use of materials with an ecological cer-
and car-accessibility on the other. The Superblock tificate as well as the integration of water storage
scheme emanates from the famous Eixample dis- tanks in hydro-planters guarantee the sustainability
trict, an iconic urban grid structure that is suitable and good maintenance of the new urban landscape.
for experiments with mobility because of its regular- The intervention has generated a positive dynamic
ity and repetitiveness. Groups of mostly nine regular in the neighbourhood; residents and retailers now
city blocks are put together to form one Superblock take care of the streets themselves in terms of use
that is closed off for car traffic by planters and and maintenance. All this, together with significantly
benches, introducing bicycle lanes, play areas and reduced pollution, and more room for green, pedes-
green spaces. Many of the parking spaces within the trians and cyclists, draws a new urban landscape of
block are replaced by seating areas. civic axes and plazas that make up a more people-
3. The temporary interventions blocking car traffic become permanent, leading to well-designed public spaces. Barcelona introduced its first experimental Super- oriented, healthy and green Eixample.
block in 1993 near the Basilica de Santa Maria del

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Process Financial
Superblocks fosters urban transformation based on On the one hand the Superblocks do not involve
a maximum of participation and civic co-responsi- major physical changes that require large budgets,
bility in all phases of the project. Stakeholders vary but rather tactical urban interventions – soft meas-
from residents, private companies, district organi- ures that are often low-cost and easy to adapt. On
zations, non-governmental organizations, universi- the other hand, these light interventions have a huge
ties and expert institutions to the city council. New sustainable and clearly visible impact on the city.
practices such as for example green roofs, water This favourable cost-benefit ratio of the Superblocks
harvesting, rainwater management and tree planters increases the chance of realization and scaling up.
are introduced in the neighbourhood in mutual con- Even though costs are low, subsidies play a cru-
sultation with local stakeholders. Together with local cial role in implementing this innovative and experi-
entrepreneurs, they are also considering new flexible mental approach. A large part of the budget comes
uses for terrace space and a usage plan to safeguard from various subsidies to stimulate climate adapta-
against an excess concentration of similar establish- tion. The European Investment Bank (EIB), for ex-
ments, trying to give room to diverse and multipur- ample, provides 95 million euros for forty projects
pose uses. Also, fewer vehicles and more people on in Barcelona to support climate change mitigation
the lanes is likely to be good for local retailers. and adaptation, 25 per cent of which is explicitly ear-
During the pilot run, however, there was major marked for the Superblocks.
pushback from the local shop owners in the select-
ed Superblock neighbourhoods. The shop owners Spatial
argued that restricted car movement would affect Superblocks are a new twenty-first-century re-inter-
business and their customer base would fall drasti- pretation of the streets in the heavily polluted central
cally. The city council counter-argued how recent da- Eixample district, famous for its urban grid devised
tabases showed that only 5 per cent of the custom- by the engineer Ildefons Cerdà at the end of the nine-
ers came by car. teenth century. A more climate-adaptive urban envi-
ronment for Barcelona is created by smartly identify-
Legal ing nine adjacent city blocks, restricting traffic to the
Banning cars from streets that are currently meant perimeter, thus freeing up the interior for walking,
for car traffic asks for legal interventions that are tai- cycling and green space. Here children can play, resi-
lored to specific areas and specific sustainable am- dents can drink coffee and chat on newly-made park
bitions. In Barcelona, two types of purpose-specific benches. The result of this re-interpretation is that
freezones were introduced, the Low Emission Zones the streets become an extended living room.
to reduce emissions in the areas the car is still al- The re-interpretation is not limited to rearranging
lowed to enter and the Superblock Zones as pedes- space for leisure activities but includes the reconsid-
trian priority areas. ering of paving elements such as curbs, improving
To be able to enter the Low Emission Zone, cars accessibility for wheelchairs and people with visual
have to meet certain standards regarding, for ex- impairments. Furthermore, guidelines for redesign-
ample, the amount of carbon dioxide emitted by the ing the street pavements say that at least 20 per
vehicle. Drivers with vehicles meeting the standards cent of the surface has to be rainwater permeable.
are allowed to enter the zone only during daytime on Simultaneously, 80 per cent of the street should
weekdays and only with an environmental banner on have tree cover and shade to avoid urban heat is-
their car. lands in summertime.
For the pedestrian priority areas, the restrictions
go even further. Here, the Superblocks are not ac-
cessible for non-residents by vehicle. Only public
transport and emergency vehicles are allowed, plus
those owned by local residents and disabled people.
Several time slots allow deliveries and residents to
enter the zone. The maximum speed is 10 kilometres
per hour and the maximum weight of a vehicle is 5.5
tons. Motorized traffic is in only one direction. The
roads thus become public spaces that are open and
safe for pedestrians.

138 139
Sara Cultural Centre, Skellefteå, Sweden Local Flexibility
Instruments: design output monitor, customization,
From a badly used car park to one of the largest wooden building structures
life cycle finance, converting tradition
in the world
Initiators: Skellefteå Municipality
Designers: White Arkitekter
Completion: 2016-2021
Programme: cultural centre and hotel
Website: https://www.visitskelleftea.se/sv/sara-
kulturhus/

The Sara Cultural Centre in the town ern construction techniques and materials, such as
cross-laminated timber (CLT), which is a strong and
of Skellefteå in northern Sweden is
durable material that can be used for walls, floors,
a landmark and a supra-regional at- and roofs. Many experts consider CLT as the most
traction. The project, one of the tall- promising circular material for large-scale sustain-
1. The city of Skellefteå is suffering from economic and demographic decline. able construction in the near future. The use of CLT
est wooden building structures in the has helped to reposition northern Sweden as a lead-
world, not only illustrates the future er in building materials, supporting sustainable and
environmentally conscious construction practices.
potential of timber as a construction
The importance of timber in the region’s history
material for all kinds of urban pro- is reflected in the architecture of the Sara Cultural
grammes, but also reactivates Centre, which also reflects modern construction
techniques and environmental concerns. The Sara
the local tradition of building in wood. Cultural Centre was built using CLT. The wood used
for the Kulturhaus comes from sustainable regional
The Sara Cultural Centre, completed in 2021, is a forestry; the production of the prefabricated compo-
venue for concerts, theatre performances and exhibi- nents made of CLT and glued laminated timber (glu-
tions, and also serves as a hub for local cultural ac- lam) took place in a sawmill a mere 50 kilometres
tivities and events. On top of the spaces for cultural away. The building is a showroom for all kinds of ap-
use is a 20-storey hotel. The centre is notable for its plications of wood, as its exterior is clad in wooden
beautiful and innovative timber construction, which shingles, which give it a warm and natural appear-
2. The construction of the Sara Cultural Centre makes people proud and stimulates the local economy. reflects the region’s rich history of wood manufac- ance. The interior features a variety of wooden fin-
turing. ishes, including oak floors and birch panelling.
The timber construction industry has a long histo- The Sara Cultural Centre has become a symbol for
ry in northern Sweden, dating back to the nineteenth the city’s economic and cultural revival and has won
century when the region’s abundant forests and several awards for its design and construction, in-
proximity to the coast made it an attractive location cluding the European Union Prize for Contemporary
for a large-scale timber industry focused on neigh- Architecture.
bouring countries in Europe. Wood was harvested
from forests and transported to the coast by rivers Organizational
for processing and shipping to other parts of Sweden Through innovative planning by the architects and
and Europe. The timber industry played a vital role engineers, the 75-metre-tall building was construct-
in the region’s economy, providing jobs and contrib- ed without any concrete in the load-bearing struc-
uting to the growth of many northern-Swedish cit- ture. The lower four levels of the building host the
ies, including Skellefteå, Umeå and Luleå. Because cultural centre, which is constructed using columns
twentieth-century building in Europe was often done and beams made of glulam. The hotel rooms in the
in concrete, the local timber construction industry tower are built using prefabricated modules made of
3. The local carpenter industry is revived; shops have re-opened. shrank and focused on the regional economy only. solid CLT, which are stacked between two elevator
Recently, the industry started incorporating mod- cores also constructed using CLT. The efforts of the

142 143
engineering team to replace common concrete high- supported by a control system that regulates the de-
rise building solutions by wood, means that green- mand for ventilation and heat. This allows for effi-
house gas emissions coming from the building pro- cient use of energy, reducing exploitation costs and
cess were reduced as much as possible. further minimizing the building’s environmental im-
The timber construction was partially pre-con- pact. The building is equipped with a range of ener-
structed, resulting in a shortened construction time gy-efficient systems, including geothermal heating
of approximately 60 per cent and a significant reduc- and cooling, solar panels and a heat recovery system.
tion in the building’s carbon footprint. The wooden In addition, a smart control system regulates the
construction of the Sara Cultural Centre embodies demand for ventilation and heat, which contrib-
more than twice the amount of carbon dioxide emis- utes to the financial sustainability of the Centre.
sions caused by the construction process, includ- Monitoring the indoor environment and adjusting
ing the production of materials and transport. This the ventilation and heating systems accordingly en-
means that the building, which is expected to last a sures that energy is used efficiently. Generated en-
hundred years, should be climate-neutral after half ergy that is not used can be stored, further reduc-
of this period. ing the building’s energy costs. These requirements
were part of the municipality’s competition and they
Legal reinforce the Sara Cultural Centre’s position as an
Circular building means reconsidering traditional icon of sustainable design.
construction and the introduction of new, innovative
building techniques. These new building techniques, Spatial
however, do not automatically meet existing building The Sara Cultural Centre is named after the promi-
regulations. To come to a new building culture that nent local author Sara Lidman, known for her pow-
is both sustainable and meets restrictions for safety erful portrayals of working-class life and her strong
and comfort, it is necessary to either customize new political convictions. The centre was designed as an
building techniques or reconsider existing legislation. open-plan space to encourage the community to get
In case of the Sara Cultural Centre, legal restric- involved. Residents got to choose where the building
tions regarding ventilation and fire protection were would come and, to an extent, how it was designed.
contradictory at first sight. Rooms should be ven- The cultural landmark is not only a modern, sus-
tilated properly according to certain standards, tainable building, but it is also an homage to the re-
whereas in case of fire, smoke should be kept out- gion’s rich timber tradition. With the construction of
side the rooms to provide a safe escape. The combi- the Sara Cultural Centre, there is hope that the lo-
nation of high-rise, the structural use of timber and cal timber industry can be revitalized and brought
the ambition to reduce the daily use of energy, made into the modern era. By incorporating timber into
it hard to meet both restrictions at the same time. To the design of the building, the architects and engi-
comply with Swedish regulations, the architects and neers sought to create a connection between the
engineers worked closely with a leading supplier of building and the local community. All the timber is
ventilation and smoke extraction systems. Together, sourced from within a 60-kilometre radius, and lo-
they developed a customized solution for this spe- cal workshops and people were engaged during the
cific case. The solution included the implementation construction process, an investment in the regional
of smart sensors, designed to provide precise control economy. The Sara Cultural Centre is a testament to
over the building’s windows, ensuring precise opera- the importance of transforming local traditions and
tion for both daily air supply and safety in case of fire. industries into modern design and sustainability.
The customized solution developed in collabora-
tion with product suppliers, the building’s architects
and engineers, demonstrates the importance of
close collaboration for the development of effective
and efficient solutions.

Financial
The Sara Cultural Centre is an example of a build-
ing that incorporates financial lifecycle mechanisms
to ensure its long-term sustainability. The building
is powered entirely by renewable energy sources

144 145
Hospital Entrance Area Amsterdam UMC, location AMC, Local Flexibility
Instruments: circular supply chains, sustainability
Amsterdam, the Netherlands protocol, capitalized risks, soil-sensitivity
From a vast car park to a park for the neighbourhood
Initiators: Amsterdam UMC, City of Amsterdam,
Architectuur Lokaal
Design: Temp.architecture & studio Nuy van Noort
in cooperation with studio Blad
Completion: 2022
Programme: park, pedestrian decks
and entry pavilion

Because of their size, large public space to rethink the entrance to the AMC on a more
fundamental level. The real estate department of the
building complexes such as hospitals
hospital defined the ambition to create an entrance
can significantly contribute to their zone that no longer represents the hospital as an in-
neighbourhoods when they become troverted medical machine, but as an open and hos-
1. Though surrounded by city parts, the hospital building is isolated and gives a closed impression. pitable meeting place in the heart of twenty-first-
more circular and climate-adaptive. century society. The changing circumstances in the
By transforming a vast parking lot immediate vicinity offered the opportunity to review
the impact of this redevelopment in a broader con-
into a green and hospitable entry
text, redefining the relationship with the immediate
area, the Amsterdam University environment too. These ambitions and opportunities
Medical Centres (UMC) Hospital were base for a design competition, organized in 2017.
The winning design proposal was delivered in
turned its AMC building complex into 2022. On the site of the large parking garage, there
a social inclusive, climate-adaptive, is now a park with green views and routes between
the hospital and the surrounding neighbourhood,
circular and healthy environment: an
improving water drainage of the whole entrance
upgrade and inspiration for the whole area at the same time. The layout of the greenery
neighbourhood. offers a clear orientation and encourages time and
time again to move and meet, so that the health and
The approximately 500,000-square-metre AMC well-being of patients, employees, students and lo-
2. By redeveloping the entrance area of the hospital, the institute gets a clear and beautiful entrance area, building complex in Amsterdam was completed in cal residents are central. Centrally positioned in the
offering a healthy and stimulating park for its neighbours. the period 1981-1985 as the largest hospital in the entrance park, a pavilion offers a new, well-organized
Netherlands. The building was located outside of the entry to the huge brutalist building complex, differing
city, in one of the lowest polders near Amsterdam, from it in size, form and materialization. A pedestrian
as a solitary, efficient and introvert medical machine. deck, flanked by flowers and plants, links the entry to
There were no buildings in the immediate vicinity. In the nearby train station and offers pedestrians a safe
the following decades, the city moved towards the walk to the entry without encountering cars.
hospital. While new buildings surrounded the com- Being the largest hospital in the area, the facility is
plex, the new urban environment did not establish a key in case of regional calamities such as accidents
successful relationship with the hospital. Seen from or floods. Because the entrance zone, where all am-
the immediate vicinity, the entrance area was hidden bulances enter the complex, used to be one of the
behind a huge parking garage, giving an intimidating riskiest spots in Amsterdam in terms of rainwater
rather than a welcoming impression. As the entrance floods, making the restructured entry zone climate-
was mainly designed for handling car traffic, both adaptive was an important part of the assignment.
pedestrians and cyclist felt lost.
In 2015, the parking building at the front of the Organizational
3. The relationship between hospital and its surroundings is improved even further, extending the park and AMC location was completely worn out and there- In this project, excessive rainwater and obsolete trees
adding bridges. fore demolished. This literally and figuratively gave were not seen as waste, but as bases for a circular

