This thesis delves into the intricacies of designing a courthouse in Berlin, aiming to address current and future challenges within the German legal system, as well as reimagining traditional courthouse design.
In Germany, public trust in institutional organizations and the government has witnessed a considerable decline. According to a DW survey, 25% express concern about the actions of politicians and the government. The introduction of the Hartz IV law, involving cutbacks in unemployment benefits, exemplifies one of the reasons for this mistrust. Germany’s highest court recognized the insufficiency of welfare benefits (Arbeitslosengeld II), particularly for families with children. Similar governmental scandals, such as the ‘allowance affair’ in the Netherlands, have fueled citizen distrust in government and legal systems.
One contributing factor to this erosion of trust is the inaccessibility of judicial help and the legal system. Legal representation by attorneys is prohibitively expensive, averaging around 250 euros per hour ([Source](faire-integration.de)). Additionally, the current legal systems face immense pressure due to a shortage of judges and judicial staff, resulting in an alarming backlog of cases. Germany, for eight consecutive years, holds the unfortunate record of the highest number of pending cases, with 400,000 cases yet to be opened ([EEUA, European, EASO Data](source)). This backlog is a direct consequence of the understaffed judicial system.
To alleviate the strain on the existing legal system and to enhance its accessibility, affordability, and comprehensibility, a shift towards mediation emerges as a potential solution. Mediation offers significant advantages, such as being more cost-effective. According to R. Lalanne, a typical case negotiated using a mediator may cost around $6,000.00, in stark contrast to the potential cost of over $35,000.00 for litigation, assuming both mediator and attorneys bill at $250.00 per hour.
Mediation is not only cost-effective but also holds the promise of being swift, efficient, and operates in a voluntary and cooperative manner. Thus, the proposal pivots from designing a traditional courthouse to conceptualizing a ‘House of Mediation.’ By prioritizing mediation over adversarial trial settings, this innovative approach aims to make the legal process more accessible to the public.

This thesis explores the design and conceptualization of a contemporary installation art museum in Berlin, aiming to redefine the traditional white cube experience and contribute to a healthier society. The ‘white cube’ model as we know it today has been around since the late 19th century. With its neutral, flexible and decontextualized spaces it takes away all distractions from the art. However this ‘white cube’ model and passive experience has become outdated and fails to engage visitors in a more meaningful way. It is exactly this engagement and interaction with the art and other visitors what makes the museum potentially such an important building in our future society. Especially in this digital age where people are becoming more alone and isolated it is important to have places where they can come together and connect with each other. That is why the primary objective of this project is to create spaces that foster meaningful interaction and connections, ultimately contributing to a healthier and more cohesive society. This building, focusing on social health, together with eight other buildings will form a broader strategy to improve Berlins health by integrating a health beneficiary space in to the buildings design.

Berlin, a city characterized by its diversity, creativity, and resilience, stands as a vibrant hub with a rich history, influential club culture, with a prominent global position. The city’s identity has been shaped by a series of transformative events, from its growth along the Spree in 1724 and the cities expansion with characteristic blocks in 1862, up to the significant impacts of World War II and the division imposed by the Berlin Wall in 1961. The subsequent reunification process led to redevelopment, urban planning, and the evolution of Berlin’s dynamic, multicultural identity.

Aligned with this historical narrative, the city’s spatial structure, public transportation network, and urban development have undergone continuous evolution. The Berlin railway network, dating back to 1846, has expanded and adapted to the city’s growing needs, as evidenced by the i2030 expansion plans for railways (Start - i2030, 2023).

However, the evolution of train stations, integral to the city’s transportation infrastructure, has taken a distinct turn. Once serving as waiting shelters, stations have transformed into commercial entities prioritizing profit and efficiency often at the expense of inclusivity. While the program focuses on becoming a symbolic gateway to the city, there is a growing sense of exclusion despite train stations being the daily crossroads for diverse populations.

In the spirit of Berlin’s anarchistic character, which advocates a bottom-up approach to city-making, this thesis proposes a radical departure from the conventional model of train stations. Instead of admitting to the profit-driven agenda of the state-owned railway operator, Deutsche Bahn, the thesis advocates for a user-centric architectural approach which will make it inclusive. By delving into the essential needs of Berlin’s community, passengers, and commuters, the aim is to establish a harmonious balance between profit-driven objectives and the diverse requirements of the local population.
The thesis seeks inspiration from anarchism, a philosophy advocating for the absence of top-down authority. This departure from conventional architecture involves challenging the prevailing paradigm of “hostile architecture,” marked by exclusionary designs, towards a more inclusive and versatile approach focused on liveability. Through the lens of anarchistic principles, the proposal aims to redefine the S-Bahn stations along the Berlin ring, offering a compelling vision for a more user-friendly, community-oriented, and progressive environment as prototype station.

This thesis proposes a prototype station for the current S-Bahn station at Frankfurter Allee, where the seamless integration of functionality and user experience becomes the focal point. The “Frankfurter Allee Locals Foundation”, consisting of rotating local residents, jointly owns the rentable units added to the station’s program. Its former identity as containerbahnhof has been repurposed for the rentable units at this particular station.

Some recommendations on how to design a prototype station for the S-Bahn ring in Berlin combining all flows with local identities are the outcome of the research through design.

This project is an elderly school in Berlin, which aims to help the elderly enjoy their happy life by enhancing their sense of self-achievement through knowledge sharing with other people. This elderly school floats on top of Fennpfuhl Lake in the park, and the elderly could also enjoy poetic scenery while teaching and learning. It includes age-friendly design, participatory design, and multi-sensory design, aiming to help the elderly gain a sense of self-achievement through cross-age communication. The elderly school allows people to meet and talk, using classrooms, in-between spaces, and gardens to provide formal and random learning and communication opportunities. It also improves the self-satisfaction of the elderly in different aspects. The classroom is a teaching space that provides fixed courses where the elderly can gain a sense of self-achievement when teaching and acquiring knowledge. The in-between space is a space for people to communicate and rest, where random learning opportunities can be triggered. The indoor garden is separated by exhibition shelves, where the elderly carefully maintain the plants, and they will also feel happy in this planting space.

The goal of this thesis is to propose an architectural framework for designing a rehabilitation facility in Berlin to provide patients in need with the greatest possible recovery experience. It also provides much-needed follow-up treatment for Berliner patients following acute hospitalisation, eliminating the need for unnecessary and costly hospitalisations and allowing for early releases. The framework will be built around an examination of how architecture could influence the mental and physical state of recovering patients to improve their rehabilitation experience. This research will be implemented by researching the topics; Architecture, Clients, Program and Site. This will result in a design brief for a health promoting rehabilitation facility.

The graduation project “music bunker, commemorative space” adopts the adaptive reuse of a bunker to design a contemporary performing art center. This project will focus on the logistics of designing a commemorative public space and a functional auditorium in a performing art center, which can make people participate better in live music performances in their daily lives.

This thesis proposes an inner city hydrogen-powered seaplane port located in Rummelsburger Bucht, near the centre of Berlin. By using seaplanes, the airport would be a small-scaled airport with the approximate size of 50,000 square metres next to the Spree and no runways on ground would be necessary. With innovations of the hydrogen fuel, airports could be more environmentally friendly, sustainable and thus could be located at the heart of Berlin, benefiting medical passengers from rural areas and domestic travellers escaping the city for a break.