This project focuses on the sustainable development of Anxin County, situated in the Xiong'an New Area of China. The aim is to create a harmonious balance between economic growth and ecological preservation, considering the region's unique characteristics, such as the Baiyangdian wetland and the surrounding rural landscape. Taking the local wetland productive system as a starting point, the project explores the possibilities of the local agricultural landscape to be adapted to the rapid urbanization process as well as providing a climate-resilient solution for the hydrological crisis.

A strategic map has been formulated through a comprehensive analysis and evaluation of scenario building. This map emphasizes the integration of local industries, namely reed cultivation, fishery and other primary industries, and ecological preservation. By promoting the sustainability of the local industry, a more coordinated network will be built to provide enough job opportunities to residents and protect the ecological sensitivity of the wetland at the same time. The goal is to enhance the ecological and social resilience of the area and establish a sustainable development model that can be replicated in the North China Plain area.

From 1700 onwards the natural coastal landscape of Mumbai has gone through drastic changes and has become the highly urbanized metropolis we see today. The natural landscape was that of a forest to estuarine topographical gradient. This transformation of the land has had a major impact on the city’s resiliency, impacting water systems, green cover and communities. The natural systems have been built over with sea walls, causeways, railways and other such infrastructure elements that have become barriers, hampering the natural processes and flows. With urbanization, the local fishing communities that were initial inhibitors of Mumbai have been pushed to the fringes, now residing in the most vulnerable parts of the city. These problems, and the added pressure of climate change, has resulted in a very vulnerable system prone to flooding and consisting of compromised ecosystems and marginalized communities.

Considering the city as an interception within nature, it is important to look at the recovery of these elements via a nature based approach. Blue green infrastructure is a tool to deploy nature based solutions in complex urban environments. They work with landscape as infrastructure and infrastructure as landscape, creating an intertwined urban and natural system. Therefore the objective of this thesis is to explore the potentials of a blue green landscape framework that will provide conditions for hydro-morphological recovery, ecological restoration and communal requalification for the urbanized estuarine landscape of the Greater Mumbai Region. The thesis focuses on three design assignments, coastal protection, restoration of flows and communal safety. This in turn would impact the livability of the city and raise awareness of the importance of natural systems and processes in urban environments.

Design research and research by design provide the methods to direct this research where analysis and setting up of design principles are components of design research and the testing of design principles is part of research by design.

This research is conducted at three scales, examining the potentials of the blue green landscape framework at the regional scale, analyzing a watershed system boundary and a detailed design for the coastal region with elaborations related to mangroves, infrastructure and informal settlements. The research concludes with a reflection on the process and outcomes and their relevance for other geographical locations where similar threats are experienced.

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. Hence emerges the urgent necessity to reorganize and reinvent our current food system towards a sustainable and circular one to sustain life on our planet. Accordingly, the primary goal of this project is to achieve sustainability in the food sector, thereby achieving circularity and food security. The Netherlands has an extraordinary position in the global market and is globally leading in agricultural research, technology and innovation. Therefore it could prove to be fruitful to develop a regional sustainable agricultural model that could become a role model for sustainable agriculture globally. The vision is to reduce the spatial impact of our food system while discontinuing the destruction of new habitats. To achieve this, a healthy diet must be embraced, which not only proves to significantly improve our health but also facilitate a transition towards a healthier planet. By evaluating the spatial, environmental and health impacts of the current model, the negative externalities at each stage of the food sector are investigated. The diversification of the crops to be grown within South Holland is crucial in order to facilitate the transition from a food exporter to a self-sufficient region with respect to the food sector. To encourage more sustainable food production and enhance the relationship between people and their food production, it is invaluable to invest more power in the producers. Finally, the various steps involved in the food systems and the gap between people and the source of their food are reduced by initiating big food retail corporations to focus on food production. Thus, the transformation of the food industry through the integration of a sustainable agriculture model and reshaping the public’s perception of food consumption and dietary needs, will ultimately create a more healthy and balanced landscape, while aiming towards the collective goal of mitigating climate change.

The discontinuities of urban development and city expansion reveal Haizhu a fragmented and diverse area that results in disparity and isolation in different communities and social groups, and decreasing green and blue spaces. The objective of this thesis is to create an integrated and comprehensive socio-ecological network in terms of corridor and node at multiple scales that can improve the socio-spatial integration and reconnect the fragmented green and blue spaces for Haizhu district. Corridor is creating a linear connection or movement between spaces with certain buffer area to surrounding context instead of just a linear feature as boundary, while node provides certain places where nature or people can integrate with each other.