146 147
supply chain. Using rainwater instead of tap water In the realized plan, the park plays an important role
for irrigating plants means that the drinking water improving water management around the building
infrastructure is relieved. Rainwater that falls on the complex. Rainwater from impermeable areas such as
parking area, on the deck and on the roofs is led to the car park, the pedestrian deck and the roof of the
and used for the green on the deck and in the park. pavilion is discharged into the waterways within the
The system collects, stores and releases rainwater, park, which acts as a sponge for the entire forecourt.
all depending on the varying climate conditions. This The risk of accidents or injuries as a result of flood-
way, it is able to deal with extremes such as drought ing is thus minimized.
and excessive rainfall.
Carbon dioxide emissions were reduced by reusing Spatial
trees that were felled for freestanding wooden bench- Situated below sea level in one of the lowest polders
es and wooden seats in the auditorium. In this way, in the Netherlands, the relationship with water at the
circularity was introduced into the project without hospital site is precarious. First of all, the general
requiring extra budget. Instead of ordering ready- groundwater level is relatively high. Groundwater
made products from a supplier, the designers figured easily pops up as seepage water, penetrating the lay-
out how to turn the trees into benches and seats. er of sand covering the original landscape. Further-
more, a large part of the entrance area was paved
Legal with impenetrable asphalt used for the original car
As a public organisation with over 14,000 employ- park. Large puddles appeared when it rained. There-
ees, 2,650 students and hundreds of thousands of fore, rain- and groundwater management was a cru-
patients every year, the hospital is highly committed cial part for the design assignment.
to corporate social responsibility. In its business op- In the new situation, the roof of the entrance pa-
erations they demonstrably take the impact of deci- vilion got a green roof for water retention, counter-
sions for the environment into account by using a ing heat stress. The parking area is reduced and the
procurement governance and having an own energy asphalt is replaced by a small-tiles paving with wa-
and sustainability vision. The governance contains ter-permissive joints. The car park slopes from the
requirements in relation to sustainability, quality and edge of building to the park, so rainwater will auto-
social impact. Also for the new entrance area, these matically drain from the building to the park via this
requirements were incorporated into the design and underground system. The park is arranged in such a
the execution tender. way that the rainwater is retained for a long time by
Together with Architectuur Lokaal, a Dutch spe- both the soft subsoil and the wadis. Wadis are water
cialist in accessible tender procedures, the Amster- basins in which an excess of rainwater can be col-
dam UMC organized a design competition in 2017 for lected and retained. After a shower, the wadis fill up
the redevelopment of the entrance and forecourt of with rainwater descending from the parking area,
the AMC location. The jury, consisting of representa- the pedestrian deck and the pavilion. The park thus
tives of the hospital organization itself and also of the functions as a sponge for the entrance area.
client council, the City of Amsterdam and the gov-
ernment architect, selected one design out of sixty
entries: AMC Health Park by the design combination
Temp.Architecture & studio Nuy van Noort in collab-
oration with studio BLAD. With the architect selec-
tion by means of a public competition, Amsterdam
UMC has had the courage to look for the best plan
without knowing in advance which architect it would
end up with and what track record it would have.

Financial
Being one of the most important hospitals in the re-
gion, the potential consequences of flooding were
difficult to oversee, but could even be life-threaten-
ing. Being aware of this, an additional budget was
reserved for measures to improve flood prevention in
the future.

148 149
Cooperativa Agricoltura Nuova, Rome, Italy Local Flexibility
Instruments: dynamic biodiversity management,
From a planned urban expansion area to an area of peri-urban agriculture
guerrilla gardening, community shares, converting
tradition

Initiators: young student squatters

Completion: 1977–today
Programme: environmentally friendly agriculture
with a social focus
Website: http://www.agricolturanuova.it/storia-2/

Environmental crises lead to a land that had been vacant for 25 years in 1977. In do-
ing so, they opposed the region’s urbanization pro-
reconsideration of the relationship
cess in the form of a planned residential district for
between cities and their green sur- 6,000 inhabitants. The goal was to preserve the ag-
roundings. How can urban expansion ricultural function of the farmland near the city and
1. A new residential area is planned on a farmer’s plot in Rome that has been vacant for 25 years. to create jobs for young people. Thanks to the sup-
be brought to a halt, protecting its port of residents of neighbouring communities and
surrounding ecology? How can a institutional actors such as the farmers’ and trade
unions, environmental organizations and the com-
flourishing countryside contribute to
munist party, Agricoltura Nuova was able to exist
the quality of urban life? Cooperativa for 20 years despite being illegal. In 1996, the oper-
Agricoltura Nuova, an active commu- ation was finally legalized through an official lease
agreement with the City of Rome, securing a long-
nity of organic farmers close to the term place in the heart of the newly created Decima
suburbs of Rome, is experimenting Malafede Regional Park.
Today, two areas totalling 250 hectares are farmed
with answers to those questions.
under the name Agricoltura Nuova. The coopera-
The cooperative started illegally tive started out with 180 hectares. This land is still
in the 1970s and now focuses on owned by the City of Rome. The extra 70 hectares
have been leased from the Santa Catarina Religious
organic farming in combination with Conservatory since 2006.
2. The site is illegally occupied to preserve the agricultural function. urban programmes such as food- The Agricoltura Nuova is characterized by a mix-
ture of different agricultural activities. In addition to
festivals and social care.
fruit and vegetable production, sheep, cows and pigs
are bred. Furthermore, the facilities include an api-
Rome is the largest agricultural municipality in ary, a dairy, a brewery, a mill and a weaving shop. The
Europe, both in terms of farm land and in terms of products are sold to customers in an on-side pizza
the quantity and quality of the land’s products. In the restaurant and farm shop. The production has been
late 1970s many agricultural cooperatives were es- certified organic since the late 1980s.
tablished in the periphery of the city by young, un- The Agricoltura Nuova also organizes numerous
employed people, for instance Agricoltura Nuova, social activities. The grounds are used for festivals
Cobragor, Il Trattore, Coraggio, Capodarco and Mis- and have grown over time to include facilities such
tica. Today, the result of those initiatives is unique in as a campground and playground areas, a riding
agricoltura nuova
the framework of peri-urban agriculture: stimulating school and an information centre about renewable
organic farming, creating hundreds of jobs, also for energies. Community gardens are used to promote
disabled people, and protecting the landscape. the care and inclusion of vulnerable adults such as
The Agricoltura Nuova is a one of these coopera- people with disabilities or refugees, as well as host-
3. The Agricoltura Nova is legalized as a centre for agricultural production and social activities. tive farms on the outskirts of Rome, founded after a ing educational activities for children. With this fo-
group of 30 young people occupied former agrarian cus, the Agricoltura Nuova has established itself as
an important social actor in the region.
152 153
Organizational Financial
Initially, the cooperative farmed its land according The Agricoltura Nuova started with the goal that
to market demand, which resulted in monocultural all members jointly own and cultivate the land and
farming. However, this type of farming did not lead to share the corresponding costs as well as profits.
the necessary profitability, so the cooperative mem- Nevertheless, the financial situation at the beginning
bers decided to diversify. For this purpose, a variety was so tight that only contributions from families
of original cultivated plants as well as native animal and friends of the occupants could keep the coop-
species were deliberately included in their dynam- eration afloat. To this day, the cooperative approach
ic biodiversity management. Chemical substances is characterized by its members jointly managing
or genetically modified species are strictly avoided, the land, with each of the members having one vote.
thus protecting the quality of natural assets such as Over the years, contract workers have also been
soil and water as well as the worker’s health. The di- hired. All profits of the Agricoltura Nuova are distrib-
versification of the farm was further accompanied uted to members and workers in the form of wages
by a switch from wholesale to direct sales, which and reinvested in the production. Especially in the
proved to be more profitable in subsequent years. In early years, salaries remained very low, as most of the
addition, the conversion led to the closure of mate- cooperative’s income was invested in improving the
rial cycles for the most part, so that the farm produc- farm.
es hardly any waste. Organic waste, for example, is Despite general difficulties of small farms, the fi-
used to feed the farm animals or to produce compost nancial situation of the Agricoltura Nuova has stabi-
and fertilizer, which in turn provides nutrients for the lized, due to a stable group of consumers and sup-
soil. In parallel, more and more non-farming activi- porters of the farm, who appreciate the high quality
ties have been organized in order to develop further of the products as well as the social orientation of
sources of income and to strengthen the role of the the farm. Today, the non-agricultural activities such
farm as a social actor in the local community. as the restaurant business or educational services
contribute significantly to the financial success of
Legal the farm.
The Agricoltura Nuova started as an illegal occupa-
tion. The cultivation of the land can be seen as large- Spatial
scale guerrilla gardening and was intended to show The members of the cooperative quickly began re-
an alternative to the planned urbanization process of storing the abandoned buildings on the site. The co-
the ecologically valuable land. In the 20-year strug- operative’s composition of mostly young people is
gle for recognition of the cooperative’s land rights, also leading them to re-engage more with agricul-
the existence of the cooperative was repeatedly tural professions, while the industry is largely lacking
threatened. Only through the broad support from in young workers. The increasing focus on further
civil society and political actors could legalization processing of the goods produced also results in the
finally be achieved. The municipality asked the co- strengthening of classic local professions such as
operative to leave the land several times. However, baker and confectioner. For reasons of environmen-
the cooperative received support from the local dis- tal protection and the highest possible level of self-
trict as well as the Lazio Region, which for instance sufficiency, the cooperative members also had an
pushed for a change in the zoning plan and the crea- early focus on the development of environmentally
tion of a regional park, both of which aimed to secure friendly energy sources on the site. Photovoltaic sys-
the cooperative’s existence in the long term. Finally, tems, a windmill and rainwater collection systems
an agreement was drawn up between the mayor’s of- were installed as early as the late 1970s. Thus, to this
fice and the construction industry, which stipulated day, the Agricoltura Nuova contributes significantly
that the occupied land would be designated for ag- to the protection of the surrounding area, which is
ricultural use and that the construction of buildings a stronghold of biodiversity and a natural source of
would only be allowed outside of this land. With the water for the city of Rome.
1996 lease agreement, the cooperative had to retro-
spectively pay the rent for the previous 19 years of
illegal occupation and received its legal status.

154 155
IKEA Store, Vienna, Austria Use-driven Flexibility
Instruments: dynamic biodiversity management,
From a conventional building block to a building accommodating a park
sustainability protocol, privately financed public
assets, microclimate modification

Initiators: IKEA
Completion: 2021
Programme: IKEA store, pharmacy, hair salon,
bakery, hostel with 345 beds, public roof
Design: Querkraft
Website: https://www.ikea.com/at/de/stores/
wien-westbahnhof/

As urbanization continues to spread hilferstrasse in the Westbahnhof area of Vienna,

close to a major transportation hub and popular
out and densify, the availability of
shopping destination, where until recently a conven-
green spaces in cities is becoming tional building block had been situated. Ikea collab-
increasingly scarce. In response, orated with Austrian architect querkraft to create a
1. When a building block is about to be demolished, local residents express the desire for a park here. building that would fit the urban environment, be en-
buildings could take on a greater role vironmentally sustainable and serve as a community
in providing these essential green space, rather than just a shopping space. The result-
ing structure is a distinctive gridded building made of
spaces. The IKEA store in Vienna
glass and steel with a green accessible roof and trees
shows that incorporating green spread over different levels, providing insulation and
features into building design, such helping to regulate the building’s temperature.
The building is designed to be thoroughly sustain-
as green roofs and even entire green able, with solar panels on the roof and an advanced
facades with trees, the building can waste management system that sorts and recycles
waste, reducing the amount sent to landfills. In ad-
offer the important benefits a park
dition, the store also features smart lighting and an
would offer to a city like improved air irrigation system. Smart lighting uses motion sen-
quality, meeting space, reduced ur- sors and daylight harvesting technology to reduce
energy consumption by automatically adjusting the
ban heat island effect and increased lighting levels based on the presence of both natural
2. Trying to be a good neighbour, IKEA builds a flexible building that has the features of a park. biodiversity. light and people in the space. The irrigation system
uses rainwater collected from the roof to water the
In recent years, Ikea faced a challenge in the Austrian plants in the building’s community garden, reducing
market as their traditional big-box stores on the out- water consumption and the strain on the city’s water
skirts of cities did not commercially perform as well resources.
as expected. Austrian consumers favoured smaller In addition, the building’s core structure aims to
shops that were more centrally located and easily be flexible and a good addition to the neighbour-
accessible by public transportation. When Ikea ex- hood. The design is structured with a simple con-
pressed interest in building a new store in the heart crete base and a ‘balcony’ structure around it. The
of Vienna, it was initially met with scepticism. Rather architects sought to incorporate balconies into the
than another shopping destination, the city’s resi- design of the commercial spaces, inspired by the
dents wished for a park where people could meet idea that balconies were previously only found in res-
and relax. To address this challenge, Ikea decided to idential buildings. The flexible frame can be consid-
NEW! NEW! NEW! experiment with a new type of store, one that would ered as a kind of shelf, which can always be used in
be car-free and easily accessible by public transpor- different ways. Its shelf-like structure increases the
tation. As the major objective, IKEA therefore told site’s flexibility through the ability to adapt to new
3. The flexible building structure is further developed, contributing to its direct surroundings in many ways. the architects: ‘we want to be a good neighbour’. functions in the future.
The company chose a spot at the end of Maria- Ikea Westbahnhof opened in 2021 and quickly be-

