Proof of the Pudding: Applying the City-Zen Methodology to Other European Cities.

Back in 2012, a group of enthusiasts submitted a project proposal to the EU. Many talks, partner proposals, and city explorations later, City-zen was granted EU-funding “to develop and demonstrate energy efficient cities and to build a methodology and tools for cities, industries and citizens to reach the 20-20-20 targets”. The program, rooted...

Transforming a monumental farm ensemble into a Mental Health Centre for students: A design for the transformation of the Hammen Farm on the TU Delft campus into a place for mental health and mental health awareness for TU Delft students and staff

The Hammen farm is a monumental farm ensemble located on the TU Delft campus. The farm has not been in use for years, and is in need of a new function. Another issue on campus is the growing amount of mental health related problems students are dealing with. In an effort to reduce this issues, and provide the students with the care they need,...

Designing the Future to Predict the Future: An ‘urban-first’ approach to co-creating zero-carbon neighbourhoods

The natural ecotone between people, community and carbon reduction is the zero-carbon community. Over recent decades, the design of zero-carbon communities has focussed too greatly on carbon emissions and not enough on building communities. Anthropogenic climate change is a human problem, yet people are seldom placed at the centre of design...

Dutch and American mental health hospitals in the reconstruction years (1945 - 1970)

This research has focused on the similarities and differences in the relevant socio-cultural influences and the organization of characteristic mental healthcare facilities for the Netherlands and the United States in the period from 1945 to 1970. Starting with the socio-cultural changes from this period for the Netherlands and the United States,...

Dementia in the Built Environment

Mental Wellbeing & Space: Spaces for Mental Health & Wellbeing after Dislocation

This research encompasses an exploration on spaces for mental health and wellbeing for newcomers in the Netherlands with a migration background caused by forced dislocation. This group of new Dutch citizens have a higher prevalence for mental disorders such as anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and related symptoms of a...

The Art of Behaviour: nudging towards healthy habits

This research aims to encourage healthy behaviour within the built environment using a technique called nudging. Mostly used outside of the field of architecture, nudging aims to improve health by presenting options in such a way people a more likely to choose one option (a healthier alternative), without losing any freedom of choice. <br/><br/...

Down to Get Up

People with Down Syndrome are growing older but, at the same time, are still disconnected from the world. Their needs change as they age, which is researched in this thesis. Can the design of their living environment simplify their daily activities? Guidelines are conducted from different fieldwork observations and interviews in which multiple...