Developing a framework to compare the performance of territories-in-between across Europe: Defining a set of sustainability indicators

This paper is part of a PhD research with the aim to gain a better understanding of (i) the spatial conditions and performance of the territories-­in­between and (ii) the relations between the spatial structure of territories-­in­between and the policy-making concerning regional planning and design. Messages for planners and policy makers are derived based on this better understanding in order to support planning sustainable territories-­in­between in a networked city region.UrbanismArchitectur

Territories-in-between: A Cross-case Comparison of Dispersed Urban Development in Europe

An increasing body of literature suggests that the conventional idea of a gradual transition in spatial structure from urban to rural does not reflect contemporary patterns of urban development and their potential for sustainable development. The research introduces the concept of territories-in-between (TiB) to address the issues surrounding the sustainability of dispersed urban development. A cross-case comparison research design was chosen to develop methods and principles that can be transferred to other geographical contexts. Ten cases in five countries were studied with the aim to answer the following questions:What spatial structures characterise dispersed urban areas in Europe? Which morphological and functional structures of dispersed urban areas offer the potential for more sustainable development? If so, how can this potential be mapped and measured to inform regional planning and design? Are there similarities and dissimilarities concerning potentials of dispersed urban areas in different locations, planning cultures, topographies and histories? Do dispersed urban areas have distinct characteristics? In sum, the findings show that dispersed urban areas in Europe are quite distinct from urban and rural areas and that they share characteristics from one place to another. The research investigated three aspects of sustainable spatial development, the potential of multi-functionality, the provision of ecosystem services and the presence and potential for mixed-use.A+BE | Architecture and the Built Environment No 2 (2020)Environmental Technology and Desig

'Territories in between': A comparative permeability study of two European regions between urban and rural - local and global

The in between city is often used to name areas which are neither urban nor rural, where “the sharp distinction between city and landscape has dissolved into an ecological and cultural continuum of a built structure between city and landscape”. Sieverts in (Huhlmann, 2007). The Thesis aims to gain a better understanding of how these territories function and how they perform according to social, economic and ecological planning goals, by developing an approach using the concept of ‘Permeability’, which I define as the property and capacity of the territory that facilitates connections and therefore flows. As a first step a classification on the regional scale to identify the ‘Territories in Between’ using two deliberately distinct and different case study areas (the province of South Holland in the Netherlands and the state of The Tyrol in Austria), is undertaken to later be able to draw conclusions which are valid in the European context. An integrated approach using the concept of permeability based on the understanding of these territories as both a place (a site or territory) and as a number of often just loosely bounded, relatively disconnected and dispersed, perhaps sprawling activities, made in and through many different kinds of networks, is used to gain a better understanding of the ‘Territories in Between’ in the two test case areas. Through the combination of economic, social and ecological as well as mapable permeability indicators, the territories can be investigated in a moderate relationalism which allows overcoming the ‘network versus territories’ as well as the ‘human versus nature’ divide. “On the one hand, networks should not be seen as non-spatial and without ‘geographical anchors’ and on the other hand, territories and scales should not be viewed as closed and static.” (Jones, 2009) Following this idea the indicators are chosen according to their suitability to establish a relationship between the territory and the flows within the landscape, describing the traces of these flows. Finally general planning and design principles are developed, which are based on a relational and not functional understanding of the ‘Territories in Between’, by comparing the indicators and the results within the different case study areas.European Postgraduate Masters in UrbanismUrbanismArchitectur

Can Landscape Urbanism Help to Plan in ‘Territories-in-Between’

Harmers (in Andexlinger 2005) calls these areas Shadowland. He sees them as areas forgotten and neglected by planners and policy makers. ‘Planners, designers and administrators often lack a sufficient insight into what goes on in areas that cannot be pinned down in conventional categories. They deny the conditions in which such areas emerged, \u85who is active in them\u85.’. Similar conclusions to Harmer’s for the Dutch case, can be found across Europe. Despite the dominance in Europe of territories that blend both urban and rural characteristics, there is widespread agreement that public policy continues mainly to divide the world into simple ‘urban’ or ‘rural’ categories (Healy 2007; Haughton et al. 2009; Shane 2005; Weber 2010). In other words, the problem we are faced with is the struggle of planners and policy makers to understand and act in areas that are in a transitional state away from an urban rural dichotomy.UrbanismArchitectur

Features of good territorial governance in the flood management along the Dutch-German border

UrbanismArchitecture and The Built Environmen

ESPON TANGO Territorial Approaches for New Governance; Applied Research 2013/1/21 Case Study Report Cross-border Cooperation in the River Rhine Basin Final Version December/2013

OTBArchitecture and The Built Environmen

Hotterdam: How space is making Rotterdam warmer, how this affects the health of its inhabitants, and what can be done about it