156 157
came a popular destination for Vienna residents and key categories, IKEA could monitor the building’s
tourists alike, offering not only furniture shopping efficiency with thorough calculations that acted as
but also successfully serving as a community space. a sustainability protocol for the company. This new
As a vertical park, Ikea Westbahnhof represents an quality verification was also acknowledged within
experiment in retail design and sustainability. On top the BREEAM assessment system for key indicators
of the environmental perks of the design, the rooftop such as microclimate and biodiversity. The project
is a social meeting place, being free and accessible achieved an ‘Excellent’ rating in this category, further
to the public outside of the store’s open hours. Like highlighting its success.
most open rooftops in Vienna, they serve drinks and
food. Across the 26,200 square metres, the build- Financial
ing also includes multiple cafes on different levels. Based on the demands of the municipality, the pri-
Some of the exterior balconies are accessible as well vately financed new city store provides private open
and offer seating and viewpoints. The trees create a spaces and communal areas, all of which are tailored
cooler and less dry environment in and around the to the preferences of local residents and users, de-
building. signed to be accessible without barriers. In the upper
Its innovative design, sustainable features and two floors of the IKEA store, there is a hostel with
community-focused approach have helped to re- 345 beds, which brings life to the building even out-
shape the way consumers think about Ikea and si- side of regular opening hours. On the ground floor,
multaneously added significant value to its urban there is an arcade with a pharmacy, a hair salon and
context. Its sustainable design has already inspired a bakery. IKEA wanted to include the businesses
other retailers and developers to prioritize eco- previously located in this building to deliberately
friendliness in their own projects, and the success of generate a mix of uses. There is a publicly accessi-
the store allowed Ikea to open similar stores in other ble 1,800-square-metre rooftop terrace where IKEA
cities around the world. and the hostel operators also offer gastronomy ser-
vices, but there is no obligation to consume. This ar-
Organizational rangement is permanently established in the urban
Not only did the store’s design address the chal- development contract. The idea of creating an urban
lenge of meeting the community’s desire for a park- ‘park-structure’ was well received by the municipal-
like space, but it also had numerous other benefits ity of Vienna. After the construction of the building,
for the surrounding community. The green roof and the architects and owners saw that the building had
trees on different levels promote biodiversity, provid- a positive impact on the neighbourhood, the build-
ing a habitat for wildlife. Open spaces promote dif- ing even has its own small fan club. Although the
ferent types of environments including bird nests, neighbourhood hadn’t exactly requested an urban
with a total of thirty nesting spots to ensure that local park, the accessibility and noncommittal concept of
bird types such as kestrels and swifts can reproduce. the store is highly appreciated by local residents and
There are well-equipped beehives and a good variety tourists.
of plants for the bees. To further support biodiversity,
IKEA Westbahnhof collaborated with nearby schools Spatial
to build insect hotels, that were placed around the A total of 160 trees on the building contribute to a
building. The company made sure to emphasize this more pleasant microclimate. On a hot day, they can
focus through species diversity in the selection of cool the surroundings by up to -1.5°C. Additionally,
plants, different vegetation structures, a species-rich they improve the air quality in by converting carbon
herb layer and habitat structures. dioxide into oxygen, and, for example, by blocking
dust, and cooling and humidifying the air. With its
Legal green roof, IKEA’s new store helps to improve insu-
Ikea initiated a competition to find architects who lation and air quality, provide shade and reduce the
could align with their sustainability goals. During urban heat island effect.
the Idea Contest Phase in 2017, they worked in col-
laboration with Greenpass, a Vienna-based expert
on sustainable real estate, who provided them with
a monitor for measuring the environmental impact of
the building focusing on six urban domains: climate,
water, air, biodiversity, energy and costs. With these

158 159
Seestadt Aspern, Vienna, Austria Use-driven Flexibility
ZONE
Instruments: empowering local communities,
From an abandoned airfield to a circular and climate-adaptive city quarter
purpose-specific freezone, free public transport,
rooftop benefits

Initiator: City of Vienna

Design: Tovatt Architects & Planners and others
Completion: 2009 – present
Programme: urban district to be inhabited by
over 25,000 people.
Website: https://www.aspern-seestadt.at/en

Many European cities are character- development ending in 2028. Approximately 11,000
apartments for more than 25,000 people as well as
ized by strong population growth
workspaces are aimed to contribute to the rapidly
and face the challenge of providing growing city of Vienna. With these dimensions and
new space for housing, jobs and planned investments of over 5 billion euros, Seestadt
1. An airport terrain was closed and designated as residential area. Aspern is one of the largest urban development pro-
(social) infrastructure in a very lim- jects in Europe. The master plan’s defining elements
ited time. At the beginning of the are a centrally located lakeside park including an ar-
tificial lake, which gives the district its name. The ex-
2000s, Vienna decided to take the
cavation work for the lake began in 2010. Almost all
radical step of building a new urban the materials from the excavation (around 1 million
quarter under the name of Seestadt tons) were processed on site into building materials
for the surrounding constructions, primarily for road
Aspern. This new district for more works. Not having to transport these materials has
than 25,000 inhabitants is located so far saved around 6,000 tons of greenhouse gas
emissions. The typically Viennese building blocks
on the site of a former airport and is
are designed for a mixture of uses. Only in the east
intended to meet the requirements of the area larger mono-functional commercial zones
of a climate-adaptive and socially are planned. The goal is to create an urban district
in which living and working, education and culture,
inclusive residential district. shopping and leisure are all within a short distance
2. Local land is being redistributed, leading to a central lake surrounded by varied residential areas. of each other. The central component of the traffic
The agricultural village of Aspern was incorporat- development is the extension of the U2 subway line.
ed into the municipal area of the Austrian capital The ‘Am Seebogen’ quarter is one of the quarters
Vienna at the peak of the Viennese modernization of the International Building Exhibition (IBA) Vienna
in 1905, establishing an airfield northeast of the his- 2022, which focused on new social housing. In this
toric village. The airfield lost importance in the post- area, 80 per cent is reserved for residential use, while
war years and was completely closed in 1977. the remaining 20 per cent is designated for office
The abandoned northern part of the former space. In the already realized part south of the lake,
Aspern airfield was acquired by the municipality of the focus has been on the implementation of cli-
Vienna in 1992, which decided in 2003 to commis- mate-adapting redesign measures in public spaces,
sion the development of an urban master plan. Under since a high degree of sealed surfaces leads to the
the leadership of the Swedish planning office Tovatt formation of heat islands in the area.
Architects & Planners and the German project devel-
opment office N+ Objektmanagement GmbH, the Organizational
Masterplan Seestadt Aspern was developed, which The development of Seestadt Aspern is linked to
was adopted by the municipal council in 2007. The ambitions to strengthen local communities. Publicly
3. The city of Seestadt Aspern grows stepwise, each time implementing the latest insights regarding plan envisages the construction of a new urban dis- used facilities such as the central swimming lake and
circularity and climate adaptation. trict on the 2.4-square-kilometre site in a multi-phase community-operated projects such as the Madame

162 163
d’Ora community garden or the Seestadtpark pro- and 18 conventional bicycles are available for indi-
mote social exchange and active participation of all vidual trips with a guaranteed minimal carbon foot-
the different residents in the neighbourhood. The print. The bicycles can be rented and parked at fixed
district management acts as a contact for the resi- bike stations. In 2022, there were seven such bike
dents and manages a neighbourhood fund, where stations plus one additional electric cargo bike sta-
residents can initiate micro-projects totalling 3,000 tion. With the expansion of Seestadt, the network
euros per year themselves. In addition, residents are of rental stations will also be expanded to 26 bike
given the opportunity to help shape the design of stations and two cargo bike stations in the final de-
the neighbourhood. Assemblies, in which commu- velopment stage. Bicycle rental is only possible with
nities of residents plan, design and organize them- a SeestadtCARD. The registration fee of 10 euro is
selves together, play a central role. So far, ten such waived for residents of Seestadt. Until further no-
assemblies have become active in the development tice, the SeestadtFLOTTE system is available free of
of Seestadt and have developed building sites ac- charge. The sum of the measures to reduce car traf-
cording to their individual needs and possibilities. fic leads to a level of motorization in Seestadt that
One of these is Que(e)rbau, which promotes living is significantly below the overall Viennese average.
for unconventional types of families and creates
an inclusive living environment. Another focus lies Spatial
on the advertising slogan ‘Seestadt is female’. This Many projects in Seestadt Aspern feature an innova-
stands for the decision to name all streets in the new tive use of roof space. All parking garages, for exam-
district after women, thus increasing the proportion ple, are covered by roofs arranged as public squares
of Viennese streets named after women from 5 to 7 or gardens. Also, the mixed-use building at the cor-
per cent. This highly symbolic measure is intended ner of the Janis Joplin Promenade and Anna Bastel
to make women’s historical achievements more vis- Gasse and the educational campus of Seestadt are
ible, to include them in the city’s collective memory covered by terraced roofs.
and ultimately to empower female citizens. Opened in 2015, each of the elementary school
classrooms in the educational campus is directly
Legal connected to a south-facing, partially green roof ter-
One of the central goals in the Seestadt Aspern is race. The highest roof surface of the main building,
to reduce motorized individual traffic to a minimum. on the other hand, is largely equipped with solar pan-
To achieve this goal, one of the measures taken is els, which is common practice in Seestadt. Photo-
reducing the number of available parking spaces to voltaic systems installed on roofs play a central role
make it less attractive to drive a car. Normally, the in the goal of 100 per cent electricity and heat supply
law in Vienna says that there has to be one parking from renewable energy sources in Seestadt. In addi-
space for every 100 square metres of usable living tion, sports activities have also found their place on
space. However, the parking space regulation of the rooftops. On the car park next to the U2 terminus,
Vienna Garage Act allows fewer parking spaces if a five football fields and an associated gastronomic fa-
(very) good public transport connection can be prov- cility are operated under the name ‘Andi kickt’. The
en in the corresponding planning area. In Seestadt multitude of roof uses shows what intelligent utiliza-
Aspern, the number of required parking spaces tion of rooftop benefits can look like in practice.
could thus be reduced by 30 per cent. In addition,
builders of car parks in the area were obliged to pay a
fixed amount per parking space into a mobility fund
as a result of the reduced parking space obligation.
This money will be used to support projects that re-
duce the mobility pressure from Seestadt on the sur-
rounding areas and encourage residents to choose
environmentally friendly means of transport.

Financial
As a further instrument to reduce car traffic and to
achieve the targeted modal split of 40 per cent cy-
cling and walking, the SeestadtFLOTTE bike rental
system is operated in Seestadt. Currently, 34 e-bikes

164 165
The People’s Pavilion, Eindhoven, the Netherlands Use-driven Flexibility
Instruments: reused materials mediator, material PASS

From ordinary waste towards a temporary people’s pavilion

passport, upcycling, re-interpretation

Initiator: Dutch Design Week 2017

Design: Overtreders W, bureau SLA
Completion: 2017
Programme: central meeting space for
the Dutch Design Week of 2017
website: https://www.overtreders-w.nl/en/
peoplespavilion

The rising costs of raw materials, owners in an unaltered condition after their use in
the pavilion. Therefore, a key element of the pavilion’s
their inevitable finiteness and the
design features reversible connections that elimi-
large environmental footprint of the nated the need for nails or glue. This design ensured
processes turning them into proper that the materials retained their initial condition and
1. A big and empty square is designated to be part of the Dutch Design Week. could be returned to their owners after having been
building materials, pose major chal- part of the pavilion for a few weeks.
lenges to building industries. Experi- A primary element of the design was the colour-
ful panel facade of the pavilion, created from plastic
ments with innovative building meth-
waste materials such as PET bottles. Donated by lo-
ods, such as the reuse of materials cal Eindhoven residents who, by doing so, got rid of
and associated alternative business their personal waste, the locally sourced waste could
be repurposed into a valuable building element. The
models are necessary to come to a innovative use of recycled plastic waste as the pri-
future-proof, circular building indus- mary material for the panel facade of the pavilion is a
remarkable aspect of the design. The architects took
try. Because of their limited lifetime
a conscious decision to utilize locally sourced waste,
and less strict regulation, temporary thereby providing an environmentally sustainable
buildings are very suitable for these solution. This approach not only prevented the plas-
tic waste from becoming landfill, but also provided a
experiments. waterproof and easily processable building element.
2. Being built with only borrowed materials, a temporary and experimental pavilion arises. Through the repurposing of the plastic bottles, the
The annual Dutch Design Week is the largest design designers were able to create a striking visual effect
showcase in northern Europe, featuring over 2,600 on the facade, with the colourful panels contribut-
designers from all over Europe who present their ide- ing to the overall aesthetic appeal of the building.
as on various topics, including the future of architec- They produced approximately 9,500 colourful tiles
ture and design in the face of the climate crisis. The and returned them to the local residents as a souve-
exhibition takes place in more than 110 locations in nir from the Design Week after the building was dis-
Eindhoven, some of which are existing venues, while assembled. Thus, the People’s Pavilion succeeded in
others are temporary outdoor pavilions. The People’s the aim of a zero-waste outcome. The success of the
Pavilion, built to exist for only a few weeks on the oc- People’s Pavilion at the Dutch Design Week demon-
casion of the Dutch Design Week in 2017, was de- strates that the impact of building can be very mini-
signed by Overtreders W and Bureau SLA as a state- mal and that circularity in its design can be a viable
ment of the circular economy, a building where no and sustainable approach to both temporary and
materials would be lost in the process. The pavil- lasting structures.
ion served as the central meeting place during the
Dutch Design Week for up to 600 people at a time. Organizational
3. After demounting the pavilion, all borrowed materials are brought back to their owners. The architects adapted this way of building by only Significant adjustments had to be made to the de-
‘borrowing’ materials that had to be returned to their sign process to bring this vision to life due to the

166 167
uncertain availability of materials. A concept sketch Week was over. Even the interior elements such as
had to be presented to wholesalers and other part- furniture and lighting were borrowed for a few weeks
ners to persuade them to join the project and lend and carefully registered, so everything could be re-
out the materials. With each confirmed material the turned without any waste.
building process changed to incorporate the new
opportunities. This meant that the design had to be Financial
flexible enough to accommodate unforeseen mate- Items were reused in subsequent construction pro-
rials that were discovered and borrowed during the jects, adhering to the circular economy principles
course of the project. This going back and forth dur- and upholding their value throughout the supply
ing the adjustment process took place at every stage chain. As the materials were returned in their origi-
of the design, including the construction phase itself, nal condition, their financial value remained almost
to ensure that the project could successfully incor- unchanged. It could be argued that their value in-
porate newly available materials. creased after being used in the pavilion, as the unex-
The architects tackled the challenges of using pected way they were used as a proper building ma-
‘borrowed’ elements by collaborating with various terial enlarged their future using possibilities. Being
companies and relying on the help of the residents of part of a useful, high-profile building structure, their
Eindhoven. They worked with Arup and the Technical value was at least promoted for a few weeks, giving
University of Eindhoven to validate their calculations them a higher value than they would possibly have
and experiment with this unconventional building had otherwise. This Pavilion raises the question of
approach. Together with these two organizations, what market value could come from ‘rented’ materi-
they developed models and structural material sam- als in the built environment.
ples to test the statics and propose designs to various
material suppliers. To obtain the necessary wooden Spatial
beams and concrete columns, the architects contact- Designing a building with materials and resources
ed construction companies and made agreements to that are to be borrowed and to be returned in an
borrow the materials. The lower facade was a rem- unchanged condition asks for an unorthodox way
nant of the renovation of webshop bol.com’s head- of looking at materials and building products. The
quarters and was returned after nine days for use in wooden elements, for example, were temporarily tied
a new project. For the upper part of the facade made together with straps, forming the beams that car-
of plastic tiles from household waste, the architects ry the roof. A positive effect of the pavilion being a
partnered with Govaerts Recycling, to shape and showcase for reuse was that this improvisational way
create the tiles. of building was made explicit. By using broad, black
Each aspect of the building had to be measured tensioning straps, that stood out against the wood,
carefully and planned precisely to keep all the build- they were explicitly part of the architecture as interior
ing elements in their original state, so that every- ornaments.
thing could be returned as it was received. The archi- The process of turning plastic waste such as
tects used a system of over 350 tensioning straps to PET bottles into facade tiles also asked for an in-
connect each element of the building to the others. novative production process. Developed by a com-
The foundation of the 8-metre tall building was set mercial company called Pretty Plastic, the Pavilion
by twelve prefab concrete pillars, which were con- functioned as a showcase, not only showing the sus-
nected to steel rods and an outer glass facade sal- tainable, waterproof and fireproof qualities of the
vaged from a demolished office building. For the in- product, but also showing how beautiful the reuse
terior, they used borrowed composite timber beams of plastic can be, leading to a palette of different col-
that held everything together. The glass roof was ours expressing the various origins of use that the
borrowed from a local greenhouse supplier, provid- materials had before.
ing beautiful natural lighting.

