At a time of mounting ecological crises and biodiversity loss, there is an urgent need for nature-based solutions. Equestrian properties cover a considerable proportion of the European rural and peri-urban landscape and provide much potential for integrating ecosystem services, such as the inclusion …

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the insights gained by testing in a design studio a particular research-by-design strategy, focusing on the generation of innovative solutions for climate change adaptation. The strategy is based on the Design Thinking Process and has been applied in the climate …

Currently a worldwide biodiversity crisis is going on and a sixth mass extinction seems to be approaching, because of human actions more than 10.000 species are currently on the brink of extinction (Tilman, Clark, & Williams, 2017). Acting on this crisis is therefore important and restoring biodiversity …

This article proposes that identity formation and reformation are important dynamics that influence and are influenced by the course of a sustainability transition. We study identity (re-)formation in the transition of the dairy sector in a rural area in the Netherlands: the Green Heart. Soil subsidence, …

Due to a recent law from the Dutch cabinet (Actieplan Ammoniak) it is recently possible for pig farmers to sell their business to the state. In the Province of North Brabant, more than 300 farmers have subscribed for this rule, which means that many of the barns and farms will lose their purpose and …

Crustumerium was an Iron Age settlement north of Rome, inhabited between 850 and 500 BC. On the basis of archaeological field surveys in the 1970’s a scenario for the development of the city and its countryside was proposed, which matches traditional models of city-state formation. However, little attention …

The Exodus of rural settlers to urban centers with greater attractiveness of quality of life, has brought serious consequences to the rural environments all over the world. An example of this phenomenon is Spain, that has around 3,000 abandoned villages, half of them in Galicia. These settlements have …

Abandoned villages and ruins are the consequence of depopulation. The region of A Ribeira Sacra (Galicia, Spain) is an example, where since 1981 the region has lost 40% of the population. A sustainable masterplan based on a strategy will bring a future to those areas by using the ruins and reactivate …

This design offers an alternative of camping into nature reserves. 'Into the Dutch wild' promotes immersive access to the Dutch landscape by facilitating architectural campsite interventions within the natural, yet human made, landscape of Flevoland. Around the world, nature reserves are either being …

Cairo. Home to twenty million people, bursting at the seams. An archipelago of planned and unplanned districts. How should this metropolis prepare for future growth? ‘Delta Strikes Back’ focuses on the rapidly urbanising agricultural landscape within the Nile Delta. Environmental pressure, ‘water wars’ …