From the water: Towards an adaptive landscape framework for sustainable development of agricultural area on the west side of PRD

The Pearl River Delta (PRD) is currently one of the world's fastest-growing city clusters. However, it has been a low-lying area with scarce land resources throughout history due to its dense population and frequent water-related hazards. The traditional agricultural system in the region was a response to these contradictions, serving as a...

Toward Wildfire Alternatives: Mitigating Wildfire Risk Through Landscape-Based Resilience

Wildfires are widely viewed as key evolving inputs of Mediterranean ecosystem. But anthropogenic climate changes and other socioecological recessions have transformed normal wildfire into megafire, especially under the intensifying challenges posed by agricultural abandonment and the rapid growth of tourism. So that the paradigm shift is needed...

Hybrid Morphologies: An Interdisciplinary Model for Waterfront Architecture - The Case of Zwijndrecht

Today we are facing an unpredictable future due to our climate change, which is causing an acceleration in sea-level rise and consequently flooding. Coastlines, docks, ports, deltas are at greater risk of flooding and damage, they are vulnerable to the escaping water and wetness, which leaves behind sorrow and grief. This thesis focuses on...

Edges in transition: Spatial strategies for a regeneration of socio-ecological systems along the Vistula River

The proximity of rivers stimulated the development of the economy and culture of civilizations throughout the ages. Consequently, the advancements in technology allowed people to influence the riverine systems. In riparian areas, such as the Vistula River Delta, the river was regulated and the land was reclaimed to accommodate agriculture,...

An exploration of Landscape Identity and Flood Safety, a delta dilemma?: On the reconciliation of the anthropogenic and natural flux in the peat pasture delta landscape through Building with Nature

A sectoral flood safety approach has been the critical condition for Delta Urbanization in the Netherlands until now. But does this have to be the case for future urbanization as well? In the Dutch approach to flood safety, a dilemma appears to exist between (sectoral) flood safety on the one hand and biodiversity and flood resilience on the...

Synergy through water, land and forestry systems: Towards evolutionary socio-ecological resilience in Red River Delta, Vietnam

The formation of this triangular land and lasting cultivation upon it has transformed the Red River Delta into a highly anthropocentric rice-based delta. The delta area is affected by climate change variability as externalities, a fast and persistent urban expansion and environmental degradation presenting an increasing socio-ecological...

Petro-free mobility: A regional strategy to facilitate the mobility transition in the Province of South-Holland

Human driven pollution is causing irreversible damage to the habitability of our planet. Due to these environmental concerns, it has become imperative to move away from petrochemical dependency as this industry contributes significant greenhouse gases causing air, soil and water pollution. About 85% of the petrochemical industry that travels...

Waste system rejuvenation: Configuring the dialogue between waste collection stations and cities in the South Holland region

At the moment, 23,5% of total waste production in the Netherlands comes from the construction sector. Therefore, in view of international agreements and the developing climate crisis, by 2050 this construction- and demolition sector should be transformed into a circular system that limits CO2 severely. It is important to bear in mind that...

South Holland's petroleum(e)scape: a vision and strategy towards a mutualist energy landscape in 2050

In the past decades, the port of Rotterdam has been considered as one of the main engines of the Dutch national economy, since it is the largest hub for fossil fuels in Europe. The province of South-Holland and the Port of Rotterdam hereby form the heart of the economic centre of the Netherlands, contributing to 21% of the national GDP. However,...

Virtual X Water: A roadway to circular construction and demolition sector in South Holland

To achieve a circular economy in South Holland by 2050, the construction and demolition sector must use resources efficiently, close materials loops and work with fewer emissions. Currently recycling building materials is already the approach. Yet, since this costs a lot of energy and results mostly in downcycling, it is not ideal as a long term...

Healthscapes: Meating in the middle

The future poses a major problem of feeding 9 billion people by 2050, while the current system of agriculture in itself is unsustainable and demands resources which exceed the planetary boundaries. Further continuing this trend of exploitation and destruction of ecology will only worsen the planetary stresses the Anthropocene has established....

Recipe for Resilience: For a sustainable agri-food sector in South Holland

Our modern food structure is unsustainable and fragile. Changes like climate crises, rising food demand, biodiversity loss, and the technological revolution will radicalize how and what we eat and produce. Whichever changes will happen, they will have an effect on the food system. In South Holland, this will happen with the transition to a...

Exploring New Productive Landscapes: Landscape-based spatial and temporal planning and design of post-industrial areas along Foshan’s waterways

The Pearl River Delta (PRD) is a the watershed consisting Xi (west), Bei (north) and Dong (east) rivers located in the Guangdong Province in the South-West region of China. Much of the PRD area lies between 0-20m above sea level and the rivers from the mainland feed the delta with 340 billion cubic meters of rainwater yearly (Weng, 2007). Water...

Confronting the Norwegian Paradox: Decomposing socio-territorial conflicts through modern and indigenous worldviews on time and space in Finnmark, Norway

The thesis describes the development of the oil and gas industry in Arctic Norway. This sudden increase in wealth is causing urban developments and strong inequalities across different scales. Furthermore, it is causing friction between indigenous Sámi and non-indigenous worldviews, sustained within the culturally fragile county of Finnmark. The...

Patching Up: A strategy to integrate drosscapes to achieve a circular organic sector in South Holland

In the Netherlands, the organic sector is one of the key pillars of the economy. Currently, the country holds the role of the second biggest exporter of food globally, having 94.5 billion in value of goods exported in 2019. In South-Holland itself the organic sector contributes to the regions’ budget by 16%. Most of the production is happening...

From Datasphere to Datascape: Development of the data infrastructure, as a catalyst of the energy transition and the circular economy

Economy and technological innovation have always shaped the Dutch landscape and society. The evolution of the Internet has led to a new economy based on digital information and communication. New production, consumption and business models are mushrooming, especially in the Province of South-Holland. This fast development is facilitated by the...