Legal
By carefully registering each borrowed element of
the building and keeping an overview of all materi-
als, linking them to a customized material passport,
the architects were able to ensure that all parts could
be returned to their owners after the Dutch Design

168 169
Cité Maraîchère, Romainville, France Use-driven Flexibility
Instruments: circular supply chains, customization,
From an agricultural food-producing area to an urban food-producing area
social currency, densification

Initiators: ACTES, Ile-de-France Region, Greater

Paris Metropolis, Seine-Saint-Denis Departmental
Council, AgroParisTech
Designers: ilimelgo architects
Completion: 2008
Programme: laboratory for urban food production
Website: https://www.lacitemaraichere.com/

As our current food consumption ricultural activities in the city and the creation of
new employment such as urban farmers, zero waste
TABAK BEAUTY leads to significant greenhouse gas
mediators and compost guides. Being a part of the
emissions and waste, we must look larger framework of the Agence Communale de la
for ways to reduce its negative ef- Transition Écologique et Solidaire (ACTES), the Cité
1. Being encapsulated by Paris, all remains of its agricultural past disappeared in the municipality of is a laboratory for sustainable practices, providing
Romainville.
fects. Cité Maraîchère, accommodat- grounds for research and practical urban agricul-
ed in two major urban greenhouses ture experiments. The Cité brings to light new ways
of producing sustainable and qualitative food, while
in the east of Paris, shows that food
making sure that fresh, healthy and seasonal pro-
can sustainably be produced in duce are easily accessible to everyone.
highly densified urban areas, promot- But the Cité is also a communal space, where peo-
ple can meet and gather in the café-canteen, to enjoy
ing a circular food chain and a more a variety of organic, local and seasonal produce. The
responsible food consumption. Also Cité also organizes activities around urban nature,
sustainable eating, eco-citizenship, and other cul-
on the local scale, the benefits are
tural, educational, scientific and culinary events.
surprisingly impactful, such as a
TABAK BEAUTY

higher social cohesion, better envi- Organizational

The Cité Maraîchère advocates for urban food pro-
ronmental awareness, an improved duction to complement traditional agriculture. The
2. On an open spot in the city, the municipality decides to build an experimental greenhouse. local economy and last but not least: project shows that agricultural production is possi-
ble in urban settings, keeping food loops small and
better food.
local. The building comprises two vertical green-
houses aiming to produce 12 tons of food each year.
For a long time, Romainville, a municipality within The Cité makes sure that its supply of local produc-
the urban tissue of Paris, used to be an agricultural tion is varied, with different types of fruits, vegeta-
area, a characteristic that got lost over time, when bles and herbs, depending on the season, but also
urban sprawl took over. This is why the city has been edible flowers, different types of mushrooms and mi-
trying to revive its agricultural identity for several crogreens. As a living laboratory, the Cité Maraîchère
years already, by, for example, encouraging the de- is still experimenting with its types of production,
velopment of urban agriculture. Various food-related trying to optimize the supply and demand of food
projects came to life, such as the temporary use of and to avoid mismatches.
urban brownfields in Romainville or the temporary The objective of the Cité is not financial profit.
TABAK BEAUTY
organic farm in Bobigny. Though prices are not necessarily cheaper than tra-
The project of the Cité Maraîchère was initiated ditional food supply chains, the production at the
by AgroParisTech (a research institute in agrono- Cité Maraîchère is more sustainable and less ex-
3. The local community rediscovers the private production of food, the neighbourhood is becoming greener my), and started with both high sustainability and pensive in terms of energy and water consumption.
and greener. social ambitions, namely the reintroduction of ag- Rainwater is harvested and makes up around 40 per

172 173
cent of the production’s watering. The soil in which The Cité wants to be inclusive, guaranteeing a quali-
the food is grown was developed in a laboratory as tative food supply for all the inhabitants of Romain-
a solution against soil pollution in urban contexts. ville. The municipality therefore set up a pricing
AgroParisTech, a research institute developed a ‘cir- scheme adapted to the financial revenue of the local
cular’ substrate made of locally harvested compost, residents. The scheme has three categories, offering
green waste and coffee grounds. This soil therefore up to 75 per cent discount on the produce.
has many big advantages, such as its local availabil- Besides food production in urban contexts, the
ity, low costs, high efficiency and natural compo- other main goal of the Cité Maraîchère is to be an
nents. Food preservation workshops are being held example of socio-professional support by creating
for local residents in order to reduce food waste. new jobs and enabling professional reintegration,
by helping people who lost their previous employ-
Legal ment in finding a new one. The Cité aims at creating
In order to allow the development of agriculture in 22 new local jobs, providing certified training in the
the urban context, the local urban plan of Romainville fields of farming, eco-entertainment, catering and
had to be revised, permitting constructions and pro- food services.
jects with agricultural functions within the munici- The Cité hosts cocreative, participatory work-
pality borders. These changes in the legislation now shops organized by both the residents and the rep-
allow agricultural production. resentatives of the community of Romainville. The
The food production is kept healthy thanks to a participatory workshops were held with the help of
combination of strict internal and legal protocols, local experts in permaculture and urban agriculture.
forbidding chemicals and imposing a seasonal and They resulted in the vitalization of outdoor spaces of
diverse food production with old and new vegetable the Cité Maraîchère, creating collective compost, a
types being grown. The rainwater harvesting tanks shared vegetable garden and a medicinal garden.
are regularly tested in order to verify the absence of
bacteria before usage. Though the production of the Spatial
Cité does not have the ‘AB’ (organic agriculture) la- The building of the Cité Maraîchère is split accord-
bel, since the food is not grown directly in the soil, it ing to its functions: the ground floor hosts the most
follows the same regulations. When agricultural pro- public functions such as a kitchen for workshops,
duction faces challenges, such as insects or pests, seminars and pedagogical trainings, meetings and
sustainable products are used, made from black conferences. 90 square metres of the greenhouses
soap or orange essential oil, for example. These solu- are also accessible to the public for trainings and
tions might be more time-consuming, but are more workshops. On the first floor, another 36 square
sustainable in the end and they work. metres are dedicated to meetings, exhibitions and
The complexity and innovative character of the workshops. The total food production of 700 square
Cité Maraîchère require a constant collaborative su- metres is growing in 753 containers that are not con-
pervision of the project. Since the start, the munici- nected to the ground. In this way, the production can
pality of Romainville put together a group of people be stacked, saving on floor space.
with different backgrounds but with shared interests The building itself was designed with agricultural
that follows and supports the development of the functions in mind: volumes and materials were cho-
project on the long term. The group meets twice a sen in order to allow maximum indoor daylight and
year, dealing with all kinds of challenges concerning limiting weight. The food production area is divided
urban food production. At the same time, a scientific in two aisles, maximizing the amount of natural day-
advisory group aims at improving the project of the light coming in. On the upper floors and in the base-
Cité regarding educational, technical, marketing and ment, where mushrooms are grown, the production
employment issues. Both groups keep an eye on le- of food is very efficient. However, as the lower floors
gal issues as well. Both legal threats and changes are sometimes lack daylight, the yield is quite low. These
monitored, analysed and provided with a solution or floors will probably be reconverted to another type of
advice if necessary. production, requiring less daylight.

Financial
Since summer 2021, the Cité Maraîchère has been
selling its food production to the inhabitants of
Romainville following an innovative pricing scheme.

174 175
Atri, Sikhall Vänersborg, Sweden Use-driven Flexibility
Instruments: circular supply chains, customization,
From a remote forest to an off-grid building site
life cycle finance, seasonal flexibility

Initiators: Niklas Dahlström & Anders Solvarm,

Naturvillan
Designers: Naturvillan
Completion: 2022
Programme: Residential off-grid home
Website: https://naturvillan.com/

Underground infrastructure for and store its own energy. With our increasingly un-
stable and expensive energy on the one hand and a
energy, water and sewerage occupies
growing pressure on networks for energy supply on
subsoil space that is also claimed the other, Atri becomes an interesting alternative.
to make our cities greener and The house is built for a certain lifestyle. The cir-
1. Many distant places in the vast forests of Sweden are suitable for habitation, but lack the right infrastructure. cular systems are for the most part automated, how-
rainwater-resilient. Future transfor- ever, there is some work to be done to grow food and
mation of existing infrastructure, potentially to generate heat in the winter. The heat
in the winter comes mostly from the wood-burning
enabling our cities to use new types
oven, which requires human maintenance and a dai-
of renewable energy and sustainable ly supply of wood.
water management, puts even more
Organizational
pressure on our urban undergrounds. The house, inside the greenhouse, has been built to
Off-grid building, that does not need be operated completely off-grid. During summer,
the solar cells provide electricity to the battery that
large-scaled infrastructure, can
drives the house and heats the water. In winter, a
contribute to lowering this pressure. wood-burning boiler with a hob and oven provides
Atri, an off-grid housing project in heat and hot water. If necessary, there is a propri-
etary domestic power plant to recharge the battery.
the woods of Sweden, shows not only Drinking water comes from the well on the prop-
2. Taking advantage of the landscape qualities, an experimental house is built, completely off-grid. how practical, but also how attractive erty, and does not involve expenses. The principle is
that nutrients and water in the wastewater are re-
off-grid living can be.
cycled and purified in the greenhouse’s plant beds,
where macro and microbiota interact with the plants’
Atri, a glass covered human habitat, contrived by the root systems. The grey-water system together with
designers of Naturvillan, is an example of a minimal- heat capturing help the residents to live self-suffi-
impact home that rethinks the aesthetics of what it ciently.
means to be off the grid. The triangular glass and Due to its substantial plot of land there is potential
timber structure serves as a greenhouse covering the to grow more food in the surrounding area. However,
inner insulated cube that houses the living quarters. as Atri is located in rural Sweden, growing food out-
The living quarters have two floors, three bedrooms, side is not possible all year around because of the
two bathrooms, a kitchen, and an open-plan dining harsh winter conditions.
and living room. The living quarters are accessible
from two sides of the greenhouse creating two ‘pati- Legal
os’ on either end of the greenhouse. The greenhouse Naturvillan and the municipality of Vänersborg
is lined with raised beds for plants. The home is fit- worked closely together to build Atri. Sikhall, the
3. As the experimental house appears to be a success in many ways, more off-grid housing is realized. ted with a multiple-circular system – wastewater re- area where Atri is located, does not have a strict zon-
covery that is used to grow plants, trap heat, create ing plan. The main concern was to adapt the build-

176 177
ing aesthetically and technically to the landscape in every day to supplement the main supply of heat – a
which it stands. wood-burning oven in the kitchen. The backup bat-
Atri has several features that are out of the ordi- tery can also be run from a proprietary domestic
nary, such as the eco-cycle system that utilizes nu- power plant in the winter months. Additionally, ac-
trients from wastewater for the garden plants. As it cording to the architect, placing the living quarters in
is such an innovative system, extra information and a greenhouse alone can save 30 per cent of energy.
explanation had to be provided to convince the build-
ing inspector. The eco-cycle system was in the end Spatial
allowed and installed. The insulated living quarters have a constant interior
In Sweden, many homeowners choose to extend condition throughout the year. The microclimate in
their houses with a conservatory, a glass-covered the greenhouse, however, does vary across the sea-
room. Atri takes this idea to the extreme. One of mu- sons. In wintertime, it captures heat from the insu-
nicipality’s concerns was that Atri’s living quarters lated part that would otherwise be lost, resulting in
were a little small and the space that is only covered a wintergarden climate. In the summer it captures
by a greenhouse roof cannot be counted as liveable heat from the sun. The surplus of heat is stored in in
space. This can lead to a conflict when calculating the battery, while the inhabitants enjoy the sun, pro-
the square metres. However, as one of the members tected from the wind by the glass facades. Because
of the municipality team pointed out: ‘It requires a the microclimate in the greenhouse stays within a
certain lifestyle to really feel comfortable in these certain bandwidth, the residents can grow plants all
spaces. At the same time, it is probably this change of year round and have a steady yield of fruit and veg-
lifestyle our planet needs from us. Compact, passive, etables. Sun exposure is scarce especially in winter
and aware of the fact that we cannot go on living like months and therefore having a house inside a green-
we have been doing the last 100 years’. Overall, the house is possible without making the indoor condi-
municipality was enthusiastic about the project and tions too extreme.
in fact would welcome more projects of this nature.