Background Heat waves will occur in Rotterdam with greater frequency in the future. Those affected most will be the elderly – a group that is growing in size. In the light of the Paris heat wave of August 2003 and the one in Rotterdam in July 2006, mortality rates among the elderly in particular are likely to rise in the summer. Method The aim of the Hotterdam research project was to gain a better understanding of urban heat. Heat was measured and the surface energy balance modelled from that perspective. Social and physical features of the city were identified in detail with the help of satellite images, GIS and 3D models. The links between urban heat/surface energy balance and the social/physical features of Rotterdam were determined on the basis of multivariable regression analysis. The decisive features of the heat problem were then clustered and illustrated on a social and a physical heat map. Results The research project produced two heat maps, an atlas of underlying data and a set of adaptation measures which, when combined, will make the city of Rotterdam and its inhabitants more aware and less vulnerable to heat waverelated health effects. Conclusion In different ways, the pre-war districts of the city (North, South, and West) are warmer and more vulnerable than are other areas of Rotterdam. The temperature readings that were carried out confirm these findings as far as outdoor temperatures are concerned. Indoor temperatures vary widely. Homes seem to have their own dynamics, in which the house’s age plays a role. The above-average mortality of those aged 75 and over during the July 2006 heat wave in Rotterdam can be easily explained on the basis of a) the concentration of people in this age group, b) the age of the homes they live in, and c) the sum of sensible heat and ground heat flux. A varying mix of impervious surfaces, surface water, foliage, building envelopes and shade make one area or district warmer than another. Adaptation measures are in the hands of residents, home owners and the local council alike, and relate to changing behaviour, physical measures for homes, and urban design respectively.UrbanismArchitecture and The Built Environmen

Understanding the planning of open-spaces in territories-in-between: Dupuy's network urbanism approach applied to areas in-between urban and rural

‘‘Networked regions and cities in times of fragmentation: Developing smart, sustainable and inclusive places"Urbanis

Hotterdam: Mapping the Rotterdam urban heat island

UrbanismArchitecture and The Built Environmen

Hotterdam: Hoe ruimte Rotterdam warmer maakt, hoe dat van invloed is op de gezondheid van inwoners, en wat er aan te doen is

Achtergrond Hittegolven komen in de toekomst vaker voor in Rotterdam. Daarbij zijn vooral ouderen kwetsbaar, een groep die in omvang groeit. Gelet op de Parijse hittegolf van augustus 2003 en de Rotterdamse hittegolf van juli 2006 neemt de kans toe op een verhoogde sterfte onder met name oudere inwoners in de zomerperiode. Methode Het doel van Hotterdam is een beter begrip ten aanzien van stedelijke warmte. In dat perspectief is warmte gemeten en de oppervlakte energiebalans gemodelleerd. Sociale en fysieke kenmerken van de stad zijn gedetailleerd in kaart gebracht met satellietbeelden, GIS en 3D-modellen. De verbanden tussen stedelijke warmte/oppervlakte energiebalans en de sociale/fysieke kenmerken van Rotterdam zijn bepaald aan de hand van multivariabele regressie analyse. De bepalende kenmerken voor de warmteproblematiek zijn vervolgens geclusterd en weergegeven in de warmtekaarten sociaal en fysiek. Resultaten Het onderzoek resulteert in twee warmtekaarten, een atlas met achterliggende data, en een set van adaptatiemaatregelen die bij elkaar de stad Rotterdam en haar inwoners bewuster en weerbaarder maken ten aanzien van gezondheidseffecten tijdens hittegolven. Conclusie De vooroorlogse stad (Noord, Zuid en West) is in verschillende opzichten warmer en kwetsbaarder dan andere delen van Rotterdam. De temperatuurmetingen die verricht zijn, bevestigen die bevindingen voor wat betreft de buitentemperatuur. De binnentemperatuur laat erg veel variatie zien. Woningen kennen een eigen dynamiek. Ouderdom van die woningen speelt daarbij een rol. De plek van de bovengemiddelde sterfte van 75-plussers in juli 2006 in Rotterdam laat zich goed verklaren aan de hand van a) de concentraties van 75-plussers, b) de leeftijd van de woningen waarin ze wonen en c) de som van voelbare warmte en bodemwarmtestroom. Een wisselende mix van verharding, oppervlaktewater, gebladerte, gebouwschil en schaduw maken de ene wijk of buurt warmer dan de andere wijk of buurt. Adaptatiemaatregelen liggen zowel op het bord van inwoners, woningeigenaren en gemeente en betreffen respectievelijk gedrag, fysieke maatregelen aan woningen en de inrichting van de stad.UrbanismArchitecture and The Built Environmen