"Envisioning Future Food Production in Sloterdijk: An Urban Farm in a Repurposed Office Building"

Master thesis (2021)

Authors

M.K. Siupik Architecture and the Built Environment

Contributors

M.J. Smit Architectural Engineering - Architecture and the Built Environment (mentor)
G. Koskamp Design of Constrution - Architecture and the Built Environment (graduation committee member)
P.N. ten Caat Climate Design and Sustainability - Architecture and the Built Environment (graduation committee member)
Faculty
Architecture and the Built Environment, Architecture and the Built Environment
Copyright: © 2021 Michał Siupik
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Published Date

01-07-2021

Language

English

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Faculty

Architecture and the Built Environment

Abstract

Food and agricultural land become scarce, additionally farming industry’s water consumption, carbon emissions and land use are growing. Currently, the consumption of animal and processed products is high. This has a negative influence on public health and the environment. In parallel, the growing vacancy in Dutch cities creates an opportunity to reduce the distance between food producers and consumers. Introducing urban agriculture into unused spaces can help mitigate the aforementioned issues. My project focuses mostly on the area of Sloterdijk in Amsterdam which is currently undergoing a transformation. Once mainly an office district, Sloterdijk is to become a balanced working and living neighbourhood. Amsterdam municipality is planning to create 7500 new flats which can attract even 16000 new inhabitants to the area. This creates a challenge and an opportunity for the municipality, as parallelly, the ageing building stock in the area needs a renovation or replacement to meet the standards of today. My master project in Sloterdijk aims to reduce the environmental burden of farming by moving it locally. It also proposes an innovative way of adapting an obsolete building for a new function without changing it drastically. The combination of an urban farm with an educational institution can be beneficial for future neighbourhood. It can have a positive impact on dietary habits, and if applied widely, not only in Sloterdijk, can be beneficial to the whole society.