Financial
The financial arrangement of this project differs from
that of a conventional building. Building Atri requires
a relatively large initial investment. But unlike con-
ventional concepts, no external resources like ener-
gy and water have to be paid for during the period
of use. As the chosen materials are easy to main-
tain, the exploitation of the house is virtually free
of costs. Compared to conventional housing, living
in this house gets cheaper by the year. After some
decades, theoretically the house even starts earning
money for the owner, if you compare its costs with
those of living in a conventional house. As the found-
er of Naturvillan pointed out, it may be difficult to get
banks on board for loans with a project that is as out
of the ordinary as this one.
The metrics to calculate when this type of house
has fully paid itself back, are different to a standard
passive house because of the circular systems and
the added value they bring. In Sweden, solar cells
start earning back after seven years. Solar cells are
the main source of energy in sunny months along
with a heat-recovery system. These feed the battery,
which in turn runs the house’s automated systems
and heats water for domestic use. The creators of the
building estimate that in the dead of winter it may be
necessary to run the backup battery for several hours

178 179
Gent knapt op, Ghent, Belgium Use-driven Flexibility
Instruments: empowering local communities,
From a housing stock in a poor condition towards an affordable and
law change motivation, recurrent housing fund,
sustainably renovated housing stock re-interpretation

Initiators: City of Ghent, University of Ghent

and KU Leuven
Designers: various
Completion: 2018-2021
Programme: renovation of 100 homes
Website: uia-initiative.eu/en/uia-cities/ghent-call3

There is a strong need to upgrade has put pressure on the housing market, leading to
an increase in housing prices and a shortage of af-
the existing housing stock in order
fordable housing. This situation has made it difficult
to reduce emissions related to heat- for many residents, particularly low-income house-
ing and cooling demands. The ‘Gent holds, to find adequate housing. They often end up
1. Many privately owned houses are in a poor state, being badly insulated and depending on fossil energy in poor-quality housing with substandard living con-
resources.
knapt op’ programme shows that ditions such as poor insulation, inadequate heating
sustainability and social inclusion and a lack of maintenance. This situation can lead to
higher energy bills, health problems and safety issues.
can – or even should – go hand in
The main objective of the initiative is to renovate
hand. Under this initiative, the Belgian 100 houses of low-income homeowners to make them
municipality of Ghent creates incen- safer, more qualitative and more energy-efficient with
the use of a recurring fund. As an effect of the renova-
tives for homeowners that not only tions, the general quality of living of the households
reduce the energy consumption of and of the neighbourhoods are improving. Through
the use of a recurring fund, public funding is not only
their property, but links these im-
used for a limited group, but can be used over and
provements to social, environmental over again to fight this major urban challenge.
and economic benefits. Another key aspect is its support for neighbour-
hoods and the local economy. The renovations car-
Housing is a critical issue in Ghent. Like in many oth- ried out under the programme generate jobs for lo-
2. In close cooperation with residents, the ‘Gent knapt op’ programme manages to renovate more and more er cities, rising housing costs, housing shortages and cal contractors and suppliers, helping to boost the
houses. substandard living conditions are major challenges. local economy. The increased quality of housing also
In addition, the city has a relatively high rate of peo- leads to better social circumstances in the whole
ple living in poverty (15.5 per cent). ‘Gent knapt op’ neighbourhood.
(translation: Ghent renovates) aims to address these
challenges by enabling homeowners to invest in the Organizational
improvement of their homes, thereby increasing the Homeowners who do not have the resources to
quality and sustainability of housing in the city. One renovate their homes to a decent standard are the
of the key aspects is its focus on making housing main target group of the project. These homeowners
more energy-efficient. Many homes in Ghent, par- are sometimes called the ‘captive owners’. In many
ticularly older ones, are poorly insulated, leading to cases, the houses were inherited or bought in poor
higher energy bills and greenhouse gas emissions. condition because the owners couldn’t afford to rent
The ‘Gent knapt op’ programme provides incen- them and didn’t qualify for private funding to reno-
ie
ar
M

tives for homeowners to invest in insulation, double vate them. Access to funding and guidance allows
glazing, energy-efficient heating systems and other the homeowners to renovate their properties into
measures to reduce their energy consumption and higher quality and more energy-efficient houses. The
3. The renovated houses inspire other house owners to renovate their house too. lower their carbon footprint. programme aims to be as socially inclusive as possi-
The city of Ghent has a growing population, which ble and to help homeowners regardless of their age,

182 183
ability or socio-economic status. A requirement is countable for providing safe and adequate housing.
that the owners should live in the house themselves Collectively, these efforts help to create a legal and
and have a relatively low income. The programme is policy framework that supports the programme’s ob-
not meant for landlords. jectives and contributes to the development of sus-
‘Gent Knapt Op’ not only provides funding, but tainable and inclusive communities in Ghent.
also social support to participants as they go through
the renovation process. By becoming a central part Financial
of the process and providing social support to the The ‘Gent Knapt Op’ pilot project also introduced a
homeowners, the project is also able to boost their new financial model, the ‘recurring fund’, to address
self-esteem, independence and social connections. the shortage of affordable housing in the city and
The initiative not only improved the physical liv- ensure the sustainability of the project. The fund
ing conditions of those in need, but can also have a works by providing financial support (30,000 euros)
positive impact on their overall quality of life, tak- to homeowners for essential renovation work. The
ing away private concerns about maintenance and homeowners then repay the original contribution
energy costs. It is known that people living in poor plus interest only if and when the house is sold. This
conditions do not easily invite other people, such as allows for longer-term continuity of the programme
friends, neighbours or family, to their homes and eas- and provides an opportunity for more homes to be
ily get socially isolated. renovated in the future. It’s a creative approach to
These initiatives not only benefit the local com- tackling the shortage of affordable housing, and the
munity but also contribute to reducing energy con- project provides intensive social and technical sup-
sumption and greenhouse gas emissions. For exam- port and community building as well as funding.
ple, the programme provides funding to carry out Another financial mechanism is the use of subsi-
energy-saving projects, such as insulation or the in- dies and low-interest loans to incentivize homeown-
stallation of solar panels. Moreover, the programme ers to invest in energy-saving renovations and other
provides information and education to residents to sustainable housing improvements. The programme
help them understand the benefits of sustainable provides funding for these initiatives through a va-
housing and to encourage them to make informed riety of sources, including the city budget, regional
decisions about home improvements. This approach and national funds, and private sector investments.
helps to build awareness and knowledge among
residents, empowering them to take an active role in Spatial
creating sustainable and inclusive communities. ‘Gent knapt op’ focuses on reactivating existing
spaces. After living in their homes for a while, resi-
Legal dents may not see the possibilities of renovating
The programme both works as a stimulus for home- their own property any more. Therefore, technical
owners to act according to new regulations for more counselling is part of the programme. Technical ex-
sustainability and advocates at a governmental level perts and architects help owners find the best so-
for policies and regulations that support sustainable lutions and try to renovate the spaces according to
housing and social inclusion. their spatial needs. Attics are not only insulated, but
For example, the programme has successfully ad- also turned into bedrooms or children’s rooms, de-
vocated for the introduction of tax credits and sub- pending on the actual wishes of the residents.
sidies for homeowners who carry out energy-saving The ‘Gent knapt op’ project has a community com-
renovations or invest in renewable energy systems. ponent with the potential to strengthen neighbour-
These incentives help to make sustainable housing hood networks and increase participants’ role in
more accessible and affordable for residents and en- their neighbourhood and city. The project recognizes
courage homeowners to make sustainable improve- the role that social connections and a sense of com-
ments to their homes. munity can play in promoting overall quality of life.
The programme also advocates for regulations The research consortium measured the level of par-
that promote social inclusion, such as accessibility ticipant involvement in their city or neighbourhood
standards for housing and regulations that require before and after the renovation, as this can provide
landlords to maintain safe and healthy living condi- valuable insights into the impact of the project. In ad-
tions for their tenants. ‘Gent knapt op’ works with lo- dition, the increased opportunities for socializing in a
cal authorities to ensure that these regulations are newly renovated home, such as inviting over friends
enforced and that housing providers are held ac- and family, may also contribute to stronger social
networks.
184 185
Resource Rows, Copenhagen, Denmark Time-based Flexibility
Instruments: circular supply chains, material PASS

From waste out of a building to a building out of waste

passport, upcycling, re-interpretation

Initiators and designers: Lendager Group

Completion: 2020
Programme: 63 apartments and 29 terraced houses
Website: https://lendager.com/project/resource-
rows/

If circularity should become the new houses in the courtyard and on the roofscape are
made of recycled glass and window frames. Even the
standard for building, we need con-
concrete TT beam-bridge across the courtyard con-
vincing, realized examples that show necting the two parallel terraces roof-to-roof is recy-
us how circular building is techni- cled, from a nearby factory.
1. The Carlsberg Brewery is demolished and afterwards, the Copenhagen Metro removes temporary Since it was no longer possible to recycle indi-
structures such as scaffolding.
cally and organizationally feasible, vidual bricks due to the strength of the mortar, ex-
financially affordable and ready to be isting brick facades from various abandoned build-
ings were cut into square brick modules, which were
scaled up. Resource Rows is a circular
then assembled as a patchwork facade for the new
housing project in Copenhagen that terraced houses. The panels were mounted in steel
transforms 463 tons of waste from frames to form facade modules that were fixed to
a composite concrete/timber superstructure. On
nearby demolished buildings into brick level it saved 500 grammes of carbon per brick,
new space. By upcycling bricks from which is 70 per cent. The combination of vertical and
horizontal bricks and the offset surface gives the
the nearby Carlsberg Brewery and
scheme an almost knitted texture.
wasted wood from the Copenhagen In addition, large amounts of residual wood were
Metro, Resource Rows proves that upcycled as finishing material in the project’s in-
terior and for the rooftop community garden huts,
circular building can compete with much of it sourced from a construction site for a new
2. Materials are harvested and brought to the new construction site. regular prices, conventional quali- metro station nearby. In the making of the new sub-
way tunnels of Copenhagen’s expanding Metro, 900
ties, strict guarantees and – on top of
tonnes of larch wood was used in the transportation
that – offers a whole new aesthetics. and construction of concrete tunnel elements for the
new underground. 300 tonnes of it was reused in
Resource Rows is a housing block with 63 apart- Resource Rows. On exterior wood, an old Japanese
ments and 29 terraced houses in the new develop- technique (yakisugi) was applied, charring the sur-
ment area Ørestad Syd in Copenhagen that demon- face with fire to impregnate it, making it completely
strates that it is possible to reuse bricks and waste fireproof and resistant to fungus and insects without
wood in a new building without compromising on using any chemicals.
costs and aesthetics. The scheme is arranged around
a shared courtyard and roofscape, with two rows of Organizational
three-storey terraced houses book-ended by two As a true circular supply chain, Resource Rows has
five-storey apartment blocks. The facade features used waste as resources for its construction. Imple-
a unique pattern of brick tiled in different directions menting this circular supply chain required restruc-
that pays homage to the character and history of the turing the process of building material demolition
3. The Resource Rows project – a brand new housing block – refers of the city’s past by showing its reused Carlsberg breweries, old schools and abandoned and production, and reshuffling the roles involved
materials. homes that they were reclaimed from. The 29 green- based on an understanding of the traditional process
and interests of the stakeholders involved.
186 187
The standard demolition process had to be reor- as rooftop community garden huts with an allot-
ganized in order to save the materials and be able ment garden ambiance. Making circularity a realistic
to reuse these. Traditionally, a contractor will hire a and financially viable alternative for the traditional
demolition firm that tears down the building on the building material production process is the ambition
site and brings in a waste hauling company that then driving the architects. While the amount of existing
takes it all to the dump. Pieces of the building that and future waste material that could be upcycled
could be salvaged, such as doors, windows, high-end into new construction is immense, upcycling prac-
finishes and large-scale materials, are often not pre- tices will not scale up until pioneering projects like
served due to both an often tight schedule, lack of Resource Rows have tested and proven their eco-
space to store the materials, and no knowledge of who nomic and environmental merits.
would even be willing to purchase and reuse them. The project was underwritten based on a conven-
The biggest challenge however was to convince tional terraced house and apartment project mean-
the client and the main contractor that this was a via- ing that all sustainability efforts had to fit in a con-
ble solution; risk had to be taken out of the equation. ventional budget frame in order to be implemented.
Facing scepticism, Lendager Group restructured the Resource Rows has an upcycle percentage of 29 per
business so it could function as architect, demolition cent carbon dioxide emission saving per square me-
contractor and materials manufacturer. Lendager set tre (Life Cycle Assessment) and was still delivered
out to create the ‘missing pieces’, researching and for the same price per square metre as the equiva-
sourcing recycled material, designing prototypes lent block built traditionally. And although flat rent-
and finding partners to produce new building prod- als were slowing in Copenhagen even before the
ucts from old. Delivering the sustainable materials Covid-19 pandemic, properties in Resource Rows
themselves, they could eliminate the contractor’s were popular from the start. The project’s low carbon
risk, while using some of the money in the budget to footprint provided the catalyst to help client Nordic
investigate how to make these new materials cost- Real Estate Partners (NREP) differentiate itself from
neutral and as durable as regular products. the competition. Urban dwellers appear to be in-
The narrow timeframe added pressure to develop creasingly looking to live a responsible life with as
and deliver these innovations as well as locate local little climate impact as possible.
various buildings at the end of their lifespan from
which resources could be extracted. The time from Spatial
finding a building to harvesting it, then preparing The brick panels used on the Resource Rows project
the materials to build with, involved a much smaller are just a more orderly version of what can be seen
window than when a regular manufacturer had been in many old historic walls, which are often made up
used, who would have its products in stock. of an eclectic layering of reused stone and brick. It
was only with the development of new, harder, ce-
Legal ment-based mortar in the 1960s that bricks could no
The materials have been harvested and put into longer be recycled efficiently. The bricks themselves
production by the architects. They have developed crack before the mortar does, on demolition. For this
methods for scaling up the reuse of untapped re- reason, an innovative method was developed to cut
sources in ‘construction waste’ to build new homes, out larger squares of brick masonry to form into pan-
using sustainable non-toxic and certified materials. els, either by fixing them to a steel frame or bedding
Labelled and provided with an index that states the them into a thin backing layer of concrete.
features relevant for their position in the new build- Due to this new interpretation of the potential of
ing project, it is easy to implement them into the redundant brick walls, these walls can now be re-
new building. The recycled materials include facade used, thus contributing to a more circular environ-
bricks and aluminium, internal floors, exterior wood ment. This innovative approach makes it possible to
for terraces and decking and rooftop huts, including recycle and give the bricks many lives instead of just
the windows. one, while also getting a new building with history
and character. These inherent stories also function
Financial as shared references binding the tenants closer to-
Adding value and use to waste materials is at the gether as residents of the old Carlsberg Brewery and
core of this project. Resource Rows is using upcycled the Copenhagen Metro.
bricks and waste wood, a recycled concrete beam
used as a bridge and old windows and waste wood

188 189
Town Hall Extension, Korbach, Germany Time-based Flexibility
Instruments: reused materials mediator,
From a modernist town hall made out of concrete to a contemporary town hall
customization, upcycling, re-interpretation
made out of that same, reused concrete
Initiators: Municipality of Korbach
Design: heimspiel architekten Matzken
Kampherbeek PartGmbB and Christian Thomann
of agn Niederberghaus & Partner GmbH
Completion: 2022
Programme: Replacement of the town hall extension
Website: https://www.heimspielarchitekten.de/
projekte/rkb/

Implementing the circular use of pality of Korbach, which led to a sudden increase in
the number of inhabitants to around 23,000. As a
building materials by replacing
result, the town hall was expanded with a spacious
worn-out buildings with new ones modern concrete building right next to the historic
should be done with an open mind building, which provided office space for the higher
1. The modern and brutalist building structure of the Korbach Town Hall does not fit well into the medieval number of administrative staff. However, the over-
old town.
and without any prejudices. By sized structure of the brutalist building failed to fit
redeveloping its town hall, the city well into the medieval old town. In the following dec-
ades, public resistance against the modernist archi-
of Korbach has shown how building
tecture grew and the visible ageing of the concrete
materials can be radically different structure made the building even less popular.
after being reused and how an archi- The Korbach city council finally decided to rede-
sign the town hall quarter and launched a Europe-
tectural style can easily be set aside. wide realization competition in August 2016. In
A brutal modernist building was mid-2017, the joint design by heimspiel architekten
Matzken Kampherbeek PartGmbB and Christian
replaced by a contextual tailorized
Thomann of agn Niederberghaus & Partner was cho-
town hall with historic features, built sen as the winning design. It envisaged the creation
with a significant part of the building of a town hall ensemble consisting of the medieval
building and two interconnected gabled buildings
materials coming from the building that would replace the 1970s extension. The new
2. The brutal building structure is demolished and its building materials are carefully kept and inventoried. that had just been demolished. buildings jump back from the outline of the previ-
ous modernist structure and are parallel to the front
In medieval times, Korbach was located at the inter- facade of the medieval town hall building, creating
section of two important trade routes. Due to this fa- space for a new town square. In order to ensure the
vourable location, Korbach’s economy prospered and visibility of the staircase gable of the historic town
the population grew accordingly. In the vicinity of hall on the east facade, an originally proposed exten-
the original old town, new villages were built, which sion was not built. As a result, another proposed free-
over time grew together with the old town. With the standing structure placed at a distance from the his-
unification of the old and new town in 1377, the new toric stepped gable facade was extended, for which
joint town hall was built, which still characterizes the historic Brühmann House was demolished.
Korbach today. The central idea in the winning competition entry
In the following centuries, the town hall building was the use of the demolished old municipal build-
survived fires, economic decline and warlike con- ing as a source of materials for the new building. The
flicts in the town. In the early twentieth century, the aim of this circular process was to reuse as many
tower and the southern arcade were added. At the materials from the previous building as possible for
beginning of the 1970s, in the course of a municipal the new construction, thereby saving resources and
3. A new town hall, that fits much better into the medieval old town, is built using the old town hall’s materials. redivision, several previously independent surround- closing material cycles. The construction project was
ing communities were incorporated into the munici- realized in a three-year construction process starting

