For the last decades, technologies, new agricultural trade policies, environmental restrictions, high pressure through economic competition in combination with a sharp competition of land lead to the development of intensive farming. As a result, patchy landscapes have been replaced by monofunctional, homogeneous agricultural landscapes that fragment natural landscapes and take away natural and cultural diversity. The consequences of the processes of fragmentation and homogenization are both socio-economic and landscape-ecological and cause biodiversity loss and social injustice among farmers. Through changing existing paradigms about nature conservation, this project suggests an alternative approach for understanding possible interrelations between nature and agricultural practices. By reintroducing concepts about commons, a synergy can be found that compliments natural connectivity and agricultural landscapes through the establishment of a regenerative agro-ecological network that connects biotopes in a multi-functional way using current agricultural parcels and natural zones. This newly introduced Common Ground network produces a new farming method in which agricultural practice has a temporal character and is a continuous modifiable process. In this way, the vision makes use of the dual crisis as a solution rather than seeing it as the source of the problems. The Commons also resemble a new way of practising agriculture, in which land, knowledge, resources and financial risks are shared among farmers in a socially just way. In addition, these shared landscapes reflect on the social context in which farmers are considered as environmental stewards who share some of the responsibility for an ecologically balanced system.

This research explores the spatial implications of climate change and sea level rise on the Dutch Delta’s productive landscapes, focusing on integrating spatial design and water management within a risk framework. The transition from adaptive planning to planned adaptation is highlighted as crucial for addressing the unpredictability of climate change impacts, advocating for a shift in strategy from a reactive to a proactive approach in delta management. Design experiments play a central role in this research, employing critical cartography and sectional drawings as tools to analyse and synthesise localised adaptation strategies to the vulnerabilities posed by sea level rise. These design tools facilitate the exploration of innovative spatial responses that accommodate climatic uncertainties, contributing to the resilience and sustainability of the landscapes. Designing with uncertainties underpins the research methodology, embracing the unpredictability of future climate conditions as a foundation for developing adaptive spatial strategies. This approach entails a paradigm shift towards accommodation and planned adaptation, emphasising the need for flexible, integrated planning that can evolve over time. The research underscores the potential of nature-based solutions to synergise productive and protective systems, enhancing ecological, social, and economic resilience in the face of climate change and sea level rise. Through a combination of theoretical frameworks and design experiments, the research presents a forward-thinking vision for the Dutch Delta. It proposes a methodological approach to landscape and urban planning that navigates the complexities of climate adaptation, demonstrating how productive landscapes can be reimagined to thrive in an uncertain future.

This thesis explores the post-extraction potentials of Arctic infrastructural landscapes, focusing on Kiruna and the Norrbotten Technological Megasystem, to propose a transformation towards a post-capital landscape of co-existence. It interrogates the historically mono-functional, sacrificial, and determinate nature of these landscapes, emphasising the need to rethink extraction practices and their socio-ecological impacts. Combining design theory, political ecology, and economic geography this study articulates transformation strategies that couples sacrificial and repair processes, decentralises control to empower local and indigenous communities, and introduces indeterminacy to accommodate ecological and social uncertainties. The research posits that by reconfiguring the spatial logic of extraction infrastructures through their post extraction transformation potential (post-project), it is possible to devolve power, regenerate nature-cultures, and most importantly foster interdependencies and ecodependencies which can guide and regulate anticipated extraction (anti-project). The thesis presents a meta-project that scales these principles to the broader Norrbotten region, advocating for a devolution of control that encompasses economic, ecological, and social dimensions and use spatial production and accumulations as a guide to the territorial transformation. Ultimately, the thesis contributes to the discourse on post-capital futures, offering insights into the role of design in mediating between extraction practices and the material manifestations within affected landscapes. It calls for an epistemic shift towards viewing human and nature as dialectic, advocating for a co-produced future that respects both ecological integrity and cultural heritage in making the landscape of co-existence.

This thesis explores the post-extraction potentials of Arctic infrastructural landscapes, focusing on Kiruna and the Norrbotten Technological Megasystem, to propose a transformation towards a post-capital landscape of co-existence. It interrogates the historically mono-functional, sacrificial, and determinate nature of these landscapes, emphasising the need to rethink extraction practices and their socio-ecological impacts. Combining design theory, political ecology, and economic geography this study articulates transformation strategies that couples sacrificial and repair processes, decentralises control to empower local and indigenous communities, and introduces indeterminacy to accommodate ecological and social uncertainties. The research posits that by reconfiguring the spatial logic of extraction infrastructures through their post extraction transformation potential (post-project), it is possible to devolve power, regenerate nature-cultures, and most importantly foster interdependencies and ecodependencies which can guide and regulate anticipated extraction (anti-project). The thesis presents a meta-project that scales these principles to the broader Norrbotten region, advocating for a devolution of control that encompasses economic, ecological, and social dimensions and use spatial production and accumulations as a guide to the territorial transformation. Ultimately, the thesis contributes to the discourse on post-capital futures, offering insights into the role of design in mediating between extraction practices and the material manifestations within affected landscapes. It calls for an epistemic shift towards viewing human and nature as dialectic, advocating for a co-produced future that respects both ecological integrity and cultural heritage in making the landscape of co-existence.