City Branding in Polycentric Regions: A qualitative study of implementation in three Dutch Cities

The purpose of this research is to study the implementation of ecological modernization branding in the cities of The Hague, Rotterdam and Utrecht in the Netherlands. These cities use ecological modernization branding to attract people, projects and investments. For example, they may project the image of being ‘smart’ and commission projects to...

Turning noise-barriers into sustainable energy systems: A full approach from experimental data to energy and cost modeling with a focus on urban wind

Current urban systems have a linear metabolism; they rely on imported resources, which are used inefficiently, and they produce waste flows. Urban areas can become productive and not only consumptive if a well-planned distributed energy system is implemented. Switching to renewables, however, means rethinking today’s urban landscape entirely....

Development towards circular urban areas, a proposal for a hybrid conceptual framework: A casestudy at the Binckhorst, The Hague

Cities today account for approximately 75% of the global Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. The process of urbanization increases emissions and places an increasing pressure on resources and livability in urban areas. While challenged with the effects of climate change, governments show increasing interest in integrating sustainable development in...

The process of urban systems integration: an integrative approach towards the institutional process of systems integration in urban area development

Today, more than half of the world’s population lives in cities. This makes them centres of resource consumption and waste production. Sustainable development is seen as an opportunity to respond to the consequences of urbanisation and climate change. In recent years the concepts of circularity and urban symbiosis have emerged as popular...

Meaningful Circular Metabolism

The main products of this graduation are a new pattern language to map difficult/technical interventions in spatial tiles, a GIS model for assessing urban metabolism potentials and restrictions and a new approach for applying urban metabolism measurements on neighbourhood level. A personal motivation for me is the relation between the urban...

Zero Waste Buiksloterham: an Integrated Approach to Circular Cities

Waste is one of the core problems in sustainable city design. In current city planning waste management systems are often disregarded. However, concepts that deal with waste and resources within urban areas are getting more and more attention. ‘Zero waste’ is one of the most visionary concepts for solving waste problems. The concept of the zero...