192 193
in 2019. The new ensemble was officially opened in them as construction waste requiring costly dispos-
April 2022. al, as is the case in conventional construction prac-
tice. Through the urban mining process, 5,000 tons
Organizational of the extracted demolition material was used to fill
The idea for the circular use of building materials was the foundation pit and create the subgrade, while an-
not part of the competition brief, but was brought in other 1,000 tons was recycled and used as recycled
by one of the members of the winning design team, concrete for floor slabs, ceilings, beams and exterior
Anja Rosen, who was at that time also related to walls in contact with the ground as part of the struc-
the Bergische Universität Wuppertal as a lecturer tural framework of the new building. Recycled ag-
in building construction, design and materials sci- gregates from 8 to 22 millimetres were used for this
ence. The circular concept focused on the reuse of recycled concrete. For the facade, 260 concrete pan-
the mineral building materials – primarily concrete els were manufactured with the help of this material
– which made up 95 per cent of the previous build- as well. The demolition material obtained from the
ing. From this demolition material, a recycled mate- red roof tiles of the dismantled historic Brühmann
rial aggregate was produced, which could be used to House was added to these panels in order to obtain
manufacture new concrete. Before demolition of the a slightly reddish colour. The 6,000 tons that were
old part of the building, concrete and bricks were an- thus used directly for the construction of the new
alysed in a laboratory with regard to their recyclabil- building represent approximately 62 per cent of the
ity. For this purpose, a representative sample of the total 9,848 tons of mineral demolition material ob-
material was examined, among other things, for its tained. The remaining 3,800 tons were taken away
composition of harmful substances and categorized for external recycling.
according to its aggregate. After a subsequent cal-
culation of the quantities of recycled concrete that Spatial
could be produced from the demolition material, the The project shows how the designers succeeded in
building was dismantled and the demolition mate- developing a concept in which the existing building
rial was separated, crushed, screened, washed and was viewed as an urban mine for reusable materi-
processed. als, highlighting its material potential rather than its
disruptive factor in the historic environment. Careful
Legal analysis showed what the potential of the materi-
To judge if the obsolete concrete could be reused als was for reuse, thus leading to a material base for
safely, the guidelines of the German Committee for new buildings. And while they were built, these new
Reinforced Concrete (DAfStb) were of central im- buildings were already seen as stores of materials for
portance. the future. They were designed to be reused as eas-
DIN EN 12620 regulates that only recycled aggre- ily as possible at the end of their life cycle. The ex-
gates that have no harmful effects on the environ- posed concrete elements of the new buildings were
ment, in particular on soil and groundwater, should left raw to ensure better recyclability. The modular
be used for the production of concrete, which had to roof elements of the new pitched zinc roof were de-
be confirmed by the laboratory testing. Additionally, signed in such a way that they can be easily sepa-
DIN 4226-100 provides an evaluation scheme ac- rated into different types of materials again in the fu-
cording to which recycled aggregates are to be ture. Irreversible bonding or mixing of materials was
categorized into four different types, of which only also avoided.
types one and two can be used for the production
of concrete. Accordingly, the proportion of recycled
aggregate in concrete must not exceed 45 per cent.
In order to meet these legal restrictions, an extensive
testing procedure had to be passed in a laboratory.
These tests showed that the intended circular use of
building materials would meet all restrictions.

Financial
From the very beginning, the entire project was de-
signed to create added value from the demolition
materials of the previous buildings and not to treat

194 195
Puukuokka Housing Block Jyväskylä, Finland Time-based Flexibility
Instruments: innovation booster, customization,
From carbon-dioxide-emitting buildings to carbon-capturing buildings
life cycle finance, modular building

Initiators: Lakea Oy housing developer, OOPEAA

Design: OOPEAA
Completion: 2018
Programme: housing (184 apartments, 14,000 m2),
shared facilities (4,650 m2)
Website: https://oopeaa.com/portfolio/puukuokka-
housing-block/

The Puukuokka apartment complex disturbance to the ground on the site and leaving
most of the pine and birch trees undisturbed.
in Jyväskylä city in Finland shows
Completed in 2015, Puukuokka One was the first
that modular building can provide eight-storey wooden apartment building in Finland.
surprisingly good answers to many It explores the potential of modular prefabricated
1. Jyväskylä has a natural hilly bedrock landscape with pine trees. CLT construction to meet the goal of providing high
challenges our building practice is quality, environmentally responsible and affordable
currently facing. The three buildings housing. Puukuokka Two was completed in 2017 and
Puukuokka Three in August 2018. The three build-
are made out of prefabricated CLT
ings together form a block that complements the
modular units. Based on biobased Kuokkala neighbourhood in Jyväskylä, Finland. It
materials such as wood, this build- puts an emphasis on the connection between the
city and the surrounding natural landscape of hills
ing method results in limited carbon and the lake. Together with the adjacent Kuokkala
dioxide emissions and a small Church designed by OOPEAA in 2010, it forms a fo-
cal point for the neighbourhood.
ecological footprint. With a clever
The ambition was to create a building that com-
combination of only eight repetitive bines the sense of warmth and privacy of a single-
modular units, the entire complex family dwelling with the semi-public character of the
shared spaces of an apartment building. Each apart-
offers affordable homes with a high ment is composed of two CLT modules, one hous-
2. The eight-storey Puukuokka Housing Block is built with prefabricated CLT modular units, exploring the quality for 184 households, from ing the living room, the balcony and the bedroom,
potential of this structural, biobased building material. the other housing the bathroom, the kitchen and the
single dwellers of all ages to families
foyer area. The apartments include a mix of studio
with children. flats, and one- and two-bedroom apartments. Each
apartment has its own sauna and a balcony. The
CLT is an engineered wood formed by glueing to- wooden balcony modules seem as though they have
gether several layers of wood at right-angles to been scattered randomly across the court-facing fa-
each other, making it much stronger and more rigid cade, some protruding, others recessed. The interi-
than normal wood. Manufacturer Stora Enso took ors of the flats with recessed balconies are wrapped
advantage of these properties to develop a modu- around the exterior space, their high glass facades
lar building system using only this material. These and sliding doors seamlessly connecting the indoor
lightweight modules make up the building’s main and outdoor spaces.
structural framework. Compared with typical con- In the interior, wood as a material is pleasantly
crete constructions, they can be installed in half the present in the hallways as well as in the apartments
time, with far fewer weather-related delays. Thanks themselves. The exterior of the building is also wood-
to this lightweight wooden modular construction en – larch panels clad both the front and rear of the
3. Based on the lessons learned building the first building, the other buildings are erected, completing the method it was also possible to keep the machinery building. The side facing the road has been painted
housing complex and respecting the site. considerably light and small in size, minimizing the black, while the courtyard-facing rear facade has
been left untreated and is covered with balconies.
196 197
The complex is built on a concrete foundation with tem is fitted. It has been estimated that, when real-
indoor parking spaces on the basement level. To ized in accordance with these regulations, a wooden
preserve the naturally hilly landscape of the site, as apartment building is fifty times more fire safe than
much of the bedrock has been left untouched as pos- a similar apartment building made of concrete.
sible. The building follows the contours of the site The urban plan has also been tailored to meet
to minimize disturbance to the underlying bedrock the needs of the building complex. Only part of the
and existing vegetation. Wood is a locally available, shared spaces is included in the calculations re-
renewable and recyclable material for construction. garding the permitted building volume. The shared
It also produces fewer emissions than for instance spaces thus have an open and spacious feel, while
concrete and provides remarkable carbon storage. the floor space of the individual units has not been
The goals set for creating an innovative concept for compromised on.
an ecologically and socially sustainable concept for
multi-family housing were exceedingly well met and Financial
the project was realized within the set budget frame- Puukuokka pilots a low-cost, low-risk financing
work and schedule. model for homebuyers. After renting a flat for 20
The Puukuokka complex has been extremely well years, the occupant becomes its owner. Before mov-
received by the residents, who praise it for creating ing in, the future owner pays a modest down pay-
a comfortable living environment with an excellent ment (7 per cent of the total value of the home). The
framework for a friendly and social neighbourhood. remaining sum is covered by a State-guaranteed
It has been recognized with several awards. bank loan. The occupants pay off the loan in the form
of rent over a 20-year period, after which the flat be-
Organizational comes their own. The sales price is negotiated and
Housing developer Lakea Oy initiated this innova- agreed upon when the lease is signed. This financial
tive approach to the construction process and re- arrangement is not only financially advantageous for
alized it in collaboration with the City of Jyväskylä. its users, but enlarges the sense of ownership from
The architect worked closely together with manu- the beginning, leading to better maintenance of the
facturer Stora Enso to design a building that could property.
serve well as a case study for what results prefabri-
cated elements can yield while reducing the cost and Spatial
construction time. At the start of the project in 2011 Puukuokka explores the potential of modular pre-
the Stora Enso concept was still in its preliminary fabricated CLT construction to provide environ-
stages. The close collaboration between architect mentally responsible and affordable housing of high
and manufacturer has been important in develop- quality. Puukuokka served as a pilot case to develop
ing many of the solutions applied in the final itera- and test a CLT-based system of volumetric modules.
tion of the Stora Enso Multi-Storey concept. In addi- The entire load-bearing structure and frame of the
tion to collaborating to develop a system that meets Puukuokka buildings is made of massive wood and
the technical requirements, the role of the architect composed of prefabricated volumetric CLT modules.
has been crucial in helping to streamline the overall The 276 CLT modules were prefabricated in a lo-
management of the production process and in mak- cal factory just an hour away from the site. The use
ing it possible to achieve high quality in the end re- of eight different module types enabled a large vari-
sult. Puukuokka is an excellent example of produc- ety of apartment types. All the modules came with
tive collaboration between architects and engineers fully finished interior surfaces and all the necessary
in developing a new concept that can be applied in fittings, ready for installation. The use of these kind
other cases. of prefabricated modules made it possible to cut the
construction time on site down to six months per
Legal building and to reduce the exposure to weather con-
Fire regulations had previously prohibited buildings ditions making it possible to achieve a higher quality
of this height being constructed from wood. But a in the end result.
change in Finland’s building code in 2010 – largely
prompted by the high fire-resistance of CLT – has
now made it possible to build an eight-storey block
with a wooden frame, as long as this load-bearing
structure is coated and an automated sprinkler sys-

198 199
The Triodos Bank, Driebergen-Rijsenburg, the Netherlands Time-based Flexibility
Instruments: design output monitor, material PASS

From a bank for money towards a bank for materials

passport, upcycling, biobased building

Initiator: Triodos Bank

Design and engineering: RAU Architects,
ARCARDIS Netherlands BV, EDGE Technologies,
Odette Ex (interior design)
Completion: 2019
Programme: Offices for the Triodos Bank
Website: https://www.triodos.nl/reehorst

With resources becoming increas- designed in an organic shape to adapt to the natural
outline of the surrounding woods. An integral spatial
ingly scarce, there is a growing need
plan let the office building serve as a new economic
P
to preserve and reuse materials as driver for the estate, which also accommodates a
much as possible. Currently, the congress centre and a farm. Pavements at the ter-
1. Although the Reehorst estate is very green, the estate is in a rather poor condition and needs maintenance. rain are mostly permeable to rainwater. The estate
majority of buildings lose their mate- also has an area for growing vegetables. The office
rial value after their demolition. The building contains a gross floor area of approximately
12,500 square metres.
headquarters of the Triodos Bank
As of today, the office building of Triodos Bank in
show that changing our perception the Netherlands sets new global standards in circu-
of buildings from the final stop in the lar construction. The energy-neutral building con-
sists of a wooden structure and a glass facade and
production chain into banks of mate- is designed to be completely dismountable. The
rials could be a great way to enhance materials used are documented in detail in a digi-
tal material passport. It is a pioneering example of
reuse and preserve the material value.
the principle of ‘buildings as material depots’, which
is to design buildings in such a way that materials
Triodos Bank was founded in 1980 and focuses on can be easily removed, making them a repository for
sustainable investment, ethical banking and cor- resources and materials that can be stored for later
porate social responsibility. A few years ago, Rau (re)use. This approach is a critical step in advancing
2. The Triodos Bank building is built as a completely demountable bank for materials. The project adds new Architects were commissioned to plan and design circular building design and can potentially mean
landscape qualities to the Reehorst estate as well as an increase of its biodiversity. the new Triodos Bank headquarters near Zeist, the significant progress, given that an estimated 40 per
Netherlands. The building was completed in 2019, cent of the buildings expected to be in use in the EU
and being a pioneer in sustainable thinking, Triodos in 2050 have not yet been constructed.
Bank had set the goal to have it designed with a
strong focus on sustainability, energy efficiency Organizational
and environmental responsibility. What makes this By working in close collaboration with technical ex-
building special is its ambitious, innovative and all- perts, the architects developed and made use of a
embracing approach to sustainability, which is pri- well-balanced variety of emissions-reducing design
oritized in the construction, maintenance and future elements, in order to predict the carbon footprint
of the design. of the building and implement sustainable assets
Located within the De Reehorst estate, dating back to make the building net zero. The building is de-
to 1850, Triodos planned to preserve and strengthen signed with smart heat and cold storage. It is part of
the spatial, cultural-historical and ecological quality the local water cycle and a green roof helps reduce
of the estate and its surroundings. The architects’ heat absorption and stormwater runoff. Additionally,
land use plan reinforces the ecological structure of 3,300 square metres of solar panels on the terrain
3. When the building is no longer in function, it is demounted, leaving no traces behind in its green the existing landscape, providing a habitat for ena- provide around 506,000 kilowatt-hours of solar
surroundings. bles bats, birds and amphibians. The building was power a year. The use of renewable energy to pow-

202 203
er the building as well as numerous bicycle parking assembled at the time of demolition. As they are dig-
spaces and electric company cars for car sharing, itally documented, their functionality and state after
making it a truly sustainable and forward-looking use are also ensured, and they can be reused without
project. The architects promoted emissions- reduc- imposing a safety hazard.
ing and sustainable assets with nearly every element
of their design. Even with the materiality they chose Financial
assets like highly thermally insulated block windows, Upcycled materials are recyclable materials with a
which regulate the temperature and the 2,623 cu- value that does not devaluate, but can even increase
bic metres of wood store more than 1.6 million kilo- when they are used or reused. The building was con-
grammes of carbon dioxide. The design choices re- structed using different kinds of upcycled materials.
sult in the building having one of the lowest carbon The easily demountable wooden structure parts, for
footprints to date. example, keep their value as building materials after
The building was also designed to be constructed a future demolition.
with great respect for the surrounding nature. All ma- The Bank offers safe and resourceful storage of
terial movements and work schedules were planned materials that can be ‘harvested’ and upcycled in a
to minimize disturbance to wildlife and to maintain new building in the future. This way, the architects
a peaceful environment. As a result of their efforts created a space that reflects the bank’s values, fo-
to be carbon neutral, the Triodos Bank building has cusing on ethical and sustainable banking practices.
received a BREEAM rating of ‘outstanding’ for its Also the construction of the core of the building, with
commitment to sustainability. BREEAM certification a concrete structure for the basement, is an example
is held in high regard because it is completely inde- of upcycled materials. The concrete is made from re-
pendent, and the assessment is carried out by a third cycled aggregates.
party. To prevent possible future waste of materials
within the building, the structures have a high de- Spatial
gree of flexibility, enabling various future uses with The Triodos Bank is an exemplary biobased building
only limited necessary architectural changes. which showcases the use of natural resources in its
materials and design. Notably, the building’s prom-
Legal inent use of wood in its structure is a striking fea-
This is one of the first buildings with a material pass- ture. The laminated rafters and CLT cores are clearly
port to ensure that once the building is to be demol- visible, while the CLT floors are partially hidden by
ished, the materials are known and can easily be re- wooden tracks and climate-controlling ceiling ele-
used. To reimagine how valuable materials can be ments. Most of the wood used for the furniture and
recycled, the architects and engineers developed a flooring is locally sourced, further emphasizing the
system to identify and track materials in a building. building’s sustainability.
With a digital material passport, they established a In the interior, wooden furniture elements are
database that can recover the position of materials. combined with wall-covering natural textiles, giving
By documenting detailed information about the lo- the interior spaces good acoustics. The insolation of
cation, size and use of a building element, they give the roofs is reinforced by a layer of soil, for natural
the material itself a form of ‘identity’ that makes rainwater retention and as a good base for plants
them independent of their current use. The system and insects.
developed is used during the engineering of the pro-
ject. Thus, the Triodos Bank is a pioneering example
of how materials can be ‘stored’ in a building and re-
used after the building’s function is over: the building
becomes a bank for materials.
To make the building’s resources as recyclable
and reusable as possible, the architects made eve-
ry element easily demountable. Besides tracking
and identifying all building elements in a detailed
Material passport, the architects designed the build-
ing without wet joints, using a total of 165,312 screws
to be able to completely dismantle the building after
its use. Every item, including the screws, can be dis-

204 205
Atelier LUMA, Arles, France Time based flexibility
Instruments: circular supply chains, sustainability
From a former industrial production site to a laboratory for bioregional
protocol, subsidy, biobased building
production
Initiator: Maja Hoffmann
Designers: Atelier LUMA, Assemble,
BC architects & studies
Completion: 2023
Programme: Programme: design and material
research laboratory, offices and a multipurpose
space
Website: https://www.atelier-luma.org/

Now that the globalized market of ture is developed based on Atelier LUMA’s research
around textile and invasive plants. Broken roof tiles
building products is increasingly
were reused in the floor, embedded in a slick surface
in trouble because of its growing of polished terrazzo. Rice straw, sunflower stems,
environmental footprint and in- salt, soil and limestone waste all find their way onto
1. The Magasin Electrique building is part of an industrial railway site in Arles. the site of the former railway electrical shop, reimag-
secure costs, building materials ined as thermal and acoustic insulation and rammed
that are locally found, harvested or earth interior walls, among other things.
Le Magasin Électrique is a research and proto-
produced are getting rediscovered.
typing space that consists of a biolab, wood, ceram-
By investigating the resources of ics, textile and DTP workshops, office spaces, a dye
the Camargue bioregion and by house, a materials-testing lab and a functional plant
garden. The Agora, a large central space in the build-
connecting different fields of local ing, hosts temporary exhibitions and events open to
expertise, Atelier LUMA is developing the public. On site, visitors can discover the techni-
cal and aesthetic research carried out and immerse
fundamental ecological, economic
themselves in the history of this pilot rehabilitation.
and social alternatives. Its projects At the heart of the approach, one can find the val-
are implemented locally while their orisation of traditional know-how, collective experi-
ments on the site, the development of materials
principles can be replicated in other rooted in the Arles bioregion and the creation of a
2. After a period of vacancy, atelier LUMA uses the building as a research and prototyping lab for bioregional contexts and regions. The renova- local and international network of expertise to share
materials. knowledge.
tion of the 2,000-square-metre Le
Le Magasin Électrique is the manifestation of a
Magasin Électrique is the biggest new kind of low-carbon, bioregional architecture
manifestation of their work so far. that takes cues from ancient practices. Like in me-
dieval days, it is based on an experimental and open
Located at the Parc des Ateliers in Arles, the former way of designing by prototyping on the site, testing
industrial site Le Magasin Électrique has been reno- it and in this way discovering what can be used in
vated and reused as the home for Atelier LUMA, a the new building. The end result was not based on a
pioneering material and design laboratory, which predetermined total design, but was the unexpected
is part of LUMA Arles, an experimental cultural outcome of a number of experiments each with their
center located in the South of France. Le Magasin own result. In this sense the process was more im-
Électrique is built and equipped with the results of portant than the outcome. Atelier LUMA, Assemble
Atelier LUMA’s research, focusing on bioregional de- and BC architects & studies jointly decided on the
sign practices. Almost every raw or recycled mate- programming and the design, while doing research
rial was sourced and processed within 70 kilometres by prototyping on the site. The renovation of the site
3. The resulting building remains a space for experiment and, consequently, will never be finished. from the site. Its door handles, for example, are made enabled the implementation of Lot 8, a long-term re-
of salt. Its walls are made of sunflowers. Its furni- search project for a bioregional architecture, guided

206 207
by principles of locality and sustainability and con- Financial
necting with the region’s landscape and people. The Atelier LUMA is funded by Maja Hoffmann, a Swiss
construction site, a large-scale prototype, brought art patron and heiress to the Roche pharmaceuti-
together many local partners and was the occasion cal fortune. Hoffmann grew up in Arles, where her
for collective workshops and training sessions on the father, Luc, was a pioneering naturalist who fought
materials and techniques developed. The resulting to conserve the region’s Camargue wetlands and co-
building is a true living lab, a space to experiment founded the World Wildlife Fund. She sees Atelier
in and in that sense, it is a building that will never be LUMA as a means of continuing his work.
finished. In 2004, Hoffmann founded the LUMA Foundation
(Zurich) as a vehicle for her ongoing artistic commit-
Organizational ments, followed by LUMA Arles (France) in 2013,
Atelier LUMA is deeply connected to its geograph- an experimental and cross-disciplinary platform
ic and cultural environment: the Camargue region, dedicated to the production of exhibitions, art and
the Alpilles mountains, and the Crau plains. Atelier ideas, research, education and archives. The LUMA
LUMA’s work began with a cartography of the differ- Foundation includes a resource centre designed by
ent industries, plants, resources and waste products architect Frank Gehry; various industrial buildings
in the region identifying streams of materials and lo- renovated and converted by architect Annabelle
cal knowledge. Atelier LUMA engaged an extensive Selldorf; and a public park designed by landscape
network of scientists, institutional and industrial architect Bas Smets. The site’s main building, by
partners to research bioregional resources of the Gehry, opened in the summer of 2021, and uses
Camargue region, in order to develop building ma- tiles made out of salt that were produced by Atelier
terials. Mainly sourced from agricultural and quarry LUMA. Le Magasin Électrique, where Atelier LUMA
waste streams in the region, different resources were is housed, was completed in May 2023.
collected, studied and developed.
For the rammed earth – compressed earth blocks Spatial
and earth mortar – Sarragan debris sand and Nimes All of Atelier LUMA’s research themes are related to
demolition waste were used. These materials were biobased building. A team of 30 researchers – with
used for the load-bearing internal walls in the build- backgrounds in product design, chemistry, sociology,
ing and gave them their characteristic white colour. biology, economics and engineering – has been stud-
Earth (base layer) plaster was composed of the or- ying everything from algae dyes to sunflower leather.
ange clay slurry from Vallabrix as well as Sarragan’s Following extensive testing and certification, many
debris sand. The resources were wet, mixed, sprayed, of these experimental materials were used in the ac-
compressed, smeared and/or cured in order to dis- tual building.
cover their potential as a building material. This With its Algae Lab, Atelier LUMA is working on
resulted in both handmade and lab testing. Those the production of biopolymers that can be used as
deemed to have potential were further developed biodegradable plastics. The Camargue Cane work-
into full-scale validated prototypes, with the involve- shop explores how Provencal cane, which is found
ment of the executing craftsmen and contractors. in abundance in the south of France, can be pro-
The validation happened through different sets of cessed to produce a pulp from which you can make
norms (German, French, European). In the end, six paper or even large laminated panels. The Smart
building materials were developed and validated. Fiber Factory uses the agricultural waste of the local
rice production, processing its fibres to create high-
Legal quality biostratified materials, using the entire waste
The method of Atelier LUMA can be seen as the man- stream. The Atelier’s Sunflower Company only uses
ifestation of a sustainability protocol based in the the waste from sunflower cultivation for different
Camargue bioregion aiming to promote a sustain- products, one of them being the earth plaster that
able production and consumption model of closed was used in the building. It contains the chopped
regional and biobased loops. These shared goals of stems and piths of the Camargue sunflower waste.
Atelier LUMA formed the basis for the selection of While the strong stem fibre gives structure, the soft
all the partners involved. From the designers and the and elastic pith provides for a lightweight aggregate,
farms and quarries to the craftsmen who helped with resulting in a porous and elastic plaster which ab-
the optimization of the production processes and the sorbs sound at the same value as PUR foam acoustic
renovation of the building. panels, reaching an Įof 0.7 (tested in ENTPE Lyon).

208 209
210 211
Crèche Justice, Paris, France Time-based Flexibility
Instruments: reused materials mediator, sustain-
From an unused spot to a circular building for the neighbourhood
ability protocol, life cycle finance, rooftop benefits

Initiators: Mairie de Paris, Ville de Paris – Direction

du Patrimoine et de l’Architecture Service de la Petite
Enfance et Environnement Social, BERIM, AGI2D
Design: BFV Architects
Completion: 2021
Programme: Childcare centre for 140 children
Website: https://bfv.team/en/projects/faire-plus-
avec-moins

Like many other cities, Paris is trying tious than these legal restrictions. The building was
not only to have a low energy usage, it also had to be
to find ways to reduce the environ-
partly circular and have a flexible structure, so that
mental impact of the building sector. different future uses would be possible.
The Crèche Justice, a nursery in the The chosen design met all those ambitious sus-
1. Rue Justice has some neglected corners while the neighbourhood lacks social facilities such as childcare. tainability goals. Trying to find the best fit in its tight
20th district of Paris, shows that location, the five building floors are all exactly the
many ambitions for more sustain- same size, while originally, the programme asked
for more variation between the different floor sizes.
ability can be achieved by densifying
The additional benefit of this straight building vol-
existing urban tissue with flexible ume is that it stimulates an economic, repetitive
building structures made out of use of building materials. To provide sufficient out-
side spaces – which are crucial for the intended pro-
circular and reused materials. gramme – each floor has a generous outside terrace.
These terraces are covered with reused oak doors,
The Creche Justice is an initiative of the municipality that function as sun protection, fall-through protec-
of Paris, who wanted to add this social facility to the tion and relate the building to its surroundings with
densely populated 20th arrondissement at the east the right scale.
side of the inner city. The Creche, named after the For the building’s structure predominantly drywall
street it is located in, the Rue de la Justice, is con- construction was used, with load-bearing facades
sidered by the municipality as an essential social made of precast concrete with integrated insulation.
2. The desired nursery is realized in a circular and flexible building structure. service in a neighbourhood full of young families. This construction method implies a strict stacking
Having good local childcare contributes to social in- of levels in an elementary form. A simple grey paint
clusion as it potentially provides young families with on the exterior facade and a pore sealer on the inte-
a dual income and makes young women financially rior facade finished the concrete’s raw appearance.
independent. The interior is made of wooden partitions, minimiz-
The possibility to densify the urban tissue with the ing the use of gypsum boards. Material choices are
public facility arose when two separate plots were sober and simple. The interior partitions have dry
joint, one owned by a housing corporation and one in connections, allowing for maximum flexibility in the
use as a small strip of public vegetation. As the ini- building and preparing for a future reuse of these
tiator and future owner, the municipality of Paris saw materials.
a chance to realize a building project meeting many
sustainability goals. In France, the building sector is Organizational
responsible for 44 per cent of the energy use and 25 The building was initially designed with a wooden
per cent of the carbon dioxide emission. The RE2012 facade. However, no suitable supplier could be found
national sustainability law, which constrains the use until the project team saw an opportunity at a nearby
of energy in building projects, tries to reduce the construction site: 621 corridor doors were about to
3. Having a flexible building structure, the building can easily change into a facility for elderly people. footprint of the building sector. The Paris municipal- be disposed of because they did not meet the new
ity demanded a building design that was more ambi- building regulations.

212 213
Bellastock, an expert in material reuse, conducted a Windows on opposite facades allow for good natural
study on the feasibility and viability of the reuse of ventilation, and maximize the amount of daylight in-
these wooden doors, finally guaranteeing a proper side, reducing the need for artificial light.
implementation of old materials into the new design. On the roof, a pergola supporting the solar pan-
The oakwood doors were first stored in a ware- els creates an additional sheltered outdoor play area,
house for ten months. The storage period was cru- on the 194-square-metre planted roof terrace. The
cial as it had to match the construction schedule. building’s optimal exposure enables a good energy
Subsequently, a carpenting company took care of performance, and the solar panels of the roof power
the preparation of the interior doors as outside fa- the interior installations, as well as the outdoor light-
cade elements. The doors were repaired with wood ing. Solar boilers provide additional heating for the
filler. The paint was sanded off and the doors were water used in the kitchen and in the bathrooms.
reassembled in order to make facade modules with
a one-floor height (3.2 metres). By attaching them Spatial
onto a steel frame, the assembly only took ten days. As the programme of childcare requires an excellent
The door knobs were reused in the interior as coat quality of outdoor space and the surrounding space
hangers. In the end, 60 per cent of the 621 doors of the building is limited, creating this space was
were reused. a challenge in this project. The rooftop is arranged
It was a real opportunity to find these doors, since as a playground and at each level, huge terraces are
oakwood could never have been used here, because attached to the main structure of the building. The
of its high price. This reuse process ensures a very rooftop accommodates a roof garden, compensat-
strong and durable facade cladding. Besides that, ing the little green spot that the building was built
the repurposing of old doors reduced the costs sig- upon. The solar panels on the roof provide the build-
nificantly. ing with shelter on sunny days.

Legal
The project brief, initiated by the Mayor of Paris, set
high sustainability ambitions, asking for innovative
ways to build with circular materials whilst keeping
the budget tight. This stimulated the use of circular
materials.
Though the building was designed in accordance
with the RT2012 law, setting limits to the primary en-
ergy of buildings and asking for bioclimatic architec-
ture, it is, in some aspects, more ambitious. Limiting
the emissions caused by the construction process,
the project anticipated much tighter regulations. In
order to reduce the amount of building materials, the
building had to be designed as efficiently as possi-
ble. Great attention was paid to the choice of ma-
terials, reusing as many as possible, maximizing the
use of wood and making sure that all interior finishes
were healthy (with no VOC emissions) for the build-
ing users.

Financial
The building’s design ensures reasonable operation
costs thanks to simple installations and easy mainte-
nance of building systems and facades.
The whole building is designed to be adaptable to
different usages over its lifetime, ensuring the rel-
evance of its construction over the years and pre-
venting its obsolescence. The nursery has quite a
compact shape, ensuring an efficient use of heating.

214 215
 About the Authors

Temp.architecture was founded in 2011 by Maarten

van Tuijl and Tom Bergevoet. The firm focuses on de-
sign and research. Its name is based on the concept
of time: the firm works from the conviction that time
is a crucial factor for reaching sufficient, sustainable
design solutions. Temp.architecture works on as-
signments that vary in size, from renovation and in-
terior design to planning projects on an urban scale.
Recurrent themes are flexibility, transformation,
circularity and climate adaptation. Though the first
Circular housing blocks De Punt, Amsterdam, the Netherlands designs of the firm were not executed, for instance
the temporary extension of the Amsterdam Olympic
Stadium, recent designs were realized, such as the
entrance area of the Amsterdam UMC hospital and
the social housing block Diderot. Currently, the firm
is preparing the realization of their designs for the
nature-inclusive residential area Weespertrekvaart
and the circular housing blocks De Punt. Temp.archi-
tecture often works in close collaboration with tech-
nical experts and other designers. The Flexible City
book series, of which this book is the third, forms a
continuous dialogue between the theoretical knowl-
edge of the firm and its daily design practice.
Off-grid house in the forest, Småland, Sweden Adaptable mixed-use building De Kleine Omval, Amsterdam, the
Netherlands

Tom Bergevoet (1972, Utrecht) is an architect, re- Maarten van Tuijl (1972, Amsterdam) is an archi-
searcher and writer. After obtaining his Master’s tect, publicist and an expert for the EU Programme
degree in Architecture from the Delft University of URBACT. He is also a visiting guest lecturer at the Delft
Technology, Tom worked for SANAA (Tokyo), OMA, University of Technology and a number of academies.
Architectenbureau Koen van Velsen, and Architec- Maarten graduated as Master of Science in Advanced
tuurstudio Herman Hertzberger, where he helped Architectural Design at Columbia University in New
design the multifunctional Tivoli Vredenburg mu- York. After working for Rafael Vinoly, Dok architecten
sic centre in Utrecht. Tom is guest lecturer at the and UN Studio, he collaborated with the Japanese
Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment at architect Naoko Hikami at na-ma architecture on
the Delft University of Technology and the Academy various projects till 2011. Maarten has been a mem-
of Architecture at the Amsterdam University of the ber of the Dutch Repurposing Team and Lead Expert
Arts. Tom believes that good architecture contributes for the URBACT sub>urban network. Working close-
to its environment in many ways, giving significance ly together with Lead Partner Antwerp, Oslo, Vienna,
to the public realm, reinforcing social and ecologi- Dusseldorf, the Area Metropolitana Barcelona, Brno,
cal networks, leaving a modest ecological footprint Casoria, Baia Mare and Solin, on the transformation
and, last but not least, being highly appreciated by of their post-war urban areas. Maarten enjoys look-
its users. In collaboration with other designers and ing for the most suitable solution for complex chal-
researchers, Tom recently worked on the design of lenges together with others, also taking quality of life
the entrance area of the Amsterdam UMC hospital and beauty into account as important goals.
and the book publication The Flexible City.

Nature-inclusive residential area Weespertrekvaart, Amsterdam, the Netherlands

216 217
About the Reporters

These reporters were a great help to the authors Tallula Oellerich (1998, Berlin, Germany) is a Berlin- Niklas Scheuer (1997, Berlin, Germany) is special- Anna Tsagkalou (1991, Athens, Greece) is an archi-
writing this book. All interested in the themes of the based interior and spatial designer. She studied at ized in urban research, planning and design. He holds tect/sustainability engineer and cofounder of MOR
book in their own way and all familiar with another the Glasgow School of Art and Pratt Institute in New a Bachelor’s degree in urban and regional planning, Studio. She graduated from National Technical Uni-
part of Europe, the reporters initially collected and York. With her bachelor thesis centred around The a Master’s degree in urban studies, and is current- versity of Athens (NTUA) and continued her studies
proposed numerous possible projects and examples. Flexible City; Sustainable Solutions for a Europe in ly pursuing a double Master’s degree in urban de- at TU Delft where she obtained a Master’s degree in
Partly based on this input, a balanced selection could Transition, her core focus lies in sustainable planning sign and architecture. He has studied at Technical Building Technology. Anna believes in an integrated
be made of analyses, instruments and example pro- and reinventing modular architecture. Since graduat- University Berlin, University of California at Berkeley, design approach, where climate and energy perfor-
jects from all over Europe, highlighting the themes ing, she has worked at Studio Aisslinger and curated and six universities in Brussels, Vienna, Copenhagen, mance-driven design are used as integral tools for
of this book in different ways. Subsequently, the re- exhibitions at Haus der Statistik in Berlin. In 2022, and Madrid. Currently based in Shanghai for a one- creating sustainable architecture. In addition to her
porters did detailed research on the selected projects she relocated to New York to explore international year residency at Tongji University, his primary in- architectural and research projects, which primar-
and cowrote the texts together with the authors. developments in reshaping urban building systems terests lie in urban tourism and mobility research, ily concentrate on building transformations and the
and advancing material reuse. She is currently pur- sustainable urbanism and housing as well as urban application of digital tools to quantify sustainability,
suing a Master’s degree in Interior Architecture. analytics. she actively participates in events and publications
to raise awareness about sustainable design.

Joseph Siebenaler (1999, Luxembourg) studied Aurélie Griveaux (1996, Créteil, France) is a French Paulina Szuba (1994, Stalowa Wola, Poland) is an ar- Anna-Marie Mašková (1996, Prague, Czech Republic)
Architecture at the Glasgow School of Art and Uni- Architect. She studied architecture and landscape chitect, designer and researcher. In 2015, she started is a designer and researcher. Circular economy, fu-
versity of the Arts in Berlin, and is now studying the design in France, and has a Master’s degree in her career, gaining professional experience working ture-proof circular design and renovations are the
Urban Policy dual-degree at Sciences Po in Paris and Architecture, from the Delft University of Technology. for both international and Polish architectural firms. focus of Anna-Marie’s work. Thanks to her varied
LSE in London. Both creative and practical, Joseph Her academic work focuses on gender concerns in In 2018, she obtained a Master’s degree in archi- education, she is experienced at designing across
combines the artistic experience of his studies with India. After graduating, she cofounded MOR Studio, tecture. Since then, she has been working together scales from interior to urban. She holds Master’s de-
technology-based solutions and creates work inde- an architecture and engineering office, focused on with one of the biggest architectural firms in Poznan, grees in Urban Design and Building in Development
pendent of his studies. He is particularly interested sustainable architecture. She now works at ZUS. As where she designs mostly high-rise and residential from University College London and a Bachelor’s
in the spatial conditions of European cities, using a an architect, Aurélie focuses on user-centred design architecture. In 2020, she founded her own studio degree with honors in Interior Architecture from the
variety of representational methods to investigate and inclusivity. She strives for the creation of more GASPA, collaborating with other firms in the archi- University of Brighton. In 2021, Anna-Marie joined
and communicate these qualities and to propose biodiverse and resilient environments, focusing on tecture and graphic design field. the Master’s programme in Architecture at the Acad-
striking new possibilities. people as much as other living organisms. emy of Architecture in Amsterdam. In the coming
years, she strives to expand her experience in circu-
lar architecture, in addition to researching the socio-
economic impact of the climate crisis.
218 219
Acknowledgements This book could not have been written without contributions Photocredits Temp architecture: 216 (top right)
from the following Wouter Jansen: 216 (top left)
This book was made possible thanks to financial support from Thierry Kinet: 76 Scofo: 216 (right, second from the top)
the following Koen Haer Copernicus Land Monitoring: 77 Parallel: 216 (bottom), design by Temp.architecture with
Frank Reniers Lars Gruber: 78 Architecten Cie, Flux Landscape Architecture and Raumplan
The Creative Industries Fund NL Bart Stoffels Delphine Mathy: 79 Martin Wengelaar: 217
Dutch Ministry of Interior and Kingdom Relations Gertjan de Werk Saliampoukou Olga@photolgaphy_: 80
Agenda Stad Sybren Bosch Cirkelstad: 81 Credits of graphic schemes, sections and drawings:
City Deal Public Space Kasper Spaan Ensapl - HABITER2030: 82 Temp.architecture
City Deal Circular and Conceptual Building Lara Rodenburg Joyce van den Berg, Gemeente Amsterdam: 83
Van Eesteren-Fluck & Van Lohuizen Stichting Joyce van den Berg Jeroen Broeckx: 84
Waternet Bas Horsting Atelier Loidl: 88
Regional public water authority Amstel Gooi en Vecht Lejla Duran City of Gothenburg: 89
City of Amsterdam Katrine Øhrberg Buro JP: 90
Temp.architecture Vera Noldus CELL: 91
Joan Caba Roset Wikimedia Commons: 93
Roman Keller: 94
The drawings (maps, elevations, sections and other) in this Nottingham City Council: 95
book are interpretations by the authors of actual analyses, David Boureau: 96
projects and situations. The texts are the result of extensive Elena Rosa: 100
research of different sources by the authors and the reporters. freepik / @ wavebreakmedia_micro: 101
The authors and the reporters have made a great effort to Nils Petter Dale: 102
describe the projects and subjects both factually correct and Malta Public Transit: 103
to place them in the wider perspective of the book. Municipality of Athens: 104
Radu Malasincu: 105
The text about the Klimatilpasning Kokkedal was written with Zala Strojin Božič: 106
the help of Realdania and is based on the following sources: Ponderosa Templeton: 107
Klimatilpasning Kokkedal: Evaluering af de vandtekniske GRIMSHAW: 108
aspekter by Ole Fryd and Marina Bergen Jensen, 2018; Anders Rajendiram: 112
Klimatilpasning Kokkedal: Erfaringer og anbefalinger fra et Victoria Tomaschko: 113
partnerskab by Dorthe Hedensted Lund, 2018 Francesco Jodice: 114
Laura Guerrero-Ajuntament de Barcelona: 115
We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of many others who baubüro in situ ag, Foto: Martin Zeller: 116
are not named here, especially those who contributed to our Jan-Kees Steenman: 117
previous books, which were the base for this book. We would Andreas Muhs: 118
also like to thank those who helped the reporters and us to IBA Hamburg GmbH / bloomimages: 119
describe the example projects in Chapter 4 and those who Frederik Beyens: 120
made pictures available to us. In-situ: 129
Karolina Samborska: 130
Several publications by the authors preceded this book Steffen Stamp for Realdania: 135
DEL RIO BANI: 139, 140
De Flexibele Stad; Oplossingen voor leegstand en krimp (2013) Åke E:son Lindman: 145 (top)
The Flexible City; Sustainable Solutions for a Europe in PatrickDegerman: 145 (bottom)
Transition (2016) Katja Effting: 149, 150
Hertha Hurnaus: 159, 160
We would like to thank our colleagues at Temp.architecture Temp.architecture: 165 (top)
who worked on the graphic visualizations in this book Stadt Wien/Christian Fürthner, stand 2019: 165 (bottom)
Filip Dujardin: 169
EFL STICHTING Lisa Paramzina Jeroen van der Wielen: 170
Alexandra Shilova Poltred studio: 175 (top)
Kevin Groothuis Ilimelgo architects: 175 (bottom)
Marcus Eliasson: 179, 180
Hanne Van Assche: 185
Rasmus Hjortshøj: 189, 190
ARGE agn heimspielarchitekten: 195 (top)
Caspar Sessler: 195 (bottom)
Mikko Auerniitty & OOPEAA: 199, 200
Ossip van Duivenbode: 205
Adriaan Deweerdt: 209 (top), 210 (top right, bottom left),
211 (top right, bottom right)
Joseph Halligan: 209 (bottom)
Victor&Simon / Joana Luz: 210 (top left), 211 (bottom left)
Laurens Bekemans: 210 (bottom right)
Jean-Baptiste Marcant: 211 (top left)
Côme Bocabeille: 215

220 221
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222
All over Europe, cities struggle with an accumulation of environmental
crises like global warming, the depletion of natural resourses, pollution
and the extinction of species. If we want to keep our cities liveable,
we have to make them circular and climate-adaptive.

Making our planning methods, production processes and building

economies circular in order to remove the causes of the environmental
crises is a tough assignment. Turning our cities into climate-adaptive
environments, ready to cope with the negative consequences of these
crises, is not easy either. Despite strict agreements such as those limiting
global warming (Paris 2015) or protecting biodiversity (Montreal 2022),
the pace of change in our cities is too slow. Apparently, their planning
system has to be reformed.

This book presents a toolbox with which circularity and climate adaptation
can be implemented successfully. Based on existing local qualities, the
proactivity of users and a step-by-step approach, a method is presented
in this book that is tailored to the European situation, with its democratic
tradition, the ways heritage is acknowledged, and how it moves along
with the unpredictability of economic tides.

With the help of a network of local reporters, authors Tom Bergevoet

and Maarten van Tuijl compare European cities, identify similarities
and trends and describe tools and successful examples in detail. This
creates an inspiring handbook for anyone contributing to the future of
the European city: from civil servants and policymakers to developers,
designers, builders and users.

At Temp.architecture.urbanism, Tom Bergevoet and Maarten van Tuijl

work on architecture, urbanism and research.

nai010 publishers, Rotterdam

www.nai010.com
ISBN 978-94-6208-833-7 (e-book)
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